Coming soon: Fascism: A Warning by Madeleine Albright.
House Exodus Gives Democrats a Huge Opportunity
Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “As of this writing, just 379 of 435 House districts will have incumbents running in them this November. That’s the second-lowest total of the post-World War II era.”
“The 56 total open districts include 37 open Republican-held seats and 19 open Democratic seats.”
“Since our last open seat update, the Democratic potential in these seats has grown: It’s possible the Democrats could get a third or more of the way toward flipping the House just through netting gains among the open seats.”
Comey Book Tour Tickets Selling for $850
Former FBI director James Comey already has a best seller through preorders with his book A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership, the New York Post reports.
“Comey, who is also taping an audio version, will make promotional appearances on ABC and CBS and launch a 10-city tour. In five of those cities, Comey is giving lectures and commanding Broadway-like prices.”
“Tickets for Comey’s appearance at Town Hall on April 19 (two days after the book’s publication) are going for as much as $850 on StubHub — $95 is the top face value.”
Tom Steyer Is Building a Political Death Star
Daily Beast: “Ask a professional Democrat for his or her opinion on billionaire political donor Tom Steyer, and the answer you often get is a variation of the following: Why would someone with so much money spend it all on a fruitless attempt to impeach Donald Trump?”
“Press them for their thoughts in private, however, and many concede that the man funding a $40 million campaign to get rid of the current president is not just a gifted self-promoter, but is, in fact, building one of the true powerhouse entities within the Democratic ecosystem. Steyer is poised to play a massive role in the midterms and pull the party in the direction of his choosing. He’s also set himself up incredibly well—perhaps better than any other potential aspirant—for a serious presidential bid in 2020.”
Said one Democratic strategist: “If I were a rich person and I wanted to run for president. I would be doing exactly what he’s doing.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“It’s like Richard Nixon going to China, but if Nixon were a moron.”
— Jeffrey Lewis, writing in Foreign Policy, about the promised meeting between President Trump and Kim Jung Un.
Runoff In Mississippi Is Very Possible
The Washington Post reports that Mississippi Senate appointee Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) sat down yesterday with White House officials, who weren’t too keen on her when Gov. Phil Bryant (R) named her for the seat last week.
First Read: “At issue, among other things, is Hyde-Smith’s past as a former Democrat, which some Republicans worry could hamper her run against conservative firebrand Chris McDaniel, who’s also seeking the seat. Keep in mind that, if no candidate between Hyde-Smith, McDaniel and Democratic candidate Mike Espy gets to 50% of the vote on Election Day, we’ll be in for a runoff.”
McDaniel tweets: “It sounds like the WH is on the right track in refusing to endorse Cindy Hyde-Smith but this should help them make a final decision.”
Loyalty to Trump Becomes the Issue in GOP Primaries
James Hohmann: “Fealty to Trump has become more of a litmus test than ever for Republicans. Emboldened by private polling and focus groups that show the president is incredibly popular with the base, GOP candidates are stepping up attacks on their rivals over any daylight they’ve shown with Trump, even if it stemmed from his personal conduct toward women or apostasy on traditional conservative orthodoxy. It’s another illustration of the degree to which Trumpism has come to define the Republican Party. This is no longer the party of Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan or George W. Bush. It’s the party of Donald J. Trump.”
‘Seeking Lead Attorney for Difficult Client’
Someone is using Craigslist to help find President Trump a new lawyer.
Is the Trump Bump Real?
Amy Walter: “What’s remarkable about Trump’s approval ratings during the course of his presidency, is how volatile and totally stable they are at the same time.”
“Since early March, Trump’s job approval has ticked up, but it is not any higher than it has been at previous points in his presidency. We will know things are really different this time around if Trump’s approval ratings break through – or at least continue to stay at — his current polling ceiling. However, it seems as if Trump’s floor and his ceiling are well-established with little, it seems, that can fundamentally move them.”
“The more pressing question, especially for Republicans going into 2018, is if Trump’s approval ratings will be on the higher end of the range (say 42-45%) than on the lower end (like 33-38%). While both are empirically pretty terrible numbers for any president, GOP members could have a fighting chance at preserving their House majority if Trump is on the higher end, while the lower end is likely to produce a tsunami-like wipeout.”
Earlier for members: Trump’s Approval Rate in Perspective
Trump Congratulates Roseanne Barr
“President Trump made a personal phone call to a political supporter with a huge megaphone — Roseanne Barr,” the New York Times reports.
“Mr. Trump called Ms. Barr to congratulate her on the revival of her comedy, Roseanne, and to thank her for her support.”
“The revival of the vintage ABC sitcom got off to an enormously strong start on Tuesday night, drawing 18.2 million viewers and a 5.1 rating among adults under 50, according to Nielsen.”
Trump Freezes Out Kelly
“White House Chief of Staff John Kelly has lost some of his clout following recent missteps and wasn’t at President Trump’s side for recent crucial decisions on staffing and policy moves,” Bloomberg reports.
“Kelly wasn’t with the president last week when Trump abruptly decided to oust H.R. McMaster as national security adviser and replace him with John Bolton. Just two people were in the room for that decision: Trump and Bolton.”
“And Kelly is rarely on the line any more when Trump calls foreign leaders. Last week, when Trump spoke with President Vladimir Putin days before the U.S. decided to expel dozens of Russian diplomats, Kelly wasn’t on the call.”
Chasing Hillary
Coming soon: Chasing Hillary: Ten Years, Two Presidential Campaigns, and One Intact Glass Ceiling by Amy Chozick.
Axios reports that Chozick uses pseudonyms to identify top Clinton aides in her memoir.
Chozick explains: “I changed some names and identifying details, and gave lots of people pseudonyms, sometimes to protect the innocent but usually to protect the story — I think having to remember the names of dozens of political operatives who all essentially perform the same purpose is boring.”
‘It Should Not Be This Hard to Serve Your Country’
David Shulkin wrote an op-ed in the New York Times following his ouster as Veterans Affairs secretary, railing against the “toxic” and “chaotic” environment in Washington and describing a “brutal power struggle” at the VA.
Said Shulkin: “As I prepare to leave government, I am struck by a recurring thought: It should not be this hard to serve your country.”
Quote of the Day
“I’m not going to talk about the 2016 election. I’m still in therapy.”
— Jeb Bush, quoted by the Yale Daily News.
Scalise Admits He’d Like to Be Speaker
House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) admitted to Politico “his desire to lead the conference someday but said now isn’t the time to discuss it.”
Said Scalise: “I wouldn’t rule it out. Obviously, I’ve shown interest in the past at moving up. I’ve enjoyed being in leadership. I feel like I’ve had a strong influence on some of the things that we’ve done, and I’ve helped put together coalitions to pass a full repeal of Obamacare.”
Playbook: “Scalise’s interest in the speakership is now public. So, whether he meant it or not, there is now an alternative to Kevin McCarthy. If you’re a member who wants Scalise as speaker — or doesn’t want Kevin — you now know a vote against McCarthy could get you the Louisiana Republican.”
Why Manafort Isn’t Talking
Harry Litman: “The most enduring mystery to date in special counsel Robert Mueller’s inquiry has been former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort’s obdurate refusal to cooperate with the investigation. Manafort has a reputation as a swashbuckling gambler, but he has been playing odds in the biggest game of his life that are not just long but prohibitive. A new report that the president’s now-former lawyer once discussed pardoning Manafort may finally explain why the latter has kept quiet — even though that bet is still incredibly risky.”
“Manafort’s refusal to cooperate can’t be driven by a rational calculation that he has any reasonable chance of escaping conviction, multimillion-dollar legal fees and a prison sentence that will result in years behind bars.”
Rival Korean Leaders to Meet in Historic Summit
“North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet South Korean President Moon Jae-in at a border village on April 27, the South announced Thursday after the nations agreed on a rare summit that could prove significant in global efforts to resolve a decades-long standoff over the North’s nuclear program,” the AP reports.
Shake Up Remakes Kushner’s Role
Wall Street Journal: “Policy differences could also emerge. In talking with friends, Mr. Kushner has joked about the hawkish Middle East views of Mr. Bolton, who has said he opposes a two-state solution for achieving peace in the region in favor of Egypt and Jordan absorbing the Palestinian territories. The ‘Orthodox Jews’ working toward a Middle East peace deal—himself, White House chief negotiator Jason Greenblatt and U.S. ambassador to Israel David Friedman—are now looking like ‘the moderates,’ Mr. Kushner told his friends.”
