Brendan Buck, a top aide to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), is departing to serve as spokesman for an association representing thousands of health insurers, the Washington Post reports.
Cuomo Works to Mend Fences With Liberals
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) “has won significant support from traditionally Republican constituencies, including business executives who like his tax cuts and Wall Street financiers delighted with his support of charter schools. But this courtship has come at a price: As he begins his bid for a second term, he is struggling to hold on to support from the left wing of his own party,” the New York Times reports.
“But they are now so frustrated with Mr. Cuomo that they are privately talking about whether to nominate their own candidate to run for governor this year.”
Conversation with Kay Henderson
Radio Iowa’s Kay Henderson joins us on the Political Wire podcast for a fantastic discussion of Iowa politics and a state that has an open Senate seat for the first time since 1984.
Listen here:
Subscribe via iTunes or RSS to get episodes automatically downloaded.
Special thanks to the Cook Political Report for sponsoring this episode. If your business is politics, you need to subscribe. Highly recommended.
Please take our quick listener survey and get a chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card.
Majority Want to Keep Obamacare
A new CNN poll finds a majority of Americans want to keep the federal health care law as is, or make some changes to improve it.
Key findings: 61% want Congress to leave the Affordable Care Act alone (12%) or make some changes to the law in an attempt to make it work better (49%). Meanwhile, 38% percent of those questioned say the law should be repealed and replaced with a completely different system (18%) or say the measure should be repealed, with Americans going back to the system in place before the law was implemented (20%).
Christie’s Path to White House May Be Through State House
Charles Stile: “Hardly a week goes by without Chris Christie leaving New Jersey — sometimes more than once — to promote Republican candidates for governor and, by extension, his own hopes to become his party’s choice for president in 2016. But the strategy may be fatally flawed.”
“Governor Christie’s best — and possibly only — route to the White House these days could be his daily commute to his inner office in the State House, not a bunch of flights crisscrossing the country to champion his brand. More governing, less galloping.”
“Essentially, Christie needs to cobble together a new record of achievement. The first-term hero saga that wowed everyone from hard-hat union workers to Henry Kissinger is an old narrative that’s been overtaken by a sinking state economy. This self-proclaimed bipartisan deal maker should stay here and write a convincing sequel, some political operatives believe.”
Cantor Faces Tea Party Uprising
“Just a few miles from his family home, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) felt the wrath of the tea party Saturday, when activists in his congressional district booed and heckled the second-most powerful House Republican,” the Washington Post reports.
“They also elected one of their own to lead Virginia’s 7th Congressional District Republican Committee, turning their back on Cantor’s choice for a post viewed as crucial by both tea party and establishment wings in determining control of the fractured state GOP.”
Geithner Defends Actions in New Book
Former Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, “whose time in Washington was often colored by accusations he was too close to Wall Street and did little to help Main Street, uses his 538-page book Stress Test to largely defend and explain the decisions he made during the financial crisis,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Writes Geithner: “The inconvenient truth of financial-crisis response is that the actions that feel right are often wrong.”
Biden Delivers Fiery Speech at South Carolina Fundraiser
Vice President Joe Biden appeared at a closed-door fundraiser in South Carolina and delivered what one attendee called “an Elizabeth Warren-type speech” about the struggles of America’s middle class, CNN reports.
“Biden did not mention his own White House ambitions. But several Democrats at the event were struck by one remark he made about Bill Clinton’s presidency: Three sources there told CNN that Biden said the fraying of middle-class economic security did not begin during President George W. Bush’s terms, but earlier, in the ‘later years of the Clinton administration.'”
Tight Race for GOP Senate Nomination in Georgia
A Rosetta Stone poll in Georgia finds David Perdue (R) leading the GOP pack for Senate with 23%, followed by Karen Handel (R) at 21%, Jack Kingston (R) at 15%, Paul Broun (R) at 9% and Phil Gingrey (R) at 9%.
Quote of the Day
“Everybody’s gone completely crazy on this voter ID thing. I think it’s wrong for Republicans to go too crazy on this issue because it’s offending people.”
— Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), quoted by the New York Times.
Republicans Tighten Grip on Debates
The RNC “moved Friday to seize control of the presidential primary debates in 2016, another step in a coordinated effort by the party establishment to reshape the nominating process,” the New York Times reports.
“Committee members overwhelmingly passed a measure that would penalize any presidential candidate who participated in a debate not sanctioned by the national party, by limiting their participation in subsequent committee-sanctioned forums. The move represents the party’s effort to reduce the number of debates and assert control over how they are staged.”
Republicans Reconsider Rand Paul
Politico: “Not that long ago, most Republican leaders saw Rand Paul as the head of an important faction who, like his father, ultimately had no shot at becoming the party’s presidential nominee. Now the question is no longer whether Paul can win the nomination, but whether he can win a general election.”
“The shift follows a year in which the Kentucky senator has barnstormed the country, trying to expand the party’s base beyond older, white voters and attract a following beyond than the libertarian devotees of his father, Ron Paul. Although the job is far from complete, Paul has made undeniable progress, judging from interviews with more than 30 Republican National Committee members meeting here this week.”
Cruz’s Reckless Accusations
In his latest “McCarthyesque flourish,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) declared he had a list of “76 instances of lawlessness and other abuses of power” of President Obama, Dana Millbank writes.
“To his credit, Cruz made his list public. But perhaps he shouldn’t have. An examination of the accusations reveals less about the lawlessness of the accused than about the recklessness of the accuser.”
Arkansas Judges Strikes Down Gay Marriage Ban
Saying Arkansas had “no rational reason” to prevent gay couples from marrying, state judge Chris Piazza struck down a 2004 voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage, The Week reports.
Said Piazza: “This is an unconstitutional attempt to narrow the definition of equality. The exclusion of a minority for no rational reason is a dangerous precedent.”
GOP Split Appears on Minimum Wage
“Several leading Republicans have called for raising the federal minimum wage and others are speaking more forcefully about the party’s failure to connect with low-income Americans — stances that are causing a growing rift within the party over how best to address the gulf between the rich and poor,” the Washington Post reports.
“The growing party division, pitting GOP officials fearful of losing the support of workers against staunch conservatives who believe an increase would harm the economy, reflects Republican nervousness about the depth of their support ahead of the midterm elections, even though polls show them poised to retain their House majority and potentially take control of the Senate.”
Obama Fatigue Bigger Challenge for Clinton
Brendan Nyhan: “The latest investigation into the Benghazi attack reminds us that the issue isn’t going away any time soon. Pundits are already speculating about potential damage to Hillary Clinton’s presidential prospects, but don’t believe the hype: Scandals rarely matter much in presidential election campaigns.”
“A far more significant threat to her potential candidacy is Americans’ desire for new leadership after eight years of the Obama administration.”
Republicans Put IRS Probe on the Backburner
“A year after it began, the IRS targeting controversy has been overtaken by the Benghazi attacks on the oversight agenda of House Republicans,” The Hill reports.
“While Republicans are convinced that the Obama administration is stonewalling them on both matters, Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and the House GOP have only set up a special committee for Benghazi. On the IRS, House Republicans have instead pushed the Justice Department to more aggressively pursue its investigation, and this week pushed Attorney General Eric Holder to appoint a special prosecutor.”
Really Close in North Carolina
A new Rasmussen poll in North Carolina finds Thom Tillis (R) edging Sen. Kay Hagan (D) in the race for U.S. Senate, 45% to 44%.
