Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) “announced the hiring of a campaign manager for his likely 2016 presidential bid, part of an aggressive effort to build a national political team as the race for the White House heats up,” the Washington Post reports.
“The hiring of strategist Chip Englander, who recently guided a gubernatorial candidate to victory in Illinois, marks a clear step forward for the Kentucky Republican as he prepares to transform his cadre of loyalists into a full-scale campaign.”
Bloomberg: “To paraphrase the aspirational saying: If at first you aren’t elected president, run, run again. For the likes of Mitt Romney, Hillary Clinton, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, and Rick Perry, those words appear to be something of an article of faith. Yes, each has already tried and failed to become commander-in-chief, but the hope of adding that ultimate line on a political résumé still springs eternal. A quick glance at history shows that such hopes are not misplaced: One-quarter of U.S. presidents lost a prior White House bid before they ended up winning.”
North Carolina state Rep. Paul Tine “changed his political party to unaffiliated last week, it represented one more blow for an endangered species at the legislature: the rural, moderate Democrat,” the Raleigh News & Observer reports.
When South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) “takes her second oath for the state’s highest office Wednesday, she will stand as a survivor of a sometimes turbulent first term, having outlasted many of her opponents and controversies,” the Columbia State reports.
“Powerful legislative leaders who fought the Lexington Republican’s priorities have left the General Assembly. Foes who took Haley to court and challenged her at the ballot box failed to knock her out of office. Scandals, including the worst data hacking of a state agency in U.S. history, did not cause lasting damage.”
“If Romney runs to the right of Jeb Bush, he’ll still be to the left of the rest of the party, so it may be a difficult spot to occupy. Look, I like Governor Romney, I like him personally, I think he is a good person, I think he was a great businessman. But you know that’s yesterday’s news.”
— Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), quoted by the Louisville Courier Journal.
“If Mitt Romney decides to mount a third presidential campaign, his pathway to the 2016 Republican nomination could be far more difficult than in 2012, when he faced a weaker field of candidates who at times seemed to be auditioning for a reality television show,” the Boston Globe reports.
The New York Times says that “interviews with more than two dozen Republican activists, elected officials and contributors around the country reveal little appetite for another Romney candidacy. Beyond his enthusiasts — a formidable constituency given that many are donors — opinions range from indifference to openly hostility.”
The Hill: “Republican lawmakers aren’t jumping on the Mitt Romney 2016 bandwagon.”
“It’s often said each senator wakes up, looks in the mirror and sees a future president staring back. But John Thune admits his ‘window’ for a White House run might have closed in 2012,” Politico reports.
Said Thune: “There are a lot of people on that track that I would be lumped in, I’m sure, with the ‘establishment-type candidates.’ Which is never a good thing. I’m not doing the things you need to do. And a lot of other people are.”
Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman (R) lavished praise on Sen. Mike Lee (R), his former general counsel, during an appearance on Matt K. Lewis’ podcast, several weeks after his father slammed the senator, the Salt Lake Tribune reports.
Said Huntsman: “Mike has every good intention and I say that because I worked with Mike. In fact, I don’t know too many people in the legislative branch who are as brilliant as Mike Lee. His understanding of the Constitution, his ability to legislate.”
Virginia Del. Joseph Morrissey (D) “won a special election to keep his seat in the 74th House of Delegates district, making him the first jailed lawmaker in modern Virginia history to win reelection,” the Richmond Times Dispatch reports.
“The lawmaker was sentenced in December to six months in jail after entering an Alford plea to a misdemeanor charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.”
“The new Charlie Hebdo issue has sold out across France just hours after it hit newsstands,” the AFP reports.
“A total of 700,000 issues of the magazine, which was the victim of a deadly Islamist killing a week ago, were distributed early Wednesday but other copies of the magazine will be made available for sale throughout the week.”
The AP reports there were “some scuffles at kiosks over dwindling copies of the satirical paper fronting the Prophet Muhammad. In a city still shaken after deadly Islamic terror attacks, authorities said 54 people had been detained for defending or glorifying terrorism.”
“Mitt Romney, who only days ago signaled he would explore running for president after repeatedly insisting he would not, is making a strong push that includes reaching out to fundraisers in Florida this week,” the Tampa Bay Times reports.
“That Romney would even make phone calls in Bush turf is a signal that he’s serious and sets up a clash between two of the most well-known figures in Republican politics.”
Boston Globe: “Romney’s escalating moves toward a run have created a dizzying atmosphere for his tight-knit circle, filled with conference calls and meetings. While he is facing some skepticism, a tougher road to the nomination, and a fair amount of head-scratching — even among his former network of campaign aides and donors — it is starting to look increasingly likely he will mount a third campaign.”
New York Times: “Now, six years after losing the presidential election to Barack Obama, Mr. McCain finally has the only job in Washington, other than being president, that he ever wanted: chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, overseer of the American military and the nation’s defense policy. The question is whether he will use his new clout (and ability to subpoena) to make war or some accommodation with the White House.”
“For now, despite hints that he is trying to reinvent himself from cantankerous Obama critic to elder statesman, Mr. McCain still seems to be in clobber mode.”
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) “is back in insurgent mode, lobbing bombs at his potential Republican presidential rivals and looking to take back a political spotlight that Bush and Romney have been hogging lately,” Politico reports.
“Paul is also heading to New Hampshire and Nevada this week, hoping to strike a fire with voters who want a new voice to carry the GOP’s message to the White House.”
Said Paul: “You need a candidate who reaches out to new constituencies and is able to bring new people into the party. Because if we do the same old, same old candidates, we are going to get the same old result.”
“As Gov. Chris Christie delivered his State of the State address on Tuesday, it sounded less like the valedictory of a presidential hopeful on his way to bigger and better things than a defensive move by a politician anticipating the shots that could be leveled against him,” the New York Times reports.
“Speaking in the ornate Assembly chamber full of local and state dignitaries, Mr. Christie seemed largely to be addressing, or pre-empting, criticisms — from Democrats, but also from fellow Republicans in a field of White House aspirants that becomes more crowded by the week.”
Michael Robert Hoyt was indicted on charges of threatening to murder the Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) in a plot authorities said included poisoning his drink at a country club, WCPO-TV reports.
Nate Silver: “The chart is an oversimplification, but it recognizes the GOP’s dynamics are more complex than a simple left-right spectrum would imply. Some wings overlap more with others. For instance, a candidate could easily have a lot of appeal to both tea party and libertarian voters. But it’s unlikely that one candidate would simultaneously be the choice of both Christian conservatives and moderate voters.”
Mitt Romney will attend this week’s upcoming Republican National Committee’s meeting in San Diego, three sources told NBC News — and will make his first public comments since the news surfaced that he was considering a third presidential run.
Said an adviser: “He’s doing what he does well — and that’s due diligence.”
White House adviser John Podesta “will take on a senior advisory role in Hillary Clinton’s emerging presidential bid after he leaves the administration in February, three people familiar with the matter said. The move is one of the most definitive signs yet that Mrs. Clinton is building the apparatus to launch a 2016 campaign,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Mrs. Clinton isn’t likely to announce her decision on whether to enter the race until the spring. But her advisers are making preparations for such a campaign, as evidenced by Mr. Podesta signing on.”
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.