Archives for July 2019

‘Moscow Mitch’

July 26, 2019 at 8:27 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

In a nearly seven-minute harangue, Joe Scarborough dismissed the Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) as “Moscow Mitch” for what he deemed as “un-American” lack of action on election security, Mediaite reports.

The Morning Joe host then suggested that McConnell may be benefiting from a Russian oligarch’s investment in his home state: “I understand that there’s an oligarch that I have read is going to be setting up a big aluminum plant in Moscow Mitch’s home state.”

He added: “I don’t know if that’s it. But how can Moscow Mitch so willingly turn a blind eye not only this year to what his Republican chairman of the Intel committee is saying, to what Robert Mueller is saying what the FBI director is saying what the DNI is saying, to what the CIA is saying, to what the United States military Intel community is saying. How can Moscow Mitch keep denying that Vladimir Putin continues to try to subvert American democracy?”

What We Learned from the Budget Deal

July 26, 2019 at 8:09 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Jonathan Bernstein: “One is that it’s no coincidence that extended government shutdowns have happened in 1995-1996, 2013, and 2018-2019. They all began with Republican majorities in the House. So did the debt-limit brinkmanship of 2011. Although Democrats bargained hard for spending they wanted in this deal, they never really threatened to disrupt the government or the economy over it. Perhaps they’re more responsible than Republicans. But Democratic majorities have also always had substantive goals that they were out to achieve in these negotiations.”

“Republicans? Not so much. They’re after confrontation for its own sake.”

Trump Anxiety Syndrome

July 26, 2019 at 8:03 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Edward Luce: “A few days ago a psychologist friend told me something that was at once startling and unsurprising; she is seeing far more patients than before Donald Trump was elected — and they tend to be suffering from deeper anxiety. Some people call this the Trump Anxiety Syndrome (TAD), or Post Trump Stress Syndrome (PTSD). People of a more Trumpian flavour might dismiss it as Liberal Snowflake Disorder (LSD), or old-fashioned anecdotal exaggeration. I concede that there is no definitive data to back it up. Other than rising anti-anxiety Xanax prescriptions and surveys such as this from the American Psychiatric Association, it is hard to find incontrovertible statistics.”

“Blaming everything on Trump is facile. Yet omitting him from the equation would be just as mistaken. My own view is that Trump will leave America considerably less mentally healthy than how he found it. His election was the product of an increasingly anxious society. But we find ourselves collectively far more anxious as a result. Trump is a rocket-booster to our toxic stress. He is a cure worse than the disease.”

Warren to Announce One Million Donations

July 26, 2019 at 7:59 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaign is set to announce on Friday that it has received more than 1 million donations this election, CNN reports.

“It will bolster the argument that the Warren team’s big bet on small-dollar and grassroots fundraising is working — the senator has vowed not to solicit money from wealthy donors, including in phone calls and fundraisers, during the primaries.”

Nadler and Pelosi Are on a Collision Course

July 26, 2019 at 7:44 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Daily Beast: “All committee chairs and House speakers have disagreements over jurisdiction, power, and strategic direction. But the relationship between Nadler and Pelosi is particularly sensitive now given the stakes of the issues they’re tackling. The special counsel’s office has closed, its report made public, and its director, Mueller, has testified on Capitol Hill about its contents. Now that the Russia investigation, as the American public understands it, has all but come to an end, both leaders are left answering questions about what comes next.”

“For Pelosi, the answer is simple: Stay the course. For Nadler, that course is becoming increasingly difficult to trek with members from his own committee, and constituents back home, calling not only for impeachment proceedings but for tougher posture toward a White House that seems hell-bent on making his oversight work impossible.”

Fears of Socialism Spark GOP Fundraising

July 26, 2019 at 7:32 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Wealthy Republican donors frightened of a socialist takeover in Washington have boosted support for House Republicans despite concerns about the party’s direction, providing a ray of hope for recapturing the majority in 2020,” the Washington Examiner reports.

“Democrats scoff at House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky for insisting Democrats in Congress are a bunch of socialists led by ‘the squad,’ … But the message is paying dividends, literally, with Republican donors writing five, six and seven figure checks to the party’s congressional campaign committees and affiliated super PACs.”

Conservative PAC Raised $10 Million – And Kept It

July 26, 2019 at 7:25 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“After recruiting thousands of donors for the American Conservative Union — the powerful organization behind the annual CPAC conference — a Republican political operative pushed the same contributors to give millions to a PAC that promised to go after then-President Barack Obama, but then steered much of their donations to himself and his partners,” ProPublica reports.

“The PAC, called the Conservative Majority Fund, has raised nearly $10 million since mid-2012 and continues to solicit funds to this day, primarily from thousands of steadfast contributors to conservative causes, many of them senior citizens. But it has made just $48,400 in political contributions to candidates and committees.”

Farmers Seek Cease-Fire In Trade Wars

July 26, 2019 at 7:22 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Trump administration on Thursday unveiled details of a $16 billion aid package to help farmers hurt by President Trump’s trade war with China, as soybean growers from around the country converged on Washington to tell lawmakers that rural America is ready for a cease-fire,” the New York Times reports.

“Farmers have been among the biggest casualties of the trade fight, with Beijing slowing — and in some cases ending — purchases of American agricultural goods as retaliation for Mr. Trump’s tariffs on Chinese imports. They have also suffered from retaliatory tariffs that the European Union, Canada and Mexico placed on American farm goods after Mr. Trump slapped levies on foreign metals.”

Biden Bounces Back

July 26, 2019 at 7:14 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Fox News poll finds Joe Biden holding on to a steady lead from a pre-debate poll in the latest piece of good polling news for the former vice president after faltering in the first debate.

“The former vice president leads the field with 33%. He’s followed by Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 15%, Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s 12% and Sen. Kamala Harris’ 10%.”

Pro-Impeachment Democrats Not Backing Down

July 26, 2019 at 7:09 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Democrats who favor impeachment proceedings against President Trump showed new signs of life Thursday even after former special counsel Robert Mueller’s uneven testimony this week failed to sway reluctant House leaders,” Politico reports.

“Five Democrats publicly endorsed an impeachment inquiry post-Mueller, joining more than 90 lawmakers who had already come out in favor.”

“Even though some had anticipated a more significant groundswell of new support after Mueller’s appearance, these lawmakers insist the impeachment effort isn’t dead.”

CNN: “House Democrats who are publicly and privately agitating to begin impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump are growing worried that their time is running short — and that they are missing key opportunities to give them a clear opening to mount a formal probe.”

Pelosi to Meet With Ocasio-Cortez

July 26, 2019 at 7:05 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are scheduled to meet face-to-face Friday after weeks of public friction between the two high-profile Democrats., USA Today reports.

Said Pelosi: “I’m looking forward to it.”

Said Ocasio-Cortez: “‘It’s nothing too climactic. just trying to make sure we have an open line of communication and get on the same page.”

Trump’s DMZ Diplomacy Fails

July 26, 2019 at 7:01 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The day after President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un shook hands last month at Korea’s demilitarized zone, Pyongyang’s official report hailed the meeting as delivering a ‘new breakthrough in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,'” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“But not even a month later, the goodwill generated by the DMZ diplomacy appears to have soured.”

“Pyongyang has grown angrier in recent weeks, sapping its apparent enthusiasm for jump-starting stalled talks aimed at ending the North’s nuclear program. The Kim regime’s fury culminated Thursday in the launch of two short-range missiles, the North’s first weapons test since May.”

Pelosi Rebounds After Week of Infighting

July 26, 2019 at 6:55 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Speaker Nancy Pelosi had a list in hand as she worked the floor on Wednesday, buttonholing her members to secure an even bigger vote count for her hard-fought, massive budget deal,” Politico reports

“By Thursday, Pelosi shepherded enough Democrats to back her grand fiscal bargain with President Trump that she didn’t need a single GOP vote — a decisive victory for Democrats and a stark rebound for the speaker after a chaotic month that laid bare painful divisions within the caucus.}

“Separately, Pelosi navigated her caucus through one of the most high-profile moments of the majority — former special counsel Robert Mueller’s appearance on Capitol Hill — while averting what some Democrats feared could be a stampede toward impeachment.”

Trump Reviews 2020 Challengers

July 26, 2019 at 6:49 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Trump, his top political advisers and congressional leaders gathered for an extensive political briefing at the White House on Thursday — and one topic of discussion centered on which Democratic candidates pose the biggest threat to his reelection,” Politico reports.

“Toward the end of the meeting, Trump, who was joined in the Blue Room by Vice President Mike Pence, went around the room and asked for opinions on the Democratic contenders. Campaign manager Brad Parscale noted that Elizabeth Warren was rising, Republican National committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said Kamala Harris could pose a threat in Michigan, and Trump 2020 adviser Bill Stepien highlighted Joe Biden as a potentially formidable threat.”

Democratic Lawmaker Sets Deadline for Impeachment

July 25, 2019 at 6:30 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) told CNN that if Democrats don’t “take action” on impeachment by September 1, “we should just shut it down.”

For members: How Democrats Need to Think About Impeachment

2020 Democrats Mostly Ignore Mueller Hearings

July 25, 2019 at 6:20 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“From the vantage point of many Democrats running for president, former special counsel Robert Mueller’s testimony before Congress was a nonevent,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Mr. Mueller’s appearance Wednesday before two House committees prompted little response among the 2020 presidential hopefuls.”

All 50 States Were Targeted by Russia

July 25, 2019 at 6:04 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Senate Intelligence Committee concluded Thursday that election systems in all 50 states were targeted by Russia in 2016, largely undetected by the states and federal officials at the time, but at the demand of American intelligence agencies the committee was forced to redact its findings so heavily that key lessons for the 2020 election are blacked out,” the New York Times reports.

“While details of many of the hackings directed by Russian intelligence, particularly in Illinois and Arizona, are well known, the committee’s report describes a Russian intelligence effort more far-reaching than the federal government has previously acknowledged.”

Washington Post: It’s not just the Russians anymore as Iranians and others turn up disinformation efforts ahead of 2020 vote.

Omar Challenger Charged with Felony

July 25, 2019 at 5:52 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“A pro-Trump Republican candidate for Congress who is aiming to unseat Ilhan Omar in Minnesota has been charged with a felony after allegedly stealing from stores,” the Guardian reports.

“Danielle Stella was arrested twice this year in Minneapolis suburbs over allegations that she shoplifted items worth more than $2,300 from a Target and goods valued at $40 from a grocery store.”