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June 18, 2017

13 posts · Sunday

Nasty Ad Links Ossoff to Congressional Shooting

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Jon Ossoff (D) and Karen Handel (R) strongly condemned an attack ad that surfaced accusing the “unhinged left” of endorsing violence against Republicans days before the nationally-watched race to represent Georgia’s 6th District is decided, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.

“The ad, funded by a little-known group called the Principled PAC, opens with sounds of gunshots and footage of Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) being wheeled away on a stretcher after he and other members of the Republican congressional baseball team were ambushed by a lone gunman while practicing in a Washington suburb.”

Memo Shows Nixon White House Plotted Violence

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“Watergate prosecutors had evidence that operatives for then-President Richard Nixon planned an assault on anti-war demonstrators in 1972, including potentially physically attacking Vietnam whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg,” according to a never-before-published memo obtained by NBC News.

“The document, an 18-page 1973 investigative memorandum from the Watergate Special Prosecution Force, sheds new light on how prosecutors were investigating attempts at domestic political violence by Nixon aides, an extremely serious charge… A plot to physically attack Ellsberg is notable because the former Pentagon official has long alleged that Nixon operatives did more than steal his medical files, the most well-known effort to discredit him.”

Ryan Insists GOP Agenda Is On Track

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Playbook: “Speaker Paul Ryan spent the weekend at the Homestead in Virginia for his annual ‘Team Ryan’ summer outing. His message to K Streeters and donors: the Republican agenda is on track. The Wisconsin Republican laid out his preferred timeline for Obamacare repeal bill, saying that it will be done by mid-summer and tax reform will be completed by the end of the year. Ryan said that he expected the Senate to pass their health care bill before the July 4 recess and that would give House Republicans the rest of July to take action.”

“Ryan said he has been talking to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell daily. Ryan also was bullish on infrastructure, telling the group that a series of infrastructure bills will be passed by the end of the year.”

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Senate Secrecy on Health Care Is Not Normal

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Los Angeles Times: “Don Ritchie, historian emeritus of the Senate, said not since the years before World War I has the Senate taken such a partisan, closed-door approach to major legislation.”

“A century ago, Senate Democrats, at the urging of President Woodrow Wilson, drew up major tariff reforms while shutting out Republicans. But when Democratic leaders tried that again when they had large majorities during the Great Depression, rank-and-file senators revolted. It hasn’t happened since, he said.”

Trump Aides Already Looking to Cash In?

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Jonathan Swan: “A well-known book agent tells me Kellyanne and other top officials could expect ‘high seven figures’ if they publish the first ‘insider’ book on life inside the Trump campaign or White House. The agent told me he’s heard from a number of officials currently inside the White House who want to know how much money they could expect to make from writing books when they leave.”

“Corey Lewandowski is reportedly one step ahead of them. CNN’s Oliver Darcy reports that the sacked campaign manager is shopping a book through his agent. I’m told he can expect more than $1 million if he goes through with it.”

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The 5 Types of Trump Voters

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This piece is only available to Political Wire members.

A new study from the Democracy Fund Voter Study Group looked at polling data to discover there is really no such thing as “one kind of Trump voter” who voted for him for one single reason. Many voted with enthusiasm for Trump while others were primarily voting against Hillary Clinton.

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Will Ground Game Make the Difference for Ossoff?

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CNN: “More than 140,000 voters had cast their ballots by the time early voting in Georgia closed Friday — another indication of sky-high turnout in the closely watched runoff for a House seat between Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel.”

Politico: “While television advertising still dominated most candidates’ campaign budgets, Ossoff is pouring millions into an unprecedented ground game to turn out new voters and those who haven’t voted in non-presidential elections previously.”

“That scrambles the calculus for pollsters, who usually rely on past performance to determine whom they call and who comprises their surveys. In a typical special election, pollsters can rely on data from past midterm and off-year races to establish a likely electorate.”

New Ad Targets 5 GOP Senators on Health Care

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“An organization that opposes the Republican effort to repeal and replace key parts of the Affordable Care Act is pressuring five GOP senators not to vote for the emerging legislation in a new $1.5 million ad campaign that begins Monday,” the Washington Post reports.

The ad is targeting Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Susan Collins (R-ME), Dean Heller (R-NV) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) with television and radio ads urging them to vote no.

Macron’s Party Set for Parliamentary Landslide in France

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“The centrist party of French President Emmanuel Macron looks set to win a landslide victory in the second round of parliamentary elections on Sunday,” the BBC reports.

“A party needs 289 seats to control the 577-seat National Assembly. LREM is predicted to win more than 400. Mr Macron won the presidential election last month and he is now hoping to secure a solid majority to help push through his planned reforms for the country.”

“He formed his party just over a year ago, and half of its candidates have little or no political experience.”

Washington Post: “Macron rose from relative obscurity to score a landslide victory in the presidential election in May, becoming the first winning candidate in decades to come from neither the traditional center-right nor center-left parties. But now, something even more momentous is happening: Macron is leading a total overhaul of an ossified political system.”

Why Republicans Won’t Work for Trump Administration

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“The array of legal and political threats hanging over the Trump presidency has compounded the White House’s struggles to fill out the top ranks of the government,” the Washington Post reports.

“Republicans say they are turning down job offers to work for a chief executive whose volatile temperament makes them nervous. They are asking head-hunters if their reputations could suffer permanent damage, according to 27 people The Washington Post interviewed to assess what is becoming a debilitating factor in recruiting political appointees.”

Key statistic: “At this point, Trump has 43 confirmed appointees to senior posts, compared with the 151 top political appointees confirmed by mid-June in President Barack Obama’s first term and the 130 under President George W. Bush.”

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.

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