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House GOP Finally Names Intelligence Committee Members

January 30, 2019 at 4:25 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) “formally named the nine Republican members of the House Intelligence Committee Wednesday, ending a weeks-long delay that may have cost special counsel Robert Mueller valuable time to act on potential leads the panel could offer just as he appears close to wrapping his investigation,” NBC News reports.

“Democrats now in the majority on the Intelligence Committee had vowed that one of their first acts would be to authorize the release of more than 50 witness interview transcripts to Mueller to aid in his probe. At the least, members have said they had reason to believe some witnesses lied to the panel, something that has already led Mueller to bring charges against Trump allies.”

Politico: “The lack of action on picking the full slate of panel members had led some observers to question if Republicans were attempting to hamstring the committee.”

McConnell Calls Election Bill a Democratic ‘Power Grab’

January 30, 2019 at 3:37 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said that a Democratic bill that would make Election Day a federal holiday is a “power grab,” the Washington Post reports.

McConnell said Democrats “want taxpayers on the hook for generous new benefits for federal bureaucrats and government employees,” including making Election Day a “new paid holiday for government workers.”

“The far-reaching legislation would also prohibit the purging of voter rolls, require presidential and vice-presidential candidates to release their tax returns, compel states to adopt independent redistricting commissions and create a matching system for small-dollar donations to congressional campaigns, among other changes.”

2020 Electorate Will Be Most Diverse Yet

January 30, 2019 at 3:33 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Pew Research: “While demographic changes unfold slowly, it’s already clear that the 2020 electorate will be unique in several ways. Nonwhites will account for a third of eligible voters – their largest share ever – driven by long-term increases among certain groups, especially Hispanics.”

“At the same time, one-in-ten eligible voters will be members of Generation Z, the Americans who will be between the ages 18 and 23 next year. That will occur as Millennials and all other older generations account for a smaller share of eligible voters than they did in 2016.”

Roger Stone Will Resist Any Gag Order

January 30, 2019 at 2:16 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Politico: “If Stone is gagged, his contingency plan is already in place. He’s got a well-known First Amendment attorney on his legal team who represented the rap group 2 Live Crew against obscenity charges in the early 1990s. And Stone has designated a pair of close friends as spokesmen in the event he and his lawyers are told to stop talking. Until then, Stone won’t stop chattering.”

Schultz Has Been Planning for Months

January 30, 2019 at 1:14 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Washington Post: “Before announcing his presidential ambitions this week, former Starbucks chief executive Howard Schultz secretly undertook a months-long effort to prepare an independent presidential campaign against the nation’s two-party political system, deploying more than six national polls and laying the groundwork for paid advertising that could debut in the next two months.”

However, given the rocky start of his book tour, Schultz aides now say he may not make a decision on running until summer or fall.

Trump Blasts U.S. Intelligence Officials

January 30, 2019 at 12:33 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

President Trump lashed out at U.S. intelligence officials, calling them “extremely passive and naive” about the “dangers of Iran” and pushing back on their assessments of the Islamic State and North Korea during a congressional hearing, the Washington Post reports.

“In tweets, Trump offered what amounted to a rebuttal of testimony on global threats provided to the Senate on Tuesday by a panel of top officials from his administration.”

“Trump was most pointed in his pushback on the assessment of Iran. During testimony, officials said that Iran was not trying to build a nuclear weapon and was in compliance with an agreement forged during the Obama administration from which Trump subsequently withdrew the United States.”

Chris Cillizza: “This is, of course, shocking.”

GOP Favorability Sinks

January 30, 2019 at 12:23 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Gallup: “As the longest government shutdown in U.S. history came to an end, Gallup polling suggests that the Republican Party’s image has suffered more than the Democratic Party’s. The GOP’s favorability rating fell to 37% from 45% in September. At the same time, Americans’ favorable views of the Democratic Party remained stable at 45%.”

Garcetti’s Decision Bolsters Kamala Harris

January 30, 2019 at 11:50 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The biggest beneficiary of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s decision not to run for president may be Sen. Kamala Harris, who is the only high-profile presidential candidate from California, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

“Since California’s primary will be held on March 3, 2020 — far earlier in than in many past election cycles — it could have an outsized impact on whom the party’s nominee will be.”

Voters Now Prefer Democrats on Border Security

January 30, 2019 at 11:26 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Quinnipiac poll finds Americans trust Democrats more than President Trump on border security, 50% to 41%. That is up from a 49% to 44% Democratic advantage two weeks ago.

“Both findings are rare since the issue has almost always favored the GOP.”

Trump Boosts Book by ‘Low Level’ Former Staffer

January 30, 2019 at 10:55 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

CNN: “At the time of the Tuesday morning tweet, Team of Vipers was No. 12 on Amazon’s best selling books list. The rankings are updated every hour. Vipers has been moving up the list ever since, and as of Tuesday afternoon, it stands at No. 6.”

“Of course, it’s impossible to know how much of the sales momentum is due to Trump, and how much is due to other factors like Sims’ TV appearances… But Trump’s post triggered a brand new news cycle about Sims’ depictions of a distracted president and a distrustful inner circle of aides.”

Collins Won’t Endorse Trump for Re-Election Yet

January 30, 2019 at 10:49 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) declined to say during a television interview whether she will endorse President Trump for reelection in 2020, the Washington Post reports.

Said Collins: “I’m not prepared at this point to make that decision.”

When asked whether she would endorse Trump later, Collins said: “I don’t know. I’m going to have to see what happens between now and then and look at what his record is. I can’t imagine I would endorse any of the Democrats who are running right now, but I’m going to focus on 2020 in 2020.”

Nikki Haley Charging $200K Per Speech

January 30, 2019 at 10:12 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley is currently quoting $200,000 and the use of a private jet for domestic speaking engagements,” CNBC reports.

“Engagements outside the United States could cost considerably more.”

“Haley’s lucrative fee propels her into a league populated by U.S. presidents, former Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke, former first lady Michelle Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.”

Trump Spoke to Putin Alone In November

January 30, 2019 at 9:30 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Financial Times: “The discussions between the US and Russian presidents occurred at the 19th-century Colón theatre in the Argentine capital, as world leaders and their spouses or guests were streaming out of the building. Mr Trump was accompanied by Melania Trump, his wife, but no staff, while Mr Putin was flanked by his translator. The four of them sat at a table and were among the last to leave.”

“Mr Trump’s aides characterized the Putin encounter as one of several ‘informal’ conversations that Mr Trump had with his counterparts that evening… The accounts of people familiar with the conversation said it appeared longer and more substantive than the White House has acknowledged.”

Trump’s Texas Troubles Are Rooted in the Suburbs

January 30, 2019 at 9:29 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Washington Examiner: “From the outside, Texas appears troubling for President Trump in 2020 because of demographic changes that have featured a steady climb in the population of Hispanic voters.”

“But actually, the leftward drift, first evident in 2016 when Trump won Texas by less than 10 percentage points, is a byproduct of sharp opposition to the president in Texas’ burgeoning upscale suburbs that are dominated by whites, according to Texas Republican strategists.”

Quote of the Day

January 30, 2019 at 9:11 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“We were sitting around thinking about this three weeks ago, and her name came up. Immediately, everyone in the room said, ‘Let’s do it.’ She’s an amazing person with an amazing story.”

— Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), quoted by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, on picking Stacey Abrams to deliver the Democratic response to President Trump’s State of the Union address.

Will the Democratic Field Be Smaller Than We Thought?

January 30, 2019 at 8:57 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

First Read: “Right now, we have seven candidates who have declared or who have filed paperwork, and it already feels a bit, well, crowded. Part of that is due to Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, and Kirsten Gillibrand announcing early, and staking claims to their lanes.”

“And part of it is due to the fact that Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and Beto O’Rourke have the name ID, potential resources and ability to wait on a decision, thus freezing the rest of the field.”

“If you’re not in early, and if you’re not Biden, Sanders, O’Rourke or a billionaire like Mike Bloomberg, it becomes harder and harder to differentiate yourself and your candidacy.”

Foxconn Reconsiders Making LCD Panels In Wisconsin

January 30, 2019 at 8:47 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Foxconn Technology Group is reconsidering plans to make advanced liquid crystal display panels at a $10 billion Wisconsin campus, and said it intends to hire mostly engineers and researchers rather than the manufacturing workforce the project originally promised,” Reuters reports.

“Announced at a White House ceremony in 2017, the 20-million square foot campus marked the largest greenfield investment by a foreign-based company in U.S. history and was praised by President Donald Trump as proof of his ability to revive American manufacturing.”

Howard Schultz and the Myth of ‘Independents’

January 30, 2019 at 8:36 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

This piece is only available to Political Wire members.

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz justifies his flirtation with an independent presidential bid arguing there’s a viable path between the two major parties which have grown more extreme in their policy views.

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