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Erik Prince Violated Libya Arms Embargo

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“Erik Prince, the former head of the security contractor Blackwater and a prominent supporter of former President Donald Trump, violated a United Nations arms embargo on Libya by sending weapons to a militia commander who was attempting to overthrow the internationally backed government,” the New York Times reports.

“A confidential U.N. report obtained by The New York Times and delivered by investigators to the Security Council on Thursday reveals how Mr. Prince deployed a force of foreign mercenaries, armed with attack aircraft, gunboats and cyberwarfare capabilities, to eastern Libya at the height of a major battle in 2019.”

Mike Lee Defends Romney’s Vote to Convict Trump

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Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) is defending Sen. Mitt Romney’s (R-UT) vote to convict former President Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial. Although Lee disagrees with Romney’s conclusion, he does not see it as a “cause for alarm,” the Salt Lake Tribune reports.

Said Lee: “Although Senator Romney and I usually vote together — and with a majority of Senate Republicans, we voted differently. It shows neither one of us blindly defers to anyone.”

The Most Experienced Man Ever to Be Chief of Staff

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Susan Glasser: “He knows how White Houses run when they work and how they fail when they don’t—and, just as importantly, what government is actually supposed to do. Klain, who ran the Senate Judiciary Committee for Biden when Biden chaired it decades ago, worked under nine chiefs of staff during the Clinton and Obama Presidencies, and twice served as Vice-Presidential chief of staff, first for Al Gore, in the late nineties, and then for Biden, from 2009 to 2011. He is, he tells people, the White House chief of staff who has worked for more chiefs of staff than any other.”


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Justice Department Presses Fight Against Omarosa

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“While the Justice Department has sought to pause or drop a number of high-profile court battles due to the change in administration, government lawyers are pressing on aggressively with a lawsuit claiming that Omarosa Manigault Newman failed to file a required financial disclosure following her attention-grabbing firing in December 2017,” Politico reports.

Iran Says Biden Must Lift Sanctions Before Any Talks

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Bloomberg: “Iran said the U.S. must first return to the 2015 nuclear deal and lift sanctions if it wants talks with the Islamic Republic, appearing to snub an effort by the Biden administration to begin direct discussions before officially rejoining the accord. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called it Iran’s ‘final policy’ on the matter in an Instagram post.”

Manchin Won’t Support Neera Tanden at OMB

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Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said he opposes Neera Tanden’s nomination to lead the Office of Management and Budget, saying her past comments are too toxic, CNN reports.

Said Manchin: “I believe her overtly partisan statements will have a toxic and detrimental impact on the important working relationship between members of Congress and the next director of the Office of Management and Budget.”

This could imperil her nomination unless a Republican steps forward to save her in the 50-50 Senate.

Biden Moves to Reverse Trump’s ‘Water Flow’ Rules

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“Former President Donald Trump’s effort to loosen regulations dictating the water-flow levels of many household appliances and fixtures is under threat with the Biden administration announcing it will launch a federal review of several Trump-era rules and regulations governing the topic, in addition to other energy and efficiency-related edicts,” NBC News reports.

Six More Members of Oath Keepers Militia Indicted

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“Six more people allegedly affiliated with the right-wing militia Oath Keepers were indicted on charges of planning the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, as prosecutors sketch out a portrait of a group preparing to disrupt the certification of President Biden’s election and developing a military-style plan to do so,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

Nine people, including three previously charged, “were accused of attending or scheduling paramilitary trainings in advance of Jan. 6, coordinating their travel to Washington, preparing for the operation with military gear, and moving through the Capitol in military formation.”

Kerry Warns We Have Less Than a Decade on Climate

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“The wild winter weather this week has been called historic and unprecedented, and John Kerry, U.S. special presidential envoy for climate, wants to stop it from becoming typical,” CBS News reports.

Said Kerry: “Well, the scientists told us three years ago we had 12 years to avert the worst consequences of climate crisis. We are now three years gone, so we have nine years left.”

Virginia Republicans Won’t Accept Their Own Internal Vote

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New York Times: “The Republican Party of Virginia has voted four times since December to nominate its candidates for this year’s statewide races at a convention instead of in a primary election. But in a sign of the Trumpian times of denial and dispute in the GOP, nearly half of the party’s top officials are still trying to reverse the results.”

“State Republicans have internalized the lesson that there is no benefit to accepting results they don’t like, and the result is a paralyzed party unable to set the date, location and rules for how and when it will pick its 2021 nominees for statewide office, including the race for governor.”

Bonus Quote of the Day

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“America is unreservedly back as the leader of the free world and that is a fantastic thing.”

— U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, quoted by Reuters, refering to an earlier speech by President Joe Biden at the Munich Security Conference.

House Takes Steps Toward Deciding Contested Iowa Race

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“With a contested presidential race and impeachment crisis behind it, Congress is turning to a Democratic candidate’s claim that Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks was improperly declared the winner of their match-up last fall. That candidate, Rita Hart, has formally contested her 6-vote loss — one of the closest federal elections in recent history — possibly placing lawmakers in the uncomfortable position of having to determine whether it seated the wrong woman in January,” Politico reports.

“The House Administration Committee will gather virtually Friday afternoon to finalize the process by which it will adjudicate Hart’s claim… The committee has been largely silent since Hart first made her contest in December, but the hearing suggests that it is preparing to review the matter further.”

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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