A new OH Predictive Insights poll in Arizona finds Joe Biden leading President Trump in a hypothetical presidential election match up, 49% to 44% with 7% undecided.
Pompeo Abruptly Cancels Trip to Germany
“Secretary of State Mike Pompeo abruptly canceled a scheduled trip to Germany where he was planning to meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel ‘due to pressing issues,'” CNN reports.
“No specific reason was given for the cancellation. The press pool traveling with Pompeo has not been told where they are going next, and have been warned they may not be able to report from the country they are going to until after they leave.”
How the Saudis Made Jeff Bezos Public Enemy No. 1
“It sounded almost like a conspiracy theory when Jeff Bezos not-so-subtly hinted that there might be a Saudi connection to the attempt to strong-arm him with his ‘below the belt selfies,'” the Daily Beast reports.
“But there’s mounting evidence that the de facto ruler of the kingdom has been trying to punish Bezos for the fierce coverage by his newspaper, The Washington Post, of the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. This effort began months prior to the aggressive approach by the National Enquirer’s parent company.”
The Establishment Keeps Losing Influence
“Traditional political kingmakers like the parties’ national committees and powerful insiders have lost their edge for 2020 as buzzy, insurgent campaigns have the ability to seize control of the narrative — and bundles of cash,” Axios reports.
“The smoke-filled room has burned to the ground, and the advantage now lies fully with the electorate to determine what they want. For Democrats, that means making sense of a massive field of more than 20 candidates — while, for Republicans, that means bending to the originator of this trend: President Trump.”
George Will Has a New Book
“George F. Will will be out June 4 with The Conservative Sensibility, his first book in five years, and his first on politics in over a decade. And it doesn’t mention President Trump a single time,” Axios reports.
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The Conservative Sensibility
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- English (Publication Language)
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Top Aide to Tennessee Speaker Resigns
“Following reports that Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada’s (R) chief of staff sent sexually explicit text messages to an intern and a lobbyist, used cocaine in the legislative office building and sent texts disparaging African Americans, the embattled staffer tendered his resignation on Monday,” the HuffPost reports.
Trump Pulls Out Rug from GOP on Trade
“Senate Republicans feel that President Trump has once again pulled the rug out from under them on trade, leaving GOP lawmakers frustrated over their inability to influence the White House’s policy on an issue that could have major economic and electoral ramifications,” The Hill reports.
“Days after a group of Republican senators relayed to Trump at a White House meeting their concerns about trade tensions with Canada, Mexico, Europe and China, Trump over the weekend threatened new tariffs on China, escalating a fight with Beijing and rattling markets.”
What Trump Fears From Mueller
Associated Press: “The president stewed for days about the prospect of the media coverage that would be given to Mueller, a man Trump believes has been unfairly lionized across cable news and the front pages of the nation’s leading newspapers for two years, according to three White House officials and Republicans close to the White House.”
“Trump feared a repeat — but bigger — of the February testimony of his former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, which dominated news coverage and even overshadowed a nuclear summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam.”
“Trump has long known the power of televised images and feared that Americans would be captivated by seeing — and hearing — Mueller, who has not spoken publicly since being named special counsel.”
Inaugural Official Disputes Account of Her Departure
New York Times: “Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a leading contractor for President Trump’s inaugural committee and a former adviser to the first lady, Melania Trump, has publicly disputed accounts of her departure from the White House last year, rejecting claims from officials that she was dismissed.”
“Ms. Winston Wolkoff specifically took issue with suggestions by White House officials that she had been forced out because of reports that she had profited excessively from her role in helping organize inaugural events.”
Harris Builds Out National Campaign
“Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign is quietly building out its national footprint. The California Democrat has taken a more methodical approach than some rivals in amassing ground troops!” Politico reports.
“On Tuesday, Harris’ team will take another step, launching a national training program designed to harness volunteer energy on the ground that it could later tap into.”
Trump Embraces Traditional Fundraising
New York Times: “About 200 bundlers from across the country are expected to gather Tuesday at the Trump International Hotel for a series of meetings and workshops about the campaign’s new fund-raising program. Vice President Mike Pence will address the group. Brad Parscale, President Trump’s campaign manager, will play host. Stephen A. Schwarzman, the Wall Street billionaire, has R.S.V.P.’d yes.”
“The group will be divided into tiers, based on success in raising money. The ‘Trump Train’ donors, or those who raise $25,000, will be given a lapel pin and access to a national retreat and leadership dinners. ‘Club 45’ members, or those who raise $45,000, will get all of that, as well as monthly conference calls with Republican Party leaders. And the ‘Builders Club,’ or those bundlers who raise $100,000 or more, will be given access to national campaign events.”
“It is the kind of traditional campaign fund-raising apparatus that Mr. Trump thumbed his nose at during his 2016 run. And it involves some donors who only grudgingly accepted him once he was the Republican presidential nominee.”
Quote of the Day
“I have a very different energy than this president. There’s going to be a temptation to kind of play his game. If you’re playing his game, you’re losing. Nobody’s going to play his game better than he does and so we’ve got to do something completely different. The good news is Americans as a rule tend to go for the opposite of whatever they just had in a presidential election.”
— Mayor Pete Buttigieg, in an interview with NBC News.
Democrats Challenge Arpaio Pardon
“A group of 25 Democratic lawmakers are calling on a federal appeals court in California to invalidate President Trump’s pardon of Arizona’s controversial former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio,” The Hill reports.
Trump Not Expected to Block Mueller Testimony
“When President Trump contradicted his own attorney general and declared on Sunday that special counsel Robert Mueller ‘should not testify’ before Congress, he caught his inner circle by surprise,” Politico reports.
“A day later, more than a dozen people from Trump’s close orbit downplayed in interviews the prospect that the president’s weekend tweet about Mueller should be taken as an official warning.”
“Trump does not actually intend to assert executive privilege and block the special counsel from testifying as soon as next week, they said, before the one House committee with the power to begin impeachment proceedings against the president.”
Buttigieg Impressed Al Sharpton
Rev. Al Sharpton told the Daily Mail that he found Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) “more impressive” than he expected and expressed confidence that the U.S. would someday elect a gay president.
Said Sharpton: “I was impressed that he was pretty certain what he stood for and what he didn’t. I did not feel he was patronizing. He said things that he knew I may disagree with, and he was firm on things that he and I may agree with.”
He added: “The most impressive thing about him is he seems comfortable in his own skin. You meet a lot of political people that you feel they’re insecure or trying to mold themselves to what they think you like. He seems to be who he is. And I think that’s impressive and refreshing.”
Corker Doesn’t See Primary Challenge to Trump
Former Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) told the Chattanooga Times Free Press “I don’t really see” a path for himself to challenge President Trump in Republicans’ 2020 presidential primaries.
Said Corker: “I think for someone to undertake that, they have to feel there’s at least somewhat of an opportunity to actually be elected. I see no point in just doing it to [run], you know, I just don’t.”
Young Will Try to Reclaim Seat In Iowa
Former Rep. David Young (R-IA), who was ousted by Cindy Axne (D) in 2018, will run to reclaim the seat in 2020, he told the Des Moines Register.
Mnuchin Will Not Release Trump’s Tax Returns
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he would not meet the Democrats’ demand for six years of President Trump’s tax filings , saying it lacked a “legitimate legislative purpose,” the Washington Post reports.
“House Democrats say the returns are part of necessary oversight, while the administration has rejected the request as part of a politically motivated witch hunt.”
Wall Street Journal: “The move, which Mr. Mnuchin had signaled for weeks, will likely send the dispute between the executive and legislative branches into federal court. Judges may take months or years to resolve the legal question about the boundaries of congressional investigations.”
The New York Times says the move sets up “a legal battle likely to be resolved by the Supreme Court.”
