Out next month: The Center Holds: Obama and His Enemies by Jonathan Alter.
Quote of the Day
“Frightened citizens, sheltered in place, with no means to defend themselves or their families from whatever might come crashing through their door. How many Bostonians wished they had a gun two weeks ago?”
— The National Rifle Association’s Wayne LaPierre, quoted by the Boston Globe.
Republicans Pay Tribute to NRA Clout
“In an indicator of the continued influence of the nation’s largest gun-owners’ group, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, and other Republican politicians addressed the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting in Houston Friday, celebrating the defeat of gun legislation in the Senate, assailing the media, and offering a strong defense of the powerful lobbying organization,” NBC News reports.
Politico reports how not a single Democrat spoke at the NRA conference.
Why Gun Control Still Doesn’t Pass
Paul Begala: “The fault lies not with the politicians. And it certainly does not lie with President Obama, who bravely pushed this issue far beyond the dictates of political prudence. It may not even lie with the Republicans, although 90 percent of GOP senators voted against a compromise background-check bill that was weaker than bus-stop chili. The fault lies with the voters–at least those of us who support common-sense gun safety. Those politicians don’t think they’ll get beaten for voting against gun control.”
Obama’s Leadership Challenge
Joan Walsh: “If the president can’t single-handedly force reason on Republicans, what can he do to advance his agenda? I’m reminded of his political meltdown after the debt-ceiling deal in August, 2011. He got out of his funk by enthusiastically flacking a jobs bill that had no chance of passing Congress, but that let him connect with voters and remind them that Democrats had plans to make things better, even if they couldn’t implement them because of Republican obstruction.”
“If he can’t get anything done, he should still be telling the story of what he wants to do, what Democrats are eventually going to do, when the country gives them control of the steering wheel.”
E.J. Dionne: “The nation’s political conversation has grown stale, and many Americans have lost the sense of what he is doing to improve their lives.”
Most Powerful But Much Out of His Control
Politico: “President Barack Obama is the most powerful man in the world, but he still laments that there is so much still out of his control. Obama told Ohio State University graduates Sunday that it will be their responsibility to make the world a better place, because forces aligned against them still hold substantial power. The dour commencement address touched on Obama’s familiar we’re-all-together theme and included shots at his regular bogeymen: Wall Street, an obstinate Congress and, of course, the press.”
Jenny Sanford Wants Cameras Banned from Courtroom
Former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford’s ex-wife “wants a judge to ban cameras and recording equipment from the courtroom during a hearing on trespass allegations this week,” The State reports.
“Jenny Sanford filed a trespassing complaint against her former husband for entering her Sullivan’s Island home in February to watch part of the Super Bowl with their youngest son when she wasn’t at home.”
“The hearing Thursday comes two days after voters select Republican Mark Sanford or Democrat Elizabeth Colbert Busch in the election for a vacant seat in the state’s 1st Congressional District.”
Sanford Grabs Lead in Special Election Race
A new Public Policy Polling survey in South Carolina’s 1st congressional district finds a race that’s too close to call, with Mark Sanford (R) edging Elizabeth Colbert Busch (D), 47% to 46%.
Key finding: The one point lead for Sanford represents a 10 point reversal from a similar poll two weeks ago, when Colbert Busch led by nine points at 50% to 41%.
Buono May Not Get Matching Funds
New Jersey gubernatorial candidate Barbara Buono’s (D) campaign war chest “is so skimpy she may not generate enough contributions to secure all of her public matching funds for the primary or general election,” the Newark Star Ledger reports.
McDonnell Cabinet Member Also Received Gifts
When Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) traveled to South Carolina in January 2012 to endorse Mitt Romney for president and later to the GOP convention, Secretary of the Commonwealth Janet Vestal Kelly flew each place separately, the Richmond Times Dispatch reports.
“Both of the Cabinet official’s trips were provided by Star Scientific Inc. CEO Jonnie R. Williams Sr., whose gifts to McDonnell, the governor’s family and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli have come under public scrutiny in the past five weeks.”
Hollywood Conservative Unmasked
The Guardian reports that David Stein and his organization, Republican Party Animals, “drew hundreds to regular events in and around Los Angeles, making him a darling of conservative blogs and talkshows. That he made respected documentaries on the Holocaust added intellectual cachet and Jewish support to Stein’s cocktail of politics, irreverence and rock and roll.”
“There was just one problem. Stein was not who he claimed. His real name can be revealed for the first time publicly – a close circle of confidants only found out the truth recently – as David Cole. And under that name he was once a reviled Holocaust revisionist who questioned the existence of Nazi gas chambers. He changed identities in January 1998.”
“Cole’s brazen reinvention as a social networker and political pundit deceived a roll-call of conservative politicians, filmmakers, journalists and broadcasters who had no clue about his past.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“South Carolina is the land of strange politics. You never know quite what’s coming in the last week of a campaign.”
— Former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford (R), quoted by the Los Angeles Times, who is running in Tuesday’s special congressional election.
Off-the-Cuff Obama Comment Put U.S. in Bind on Syria
“Confronted with evidence that chemical weapons have been used in Syria, President Obama now finds himself in a geopolitical box, his credibility at stake with frustratingly few good options,” the New York Times reports.
“The origins of this dilemma can be traced in large part to a weekend last August, when alarming intelligence reports suggested the besieged Syrian government might be preparing to use chemical weapons. After months of keeping a distance from the conflict, Mr. Obama felt he had to become more directly engaged.”
“Moving or using large quantities of chemical weapons would cross a ‘red line’ and ‘change my calculus,’ the president declared in response to a question at a news conference, to the surprise of some of the advisers who had attended the weekend meetings and wondered where the ‘red line’ came from. With such an evocative phrase, the president had defined his policy in a way some advisers wish they could take back.”
Quote of the Day
“We will never surrender our guns, never.”
— The National Rifle Association’s Wayne LaPierre, quoted by NBC News, who added that recent mass shootings have been used “to blame us, to shame us, to compromise our freedom for their agenda.”
Cuccinelli Grabs Early Lead in Virginia
A new Washington Post poll in Virginia finds Ken Cuccinelli (R) has an early lead over Terry McAuliffe (D) in their race for governor, 46% to 41% among all voters and 51% to 41% among those voters certain to cast a ballot.
However, the poll also found that barely 10% say they are following the campaign “very closely” and that nearly half of the electorate says they’re either undecided or could change their minds.
