Political Wire

Club for Growth Starts Ad Blitz for Kathy Barnette

May 11, 2022 at 8:14 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“After months of a bruising television ad war between Dr. Mehmet Oz and David McCormick and their allies, the relatively shoestring campaign of Kathy Barnette, a conservative commentator showing surprising strength in the polls, will receive a late boost in the Republican primary for Senate in Pennsylvania,” the New York Times reports.

“The Club for Growth, the pro-business and anti-tax group, began booking television ads on Tuesday on behalf of Ms. Barnette worth $2 million.”

CNN: How Trump’s endorsement of Oz gave Kathy Barnette an unexpected opening in Pennsylvania.

Trump Lawyer Urged Throwing Out Absentee Ballots

May 11, 2022 at 8:11 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Attorney John Eastman urged Republican legislators in Pennsylvania to retabulate the state’s popular vote — and throw out tens of thousands of absentee ballots — in order to show Donald Trump with a lead, according to newly unearthed emails sent in December 2020,” Politico reports.

Soldier’s Wife Says Ukrainian Kids Should Be ‘Cut’ Up

May 11, 2022 at 8:04 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“In what is perhaps a disturbing sign of the effectiveness of Russian propaganda over the past two months, the wife of a Russian soldier in Ukraine has reportedly been caught urging him to torture Ukrainian children who refuse to support Moscow,” the Daily Beast reports.

From the recording: “I would inject them with drugs, and if it worked, I’d look into their eyes and say ‘Die, suffer.’ I would cut their wee wees and carve stars out of their backs, and actually cut out parts of their ear every day, their finger, so that they’d hurt so bad.”

When even her husband appears taken aback, she shoots back: “I just hate these Ukrainians, I hate them.”

Lindsey Graham Called Biden ‘Best Person to Have’

May 11, 2022 at 7:58 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) blasted Donald Trump for “playing the TV game” and called Joe Biden “the best person to have” coming to the White House in an interview right after the Jan. 6 riot, according to leaked audio.

A Show Vote on Roe

May 11, 2022 at 7:55 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Senate Democrats will forge ahead today to try and codify a right to abortion, but there might not be 50 votes in favor, let alone enough to defeat a Republican filibuster,” Politico reports.

Quote of the Day

May 11, 2022 at 7:39 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“If you wanted to kill a bunch of MAGA voters in the middle of the heartland, how better than to target them and their kids with this deadly fentanyl?… It does look intentional. It’s like Joe Biden wants to punish the people who didn’t vote for him and opening up the floodgates to the border is one way to do it.”

— J.D. Vance (R), in an interview with Gateway Pundit.

Shanghai’s Lockdown Leaves Thousands in Its Streets

May 11, 2022 at 7:38 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Shanghai’s lockdown has kept tens of millions of residents trapped indoors for a month and a half. Thousands of others in China’s wealthiest city have found themselves in the opposite predicament: living in the street,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

Biden Stresses Contrast With GOP Economic Agenda

May 11, 2022 at 7:36 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Biden argued Tuesday that congressional Republicans would worsen inflation and raise taxes on American families, part of a growing effort to cast the GOP as obstructing his agenda and fixated on culture wars instead of governing,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“With midterm elections looming, Mr. Biden remains weighed down by low approval ratings and rising public frustration with high prices fueled by the pandemic, government spending and the war in Ukraine. Now he is eager to take the offensive and put pressure on Republicans to defend their own plans.”

Russia Has Seized Much of Eastern Ukraine

May 11, 2022 at 6:55 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Russia’s nearly three-month-old invasion of neighboring Ukraine has been punctuated by flawed planning, poor intelligence, barbarity and wanton destruction,” the New York Times reports.

“But obscured in the daily fighting is the geographic reality that Russia has made gains on the ground.”

Larry Ellison Is the GOP’s Newest Benefactor

May 11, 2022 at 6:52 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Puck: “These days, Ellison’s commitments to GOP causes are trending red hot. Last week, he was revealed as the single biggest outside backer of Elon Musk’s officially apolitical, but pointedly conservative-friendly, takeover of Twitter.”

“Ellison, once a registered Democrat, has also donated a staggering $25 million to Republican senator and potential presidential hopeful Tim Scott, placing him alongside Peter Thiel in the upper echelon of conservative Silicon Valley mega-donors.”

Senate GOP Decries ‘Unsavory’ Attacks on Dr. Oz

May 11, 2022 at 6:48 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Senate Republicans are dismissing attacks on Mehmet Oz’s Turkish citizenship by his GOP rivals, boosting the campaign of the Donald Trump-endorsed TV star ahead of next week’s primary,” Politico reports.

“In interviews, Republicans gave Oz what amounts to a leg up in his nasty primary by saying that they have no concerns about his loyalty and no problems with him receiving classified briefings should he become a U.S. senator.”

Justices Still Considering Alito’s Draft

May 11, 2022 at 6:34 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Supreme Court is set to gather Thursday for the first time since the disclosure that it voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, and there’s no sign that the court is changing course from issuing that ruling by the end of June,” Politico reports.

“Justice Samuel Alito’s sweeping and blunt draft majority opinion from February overturning Roe remains the court’s only circulated draft in the pending Mississippi abortion case, Politico has learned, and none of the conservative justices who initially sided with Alito have to date switched their votes. No dissenting draft opinions have circulated from any justice, including the three liberals.”

Nebraska GOP Rejects Trump’s Choice for Governor

May 11, 2022 at 6:31 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Republican voters in Nebraska on Tuesday rejected a candidate for governor accused of sexually assaulting multiple women, nominating University of Nebraska regent Jim Pillen over Charles Herbster, an agribusiness executive supported by former president Donald Trump,” the Washington Post reports.

New York Times: “Mr. Herbster is the first candidate endorsed by Mr. Trump to lose a Republican primary in 2022. Many more Trump-endorsed candidates are facing stiff headwinds in coming primaries, starting with contests for governor in Idaho next week and in Georgia on May 24.

Putin Prepared for ‘Prolonged Conflict’

May 10, 2022 at 10:41 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“It’s been 75 days since Russia invaded Ukraine, and as the battle becomes a grinding war of attrition, Russian President Vladimir Putin appears to be preparing for ‘a prolonged conflict,’ a top U.S. intelligence official said Tuesday,” the Washington Post reports.

Wall Street Journal: “U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told lawmakers Tuesday. U.S. spy agencies, she said, see a lengthy war of attrition that is unlikely to be settled by the current fighting in eastern Ukraine, and little chance of a near-term negotiated solution.

Fed May Have Acted Too Slowly on Inflation

May 10, 2022 at 10:39 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Some Federal Reserve officials have begun to acknowledge that they were too slow to respond to rapid inflation last year, a delay that is forcing them to constrain the economy more abruptly now — and one that could hold lessons for the policy path ahead,” the New York Times reports.

“Inflation began to accelerate last spring, but Fed policymakers and most private-sector forecasters initially thought price gains would quickly fade. It became clear in early fall that fast inflation was proving to be more lasting — but the Fed pivoted toward rapidly removing policy support only in late November and did not raise rates until March.”

Wall Street Journal: Senate confirms Lisa Cook to Federal Reserve Board.

House Votes to Allow Staff Unionization

May 10, 2022 at 9:55 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The House of Representatives will officially allow congressional staffers to unionize, marking a historic milestone following years of workplace complaints on Capitol Hill,” the Washington Post reports.

New York Times: “The vote came amid pressure from aides, particularly junior staff members, who have become increasingly open about their frustrations with the low pay, long hours and notoriously difficult work environment on Capitol Hill.”

Politico: “The move comes amid a swelling tidal wave of grievances from staff, along with efforts by leadership and lawmakers to stem burnout and brain drain among employees who serve vital roles in the legislative branch, including serving constituents, conducting oversight of federal agencies and drafting legislation.”

Pennsylvania GOP Panics Over Doug Mastriano

May 10, 2022 at 9:23 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Top Republicans are mounting a last-ditch, behind-the-scenes effort to stop state Sen. Doug Mastriano, a leading voice in the movement to overturn the 2020 election results, from winning the party nomination for governor in Pennsylvania,” Politico reports.

Philadelphia Inquirer: “Republican leaders are trying to corral Mastriano’s four leading rivals to urge all but one of them to drop out — and endorse the one with the best poll numbers. One version of the proposal calls for rallying behind former U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta, who was well-liked by former President Donald Trump and polling in second place in the latest public survey. It’s a long-shot ploy a week before the primary that many Republicans believe is likely to fail.”

“But it reflects the panic in some quarters over the likelihood Mastriano, a far-right state senator from Franklin County, will lead the GOP ticket this fall.”

Alex Mooney Defeats David McKinley in GOP Primary

May 10, 2022 at 9:21 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV) defeated Rep. David McKinley (R-WV) in a primary in West Virginia that again proved both the power of an endorsement by former President Donald Trump and the weight that right-wing ideology holds with Republican primary voters, the New York Times reports.

“Mr. Mooney, a four-term House Republican known more as a conservative warrior than a legislator, used Mr. Trump’s endorsement to overcome a distinct disadvantage: The redrawn district he was running in included far more of Mr. McKinley’s old district than Mr. Mooney’s.”

“The huge margins Mr. Mooney was able to run up in the fast-growing counties from his old district along the Maryland state line proved too great for Mr. McKinley… It was a thorough repudiation of Mr. McKinley’s pragmatism.”