Washington Post: “President Trump did not commit Thursday to avoiding a partial government shutdown next month if lawmakers don’t give him money to build a border wall, a top Republican senator said, raising the potential for a high-stakes budget battle as the GOP prepares to lose its grip on Congress.”
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DeVos Security Costs Millions
“Education Secretary Betsy DeVos began receiving around-the-clock security from the U.S. Marshals Service days after being confirmed, an armed detail provided to no other cabinet member that could cost U.S. taxpayers $19.8 million through September of 2019,” NBC News reports.
“While it remains unclear who specifically made the request, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions granted the protection on February 13, 2017, a few days after DeVos was heckled and blocked by a handful of protesters from entering the Jefferson Academy, a public middle school in Washington.”
Julian Assange Charged In Court Filing
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange “has been charged under seal, prosecutors inadvertently revealed in a recently unsealed court filing — a development that could significantly advance the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election and have major implications for those who publish government secrets,” the Washington Post reports.
“It was not immediately clear what charges Assange would face. In the past, prosecutors had contemplated pursuing a case involving conspiracy, theft of government property or violating the Espionage Act.“
Democrats Set to Complete Sweep of Orange County Seats
The latest vote tabulations show that Gil Cisneros (D) leapfrogged Young Kim (R) to take a 941-vote lead in the battle for California’s 39th district, erasing a 3,900-vote advantage that Kim held election night, the Orange County Register reports.
“Democrats now lead in every Orange County congressional race and stand positioned to sweep Republicans from power in all four Orange County GOP-held seats the party targeted this election… The historic shift has shocked the county’s Republican leadership, which as recently as 2017 insisted none of the area’s GOP House seats were in danger of flipping.”
Hyde-Smith Says Voter Suppression a ‘Great Idea’
A video surfaced of Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS saying it might be a “great idea” to make it harder for some people to vote, and her campaign quickly responded that she was “obviously” joking, NBC News reports.
Said Hyde-Smith: “And then they remind me that there’s a lot of liberal folks in those other schools who … maybe we don’t want to vote. Maybe we want to make it just a little more difficult. And I think that’s a great idea.”
Democrats Pick Off Another GOP Seat In California
“Katie Porter (D) captured a Republican-held U.S. House seat in the heart of what once was Southern California’s Reagan country, extending a rout of the state’s GOP House delegation that might not be over,” the AP reports.
“Porter’s upset in Orange County is a sign of changing times in a region once known nationally as a GOP fortress.”
“Porter, a law professor and protege of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), defeated Rep. Mimi Walters (R-CA), who was re-elected in a walkover just two years ago in the 45th District.”
Pelosi Says She’s Lined Up the Votes
“An unbowed Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi insisted on Thursday that she has the votes to become the next House speaker despite the emergence of a possible challenger who claimed party dissidents can block her historic bid,” the Washington Post reports.
“In a flurry of one-on-one meetings, Pelosi courted wavering lawmakers, paying particular attention to the incoming, majority-making class of freshmen. She appeared to make headway as leaders of the Congressional Progressive Caucus described their session with her as a ‘productive and successful conversation’ that they would share with their 70-plus membership.”
Mulvaney Angles for Commerce Secretary
“To hear Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and his allies tell it, rumors of his demise have been greatly exaggerated,” Politico reports.
“But in a sign of Ross’s perceived weakness, at least one influential Trump ally has begun speaking openly about his desire for the Commerce job if and when it becomes vacant: Office of Management and Budget chief Mick Mulvaney.”
Kamala Harris’ Facebook Presence Says She’s Running
“Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) isn’t saying if she plans to run for president, but her Facebook presence is another story,” the HuffPost reports.
“The potential Democratic 2020 contender is running roughly 1,100 Facebook ads asking their audience to sign a ‘Protect Mueller’ petition — a tactic politicians commonly use to build huge lists of potential voters and their email addresses.”
Florida Orders Hand Recount
“An unprecedented statewide hand recount is now under way in the Sunshine State, further extending a high-stakes, partisan battle over every last vote in Florida’s crucial U.S. Senate race,” the Miami Herald reports.
“Following a five-day machine recount of the more than 8.3 million votes cast in the Nov. 6 elections, Secretary of State Ken Detzner ordered hand recounts Thursday afternoon in the race between Sen Bill Nelson (D) and Gov. Rick Scott (R).”
“The order gives canvassing boards in the state’s 67 counties three days to pore over thousands of ballots that were rejected by machines because of ‘overvotes’ — a voter appears to have chosen more than one candidate in a race — or ‘undervotes,’ in which a voter appears to have skipped a race altogether.”
Ocasio-Cortez Gets In Fight with Veteran Lawmaker
“A fight broke out in a closed-door meeting of House Democrats over climate change as a powerful veteran lawmaker fought with freshman star Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and other members-elect over the creation of a special panel for the issue,” Politico reports.
“Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ), incoming chairman of the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee — backed by a number of other committee members — slammed the creation of the new climate panel… Pallone argued that his committee and other existing panels within the House could take on the issue aggressively.”
Democrat Also Wins Special Election to Fill Dent’s Seat
Susan Wild (D) won the special election to finish out the congressional term of retired Rep. Charlie Dent (R-PA), the Allentown Morning Call reports.
Wild had already handily won the two-year term to represent the district in the congressional session that begins in January. The special election resulted from Dent’s decision to step down from his post in May, leaving the seat vacant.
Three Takeaways from the 2018 Midterms
Amy Walter: “The first is that Democrats maximized their opportunity districts. There were very few vulnerable GOP districts where Democrats didn’t have a solid candidate and/or the money needed to make those races competitive.”
“The second, as in previous ‘wave’ elections, even those incumbents who had been fighting and winning in tough districts for years were unable to survive the undertow of an unpopular president of their own party.”
“Finally, it’s clear that despite all the strum and churn of the last two years, views of the president have remained incredibly stable. The enduring antipathy to Trump cost the GOP the House. But, that stability also saved Republicans from losing even more seats.”
Trump Regularly Mocks Hannity’s ‘Dumb’ Questions
Daily Beast: “Donald Trump’s close relationship—on air and off—with Sean Hannity hasn’t stopped the president from mocking the Fox News star behind his back for being such a suck-up, according to three sources who have independently heard this mockery.”
“Trump has repeatedly—and sometimes for a sustained period of time—made fun of Hannity’s interviewing skills, usually zeroing in on the low-quality laziness of the host’s questions.”
“The president’s recurring complaints often focus on how sycophantic the TV host can be, both on and off camera, with Hannity’s slobbering leaving no friction to generate the sparks and drama that Trump craves.”
Kansas Official Makes ‘Master Race’ Comment at Meeting
A Kansas county commissioner referred to the “master race” as he addressed a black city planner presenting a land use analysis to county officials at a board meeting, the Kansas City Times reports.
Said Commissioner Louis Klemp: “I don’t want you to think I’m picking on you, because, we’re part of the master race.”
As he brought his fingers to his own teeth, he added: “You know you got a gap in your teeth, you’re the masters, don’t ever forget that.”
The Two Parties Represent Two Different Economies
CNBC: “Among other results, this year’s midterm elections affirmed this much: in Washington, the two parties now speak for dramatically different segments of the American economy.”
“Republicans represent the smaller, fading segment, with less-educated, more-homogenous work forces reliant on traditional manufacturing, agriculture and resource extraction. Democrats represent the larger, growing one, fueled by finance, professional services and digital innovation in diverse urban areas.”
Public Expects More Gridlock
Pew Research: “The public is generally positive about the outcome of last week’s midterm elections. Yet most Americans think that neither Democratic congressional leaders nor Donald Trump will be successful in getting their policies passed into law during the next two years.”
“And after years of growing political divisions in Congress and the nation, the public expects little improvement in relations between Republicans and Democrats in Washington in the coming year. Most expect partisan relations will get worse or stay the same. Just 9% expect that partisan relations will improve.”
Ohio Democrats Won More Votes But Remain In Minority
“As Ohio Republicans won the race for every statewide executive job from the governor on down this year, something different happened in lower-profile races. The Democrats actually collected more total votes in the 116 Ohio House and Senate elections across the state,” the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
“It’s a takeaway from Election 2018 that isn’t the usual headline grabber. More importantly, in terms of controlling Ohio’s government, the GOP won 72 of the 116 Statehouse races. But the Republicans scored their wins for 62 percent of the seats while collecting just under 50 percent of the total vote.”
“This is a lot like what happened in Ohio’s 16 congressional districts, where Republicans won 75 percent of the seats with just 52 percent of the overall vote.”
