President Obama “faces a daunting list of tasks after returning to Washington on Sunday from a relatively quiet two-week vacation on Martha’s Vineyard — with legislative deadlines and visits from world leaders already penciled into his September schedule,” the New York Times reports.
Trump Dodges Questions on Details of Immigration Plan
Donald Trump “repeatedly side-stepped questions on Sunday about how he would pay for his new plan to deport undocumented immigrants, and he also faced criticism from several rivals for the Republican presidential nomination about his call to end so-called birthright citizenship for children of those immigrants,” the New York Times reports.
Said Trump: “My specifics are very simple. I’m going to get great people that know what they’re doing, not a bunch of political hacks that have no idea what they’re doing, appointed by President Obama, that doesn’t have a clue. I mean, that man doesn’t have a clue. People are walking across the border right now, right in front of these great people that we have. We have wonderful border patrol people. They can do their job, but they’re not allowed to do the job.”
Reid Will Back Iran Deal
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) told the Washington Post that he will support President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, ending speculation that he was waffling on the agreement.
Said Reid: “This is the best way, the only way, to keep Iran from getting a nuclear weapon.”
Failed Senate Primary Challengers Rally Around Cruz
Sen. Ted Cruz’s (R-TX) presidential campaign “may not get many endorsements from Senate colleagues. Not coincidentally, the Texas senator is racking up support from primary challengers who tried but failed to unseat some of those senators last year. Tennessee’s Joe Carr, Mississippi’s Chris McDaniel, and South Carolina’s Lee Bright, three conservatives who opposed longtime GOP senators in 2014 primaries, have all backed Cruz for president,” National Journal reports.
“It’s a small part of Cruz’s effort to do next year what those candidates did last year: serve as a vessel for conservative voters’ frustration with the political establishment.”
Trump Will Take Donations
Donald Trump “says he’ll take donations to his presidential campaigns, but not from lobbyists who will expect something in return,” CNN reports.
“And he took a shot at another class of influential donors — hedge fund managers — saying they ‘get away with murder’ and would have to pay higher taxes if he wins the Republican nomination and is elected.”
Walker Takes Yet Another Position on Birthright Citizenship
Gov. Scott Walker “took his third position within seven days on Donald Trump’s proposal to end birthright citizenship, this time saying he opposes Trump and supports the policy,” CNN reports.
Wall Street Journal: “At each step in the Wisconsin governor’s career, he has run against Republican opponents with one overriding strategy: Never letting anybody get to the right of him. That helps explain his move this week to instantly embrace the toughest position on immigration after Republican presidential primary opponent Donald Trump released his policy platform on the matter.”
Six Ways 2016 Hopefuls Want to Change the Constitution
National Journal looks at all the ways the 2016 presidential candidates have proposed changing the U.S. Constitution.
“There have only been 27 amendments to the legendary legal document since the Founding Fathers—quite literally—put pen to paper. And that’s with good reason: Even the most routine way of amending the Constitution is very nearly impossible. An amendment must win consent from two-thirds of the Senate and House before being sent to the states for final approval.”
“Still, the mere suggestion of altering America’s bedrock law can make a splash in a crowded 2016 field. And as long as presidential candidates vie for attention, suggestions for changing the Constitution may continue to materialize even if actual amendments do not.”
Trump Pulling Away in GOP Race
A new Reuters/Ipsos poll finds Donald Trump is widening his lead over the GOP presidential field with 32%, followed by Jeb Bush at 16%, Ben Carson at 8%, Mike Huckabee at 7%, Scott Walker at 5%, Marco Rubio at 4% and Ted Cruz at 4%.
Bonus Quote of the Day
“If Trump is nominated, then everything we think we know about presidential nominations is wrong.”
— Larry Sabato, quoted by The Guardian.
Democrats Gain Leverage on Capitol Hill
“Republicans may control both the House and Senate, but any hope of enacting spending bills laden with conservative priorities — like defunding Planned Parenthood and Obamacare — will almost certainly die when budget negotiations begin in earnest later this year,” the Washington Post reports.
“That’s because the hardening reality on Capitol Hill is that for GOP leaders to avoid government shutdowns or debt defaults they need to rely on Democratic votes in both chambers. And the minority party isn’t about to lend its support to bills containing policies it strongly opposes. “
Finally a Good Summer for Obama
President Obama “may have finally shed his summer curse — just in time for a daunting fall,” the AP reports.
“After a string of sunny seasons gripped by controversy, crises and plummeting popularity, the summer of 2015 has been among the most productive stretches of Obama’s presidency. Late June victories in the Supreme Court on health care and gay marriage, and a win for his trade agenda on Capitol Hill, were followed by the landmark Iran nuclear deal in July and the raising of the U.S. flag over a new embassy in Cuba in August.”
Quote of the Day
“The email thing, it has kind of a mystique to it. You know, an email is just an utterance in digital form. But it has some kind of dark energy that gets everybody excited… it’s almost like a vampire. She’s going to have to find a stake and put it right through the heart of these emails in some way.”
— California Gov. Jerry Brown (D), speaking to NBC News about Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while serving as Secretary of State.
Christie Fades Into Irrelevance
Gov. Chris Christie “is once again facing the possibility that he might be relegated to the junior varsity debate — and rival Republican campaigns and outside observers say his window to re-enter the top tier of presidential candidates is closing fast,” Politico reports.
“Christie has become such an also-ran that the Associated Press and the New York Times recently reassigned reporters dedicated to covering Christie to other beats.”
The Clinton Defender
The New York Times profiles David Kendall, who for 20 years “has been on the front lines for Bill and Hillary Clinton as their personal lawyer, battling investigators and litigants in the superheated environment where law and politics meet.”
“From Whitewater to impeachment, he has waged legal warfare to keep the Clintons’ political careers on track. So as Mrs. Clinton faces questions about her use of a personal email server as secretary of state, no one is surprised she turned to Mr. Kendall. The latest furor has put Mr. Kendall under a spotlight in a way that discomfits the tight-lipped and camera-shy lawyer.”
Paul Can Run for Two Offices at Once
The Kentucky Republican Party “has approved a presidential caucus allowing Rand Paul to run for president and re-election to his U.S. Senate seat at the same time without running afoul of state law,” the AP reports.
“State law bans candidates from appearing on the ballot twice in the same election. Paul tried without success to convince the state legislature to change the law. But a presidential caucus allows voters to vote for Paul for president on March 5 and then vote for him again for re-election to his Senate seat during the primary election on May 17.”
Trump Has Assembled Broad Coalition
New York Times: “A review of public polling, extensive interviews with a host of his supporters in two states and a new private survey that tracks voting records all point to the conclusion that Mr. Trump has built a broad, demographically and ideologically diverse coalition, constructed around personality, not substance, that bridges demographic and political divides. In doing so, he has effectively insulated himself from the consequences of startling statements that might instantly doom rival candidates.”
National Journal: “Trump is breaking every convention of presidential politics—flaunting his unapologetically egotistical, politically incorrect style—and baffling pundits in the process. Trump is often lampooned for this, but maybe the joke’s on everyone else. His grandiosity appears to be working.”
Biden Meets Warren Amid 2016 Speculation
Vice President Biden “huddled Saturday with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), the rising liberal star who has declined to endorse a candidate for the 2016 presidential race, an impromptu meeting that came as speculation mounted over Biden’s own potential candidacy,” the Washington Post reports.
“Biden, who has begun to explore a possible presidential campaign in recent weeks, made the trip Saturday from his home in Wilmington, Del., to his official residence at the Naval Observatory in Washington to meet Warren, who has become an icon to liberal activists who view financial institutions as wielding too much clout in the corridors of power.”
Winning Higher Priority Than Purity for Koch Brothers
“The head of the Koch brothers’ flagship political organization says a Republican winning the presidency is becoming a higher priority for more of its members, suggesting a rift between pragmatists and ideologues,” the AP reports.
