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How Stormy Daniels Is Beating Trump at His Own Game

March 22, 2018 at 2:54 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Matt Viser: “Stormy Daniels is proving that she is the master of the prolonged reveal.”

“Over the last two and a half months the adult film actress and her lawyer have rolled out a textbook negative media campaign against the master of media manipulation, with a series of tantalizing details and disclosures that has provoked a storm of salacious and damaging news coverage.”

“And the worst for President Trump, who is in the rare position of struggling to win a tabloid-style media war, is yet to come. Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, is scheduled to appear in a 60 Minutes segment on Sunday in which she is expected to tell plenty more about her alleged affair with Trump in 2006.”

Mueller Zeroes In on Cambridge Analytica

March 22, 2018 at 2:37 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Special counsel Robert Mueller “is scrutinizing the connections between President Trump’s campaign and the data mining firm Cambridge Analytica,” the AP reports.

“Mueller’s investigators have asked former campaign officials about the Trump campaign’s data operations, particularly about how it collected and utilized voter data in battleground states.”

“The investigators have also asked some of Trump’s data team, which included analysts at the Republican National Committee, about its relationship with Cambridge Analytica.”

Tillerson Takes a Departing Swing at Trump

March 22, 2018 at 2:04 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

In a farewell speech to department staff, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson wasn’t subtle expressing his view about the way he was summarily dismissed from his job by President Trump, Marketwatch reports.

Said Tillerson: “This can be a very mean-spirited town. But you don’t have to choose to participate in that. Each of us gets to choose the person we want to be, the way we want to be treated, and the way we want to treat others.”

Judge Orders Walker to Call Special Elections

March 22, 2018 at 1:51 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Dealing a setback to Gov. Scott Walker and other Republicans, a judge ruled the governor must call special elections to fill two vacant seats in the Legislature,” the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

“Walker declined to call those elections after two GOP lawmakers stepped down to join his administration in December. His plan would have left the seats vacant for more than a year.”

Bonus Quote of the Day

March 22, 2018 at 1:35 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“I feel like I’m a victim of mushroom management — keep me in the dark and feed me manure.”

— Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA), quoted by Bloomberg, on the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill.

Fight to Replace Hope Hicks Is Now a ‘Smear Campaign’

March 22, 2018 at 1:33 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The race to become the next White House Communications Director has degenerated into a round of backstabbing and factionalism that has taken aback even the most jaded of White House aides and allies,” the Daily Beast reports.

“One White House official described the contest to replace departing Trump adviser Hope Hicks as being well into its ‘smear campaign stage.’ Another senior administration official dubbed it as a ‘battle royale.’ And a Republican official close to the White House bemoaned yet another heavy shot of ‘palace intrigue and backstabbing’ in an administration uniquely notorious for both.”

Stuart Stevens: “Every job process involving this White House quickly slides into contest of who is most willing to degrade themselves the most for a job they will later be ashamed of holding. It’s why the available talent pool is so limited.”

Republicans Face Epic Hurdle In Midterms

March 22, 2018 at 1:05 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball: “Republicans already have more retirements than any presidential party in a midterm cycle from 1974 to 2018, and they are not far behind Democrats in 1978 in terms of the open seats they hold. Because seats lacking an incumbent are more difficult for the incumbent party to retain, this situation should deeply worry the GOP.”

Quote of the Day

March 22, 2018 at 1:01 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“I thought it was hilarious.”

— Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX), quoted by CNN, on President Trump’s congratulatory call to Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Trump Moves Ahead with Massive Tariffs on China

March 22, 2018 at 12:55 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Trump took the first steps toward imposing tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese goods and limiting China’s ability to invest in the U.S. technology industry, saying the moves were a response to Beijing’s history of forcing U.S. companies to surrender their trade secrets to do business in China,” the Washington Post reports.

Mueller Has an Insurance Policy In the Event He’s Fired

March 22, 2018 at 12:08 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

This piece is only available to Political Wire members.

On March 12 — the same day that House Intelligence Committee Republicans declared there was no evidence the Trump campaign colluded with Russia — Bloomberg reported that special counsel Robert Mueller had essentially wrapped up his investigation into whether President Trump had obstructed justice in the probe. The only thing missing was a final interview with Trump, but the report is basically finished.

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Has Trump Already Sealed the GOP’s Fate In 2018?

March 22, 2018 at 12:07 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Ron Browstein: “Every time Donald Trump breaks a window, congressional Republicans obediently sweep up the glass.”

“That’s become one of the most predictable patterns of his turbulent presidency—and a defining dynamic of the approaching midterm elections. Each time they overtly defend his behavior, or implicitly excuse him by failing to object, they bind themselves to him more tightly.”

“With all of this, the GOP leadership is sending an unmistakable signal to voters antagonistic or ambivalent about Trump: So long as Republicans hold the congressional majority, they will not act to meaningfully constrain, or even oversee, the president. That choice represents an epic gamble for November—and beyond.”

Dowd Resigns as Trump’s Lead Lawyer on Mueller Probe

March 22, 2018 at 11:23 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The president’s lead lawyer for the special counsel investigation, John Dowd, resigned… days after the president called for an end to the inquiry,” the New York Times reports.

Washington Post: “Dowd’s departure was a largely mutual decision made after the president lost confidence in his ability to handle special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation and Dowd became frustrated with Trump’s recent efforts to bring on new attorneys.”

It Started with Trump’s Tax Returns

March 22, 2018 at 11:22 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Thomas Friedman: “During the campaign he promised to release them after the I.R.S. finished auditing him. Then, after he was elected, Trump said, sorry, not going to release them ever. And nothing happened. Trump, I am reliably told, has actually said to people close to him, ‘Can you believe I got away with that?'”

“Once Trump saw that he could get away with not disclosing his tax returns, he knew he could get away with anything. He knew that once he compromised the G.O.P., even its evangelical wing, into giving him a pass on his taxes, they’d roll over for anything — sex with porn stars, endless lying, trashing the F.B.I., coddling Putin. Once you erase a big red line, it’s hard to start enforcing others.”

“Get me Trump’s tax returns. Because there must be something very important in them that he wants to keep hidden. Maybe it’s just the embarrassment that he is not as rich as he claims, or, maybe, it’s something more fundamental — like how dependent he is on Russian oligarchs for financing, so much so that Putin has leverage on him. Whatever the reason, though, when Trump saw he could get away with hiding them, he knew he could break any rule, tell any lie and violate any presidential norm — and he’s done just that.”

Bolton Appeared In a Russian Gun Rights Video

March 22, 2018 at 10:51 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Former U.N. ambassador John Bolton recorded a video used by the Russian gun rights group The Right to Bear Arms in 2013 to encourage the Russian government to loosen gun laws,” NPR reports.

“The episode, which has not been previously reported, illustrates the common cause that Russian and American gun rights groups were forming in the years leading up to the 2016 election through former National Rifle Association president David Keene. Keene appointed Bolton to the NRA’s international affairs subcommittee in 2011.”

Kasich Open to Independent Bid for President

March 22, 2018 at 8:46 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Gov. John Kasich (R) said that the Republican Party has “never been my master” and that “all of my options are on the table” for 2020, Politico reports.

Asked if he was ruling out running against President Trump as an independent, Kasich told reporters, “All of my options are on the table. But I’m a Republican, I’m a conservative, and I just want to add to the public debate and do a good job.”

Republicans Grow Frustrated with Leaks

March 22, 2018 at 8:43 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A senior GOP Senate aide vents to Jonathan Swan: “Everyone is over the leaks from this White House. Why is it that every emotional moment he has, has to be leaked, has to be a tick-tock, every second has to be transmitted to you guys in the press?”

The aide continued: “It is a disservice to the president when every single thing and every single thought gets leaked out… I don’t understand why people don’t get that. It’s not fair to the president, to his agenda, and to those who work hard every day to move the ball down the field.”

GOP Leaders Fear Lazy Republicans

March 22, 2018 at 8:11 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Politico: “What GOP leaders fear most heading into the thick of the midterm elections: incumbents who haven’t seen a real race in years snoozing as a Democratic wave builds. Speaker Paul Ryan and the National Republican Congressional Committee are less concerned about their battle-tested swing-district members — who face tough races every election cycle — and more worried about complacent Republicans not prepared for a fight.”

“It’s one of the reasons Ryan’s political team and NRCC officials have started holding a series of meetings with lawmakers from traditionally reliable GOP districts. Their message: Get ready for a roller coaster and begin your campaign in earnest now.”

When Donald Trump Met Stormy Daniels

March 22, 2018 at 8:04 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

GQ pieces together “the whole weird, sleazy weekend” when Donald Trump met Stormy Daniels at a celebrity golf tournament in Tahoe and reportedly began an affair.

“Of course, Trump’s Tahoe trip haunts him in other ways. Another porn star he supposedly met there came forward with allegations in 2016 that Trump kissed her and two friends without permission that weekend. And another woman still—a Playboy model named Karen McDougal—reportedly admitted to a secret tryst with Trump while in Tahoe that weekend. On Tuesday, McDougal, who had signed a secrecy agreement, lodged a lawsuit of her own, suing for the right to share her story of the alleged affair (Trump has denied the relationship).”

“It’s fair to wonder how a single long-forgotten weekend could, all these years later, cause so much trouble. It’s also reasonable to wonder just what the hell was going on in Tahoe across those four misbegotten days.”