Archives for April 2015

GOP Hopefuls Attack Obamacare While Taking the Money

April 1, 2015 at 8:02 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 7 Comments

“Several Republican governors likely to run for president have secured hundreds millions of dollars under Obamacare while working to dismantle the healthcare law,” Reuters reports.

“Governors Scott Walker of Wisconsin, Chris Christie of New Jersey, Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and former Texas Governor Rick Perry, all staunch opponents of President Barack Obama’s 2010 Affordable Care Act, have collectively applied for and won at least $352 million through grant programs set up by the law, federal records show.”

“The action is at odds with the public stance of all four potential candidates, who have blasted the law as an unprecedented expansion of government and called for its repeal.”

Walker Is Allergic to Dogs

April 1, 2015 at 8:00 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 29 Comments

Gov. Scott Walker (R) “is allergic to dog dander,” an aide told the New York Times.

“And in that, he is running against the long sweep of United States political history. If the ritual for presidential candidates wooing American voters had a handbook, ‘must love dogs’ would be somewhere near the front.”

New Group Will Secretly Funnel Money to Bush

April 1, 2015 at 7:07 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 13 Comments

Jeb Bush “has given his tacit endorsement to a new group that can collect unlimited amounts of money in secret, part of a bold effort by his advisers to create a robust external political operation before he declares his expected White House bid,” the Washington Post reports.

“The nonprofit group, Right to Rise Policy Solutions, was quietly established in Arkansas in February by a friend and former Bush staffer. The group shares the name of two political committees for which Bush has been aggressively raising money — blurring the line that is supposed to separate a campaign from independent groups.”

“While ideological nonprofits have become major players in national politics in recent years, this marks the first time one has been so embedded in the network of a prospective candidate.”

GOP Candidates Backed Into Corner Over Indiana Law

April 1, 2015 at 6:59 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 24 Comments

Gov. Mike Pence (R) “just lobbed a grenade into the Republican presidential field,” Politico reports.

“The Indiana governor’s religious freedom law has ignited yet another controversial culture war debate that has Republican contenders juggling awkward questions about issues they would just as soon not touch.”

Washington Post: “Republicans had sought to avoid such disputes in 2016, but most top GOP presidential contenders quickly backed the bill, putting them out of step with growing national support for gay rights.”

Arkansas Passes ‘Religious Freedom’ Bill

April 1, 2015 at 6:54 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 14 Comments

“The Arkansas legislature on Tuesday passed its version of a bill described by proponents as a religious freedom law, even as Indiana’s political leaders struggled to gain control over a growing backlash that has led to calls to boycott the state because of criticism that its law could be a vehicle for discrimination against gay couples,” the New York Times reports.

“The Arkansas bill now goes to the state’s Republican governor, Asa Hutchinson, who expressed reservations about an earlier version but more recently said he would sign the measure if it ‘reaches my desk in similar form as to what has been passed in 20 other states.’ But the bill already faces a significant corporate backlash, including from Doug McMillon, the chief executive of Walmart, the state’s largest corporation, who said Tuesday afternoon that Mr. Hutchinson should veto it.”

Clinton Foundation Makes It Hard to Follow the Money

April 1, 2015 at 6:15 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 10 Comments

The Atlantic: “That conflict of interest was inappropriate for a Cabinet secretary. It ought to be intolerable in a president. Foreign governments would obviously attempt to curry favor or avoid wrath by contributing to an organization that is helping to shape her husband’s legacy, providing a livelihood for her daughter, and would perhaps constitute her base of power and influence in the years after she left the White House.”

“Yet the Clinton family seems to think it would be OK for Bill and Chelsea to keep running the foundation during the campaign (when foreign governments will surely wonder if generous donations might pay off later) and even if Hillary is president!”