“Republicans are struggling to recruit strong Senate candidates in states that present the party’s best opportunities to reclaim the majority, a sign that the GOP’s post-2012 soul-searching may end up creeping into the midterm congressional elections,” the AP reports.
Akin Talks Comeback
Former Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) told KSDK-TV he would not rule out making a political comeback despite sinking his U.S. Senate campaign last year after he uttered the now famous words, “legitimate rape.”
Said Akin: “I’m not going to try to get even with anybody. If you start to blame everyone else for something that happened you didn’t like, it will destroy you. It will eat you alive.”
He added: “Really what it goes back to is whether the Republican Party is going to be run by the insiders, or run by the grassroots organization. That’s a question still to be determined.”
Rubio Hit Hard After Inviting Comments on Immigration Bill
Byron York notes Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) invited people to help improve the bipartisan immigration bill he introduced by making comments on his website.
“Rubio’s staff is reviewing each one — a wise move, given the emotions that the immigration issue can involve and the tendency of some people to say nasty things on the Internet. But even after screening for foul language and general content, the suggestions Rubio has so far received are remarkably negative. Actually, they are overwhelmingly, crushingly negative, criticizing a wide spectrum of issues included in the Gang of Eight bill. The commenters Rubio has invited to speak really, really, really don’t like what he has done.”
Wonk Wire: The real immigration debate is just getting started.
Musharraf Under House Arrest
A Pakistani court has ordered a three-day house arrest on former military ruler Pervez Musharraf over the murder of ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto more than five years ago, Al Jazeera reports.
Tennessee Lawmaker Refers to “Tape and Rape” Methods
Tennessee state Rep. Andy Holt (R), who is sponsoring a bill that would ban long-term investigations of animal cruelty, compared Humane Society investigations to human trafficking of 17-year-old women and called the group’s methods “tape and rape” in an email, the Tennessean reports.
Cuccinelli Failed to Disclose Gift Vacations
Virginia gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli (R) received more gifts from dietary supplement company Star Scientific than he had previously reported, the Fredricksburg News reports.
“Cuccinelli revealed three trips and two vacations, spread over the past five years, that he says he forgot to list on his annual financial disclosure statements.”
On the Same Team
Gawker: “Tomorrow evening, the cream of our nation’s mainstream media celebrities, political celebrities, and celebrity celebrities will put on tuxedos and evening gowns and gather in a ballroom in Washington, DC to mutually give one another handjobs, in a mostly metaphorical sense. This is because the most powerful elements of our nation’s DC press corps are all ‘on the same team’ as the people they cover (politicians) and the people they idolize (celebrities). This is called the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, and it is the single most revolting annual gathering of pseudojournalistic cocksuckery in all the land.”
Act of Congress
Out next month: Act of Congress: How America’s Essential Institution Works, and How It Doesn’t by Robert G. Kaiser.
“An eye-opening account of how Congress today really works — and doesn’t — that follows the dramatic journey of the sweeping financial reform bill enacted in response to the Great Crash of 2008.”
Obama Group Seeks to Shame Climate Skeptics
Organizing for Action, the advocacy group formed to support President Obama’s political agenda after the election, has launched an initiative — and released a new video — to shame members of Congress who deny the science behind climate change, the Guardian reports.
The group said “it was time to call out members of Congress who deny the existence of climate change, saying they had blocked efforts to avoid its most catastrophic consequences.”
What if they Were the Boston Shooters Instead?
John Cassidy: “Here’s a little mental experiment. Imagine, for a moment, that the Tsarnaev brothers, instead of packing a couple of pressure cookers loaded with nails and explosives into their backpacks a week ago Monday, had stuffed inside their coats two assault rifles–Bushmaster AR-15s, say, of the type that Adam Lanza used in Newtown. What would have been different?”
“Well, for one thing, the brothers would probably have killed a lot more than three people at the marathon… The second thing that would have been different is the initial public reaction. Most Americans associate bomb attacks with terrorists. When they hear of mass shootings, they tend to think of sociopaths and unbalanced post-adolescents.”
“Third, had the attack been carried out with assault rifles rather than explosives and nails, the gun-control bills that perished on Capitol Hill just two days after the Boston bombings may have met a different fate.”
The Invisible Lobbyists
Wonk Wire: What most people would call lobbying now falls outside of its legal definition.
Bonus Quote of the Day
“This administration has so many Muslim brotherhood members that have influence that they just are making wrong decisions for America.”
— Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX), in an interview with WND Radio, explaining what he sees as President Obama’s downplaying of the threat of radical Islam.
Ambassador Pick Bails Over Poker Ring
Marc Lasry, the New York billionaire President Obama wanted to appoint ambassador to France, turned down the prestigious position over ties to an alleged Russian mob-run poker ring, the New York Post reports.
Last month, Bill Clinton, a close friend of Lasry, said at a fund-raiser that Lasry was Obama’s pick for the ambassadorship.
An unnamed source close to Clinton isn’t pleased: “I can’t believe that Obama admits in a book that he snorted cocaine and yet Marc Lasry can’t be named ambassador to France because he played cards.”
Jon Stewart Welcomes Bush Back to the Spotlight
Jon Stewart had his own unique take on the George W. Bush presidential library dedication calling it “the Hard Rock Café of catastrophic policy decisions.”
Nelson Says He’s Not Running for Florida Governor
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) told MSNBC that he won’t be launching a gubernatorial bid after all.
Said Nelson: “Look, I have no plans to run for governor. I have no intention of running for governor.”
Nelson’s statement comes after Roll Call quoted a “senior Democratic official” who said that the senator was considering a bid.
Days of Fire
Here’s a must-read: Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House by Peter Baker.
“Taking readers into the offices of the West Wing and the cabins of Air Force One, Peter Baker tells the gripping inside story of the Bush and Cheney era.”
Now available for pre-order.
Quote of the Day
“George W. Bush’s flaws are greatly overshadowed by his virtues, starting with his moral clarity.”
– Karl Rove, writing in the Wall Street Journal, to which Andrew Sullivan replies that he was also the first president in U.S. history to authorize the torture of captured prisoners.
Getting to Know PA-17
Stephen Colbert takes a hilarious look at Pennsylvania’s 17th congressional district.
