First Read: “Well, history tends to suggest that a party fares pretty well after the opposing party has held on to the White House for eight years. The one modern exception, of course, was 1988, when George H.W. Bush succeeded Reagan. So it’s worth noting that Hillary Clinton’s probable candidacy isn’t intimidating Republicans — in fact, it appears to be the reverse. Then again, the more Republicans who run and spend millions upon millions in beating each other up is all POTENTIALLY good news for Clinton. Of course, the more crowded the GOP field gets could also entice a high-profile Democrat like Elizabeth Warren to get in.”
Archives for January 2015
What Would It Mean If Romney Runs?
Morning Line: “It would upend the race. He leads in national GOP polls, but more importantly, Romney would start as the favorite in New Hampshire. The winner of the New Hampshire primary on the Republican side has gone on to the be the party’s nominee in nine of the last 11 presidential elections. Notably, that includes all of the last three cycles. Romney would also threaten former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and move New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie down a notch for the establishment track, setting up the potential for a protracted nomination fight between a couple of establishment candidates, the most viable harder-line conservative and possibly Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY). Of course, Romney came within 34 caucus votes of winning Iowa. And if conservatives split like they did last time, a Romney Iowa and New Hampshire sweep is possible.”
First Read: “And don’t forget this about Romney: Before his presidential aspirations, he had really never failed at anything before. That could be driving him more than anything else. “
Beau Biden Joins Donor’s Law Firm
Former Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden “didn’t waste time finding a job,” the Wilmington News Journal reports.
“Biden, who left office last week ahead of a planned campaign for governor in 2016, will work as a lawyer at Grant & Eisenhofer, the law firm run by Stuart Grant, a prominent Democratic donor and plaintiffs’ lawyer who represents institutional investors in Delaware Chancery Court.”
Quote of the Day
“There are some who believe that the path to Republican victory is to run to the mushy middle, is to blur distinctions. I think recent history has shown us that’s not a path to success.”
— Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), quoted by the Wall Street Journal, on Mitt Romney flirting with another presidential bid.
Texas Official Grants Amnesty to Cupcakes
In his first official act as Texas Agriculture Commissioner, Sid Miller “granted full amnesty to cupcakes. Cakes, pies, and brownies made the list, too,” the Texas Tribune reports.
“Miller was seeking to reassure Texas parents that it’s legal to bring cupcakes and other treats to school — and that he’ll protect that right.”
LePage Suggests He Might Run for Senate
Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) said that he is considering running against Sen. Angus King (I-ME) in 2018, the Portland Press Herald reports.
White House Never Asked About Paris Trip
The White House admitted that “it should have sent a higher-profile official to a Paris rally where 1.5 million people marched in a show of unity against terrorism,” the Washington Post reports.
“The White House cited security concerns and the fact that the rally came together quickly, in about 36 hours.”
However, a Secret Service official “said the agency was not asked or notified about a potential trip to Paris.”
Cameron Wants New Online Data Laws
British Prime Minister David Cameron pledged a “comprehensive piece of legislation” to close the “safe spaces” used by suspected terrorists to communicate online with each other, the BBC reports.
“If he wins the election, Mr Cameron said he would increase the authorities’ power to access both the details of communications and their content.”
Pataki Says He’s Considering a White House Bid
Former New York Gov. George Pataki (R) told the AP he’s “again considering a White House campaign because the nation can’t risk electing another Democratic president.”
Said Pataki: “That’s one of the reasons I think the outcome of this election is so important, and I’m so much more inclined to get involved.”
McConnell Pulls Lee Into Leadership
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) is now counselor to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), the Washington Examiner reports.
“The Utah Republican is steering committee chairman, a post that often comes with a seat in leadership. But McConnell wasn’t obligated to bring Lee into the fold last week, when he appointed him as one of four counsellors to the Republican leadership. The Kentuckian never extended a similar offer to Jim DeMint when he led steering. Lee and McConnell hardly have a chummy history, although the majority leader shrewdly keeps potential enemies close.”
Gay Marriage Ban Thrown Out in South Dakota
“A federal judge on Monday declared South Dakota same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional, paving the way for a likely appeals court battle,” the Sioux Falls Argus Leader reports.
Newsom’s Power Play
Gavin Newsom’s decision not to run for U.S. Senate in California “capped a furious 72 hours of discussions among the would-be candidates and their advisers over whether to jump at the state’s first open Senate seat in two decades, or hold out for a shot at leading a state that is the world’s eighth-largest economy,” Politico reports.
In announcing his plans, Newsom got out ahead of Kamala Harris “who has told friends that she is also interested in the job of governor. Instead, on Tuesday, she will launch a campaign for Boxer’s seat, knowing that if she hesitated, it would appear that she was reluctant to choose the Senate over the governorship. In doing so, she will circumvent a race against Newsom; it has long been assumed that they would avoid a titanic clash that would leave one of them badly wounded, their hopes for higher office potentially derailed.”
Can Democrats Win Back the House in 2016?
Stu Rothenberg: “Democrats have a better chance of winning control of the House next year than they did at any time in 2014. That’s true even though they now need to gain 30 seats, almost twice what they needed last year.”
Kamala Harris Will Run for U.S. Senate
California Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris will announce tomorrow that she is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Barbara Boxer, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Said an adviser: “She’s not testing the waters. She’s charting the course. She’s in with both feet.”
Romney Promises It Will Be Different This Time
In meetings with and individual calls to donors, supporters and former staffers, Mitt Romney “is making it clear that he is likely to run, putting his time frame for a decision at ‘weeks, not months,'” Politico reports.
“Romney, who made a fortune in the financial sector and was cast by Democrats in 2012 as a heartless businessman, wants to make tackling poverty — a key issue for his 2012 vice-presidential running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan — one of the three pillars of his campaign. The former Massachusetts governor also says he’ll have a different communications staff and hopes to show voters a version of himself they didn’t get to see last time. (There’s even a Netflix documentary he can point to.)”
Ryan Won’t Run for President
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) told NBC News in an interview Monday that he will not seek the presidency in 2016.
Ryan noted that he is “at peace” with the decision he made “weeks ago” to forgo a bid for the White House.
Romney Moves Aggressively to Rebuild Network
“Mitt Romney is moving quickly to reassemble his national political network, spending the weekend and Monday calling former aides, donors and other supporters — as well as onetime foes such as Newt Gingrich,” the Washington Post reports.
“Romney’s message was that he is serious about making a 2016 presidential bid. He told one senior Republican he ‘almost certainly will’ run in what would be his third campaign for the White House, this person said. His aggressive outreach over the past three days indicates that Romney’s declaration of interest to a group of donors in New York Friday was more than the release of a trial balloon but rather was the start of a concerted push by the 2012 nominee to be an active participant in the 2016 campaign.”
Mother Jones has compiled all the times Romney said he wouldn’t run for president again.
No One Has Given to Dick Morris’s Anti-Hillary PAC
Bloomberg: “Sixteen months ago, to some fanfare, Dick Morris re-entered the anti-Clinton fray with a new PAC. He launched Dick Morris’s Just Say No to Hillary PAC… But there is a rather glaring problem with adding Morris to this narrative: No one has been giving money to his PAC. Literally, no one.”
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