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Obamacare Faces Big Test at Supreme Court

March 4, 2015 at 7:00 am EST By Taegan Goddard 8 Comments

“The Supreme Court on Wednesday considers the most serious challenge to the Affordable Care Act since the justices upheld it as constitutional almost three years ago,” the Washington Post reports.

“At issue is whether millions of Americans who receive tax subsidies to buy health insurance are doing so illegally. If the justices rule that the payments are not allowed, the entire health-care law could be in jeopardy.”

Wonk Wire notes a majority of voters in both parties want the court to keep Obamacare intact.

National Journal: 5 things to watch

Clinton Trying to Run as Incumbent

March 4, 2015 at 6:23 am EST By Taegan Goddard 19 Comments

The New York Times notes that by not addressing the growing controversy over her private emails, and with her allies working to undercut the original New York Times article on the emails, Hillary Clinton is signaling that she will employ a “Rose Garden” strategy as much as possible.

“Although she is not holding office, she is behaving like the incumbent.”

No Record Jeb Bush Voted In 2008

March 3, 2015 at 3:50 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 49 Comments

New York Times: “In the final stretch of the 2008 presidential campaign, Jeb Bush appeared in a television ad urging Floridians to support John McCain, the Republican nominee, at the polls… But according to voting records from Miami-Dade County, where Mr. Bush and his wife, Columba, are longtime residents, the couple did not vote for Mr. McCain or anyone else in that presidential election.”

House Finally Approves Homeland Security Funding

March 3, 2015 at 3:32 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 70 Comments

“The House voted Tuesday to fund the Department of Homeland Security, ending a months-long impasse over President Obama’s immigration policies and averting a weekend shutdown at the agency,” The Hill reports.

“The vote highlighted the rift in the GOP over the measure, as all of the 167 no votes came from Republicans — more than twice as many as the 75 who supported the bill.”

Safety Is a Key Part of Leadership

March 3, 2015 at 3:30 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 1 Comment

Working Capital Review looks at how the best leaders make people feel safe.

Monica Lewinsky Will Give TED Talk

March 3, 2015 at 3:24 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 31 Comments

“Monica Lewinsky, the former White House intern at the center of President Bill Clinton’s impeachment trial, will continue her reentry into public life with a TED talk in late March,” CNN reports.

Lewinsky’s remarks will focus on making “a safer and more compassionate social media environment, drawing from her unique experiences at the epicenter of a media maelstrom in 1998.”

Extra Bonus Quote of the Day

March 3, 2015 at 3:13 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 20 Comments

“We often hear that words can’t hurt you. But that’s simply not true… Words do hurt. Words can kill. That has been proven right here in our home state.”

— Former Sen. John Danforth (R-MO), quoted by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, at the funeral for Missouri state Auditor Tom Schweich (R), who killed himself last week.

Do Democrats Have a Plan B?

March 3, 2015 at 2:56 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 84 Comments

Jill Lawrence: “Far be it from me to underestimate Hillary Clinton. She’s weathered scandals, tragedies, her husband’s affairs and impeachment and her own wrenching primary loss to Barack Obama to become her party’s leading 2016 presidential prospect by a mile. Make that a light-year.”

“Stipulate that the former secretary of state is on a different plane from most other Democrats when it comes to experience, endurance and popularity. And yet, as one damaging report after another emerges, it’s got to be asked: How dumb is it for Democrats to count so completely on this one person? What is their Plan B?”

Bonus Quote of the Day

March 3, 2015 at 2:03 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 108 Comments

“I was near tears throughout the Prime Minister’s speech — saddened by the insult to the intelligence of the United States… and saddened by the condescension toward our knowledge of the threat posed by Iran and our broader commitment to preventing nuclear proliferation.”

— House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), quoted by The Hill, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint session of Congress.

Netanyahu Warns Deal Paves Iran’s Path to Bomb

March 3, 2015 at 1:45 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 48 Comments

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “forcefully argued against a nuclear deal with Iran, telling a joint meeting of Congress Tuesday that such an agreement would have the opposite effect of what the international community intends because it would effectively supply Iran with the means to produce a nuclear weapon,” the Washington Post reports.

“Netanyahu’s speech generated a swirl of controversy before it was even delivered and laid bare fissures between the prime minister and the Obama administration.”

Politico: “Netanyahu did not reveal new details of the emerging deal, which would lift some sanctions on Iran in return for curbs on its nuclear ambitions. But the prime minister said provisions already made public would not only not end Iran’s programs, it would guarantee that it retains a nuclear weapons capability.”

Wall Street Journal: 10 key lines in Netanyahu’s speech

Petraeus Strikes Plea Deal Over Leaking Classified Data

March 3, 2015 at 1:41 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 11 Comments

“David Petraeus, the best-known military commander of his generation, has reached a plea deal with the Justice Department and admitted providing his highly classified journals to a mistress when he was the director of the C.I.A,” the New York Times reports.

“Mr. Petraeus has agreed to plead guilty to one count of unauthorized removal and retention of classified material, a misdemeanor. He is eligible for up to one year in prison but prosecutors will recommend two years of probation and a $40,000 fine.”

Politico: “The deal struck between Petraeus and the Justice Department would save Petraeus from the scrutiny of a public trial where details of his personal life and affair would be made public. He remains married to Holly Petraeus.”

Boehner Caves on Homeland Security Funding

March 3, 2015 at 10:04 am EST By Taegan Goddard 78 Comments

Speaker John Boehner “told his restive flock Tuesday that he will allow a vote on a clean Homeland Security spending bill later today, citing concerns about terrorism and pinning blame on the Senate for failing to pass limits on President Obama’s immigration actions,” Roll Call reports.

“The Ohio Republican told his members the Senate’s DHS bill would be brought up for a vote after it arrives back in the House later today, according to a source in the room. That effectively leaves it up to the courts to rein in Obama — or not.”

Said Boehner: “Unfortunately, the fight was never won in the other chamber. Democrats stayed united and blocked our bill, and our Republican colleagues in the Senate never found a way to win this fight.”

Rauner Says New Jersey Is a ‘Disaster’

March 3, 2015 at 8:25 am EST By Taegan Goddard 37 Comments

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) had some harsh words for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), who campaigned hard for his election last year, the AP reports.

Rauner said that New Jersey “is lost” he said the situation in the state is a disaster.

He added: “They’re going down the drain, and they ain’t turning it around.”

O’Reilly Caught on Tape Contradicting His Own Book

March 3, 2015 at 8:22 am EST By Taegan Goddard 33 Comments

An audio recording clearly refutes claims Fox News host Bill O’Reilly “made in his 2012 book, Killing Kennedy, and again on air, that he had stood on the doorstep of the home where Lee Harvey Oswald friend George de Mohrenschildt committed suicide in 1977, and had actually heard the fatal shot being fired,” Bloomberg reports.

“The audio tape of the phone call between O’Reilly and Florida investigator Gaeton Fonzi shows that O’Reilly was not in Florida on the day of de Mohrenschildt’s suicide, and only learned of it when Fonzi called him.”

How Republicans Can Win in 2016

March 3, 2015 at 8:18 am EST By Taegan Goddard 95 Comments

A must-read: 2016 and Beyond: How Republicans Can Elect a President in the New America by Whit Ayres.

“If the 2016 Republican nominee wins the same percentage of the white vote that Mitt Romney won in 2012 — 59 percent — then he or she will need to win 30 percent of the non-white vote to be elected. That is far greater than the 17 percent of the non-white vote that Romney achieved in 2012, or the 19 percent John McCain won in 2008, and better even than the 26 percent of the non-white vote that George W. Bush won his 2004 reelection campaign.”

“On the other hand, if the 2016 Republican nominee wins no more of the non-white vote than Romney’s 17 percent, he or she will need to win 65 percent of the white vote to win. That is a level of white vote achieved by only one Republican nominee in the past forty years: Ronald Reagan in his 49-state landslide reelection sweep in 1984, when he won 66 percent of the white vote… Republicans can complain about these trends, wring their hands over them, and get heartburn as a result. What they can’t do is change them.”

McDonnell Seeks to Have Conviction Thrown Out

March 3, 2015 at 8:14 am EST By Taegan Goddard 4 Comments

Former Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell (R) “fired the opening salvo in a bid to get his public corruption conviction thrown out, arguing in a filing that the case against him was ‘built on a boundless definition of bribery,'” the Washington Post reports.

“There is some indication he could find success there. The appeals court overturned the district judge’s ruling that McDonnell report to prison by Feb. 9, allowing the ex-governor to remain free on bond while it takes up the case. It is a signal that the judges think there is an issue worthy of their consideration.”

O’Malley Will Not Run for Senate

March 3, 2015 at 8:11 am EST By Taegan Goddard 22 Comments

Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) announced he will not run for retiring Sen. Barbara Mikulski’s (D-MD) Senate seat, CNN reports.

Said O’Malley: “I am hopeful and confident that very capable public servants with a desire to serve in the Senate will step up as candidates for this important office. I will not be one of them.”

Christie Sinks to a New Low in New Jersey

March 3, 2015 at 8:03 am EST By Taegan Goddard 16 Comments

A new Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind survey in New Jersey finds just 35% of registered voters say they approve of Gov. Chris Christie’s (R) job performance, compared to 51% who disapprove.

Those figures mark the lowest approval and highest disapproval ratings ever recorded by the poll.