“I think that Hillary Clinton probably will be the candidate. If she doesn’t run, I think Biden will run.”
— David Axelrod, on Morning Joe, forecasting the 2016 Democratic presidential race.
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Most Iowans Think Branstad Has Been Governor Too Long
A new Quinnipiac poll in Iowa finds voters like Gov. Terry Branstad (R): He has a 50% to 37% favorability rating and a 51% to 33% job approval, but they also say by 46% to 43% that he does not deserve another term.
Asked another way, 54% of voters say Branstad has been in office long enough, while 37% say he should seek another term.
Spitzer Grilled by Colbert
Disgraced former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D) stopped by The Colbert Report last night as part of his comeback campaign for city comptroller — “and got quite a beating,” Politicker reports.
Congress Actually Got Something Done
First Read: “For as bad as last week was in Washington’s dysfunction, this week turned out to show some progress in Congress actually getting things done. Senate Democrats and Republicans reached a deal to avert a change in the chamber’s filibuster rules, which led to the confirmation of President Obama’s picks to head the EPA, the Labor Department, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau… What’s more, Senate Democrats and Republicans also reached a deal on student loans, and a vote on that could come as early as this Tuesday.”
Lawmaker Says Obama Uses Air Force One as a Toy
Rep. Howard Coble (R-NC) slammed the first family for using Air Force One as a “personal toy,” The Hill reports.
Said Coble: “I’m not suggesting that we compromise safety or security. But the first family, it seems to me, treats Air Force One and related aircraft as their personal toys — a very expensive toy, I might add.”
Obama Nominates Bundler Despite DUI Arrest
President Obama nominated campaign fundraiser Timothy Broas to be his next ambassador to the Netherlands, one year after the Washington lawyer withdrew himself from consideration for the same post following a DUI arrest,” USA Today reports.
“Broas, a defense attorney specializing in white-collar crime cases, raised at least $700,000 for the president’s two presidential campaigns. He was nominated for the post last year and went through a confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.”
Landrieu Challenger Picks Up Steam
GOP efforts to regain control of the Senate “improved this week
amid signs the party’s preferred candidate in Louisiana, Rep. Bill
Cassidy (R-LA), is beginning to shore up support and establish himself
as the clear alternative to Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA),” The Hill reports.
“Cassidy raised a hefty $1.1 million in the second quarter of
2013 — an impressive tally that observers say should quiet early
grousing that the congressman isn’t the best Republican for the
admittedly formidable challenge of unseating Landrieu.”
How Schweitzer Was Forced Out of Race
The team that was preparing former Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer’s (D) potential Senate candidacy “are blaming his sudden departure on Democratic infighting and bad blood among Schweitzer and the state’s two current Democratic senators,” Business Insider reports.
“The main target of their ire: Sen. Jon Tester (D). In the week before Schweitzer decided not to run, Democratic leaders began have doubts about Schweitzer’s candidacy. Multiple sources close to Schweitzer pointed to Tester and his chief of staff directly as the source of that doubt — something that Tester’s staff denies.”
“The source said Tester was ‘sticking knives’ in Schweitzer’s potential run…Three sources close to Schweitzer’s campaign fingered Tester’s camp as the source of two unflattering stories that popped up in the past week — one in Politico and one in the local Great Falls Tribune. These sources singled out Tester and Tom Lopach, his chief of staff.”
North Carolina Republicans Unveil Stricter Voter ID Law
North Carolina Republicans announced a new voter ID bill “that would further restrict the forms of photo identification accepted at the polls,” the Charlotte Observer reports.
“The new measure would require voters to show one of seven types of photo identification issued by the government, such as driver’s licenses, passports, non-driver IDs and military or veteran cards. It eliminates about half the types of photo identification allowed under the House version, including cards from UNC system colleges, state community colleges, local governments, private employers and law enforcement agencies.”
“The bill would take full effect in the 2016 elections.”
San Diego Democrats Won’t Ask Filner to Step Down
A “deeply divided” San Diego County Democratic Party “decided not to join the mounting calls for Mayor Bob Filner’s resignation over sexual harassment accusations as his supporters began gearing up a campaign to keep him in office,” the San Diego Union Tribune reports.
“The party’s central committee met for nearly three hours behind the closed doors… to discuss what position it should take on the embattled mayor. But the committee was deadlocked, voting 24-24.”
Carpetbagging Charge Follows Cheney
GOP strategist Ed Rollins told The Hill that it will not be easy for Liz Cheney to win over voters in Wyoming.
Said Rollins: “I like Liz, I’ve been a longtime friend of her father’s, but it’ll be portrayed as they’ve been away from the state a long time, a housewife who’s kind of bored who moved back to Wyoming after a long time to run for the Senate. Unfortunately for Liz, that’s not a state like California or New York where you can carpetbag very easily, and even though she was born there she hasn’t been there for a long time.”
Russia Frees Opposition Leader After Protests
“Russia unexpectedly freed opposition leader Alexei Navalny on bail on Friday, bending to the will of thousands of protesters who denounced his five-year jail sentence as a crude attempt by President Vladimir Putin to silence him,” Reuters reports.
“In a ruling that points to Kremlin uncertainty over how to handle Navalny’s case and revived protests, a judge approved an unusual prosecution request to release him while he awaits the outcome of an appeal.”
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GOP Eyes Obamacare as Target in Debt Ceiling Talks
Reuters says “growing numbers of Republicans in Congress” are setting their sights on a new target in looming fiscal showdowns this autumn over government funding and the debt limit: “Obamacare.”
“Several Republicans are pledging to oppose a stopgap government spending bill that will be needed by October 1 unless it withholds funds from the implementation of President Obama’s signature healthcare law — especially its core requirement that uninsured Americans obtain health coverage.”
“Blockage of the funding measure could lead to a shutdown of government agencies, roiling financial markets.”
Detroit Files for Bankruptcy Protection
Detroit became the largest city in U.S. history to file for bankruptcy, as the state-appointed emergency manager filed for Chapter 9 protection, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The final decision rested with Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R): “This was a difficult and painful decision but I believe there are no other viable options. This is a situation that’s been 60 years in the making in terms of the decline of Detroit. From a financial point of view, let me be blunt, Detroit is broke.”
Wonk Wire: Detroit goes bankrupt.
No Comeback Likely for John Edwards
A new Public Policy Polling survey finds that just 15% of North Carolina voters have a favorable opinion of John Edwards to 67% with a negative one.
Just 19% say they would ever consider voting for him for public office again.
Pelosi Says Country is Ready for Hillary
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi told NBC News that she’s fully aboard the Hillary Clinton for President train — if Clinton runs in 2016.
Said Pelosi: “I think the country is ready for Hillary. I certainly hope that she will choose to run. I think if she does, she will win. I think if and when she does, I think she’ll be the best prepared person to enter the White House in decades.”
Is Liz Cheney What the GOP Needs?
Jon Lovett: “Perhaps the Republican Party needs to hit rock bottom and Liz Cheney is the last shot of rail tequila before the conservative movement blacks out, wakes up and heads to a meeting.”
Michelle Cottle: “And just like that, the entire Republican establishment grabbed for the Advil and the Johnnie Walker Black.”
