Saturday Night Live opened with Toronto Mayor Rob Ford apologizing for his recent behavior.
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White House Looks at What Went Wrong
The White House “has begun a quiet self-assessment in the wake of the troubled health-law launch, recognizing that administration officials missed warning signs and put too much trust in their management practices in implementing a program that is the centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s domestic legacy,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“White House officials want to learn how the rollout flopped, despite what they believed had been sufficient planning, preparation and attention to the issue. Although not a full-bore ‘forensic’ inquiry into what went wrong, the administration aims to organize itself so that ‘going forward, we don’t have these problems,’ a senior White House official said in an interview.”
Will GOP Blow Another Chance at Taking the Senate?
“After Republican primaries produced that horror show of candidates in two consecutive elections, probably costing the party control of the Senate, GOP leaders vowed that 2014 must be different,” Politico reports.
“But as Barack Obama learned the hard way, promising change is one thing, producing it is another. And while the GOP has clearly made headway this year curbing intraparty, resource-draining firefights that yield outside-the-mainstream nominees, it’s less apparent that the progress will be enough to net the six seats it takes to make Mitch McConnell majority leader.”
How Quickly Political Fortunes Change
New York Times: “For Democrats across the country, the reversal of political fortunes over the past month has been head-spinning. In mid-October, as Republicans were contending with voter fury over a 16-day government shutdown, Democrats had the momentum. In polls, a growing number of voters said they wanted the party to control Congress after next year’s election. Emboldened, a wave of strong recruits entered House contests. Democrats’ control of the Senate seemed secure. Money was flowing.”
“Then the problems with the Internet-based health exchanges came into focus, followed by millions of letters from insurance companies canceling individual policies that did not meet the health law’s minimum coverage requirements. Republicans found their voice. Democrats lost theirs. The polling gap closed, and Republican wallets opened. The National Republican Senatorial Committee raised $3.8 million in October, its best monthly showing of the year.”
Washington Post: “In some minds, the health-care law’s flubs have merged with the
government shutdown to render an unfavorable verdict on all of
Washington.”
What Would Howard Dean Do?
Political Wire: I bet you’re happy not to be the DNC Chair today?
Howard Dean: I’m happy not to be the DNC Chair, but I’d give anything
to be in the White House and kick some serious butt over fixing this
thing.
Listen to the whole thing:
Subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or RSS to get episodes automatically downloaded.
Surprise Win in Louisiana Special Election
Vance McAllister (R) won a special election in Louisiana’s 5th District, “stunning the heir apparent in the contest to become the next member of Congress,” Roll Call reports.
McAllister, a self-funding newcomer, defeated Neil Riser (R) who “had long been considered a shoo-in to win the special election to replace Rep. Rodney Alexander, who resigned over the summer to take a post in Gov. Bobby Jindal’s administration.”
Democrats Already Laying Groundwork for Clinton
“The institutional apparatus of the Democratic coalition is shifting gears as party strategists, outside groups and the people who finance campaigns prepare for what they believe is an inevitable 2016 presidential bid by Hillary Clinton,” the Washington Post reports.
“All of this may seem premature, and in many ways it is… Still, the signs of activity, and the implications of those efforts, speak to Clinton’s unique position in the Democratic Party and to the understanding that the sophistication of modern politics — especially on the scale of a presidential campaign — requires far more lead time and preparation than it did a generation ago.”
Game Over for Obama?
Dana Millbank: “There may well be enough time to salvage Obamacare. But on the broader question of whether Obama can rebuild an effective presidency after this debacle, it’s starting to look as if it may be game over.”
“The record for recent second-term presidents is not good: Reagan had Iran-contra, Clinton had impeachment and Bush had Katrina and Iraq. Once a president suffers a blow such as Obama is now suffering with his health-care law — in which the public not only disapproves of a president’s actions but starts to take a negative view of him personally — it is difficult to recover.”
Quote of the Day
“Out of 50 million uninsured they signed up 26,794. To give you an idea, Wilt Chamberlain had sex with more people than that. Just by a little but he did.”
— Bill Maher, on his show Real Time.
Parroting a False Promise
Byron York has quotes from 27 Democratic senators who defended Obamacare by saying some variation of “If you like your existing plan, you can keep it.”
Milking the Culture War
Michelle Cottle broke down and reviewed Sarah Palin’s new book on Christmas, Good Tidings and Great Joy.
“Don’t misunderstand. Palin’s book is neither well-written nor informative on either a political or a theological level. She does what plenty before her have done: scour the news for any cases of holiday-themed lawsuits or political scuffles, even ones where Christmas emerges triumphant, and whip them into a towering soufflé of proof that Jesus’s, and maybe even Santa’s, days are numbered…”
“But to focus on Palin’s narrative or polemic gifts is to miss the point. The book is not, as the subtitle maternally suggests, about ‘Protecting the Heart of Christmas.’ As with pretty much everything the former governor does, this is all about Venting the Spleen of Sarah. And that’s what makes it so gosh darn refreshing.”
When Change Was Not Just a Slogan
The New York Times reviews The Bully Pulpit by Doris Kearns Goodwin.
“If you find the grubby spectacle of today’s Washington cause for shame and despair — and, really, how could you not? — then I suggest you turn off the TV and board Doris Kearns Goodwin’s latest time machine. Let her transport you back to the turn of the 20th century, to a time when this country had politicians of stature and conscience, when the public believed that government could right great wrongs, when, before truncated attention spans, a 50,000-word exposé of corruption could sell out magazines and galvanize a reluctant Congress. The villains seemed bigger, too, or at least more brazen — industrial barons and political bosses who monopolized entire industries, strangled entire cities. And ‘change’ was not just a slogan.”
Writes Goodwin: “There are but a handful of times in the history of our country when there occurs a transformation so remarkable that a molt seems to take place, and an altered country begins to emerge.”
“The years covered in this book are such a time. It makes a pretty grand story.”
Alpha House
Just released: Alpha House, an original political comedy show available only on Amazon.
The Washington Post notes the show is based on a real Capitol Hill living arrangement and centers on four Republican senators who are also roommates.
The first three episodes are free to all. The remainder can only be viewed by Amazon Prime members.
Are Voters Really That Angry?
George Will: “Americans profess detestation of politics and its practitioners, but their behavior belies their rhetoric. Last month, a poll reported that 60 percent of Americans favor voting out of office all congressional incumbents, including their own representatives. But just 11 months before this poll revealed the electorate’s (supposedly) extraordinary dyspepsia, voters reelected 90 percent of representatives and 91 percent of senators. Most Americans most of the time have better things to do than feel strongly (aggrieved or otherwise) about politics. They are not as angry about goings-on in Washington as they say they are, or imagine themselves to be, or think they ought to be when a pollster takes their emotional temperature.”
Geithner Heads to Private Equity
Former Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, one of the architects of the federal government’s rescue of the financial system, is joining private-equity firm Warburg Pincus LLC, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Extra Bonus Quote of the Day
“I think she’d make a good anything.”
— New York City police chief Ray Kelly, in an interview with Playboy, on whether Hillary Clinton would make a good president.
House Passes Bill Letting People Keep Their Health Plans
“Defying a veto threat from President Obama, the House on Friday approved legislation that would allow health insurance companies to renew individual insurance policies and sell similar policies to new customers next year even if the coverage does not provide all the benefits and consumer protections required by the new health care law,” the New York Times reports.
“The vote was 261 to 157, with 39 Democrats bucking their party leadership to vote in favor of the bill.”
Washington Post: “The 39 Democratic votes in favor represent the largest defection by far
on a major or closely-watched piece of legislation this year, signaling
the political difficulty that dozens of congressional Democrats face in
reelection contests next year.”
The White House has promised to veto the bill if it makes it out of the Senate.
Majority Think Oswald Did Not Act Alone
As the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination approaches, a new Gallup poll finds that 61% of Americans still believe others besides Lee Harvey Oswald were involved.
The Monkey Cage: “Why are Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories so popular? The distinguishing feature of a successful conspiracy theory is power, and the Kennedy assassination has that in spades. The victim was an American president and the potential villains include actors of immense reach and influence.”
