Ivanka Trump told Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) last month that she would not mount a primary challenge to his reelection bid in 2022, the New York Times reports.
“The discussion of whether Ms. Trump would seek the Senate seat in the battleground state came as her sister-in-law, Lara Trump, has let it be known that she was thinking of running for the U.S. Senate from her native state of North Carolina. But people briefed on the discussions said that Lara Trump is also unlikely to run.”
Nikki Haley tried to get a meeting with former President Donald Trump yesterday but he turned her down, even despite her apparent attempt to patch things up through a Wall Street Journal op-ed last night, Politico reports.
Rich Lowry: “If Trump and McConnell ran in a primary against each other, Trump would win in a romp. If Trump and McConnell had competing rallies in Louisville, Trump would exponentially outdraw him. If Trump and McConnell had back-to-back appearances on Hannity, Trump would significantly outrate him…”
“There is no doubt that Trump is a potent political figure. Yet, his draw isn’t transferable to other Republicans when he’s not on the ballot, and he failed to get above 47 percent of the vote in two national elections against lackluster opponents.”
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“Democratic megadonor and philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs is beefing up her political operation, bringing in heavyweights like former Massachusetts Congress member Joe Kennedy, the grandson of Robert F. Kennedy, to help broker relationships in Washington, DC,” Recode reports.
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“Democrats are bracing for an internal battle over raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, as they grappled with the political and procedural constraints on reaching a long-held goal of the party’s progressive wing,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, which President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief plan proposes to do by 2025, faces opposition from some Democratic lawmakers and parliamentary hurdles. Democrats cannot afford to lose a single vote in the 50-50 Senate on the relief package, which also calls for sending many Americans a $1,400 direct check, bolstering federal unemployment aid, and offering funds for vaccine distribution and testing.”
Karl Rove: “Mr. Trump may not be fully aware of shifting currents among congressional Republicans. More members now admit privately that Mr. Trump had no coattails in last fall’s election. Especially in the suburbs, some Republicans and many GOP-leaning independents refused to take his lawn signs or support him. That’s why so many Republican congressional candidates ran ahead of the former president.”
“Mr. Trump crowed Tuesday that he “received the most votes of any sitting President in history.” Then again, Joe Biden received more votes than any candidate in history—and seven million more votes than Mr. Trump.”
“Despite possessing all the powers of incumbency and leading a united GOP, Mr. Trump lost the presidency. If he returned for another White House contest, leading a divided party at war with itself and out of power, he’d be wiped out.”
Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan (D) announced he will resign the seat he’s held for half a century at the end of the month, the Chicago Sun Times reports.
“Madigan’s reign as the longest-serving leader in state or federal government ended last month after he was unable to secure enough votes to continue as House speaker.”
“His fall from leadership came after federal prosecutors accused leaders at utility giant ComEd of bribing associates of Madigan in exchange for his organization’s help in passing favorable legislation.”
Washington Post: “Biden’s next package could be far pricier than the coronavirus bill. Although plans remain fluid, it’s expected to center on a major infrastructure investment, while also tackling other priorities such as clean energy, domestic manufacturing, and child and elder care. However, as the next must-pass bill in a divided Congress, where legislative opportunities will be scarce, it has unleashed a torrent of other demands, as advocates for issues from climate change to immigration push to get included.”
“The cacophony of competing demands is already threatening to divide Democrats who have largely united behind the coronavirus relief bill.”
“Senior Democratic officials have discussed proposing as much as $3 trillion in new spending as part of what they envision as a wide-ranging jobs and infrastructure package.”
Fox News confirms what many saw on social media late last night: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) flew to Cancun, Mexico, with his family as Texas dealt with a winter storm that left millions without power.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) called for a full Department of Justice investigation into Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) handling of the coronavirus pandemic in New York nursing homes, Politico reports.
Said De Blasio: “That’s classic Andrew Cuomo. A lot of people in New York state have received those phone calls. The bullying is nothing new. It’s very, very sad. No public servant, no person who’s telling the truth should be treated that way.”
New York Times: “The strategy appeared twofold: Don’t stoke a full-on revolt by Trump supporters the party needs by voting to convict, but demonstrate to anti-Trump Republicans — particularly big donors — that he recognized Mr. Trump’s failings and is beginning to steer the party in another direction.”
“But it did not exactly produce the desired result. Instead, it has drawn Mr. McConnell into a vicious feud with the former president… And it has left some Republicans bewildered over Mr. McConnell’s strategy and others taking a harder line, saying the leader whose focus was always the next election had hurt the party’s 2022 prospects.”
“The miscalculation has left Mr. McConnell in an unusual place — on the defensive, with Mr. Trump pressing for his ouster, and no easy way to extricate himself from the political bind.”
Former Senate Republican Leader Bob Dole, 97, announced on Twitter that he has been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer.
Washington Post: “Trump’s attacks on McConnell came as he plotted a broader return to the political arena. He spent Tuesday at his Florida resort with son Donald Trump Jr., former campaign aide Brad Parscale and others, and has spoken with advisers about setting up a fundraising infrastructure and database system outside the Republican Party’s.”
“Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, long seen as a homogeneous redoubt of elderly men, now wants more women at its key meetings – provided they don’t do the talking,” Reuters reports.
“The party, in power for most of the time since 1955, has proposed allowing five female lawmakers to join its board meetings as observers in a response to criticism that its board is dominated by men.”
“The number of Americans applying for unemployment aid rose last week to 861,000, evidence that layoffs remain painfully high despite a steady drop in the number of confirmed viral infections,” the AP reports.
“The job market has stalled, with employers having added a mere 49,000 jobs in January after cutting workers in December. Nearly 10 million jobs remain lost to the pandemic.”
Rep. David Valadao (R-CA) will face an attempt to censure him at the California Republican convention this weekend for his vote to impeach Donald Trump, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Valadao was one of 10 GOP members of the House of Representatives who voted last month to send the articles of impeachment that blamed Trump for inciting the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection to the U.S. Senate.
Former Ohio GOP Chair Jane Timken (R) is joining the race to replace retiring Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH), The Hill reports.
“Timken was widely expected to make a run for Portman’s seat. Prior to launching her campaign, she resigned from her role at the Ohio Republican Party and hired a handful of Portman’s former campaign aides, most notably Corry Bliss, who managed the senator’s successful 2016 reelection bid.”
Taegan 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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