Rep. Pat Meehan (R-PA) “will not seek reelection, about a week after news reports that he used taxpayer dollars to settle a former aide’s sexual harassment claim — and following the harsh response to his description of the woman as his ‘soul mate,'” the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Archives for January 2018
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Ellison Explores Run for Minnesota Attorney General
Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), the progressive congressman and deputy chair of the DNC, is exploring a run for Minnesota attorney general, Politico reports.
“Lori Swanson, the current attorney general, is expected to run for governor, leaving the race open. With his active organizing and fundraising base — amplified through his close alliance with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) — Ellison would likely scramble a field of lesser known candidates that’s begun to take shape.”
Trump Ordered Mueller Fired In June
“President Trump ordered the firing last June of Robert Mueller, the special counsel overseeing the Russia investigation, according to four people told of the matter, but ultimately backed down after the White House counsel threatened to resign rather than carry out the directive,” the New York Times reports.
“The West Wing confrontation marks the first time Mr. Trump is known to have tried to fire the special counsel. Mr. Mueller learned about the episode in recent months as his investigators interviewed current and former senior White House officials in his inquiry into whether the president obstructed justice.”
Washington Post: “The incident could now become part of Mueller’s examination of whether Trump has taken steps to try to stymie the investigation.”
Russians Got Thousands to RSVP for Phony Events
“Russian operatives used Facebook to publicize 129 phony event announcements during the 2016 presidential campaign, drawing the attention of nearly 340,000 users — many of whom said they were planning to attend,” the Washington Post reports.
It’s not possible to know how often people gathered in response to the sham announcements, but the numbers highlight how Russian operatives were successful in prompting Americans to express a willingness to take action. In some cases, Russians allegedly working in an office building in St. Petersburg motivated at least some people to mobilize behind various causes, a striking accomplishment for a foreign influence operation.
GOP Candidate Rails Against ‘Feminist She Devils’
Missouri U.S. Senate candidate Courtland Sykes (R) has ignited a social media firestorm with a Facebook post in which he calls feminists “she devils” and expounds on how he wants his wife to cook his dinner, the Kansas City Star reports.
Sykes wrote that he rejects “radical feminism’s crazed definition of modern womanhood” and that he wants daughters who will be homemakers rather than “career obsessed banshees” or “nailbiting manophobic feminist she devils.”
Mueller Had No Interest In Bannon Until Book
A lawyer close to special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation told the Daily Beast that before the release of Michael Wolff’s book Fire and Fury, the special counsel’s team indicated “zero interest” in questioning President Trump’s former chief strategist Stephen Bannon for their Russia probe.
Bannon himself told Wolff that he didn’t expect to hear from Mueller: “I know no Russians, I don’t know nothin’ about nothin. I’m not being a witness. I’m not hiring a lawyer.”
He’s now expected to talk with the special counsel’s team by the end of the month.
Megyn Kelly to Cover Trump’s State of the Union
NBC staff members are “horrified” that Megyn Kelly will be part of the team covering the State of the Union for the network a source tells the Daily Mail.
The network denied the claim: “Not only is there zero truth to this, but everyone is genuinely excited to see her jump back into political coverage.”
Shutdown Erases Bump In Trump’s Approval
“During a week featuring a three-day government shutdown, the job approval rating of President Trump fell slightly in the latest SurveyMonkey tracking poll, wiping out a holiday ‘bump’ that had lifted briefly lifted his rating as high at 44%.”
“This past week, 40% of Americans say they approve of the way Trump is handling his job as president, while 58% disapprove.”
Trump Will Support Citizenship Path for 1.8 Million
“President Trump’s immigration proposal to Congress will include a path to citizenship for an estimated 1.8 million young undocumented immigrants… more than twice the number of ‘dreamers’ who were enrolled in a deferred action program Trump terminated last fall,” the Washington Post reports.
“The figure represents a significant concession to Democrats but is likely to produce sharp blowback among conservative Republicans.”
“Trump’s plan… also includes a $25 billion ‘trust fund’ for a border wall and additional security upgrades on both the southwest and northern U.S. borders. And the president will propose significant curbs to legal immigration channels, restricting the ability of U.S. citizens to petition for visas only for spouses and minor children and ending categories for parents and siblings. Both of those provisions are likely to engender fierce objections among liberal Democrats.”
The New York Times reports White House officials called the plan “extremely generous” but also a “take-it-or-leave-it proposal” by the president.
Trump Attorney Has Not Decided on Talking to Mueller
“John Dowd, a lawyer for President Donald Trump, told the Daily Beast on Wednesday he will be the one to decide whether or not Trump sits down for an interview with special counsel Robert Mueller. Dowd also said he hasn’t made any decision on whether or not an interview will happen.”
“Dowd noted that the president will only talk to Mueller if his legal team advises him to do so.”
Cruz Blasts Citizenship Path Suggested by Trump
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) “blasted the idea of giving young undocumented immigrants a path to citizenship, a day after President Trump said he was open to the idea as part of immigration legislation being negotiated in Congress,” Bloomberg reports.
Said Cruz: “I do not believe we should be granting a path to citizenship to anybody here illegally. Doing so is inconsistent with the promises we made to the men and women who elected us.”
Cordray and DeWine Lead In Ohio
A new Fallon Research poll in Ohio finds Richard Cordray (D) narrowly leads the wide-open Democratic race for governor, while Attorney General Mike DeWine (R) is running away with the Republican primary.
In a head-to-head match up, DeWine leads Cordray 49% to 28%, with 23% of respondents unsure.
Can the GOP Make the Midterms About Immigration?
Matt Bai: “Senate Democrats are right to worry that another shutdown might get in the way of that goal. Up to now, absent this shutdown business, Democrats have been looking at a midterm election cycle so promising that even Vladimir Putin couldn’t find a way to rig it.”
“But the longer this standoff looms, the more likely it is that the midterms will become all about immigration. And here the math isn’t nearly so favorable for Democrats, who champion immigration generally but rarely talk about the legitimate anxieties arising from porous borders.”
Republicans Say Meehan Will Have to Step Aside
“Pennsylvania Republicans increasingly believe Rep. Pat Meehan (R-PA), the latest elected official to be tarnished by a sexual harassment claim, will not be able to run for reelection this fall — and it’s now a question of whether he resigns or declares this to be his last term,” the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
“One, who has been in touch with Meehan’s congressional aides, said the Delaware County Republican is being walked through his dim political prospects and weighing his next step, but that a departure is all-but certain.”
Rubio Ditches Bipartisan ‘Gang’ on Immigration
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), “a key co-author of the 2013 Gang of Eight comprehensive immigration bill, has no plans to join a swelling bipartisan group of senators trying to strike a deal to protect Dreamers,” Politico reports.
“In fact, other senators say Rubio prefers a more conservative approach than the bipartisan group. And his reluctance to join the new gang underscores the steep challenge — and sense of pessimism — for reaching an agreement on a tight schedule that can win support from the House, Senate and President Trump.”
The Common Good
Out next month: The Common Good by Robert B. Reich.
“Societies and nations undergo virtuous cycles that reinforce and build the common good, as well as vicious cycles that undermine it. Over the course of the past five decades, Reich contends, America has been in a slowly accelerating vicious cycle–one that can and must be reversed.”
Romney Will Announce Senate Bid Next Week
Sources close to Mitt Romney tell UtahPolicy.com that the former GOP presidential nominee will announce next week that he is running for the U.S. Senate this year.
Democratic Group Seeks to Elect Secretaries of State
“The left-leaning ballot access group iVote will spend at least $5 million across swing states to elect Democratic secretaries of state — the latest front in the ‘voting wars’ that Democrats worried they have been losing,” the Washington Post reports.
The states targeted: Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico and Ohio. Only one of those states, New Mexico, has a Democratic secretary of state.
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