Political Wire

Archives for 2024


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Biden to Warn of the Dire Stakes of the 2024 Election

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“President Joe Biden is starting the campaign year by evoking the Revolutionary War to mark the third anniversary of the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and visiting the South Carolina church where a white gunman massacred Black parishioners — seeking to present in the starkest possible terms an election he argues could determine the fate of American democracy,” the AP reports.

“On Saturday, Biden will travel to near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, where George Washington and the Continental Army spent a bleak winter nearly 250 years ago. There, he’ll decry former President Donald Trump for the riot by a mob of his supporters who overran the Capitol in an attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election.”

America’s Deadbeat

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Lloyd Green: “Chalk up 2023 as Rudy Giuliani’s annus horribilis. On the other hand, 2024 may even be worse. The man once known as ‘America’s mayor’ faces financial ruin and criminal prosecution with no end in sight to his woes. The hair-dye dripping down his face at a 2020 press conference ominously presaged what would eventually follow.”

“It took less than two decades for the former federal prosecutor and contender for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination to morph into a punchline, full-time defendant and deadbeat.”

Michigan Republicans Move to Oust Chair

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“A group of Michigan Republicans plan to meet Saturday and discuss whether to remove Michigan GOP Chairperson Kristina Karamo following months of infighting among party members ahead of key Senate and presidential contests in the swing state,” the AP reports.

“It’s unclear whether enough party members will attend for the gathering to be official, and Karamo has made clear that she won’t recognize the vote either way, but the call for the meeting signals a remarkable decline in support for the chairperson among her grassroots supporters.”


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Consumer Confidence Set for Rebound in 2024

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“American consumer confidence — still bizarrely low given how healthy the economy is — could be set for a substantial rebound in 2024,” Axios reports.

“Consumer confidence has historically been a good predictor of whether or not incumbent politicians will be re-elected. A rebound would therefore be good news for President Biden and Democrats more broadly.”

‘Storm the Capitol’ Board Game Commemorates January 6

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A new board game, “Storm the Capitol,” is being released this weekend to commemorate the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, Newsweek reports.

From the game’s website: “Take control of one of 6 Patriots as you battle through the Capitol, collecting ballots, taking hostages, and fighting the police. Or play as the Capitol Police and use every means at your disposal to prevent the Patriots from getting to the roof with enough ballots to Stop the Steal.”

House GOP Makes High Profile Border Visit

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“Speaker Mike Johnson is kicking off the new year by leading more than 60 House Republicans to the U.S.-Mexico border on Wednesday, in a bid to raise pressure on President Biden and Democrats to agree to strict new immigration policies to choke off the flow of migrants streaming into the country,” the New York Times reports.

“During a visit to Eagle Pass, Texas, Mr. Johnson is expected to attack Mr. Biden for the surge in migrant crossings and demand that he crack down by deporting people who try to enter the country illegally and resuming construction of a border wall.”

Orrin Hatch’s Son Files to Run for Senate

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“Brent Orrin Hatch on Tuesday filed as a candidate running for Mitt Romney’s Senate seat, which was previously held by Hatch’s father, the late Sen. Orrin Hatch,” KSL reports.

“Although he hasn’t held any elected office, Hatch previously worked in Washington as an associate White House counsel to President George H.W. Bush and a law clerk to former Judge Robert H. Bork.”

The Limits of Abortion Politics

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“Democrats are scrambling to put state abortion-rights initiatives on the ballot this year in the hope that the measures will drive turnout and boost their candidates in national and local elections,” Politico reports.

“But those initiatives may not give Democrats the lift they are aiming for, according to a Politico analysis of five abortion-related measures that have appeared on the ballot since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022.”

“Voters decisively upheld abortion rights in every single case. But those margins were largely driven by Republican voters who also voted for GOP candidates. And Democratic turnout didn’t consistently increase in states with abortion referendums compared to those without. Several Democrats who were on the same ballots as abortion measures lost their races. Meanwhile, many Democrats who ran as champions of abortion rights even in states without accompanying referendums outperformed expectations.”

Biden to Travel to South Carolina

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“President Joe Biden is headed to Charleston, South Carolina, next week to visit Mother Emanuel AME Church in the latest signal of a campaign eager to shore up its standing with Black voters,” Politico reports.

“It will be the president’s first trip to the storied church since he was vice president. Biden is expected to speak at the church, his campaign told reporters on Tuesday evening. It is one of the oldest Black churches in the South and the site where nine parishioners were shot and killed by a white supremacist in 2015.”

Appeals Court Says Life-Saving Abortions Not Required

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“Federal regulations do not require emergency rooms to perform life-saving abortions if it would run afoul of state law, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday,” the Texas Tribune reports.

“After the overturn of Roe v. Wade in June 2022, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services sent hospitals guidance, reminding them of their obligation to offer stabilizing care, including medically necessary abortions, under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act.”

“Texas sued, saying this was tantamount to a ‘nationwide mandate that every hospital and emergency-room physician perform abortions.’”

About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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