New York Times: “On Thursday, Pope Francis will release his first major teaching letter, known as an encyclical, on the theme of the environment and the poor. Given the pope’s widespread popularity, and his penchant for speaking out on major global issues, the encyclical is being treated as a milestone that could place the Roman Catholic Church at the forefront of a new coalition of religion and science.”
Wonk Wire: Climate change deniers will be the big money losers
“In a significant move to deter possible Russian aggression in Europe, the Pentagon is poised to store battle tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and other heavy weapons for as many as 5,000 American troops in several Baltic and Eastern European countries,” the New York Times reports.
“The proposal, if approved, would represent the first time since the end of the Cold War that the United States has stationed heavy military equipment in the newer NATO member nations in Eastern Europe that had once been part of the Soviet sphere of influence. Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the war in eastern Ukraine have caused alarm and prompted new military planning in NATO capitals.”
“Sketching a vision of a more hopeful, inclusive America that takes care of own while taking on big challenges such as climate change, Hillary Clinton said Saturday she is running for president to be the champion the country needs now, as well as its history-making first female commander in chief,” the Washington Post reports.
“Clinton launched her campaign in earnest with a 45-minute address that melded her personal biography as an advocate for women and children with promises of policy changes she promised would make the country fairer for all. It was the first time since entering the race in April that Clinton made a sustained case for her second run for the White House and told voters why she thinks she deserves to win.”
Said Clinton: “I may not be the youngest candidate in this race, but I’ll be the youngest woman president in the history of the United States.”
You're reading the free version of Political Wire
Upgrade to a paid membership to unlock full access. The process is quick and easy. You can even use Apple Pay.
“There is only one thing that I really miss about being president, and that’s being the commander-in-chief.”
— George W. Bush, quoted by The Hill.
“You know, it’s wonderful watching a campaign when you’re seeing it from the outside. I don’t look back and second guess. I don’t say, ‘Oh I wish I made a different decision.’ I’m glad I made the decision I did. And I’m looking forward to playing what limited role a guy who lost can play in a presidential contest.”
— Mitt Romney, quoted by the Boston Globe.
Former President George W. Bush told Israel Hayom that the United States will need combat troops on the ground to defeat the Islamic State.
Said Bush: “The president will have to make that determination. My position was that you need to have boots on the ground… We will see whether or not our government adjusts to the realities on the ground.”
“The problem is not that I don’t understand the global banking system. The problem for these guys is that I fully understand the system and I understand how they make their money. And that’s what they don’t like about me.”
— Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), quoted by Politico, firing back at JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon for suggesting she has no clue what she’s talking about in her attacks on Wall Street.
California Assemblywoman Shannon Grove (R) suggested her state’s worst drought in 1,200 years may be God’s retribution for laws providing women with access to abortions, the Huffington Post reports.
Said Grove: “Texas was in a long period of drought until Governor Perry signed the fetal pain bill. It rained that night. Now God has his hold on California.”
The campaign staffer who accused former congressional candidate Carl DeMaio (R) of sexual harassment pleaded guilty to obstructing justice, the San Diego Union Tribune reports.
Todd Bosnich admitted he fabricated a threatening email and then lied about it to FBI investigators in an act of revenge against his former boss.
“Mitt Romney is working with an unlikely collaborator — Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire casino mogul who bankrolled Newt Gingrich’s 2012 campaign — in the hopes of ensuring that the GOP primary produces a mainstream conservative without any of the mayhem that marked his own race,” Politico reports.
“The two, who speak monthly, aim to convince the wealthy contributors bankrolling various candidates to work together to avoid the kind of primary election chaos that Romney believes laid the seeds for his defeat in 2012. The former Massachusetts governor is also considering endorsing a candidate to achieve his goal.”
“They’re unmistakable signs of Romney’s newly assertive role in the Republican Party but also of his determination to guarantee the GOP an unbloodied nominee with broad-based appeal.”
New York Times: “When Mr. Bush’s brother George first ran for president, he erroneously referred to Greeks as ‘Grecians,’ flubbed the name of India’s president and confused Slovenia with Slovakia, offering the world an unabashed portrait of provinciality.”
“But across Europe this week, Jeb Bush revealed himself to be a very different kind of Bush: well traveled, almost encyclopedically knowledgeable about foreign countries, and possessing the genuine inquisitiveness that his brother had so notably lacked… Mr. Bush’s trip here has been a reminder that his attempt to escape the shadow of his older brother, as awkward and halting as it may be, is not just a political strategy. It reflects how dissimilar the two men really are, in temperament, interests and preparation.”
“Here’s the question for the country: Can you be single and still be president? Is it a job for married people only? Is there a sign on the White House, ‘Single people may not apply?’ I don’t know, I haven’t seen it.”
— Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), in an interview with Yahoo, on being unmarried and running for president.
“Despair about the tax-and-budget impasse overwhelming the Capitol exacted a toll on Gov. Sam Brownback (R),” the Topic Capital Journal reports.
“Brownback apparently choked up in a private meeting with House Republicans who sought an audience with the state’s chief executive to talk about a possible compromise to close a $400 million deficit and protect core government functions.”
Said one GOP legislator: “He got emotional. He was eager for us to come together as a party.”
President Obama “suffered a major blow Friday in his bid to complete a Pacific trade deal, as opponents of the accord derailed a fast-track trade bill by voting against a worker-aid program that was a key bill component,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The 126-302 vote against a program to help workers hurt by international trade came at the hands of a longtime ally, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. It was a major move by the California Democrat, who until now has remained undeclared in the fight, trying to balance her ties to the progressive wing of the party against her loyalty to a president she has long supported.”
New York Times: “In a remarkable rejection of a president they have resolutely backed, House Democrats voted to kill assistance to workers displaced by global trade, a program their party created and has stood by for four decades. By doing so, they brought down legislation granting the president trade promotion authority — the power to negotiate trade deals that cannot be amended or filibustered by Congress — before it could even come to a final vote.”
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) “in a meandering but dramatic floor speech on Friday said she will vote against a measure providing assistance to workers displaced by trade,” The Hill reports.
“Pelosi’s opposition to the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program casts doubt on whether the measure will pass. If it fails, it could sink a broader trade package that includes President Obama’s request for fast-track trade authority.”
New Yorker: “He may have no chance of winning. But he is more a more plausible candidate than anyone Clinton is facing now, and perhaps the best answer to the fear that, as the Republicans fight it out among themselves, she will drift through until the convention, with a stray glance at Martin O’Malley, and enter the general election unprepared for the fight. Obama was right about Biden’s debate with Ryan: rewatching it is a good reminder of his ability to speak plainly and in detail about Democratic economic policies—something that involves more than just throwing out lines about level playing fields. (Republicans have been doing that, too.) Maybe Hillary Clinton, in a speech she’s scheduled to give on Saturday, will find a way to make those themes work for her. She hasn’t yet.”
“And, although she served four years as Secretary of State, Biden has a deeper background in foreign policy, with years as a ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and a skepticism about things like troop deployments that might appeal to noninterventionists—who can be found across the spectrum. His 2006 proposal for Iraq—reshaping the country into a loose three-part federation—also much derided, does not, in light of recent events, look all that bad.”
Huffington Post: “With his trade agenda hanging in the balance, President Obama unexpectedly ventured to Capitol Hill on Friday morning to meet with Democratic lawmakers still wavering in their support. He promptly insulted their integrity, took no questions, and left, those lawmakers said.”
“The Iowa Straw Poll is dead, leaving a heavier burden on winnowing an oversized GOP presidential field on Iowans who will cast the nation’s first votes in February in the caucuses,” the Des Moines Register reports.
“The governing board for the Republican Party of Iowa voted unanimously Friday to cancel the straw poll, a milestone on the path to the White House that had passed the strategic tipping point. It was no longer a political risk for presidential campaigns to walk away from the straw poll, and too many of the 2016 contenders had opted to skip it for it to survive.”
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
“There are a lot of blogs and news sites claiming to understand politics, but only a few actually do. Political Wire is one of them.”
— Chuck Todd, host of “Meet the Press”
“Concise. Relevant. To the point. Political Wire is the first site I check when I’m looking for the latest political nugget. That pretty much says it all.”
— Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the Rothenberg Political Report
“Political Wire is one of only four or five sites that I check every day and sometimes several times a day, for the latest political news and developments.”
— Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report
“The big news, delicious tidbits, pearls of wisdom — nicely packaged, constantly updated… What political junkie could ask for more?”
— Larry Sabato, Center for Politics, University of Virginia
“Political Wire is a great, great site.”
— Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”
“Taegan Goddard has a knack for digging out political gems that too often get passed over by the mainstream press, and for delivering the latest electoral developments in a sharp, no frills style that makes his Political Wire an addictive blog habit you don’t want to kick.”
— Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post
“Political Wire is one of the absolute must-read sites in the blogosphere.”
— Glenn Reynolds, founder of Instapundit
“I rely on Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire for straight, fair political news, he gets right to the point. It’s an eagerly anticipated part of my news reading.”
— Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.