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Candidates Try to Stage Viral Moments

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Washington Post: “After Washington Gov. Jay Inslee released a $9 trillion climate plan last month, his staffers noticed the plan had been parodied twice in one week by the Onion, a popular satirical website. They began brainstorming a ‘clever and self-deprecating’ response in case it happened again.”

“Sure enough, a week later the Onion again poked fun at Inslee, parodying his youth-friendly message by saying he had decided to run for president only after five teenagers ‘pressed enchanted rings together to call him into existence.’ Inslee responded quickly with a deadpan tweet: ‘That was supposed to be off the record.’ It instantly became one of Inslee’s most popular Twitter posts; aides followed it up with a fundraising appeal, which helped push the candidate across the 65,000-donor threshold to qualify for the first Democratic debates.”

Rick Perry Is Trump’s Most Stable Cabinet Member

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“President Trump’s cabinet is under siege—mired in scandal and under fire for controversial policy moves or dicey ethical missteps. Several department chiefs are facing the prospect of investigations or withering congressional testimony. Others are facing demands from Democratic lawmakers to resign,” the Daily Beast reports.

“And then there is Rick Perry, Secretary of the Department of Energy, who has managed a relatively stable existence amidst a dumpster fire of scandal that surrounds him.”

Hunter Used Campaign Money to Fund Affairs

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“Federal Prosecutors have accused Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) of improperly using campaign funds to pursue numerous romantic affairs with congressional aides and lobbyists,” Politico reports.

“Hunter’s wife has pleaded guilty and agreed earlier this month to cooperate with prosecutors.”


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Ex-Trump Adviser Loses Job Over Tweetstorm

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Daily Beast: “Jason Miller’s anger had been sparked by Nadler’s questioning of former Trump aide and confidante Hope Hicks during closed-door testimony several days prior. During that testimony, Nadler had referred to Hicks as ‘Ms. Lewandowski.’ The congressman later insisted it was a slip of the tongue, but his repeated use of the wrong surname led to the impression that he was referencing an alleged ‘affair’ between Hicks and one-time Trump campaign chief Corey Lewandowski.”

“Miller, who served as communications director for Trump’s presidential transition and who is a close friend of Hicks since the campaign, put up at least four tweets in which he repeatedly mocked Nadler’s weight and behavior. In one, he said people should ‘call Mr. Nadler ‘Mr. MuffinTop.'”

Biden to Debate First Time as the Frontrunner

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Wall Street Journal: “The 76-year-old has participated in at least 16 debates as a presidential or vice-presidential candidate, but never before has he been the most susceptible to incoming attacks from multiple opponents.”

“Mr. Biden has been preparing in recent weeks with the help of an experienced debate team, led by Ron Klain, a longtime Biden adviser who has overseen debate prep for every Democratic presidential nominee since 2004

Governor Won’t Negotiate With Fugitive Lawmakers

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Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) “said Monday she won’t negotiate with Republicans who walked out to thwart landmark climate legislation, at least not until they return to the Capitol,” the AP reports.

“All eleven Republican senators didn’t show up to work for a fifth day Monday, denying Democrats the number of lawmakers needed to vote on a potential statewide cap and trade plan.”

Sanders Faces New Kind of Threat In Warren

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Washington Post: ““Doubling down on his ideological purity and socialist credentials carries risks for the senator… It’s enabled Warren to position herself as impassioned but reasonable, while Sanders holds down the leftward flank of the Democratic Party and serves as the ideological outlier in the race.”

“For Sanders, the threat from Warren is different from any he’s faced during his long political career, including in his 2016 presidential run, since Warren in many ways embraces the same brand of fiery liberalism.”

‘Middle Class Joe’ Paid Up to $200K Per Speech

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Washington Post: “As Biden has traveled the country, he asked his sponsors for VIP hotel suites, town cars and professional drivers, chartered flights and travel expense reimbursements for some of his appearances that reached at least $10,000 per event.”

“The Washington Post found at least 65 instances in which Biden gave a speech or appeared at a book event; in at least 10 instances he did not take a fee, although in some of those cases he was reimbursed for travel expenses. Biden’s campaign said he has given less than 50 paid speeches, but declined to be more specific about exactly how many he delivered, or how much he earned in total.”

Debates Put DNC Back In the Spotlight

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Wall Street Journal: “Last time around, there was the Russian cyberattack of party emails that U.S. intelligence has said was designed to help Republican Donald Trump defeat nominee Hillary Clinton. The party also battled complaints that superdelegates—those free to back any candidate, regardless of election results in the primaries—amounted to a fixed outcome at the expense of Sen. Bernie Sanders.”

“Since then, the party has reduced the clout of superdelegates. Still, gripes about party management remain, this time from the handful of candidates left off the list of 20 candidates set for this week’s two primary debates in Miami, the first of the 2020 cycle.”

Leadership Vacancies Plague Trump’s Pentagon

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“When the defense ministers of NATO countries meet in Brussels this week, there will be a notable absence: a Senate-confirmed, permanent United States Secretary of Defense,” CNN reports.

“The acting secretary and expected permanent nominee, Mark Esper, will be there, just as he was present at the White House last week as President Donald Trump and his national security team deliberated launching a military strike against Iran. But it’s not the same.”

“An acting defense secretary lacks the political capital and internal confidence of a permanent one. The Senate confirmation vests a secretary with explicit and implicit powers — from the ability to recruit and set long-term policies in the Pentagon to the power to communicate authoritatively with foreign counterparts and members of Congress.”

Harris Picks Up Endorsement of William Lacy Clay

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“Sen. Kamala Harris has added a fourth Congressional Black Caucus member to her list of endorsements from its influential members: Rep. William Lacy Clay,” CNN reports.

“Former Vice President Joe Biden has five endorsements from the caucus, as the 2020 Democratic hopefuls jockey for its members’ support.”

Nate Silver: “Another one of these for Harris. A gradual shift in support among black leaders from Biden/undecided to Harris would be one of the most significant events of the primary.”

How Democrats Could Guarantee Trump’s Re-Election

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Charlie Sykes writes an open letter to Democratic presidential candidates: “Trump could still win reelection, because he has one essential dynamic working in his favor: You.”

“Trump’s numbers are unmovable, but yours are not. He doesn’t need to win this thing; he needs for you to lose it. There are millions of swing voters who regard Trump as an abomination but might vote for him again if they think you are scarier, more extreme, dangerous, or just annoyingly out of touch.”

Emergency Aid for Migrants Badly Divides Democrats

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“Congress is trying to rush $4.5 billion in emergency humanitarian aid to the southwestern border while placing new restrictions on President Trump’s immigration crackdown, spurred on by disturbing images of suffering migrant families and of children living in squalor in overcrowded detention facilities,” the New York Times reports.

“But with a House vote on the package planned for Tuesday, some Democrats are revolting over the measure, fearing that the aid will be used to carry out Mr. Trump’s aggressive tactics… Republicans are siding with the White House, which on Monday threatened a veto. They oppose restrictions in the measure that are meant to dictate better standards for facilities that hold migrant children and to bar the money from being used for enforcing immigration law.”

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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