Rep. Steven Palazzo (R-MS) recently sent a copy of the Holy Bible to every member of Congress “to help guide you in your decision-making,” according to a letter obtained by TPM.
How Bad Was Richard Nixon?
Top Line: “On the 40th anniversary of his resignation, a new documentary takes a fresh look at the Nixon tapes to make the case that the already vilified 37th president was not as bad as you may think… He was worse.”
GOP Lawmaker Says Democrats Waging War on Whites
Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) “doesn’t think that the hardline stance Republicans have taken on immigration could hurt the party’s standing with Hispanic voters. Instead, he thinks Democrats are hurting their prospects with white voters,” the Huffington Post reports.
Said Brooks: “This is a part of the war on whites that’s being launched by the Democratic Party. And the way in which they’re launching this war is by claiming that whites hate everybody else. It’s part of the strategy that Barack Obama implemented in 2008, continued in 2012, where he divides us all on race, on sex, greed, envy, class warfare, all those kinds of things.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“If he chose to run, he would be the most creditable candidate for president since Henry Clay.”
— Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), quoted by the Huffington Post, likening Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) to another famous Kentucky politician.
House Deportation Vote Unlikely to Hurt GOP This Year
Nate Cohn: “Republican hopes for attracting more Hispanic voters suffered another setback on Friday when the House passed a bill to effectively end President Obama’s program to defer deportations of undocumented children. Yet the vote is unlikely to deal a severe blow to the party’s chances in November’s midterm elections. Hispanic voters may be flexing their growing political muscles in presidential elections, but they have far less sway over the composition of the House or the Senate, particularly in 2014.”
Quote of the Day
“Barack Obama has been a disaster. I guess that’s what we get for electing someone with no experience. He was only two years into his first big job when he started campaigning for the next one. Sound familiar?”
— Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), quoted by Politico, campaigning against challenger Allison Lundergran Grimes.
Republicans Slightly Favored to Take Senate
Nate Silver: “The problem for Democrats is that this year’s Senate races aren’t being fought in neutral territory… It therefore shouldn’t be surprising that we continue to see Republicans as slightly more likely than not to win a net of six seats this November and control of the Senate. A lot of it is simply reversion to the mean.2 This may not be a “wave” election as 2010 was, but Republicans don’t need a wave to take over the Senate.”
“Summing the probabilities of each race yields an estimate of 51 seats for Republicans. That makes them very slight favorites — perhaps somewhere in the neighborhood of 60-40 — to take control of the Senate, but also doesn’t leave them much room for error.”
“However, I also want to advance a cautionary note. It’s still early, and we should not rule out the possibility that one party could win most or all of the competitive races.”
The Upshot says Republicans have a 53% chance of winning control.
Dead Heat in Wisconsin
A new Human Events/Gravis Marketing poll in Wisconsin finds Gov. Scott Walker (R) and challenger Mary Burke (D) deadlocked in the race for governor, 47% to 47%, with 6% still unsure.
An Interview on Air Force One
The Economist interviewed President Obama on Air Force One on topics ranging from foreign affairs to regulation of business.
“Because the interview took place on board a plane with three people hunched round a microphone, the sound quality is less than perfect.”
Six States in Six Days
First Read notes there are primary contests taking place in six states over the next six days.
“On Tuesday, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, and Washington hold their primaries… On Thursday — a rare day for elections — Tennessee holds its primaries… And then on Saturday, Hawaii has primaries featuring the top Democratic intra-party fights this cycle.”
The Case for Censuring President Obama
John Fund: “There is another option, short of impeachment, for sanctioning the President’s unconstitutional conduct in office. The House of Representatives can and should in coming months prepare and debate a unicameral resolution identifying and condemning President Obama’s usurpations of legislative power and his repeated refusal to faithfully execute the laws.”
“The Congressional Research Service has identified a number of historical precedents in which the Senate or the House has adopted a resolution of censure or disapproval of a president or other executive or judicial officers.”
2016 Presidential Hopefuls Flood Iowa
Des Moines Register: “It’s like the holiday shopping season: The presidential vetting season seems to keep coming earlier and earlier. Seven potential GOP presidential types will pop in for an Iowa audition during an 11-day span that began Saturday and stretches to next Tuesday.”
Big Money Moves Into Judicial Races
Bloomberg Businessweek: “Spending on judicial races has been ticking up along with overall election spending for the past decade, but the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United ruling, which lifted restrictions on political spending by groups unaffiliated with individual campaigns, has driven money into races once run on shoestring budgets.”
“For donors, smaller races offer distinct advantages over presidential or congressional elections. It’s relatively inexpensive to influence the outcome, and voters tend to have less-fixed opinions of municipal or state officials. Judges are particularly attractive targets, because they have authority to rule on ideological issues such as abortion or to set precedents on business regulations.”
Will the GOP Base Finally Win in 2016?
Lloyd Green: “With few exceptions, the Republican establishment prevails over its base. Yet, 2016 may be different, as the GOP becomes ever more evangelical, Southern, blue collar, and alienated. True, the road and rules to the convention favor the Republican machinery, but even so, the rank and file must buy in if the plans of the party’s elite are to work as imagined.”
Conflicting Polls in Hawaii
A new Hawaii News Now/Star Advertiser Hawaii poll shows Colleeen Hanabusa (D) leading Sen. Brian Schatz (D) by eight points in their Democratic primary race, 50% to 42%.
A Civil Beat poll last week found Schatz with an eight point lead.
Paul Lays 2016 Groundwork
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) “hasn’t said whether he will seek the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. But his aggressive groundwork seems to point to no other outcome,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“In recent weeks, the Kentucky Republican announced political hires in quick succession in Iowa, New Hampshire and Michigan– states key to winning his party’s nomination. Staffers mention a future campaign headquarters in Louisville and claim an email list of one million supporters, details most potential presidential hopefuls keep quiet. A super PAC launched by backers shortly before the 2012 election offers a repository for big donors.”
The Inside Story Behind Rick Perry’s Glasses
Michelle Cottle looks at why Texas Gov. Rick Perry suddenly started wearing glasses.
“I relay this extraordinarily comprehensive story because, first of all, I figure most everyone in Washington has wondered at some point about Perry’s glasses. But I also share it because, at least in my experience, it’s somewhat unusual for a (potential) presidential candidate to call up and lead a reporter so far into the medical weeds. That Perry did so speaks to a key aspect of his rehab mission: This is a guy seen as having mailed it in the last time he ran for president, stumbling and bumbling his way to disaster. This time around, whether it’s finding the time for an exacting ophthalmological discussion, making repeat visits to Iowa, or offering self-deprecating jokes about his 2012 belly flop, Perry wants everyone to know that he is ready–gung ho, even–for the nitpicking and hoop-jumping and all-around hard work that a serious White House campaign entails.”
Florida to Begin Redrawing Districts
“Florida legislative leaders said on Sunday they plan to call a special session on Thursday after a judge ordered them to redraw the state’s U.S. congressional maps and held open the possibility of delaying general elections in November,” Reuters reports.
