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Clinton Camp Welcomes Ted Cruz to the Race

March 25, 2015 at 3:23 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 3 Comments

Those closest to Hillary Clinton “have counseled patience, arguing that a core element of Clinton’s plan was to get out of the way and let the dueling wings of the Republican Party savage each other while she floats above it all,” Politico reports.

“People close to Clinton smiled at the sight of the first-term senator wandering alone on stage at Liberty University, implicitly threatening a civil war with the ‘mushy’ establishment of his party that he loves to decry — while at the exact same time Clinton sat comfortably alongside heavyweights from her own party’s progressive and labor elements, who have thus far entirely declined to challenge her.”

Clinton Leads Both Bush and Rubio in Florida

March 25, 2015 at 2:47 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 15 Comments

A new Public Policy Polling survey in Florida finds Hillary Clinton has leads of 2 to 8 points over all of the potential GOP contenders in the state.

Marco Rubio comes the closest at just a 48 to 46 deficit and Jeb Bush is down by a similar margin at 47 to 44.

Ready for Hillary Ramps Up Ahead of Announcement

March 25, 2015 at 2:41 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“As Hillary Clinton approaches her 2016 campaign kickoff, one of the main political action committees backing her is ramping up its activity, despite expectations that it would be quietly winding down by now,” Politico reports.

“The intensified interest in the PAC suggests her allies are rallying to support her ahead of an expected April announcement that she will run for president.”

Bush Taps Washington Money

March 25, 2015 at 2:29 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 2 Comments

Even as he positions himself as a Washington outsider, Jeb Bush “seems to have mastered a skill that is crucial in this city: tapping into the money-raising clout of the K Street lobbyists, political operatives, superlawyers and business leaders in Washington’s permanent class,” the New York Times reports.

“Although not yet an official presidential candidate, Mr. Bush has had at least seven private fund-raisers and meet-and-greets in the Washington area, raising more than $1.3 million for his political action committee in a single day last month, and he has scheduled another one in April. His success is hardly surprising: For more than two decades, Washington has provided Mr. Bush, the son and brother of former presidents, with financial and political support.”

McAuliffe Company Got Special Treatment

March 25, 2015 at 2:19 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 4 Comments

Not long before he became governor of Virginia, Terry McAuliffe (D) “received special treatment on behalf of his electric-car company from a top official at the Department of Homeland Security,” the Washington Post reports.

“McAuliffe was among several politically powerful individuals from both parties, including Sen. Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.), seeking special visas for foreign investors through a program administered by the department. But intervention on behalf of McAuliffe’s GreenTech Automotive company by Alejandro Mayorkas, now the department’s No. 2 official, ‘was unprecedented.'”

Netanyahu Is No Nixon

March 25, 2015 at 2:00 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 4 Comments

David Remnick: “For twenty years, many people in Israel and in the West have expressed the hope that Benjamin Netanyahu would prove to be the Richard Nixon of the State of Israel … the Nixon who yearned to enter the pantheon of statesmen, and who defied his Red-baiting past and initiated diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China. … It is amazing to recall how long this fantasy persisted.”

Cruz Will Sign Up for Obamacare

March 24, 2015 at 4:34 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard 272 Comments

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), a leading critic of the Affordable Care Act, admitted to CNN that he will sign up for health care insurance for his family through the law’s health care exchanges.

Cruz said he “would no longer have access to health benefits through his wife’s employer, Goldman Sachs. Heidi Cruz, a managing director at the firm’s Houston office, has gone on unpaid leave for the duration of the senator’s presidential campaign and will not have access to the company’s benefits during that time.”

“Cruz’s campaign appeared caught by surprise Monday by questions about the senator’s health care.”

Extra Bonus Quote of the Day

March 24, 2015 at 4:25 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard 65 Comments

“Like most psychopaths. That’s why they’re successful. That’s the way they look. They all look great.”

— Ben Carson, quoted by GQ, commenting on how President Obama looked at the State of the Union address.

No South Carolina Firewall for Jeb

March 24, 2015 at 4:18 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard 21 Comments

Politico: “Twice before, South Carolina has delivered for the Bush family. In 1988, it famously served as George H.W. Bush’s firewall after he finished third in Iowa. Twelve years later, it served the same role for George W. Bush after John McCain’s New Hampshire victory.”

“But as Jeb Bush seeks to become the third in his family to win here, he’s finding the state almost unrecognizable. The electorate in the first primary state in the South is more conservative than before — and the former Florida governor is perceived as a moderate. Much of the old Bush team has defected to other candidates. And the presence of South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham is eating into Bush’s natural base of support.”

Obama Slows Afghan Troop Withdrawal

March 24, 2015 at 3:28 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard 3 Comments

President Obama “has decided to slow the pace of the U.S. troop drawdown in Afghanistan in response to a request from Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, leaving roughly 10,000 American forces in place through the end of the year,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“The U.S. had planned to reduce the number of American troops in Afghanistan to nearly 5,000 this year.”

New York Times: “The announcement was not unexpected. Administration officials had strongly suggested in recent days that Mr. Obama would agree to slow the pace of the troop withdrawal.”

Obama-Netanyahu Feud Gets Worse

March 24, 2015 at 11:58 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 76 Comments

First Read: “A week after Prime Minister Netanyahu’s election win last Tuesday, relations between the Obama administration and the Netanyahu aren’t getting better — they’re getting worse.”

“We’re having a hard time thinking of another time when two allies have been THIS angry and been THIS public about their disagreements. Talk about venom and score-settling. As with most angry disagreements between friends, it’s hard to remember who landed the first punch.”

Clinton Seeks Fresh Start with Reporters

March 24, 2015 at 11:48 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 28 Comments

“Weeks after being dogged by accusations of secrecy, Hillary Clinton told journalists that she wanted “a new relationship with the press,” Politico reports.

She acknowledged that her “relationship with the press has been at times, shall we say, complicated” and said she was “all about new beginnings…. A new grandchild. A new hairstyle. A new email account. A new relationship with the press. No more secrecy, no more zone of privacy … After all what good did that do for me?”

Coats Will Not Seek Another Senate Term

March 24, 2015 at 11:43 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 28 Comments

Sen. Dan Coats (R-IN) told Indy Politics that he will not run for another term in the U.S. Senate.

“Coats said he deliberated for months before making his decision. He says he informed leadership today of his decision and will be making a formal announcement later.”

A Low Bar for Congress

March 24, 2015 at 11:40 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 3 Comments

Neil Irwin: “On the central question around which America’s partisan battles are fought, the size and scope of the federal government, Ryan-Murray didn’t decisively move the needle one way or the other, which is why it was able to attract bipartisan support. Rather, it preserved the basic status quo while making both parties a little bit happier with the exact mix of federal spending.”

“It’s not the stuff of soaring political oratory or world-historical accomplishment, but in a world of divided government and polarized politics, keeping the government running without a lot of brinkmanship and high drama may be the best we can hope for. If the start of 2015 is a guide, even that much isn’t guaranteed.”

Clinton Caught in the Middle on Education

March 24, 2015 at 11:38 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 13 Comments

New York Times: “The last time she ran for president, Hillary Clinton did not have to take a position on the Common Core, teacher evaluations or Race to the Top… Now, as she prepares for a likely second run at the White House, Mrs. Clinton — who largely avoided domestic policy when she was secretary of state — is re-entering the fray like a Rip Van Winkle for whom the terrain on education standards has shifted markedly, with deep new fissures opened up in the Democratic Party.”

Bonus Quote of the Day

March 24, 2015 at 4:47 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 91 Comments

“I wish Reagan would rise from the dead and come back.”

— Pat Robertson, on his television show The 700 Club, while noting President Obama “does not believe in America” and was mentored by “leftists who don’t really love this country.”

Baker Slams Netanyahu as Obstacle to Peace

March 24, 2015 at 4:24 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 32 Comments

Former Secretary of State James Baker harshly criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, echoing White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough’s comments earlier in the day, Haaretz reports.

Baker acknowledged his disappointment with “the lack of progress regarding a lasting peace,” saying that the chances for a two-state solution diminished since Netanyahu’s reelection last week. Baker further slammed Netanyahu’s “diplomatic missteps and political gamesmanship,” saying that the prime minister’s “actions have not matched his rhetoric.”

Trump Raises Birther Charge Against Cruz

March 24, 2015 at 4:13 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 87 Comments

Donald Trump told Fox News he doubts Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) can legally run for president because he was born in Canada.

Said Trump: “It’s a hurdle; somebody could certainly look at it very seriously. He was born in Canada. If you know and when we all studied our history lessons, you are supposed to be born in this country, so I just don’t know how the courts will rule on this.”

The Hill reports Cruz said he is still a natural born citizen by birth because his mother was American.