Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D) ruled out the possibility of running for president in 2016, the Boston Globe reports.
Said Patrick: “I am not running for president in 2016. I’m going to finish this second term, I’m going to go back into the private sector. And as Diane, my wife says, pay some attention to our family and friends while they are still willing to have us pay some attention.”
President Obama hoped that that his victory in 2012 would break the partisan ‘fever’ in Washington, but “behind closed doors, people close to the president tell Politico, Obama never quite bought his own rhetoric and was quietly planning for precisely the opposite scenario, perpetual gridlock, during West Wing strategy sessions in the weeks before and after beating Mitt Romney.”
Said one “The fever didn’t break. It turned into smallpox.”
“Nobody in Wyoming likes a long campaign, and anybody from Wyoming would know that.”
— Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY), quoted by the Washington Examiner, taking a dig at primary rival Liz Cheney (R) who announced her bid yesterday.
You're reading the free version of Political Wire
Upgrade to a paid membership to unlock full access. The process is quick and easy. You can even use Apple Pay.
A new Quinnipiac poll in Virginia finds the scandal surrounding gifts given to Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) and his family by a political donor haven’t derailed his governorship.
Voters still say by a 44% to 36% margin that McDonnell is honest and trustworthy and only 16% of voters, most of whom are Democrats, think he should resign.
Said pollster Peter Brown: “Almost 80 percent of voters are aware of the controversy and seem to be somewhat concerned. The bottom line seems to be that they view him as just another politician, but at this point they are not clamoring for his scalp.”
When he announced his unlikely return to political life, Eliot Spitzer “said the approval of his wife, a stalwart presence in his previous campaigns, was essential before he chose to pursue a potentially career-salvaging run for New York City comptroller,” the New York Times reports.
“But so far Ms. Wall Spitzer has been all but invisible, issuing no statement of support and not once appearing at her husband’s side… Mr. Spitzer’s attempted comeback has coincided with a difficult time for his marriage — the couple are currently living in separate apartments 18 blocks apart. Five years after Mr. Spitzer resigned as governor amid a prostitution scandal, friends say Ms. Wall Spitzer is deeply conflicted about her husband’s candidacy, offering assent but privately preferring he had not chosen to run.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin “gave his clearest signal yet that he will not let a dispute over the fate of former U.S. spy contractor Edward Snowden derail relations with the United States,” Reuters reports.
Said Putin: “Bilateral relations, in my opinion, are far more important than squabbles about the activities of the secret services.”
He added: “We warned Mr Snowden that any action by him that could cause damage to Russian-American relations is unacceptable for us.”
A new National Journal Poll finds that 67% of Americans support building the Keystone XL pipeline to carry Canadian oil to refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast; that includes 56% of Democrats. Just 24% oppose the project.
Just published: The Road to War: Presidential Commitments Honored and Betrayed by Marvin Kalb.
“Not since Pearl Harbor has an American president gone to Congress to request a declaration of war. Nevertheless, since then, one president after another, from Truman to Obama, has ordered American troops into wars all over the world.”
Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN),” the anti-abortion Republican physician accused of encouraging his wife and mistress to have multiple abortions, raised just $39,000 in the second quarter,” Roll Call reports.
“It’s a paltry sum for an incumbent member and signals more trouble for his re-election prospects in 2014.”
“I thought we were friends.”
— Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY), quoted by the Washington Post, on Liz Cheney’s announcement she would challenge him in a GOP primary.
Liz Cheney (R) announced she will run against Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY) in next year’s Republican primary, the AP reports.
Cheney is the elder of Dick Cheney’s two daughters.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said the U.S. should consider boycotting the 2014 Olympics Russia is set to host if Moscow grants NSA leaker Edward Snowden asylum, The Hill reports.
Said Graham: “I would. I would just send the Russians the most unequivocal signal I could send them.”
“The idea of forcing children to attend school is outdated and should be scrapped in favor of a system that encourages learning by choice, state Sen. Aaron Osmond (R) said in calling for an end to compulsory education in Utah,” the AP reports.
Harry Enten: “Quinn’s net favorable rating among Democrats is only +5pt. This is an amazing 50pt drop since January. It’s also a 16pt decline from just late June… Quinn’s weakness is not any personal life foible. Most likely, it’s because of outside campaigns linking her to Mayor Bloomberg, who is disliked by a substantial portion of the Democratic electorate, especially for her approval of a rule-changing extra term for Bloomberg. It will be difficult for her to unite the anti-Weiner vote in a runoff.”
Jonathan Chait: “Republicans threatened to change the Senate’s rules in 2005 to stop
Democrats from filibustering their judges, and it succeeded — Democrats
agreed to let pretty much any judges through with a majority vote. Once
again the majority party forced the minority into a total capitulation.
There is a lesson here, and it’s not that the Senate is a wonderfully
congenial place whose rules must not be touched.”
Markos Moulitsas: “True, today’s deal preserved the existing filibuster rule, but it really didn’t. Democrats established that they could bust through any filibuster with a simple majority anytime they wanted. Sure, it’s still a process to do so, full of blustery threats and hyperbolic doomsaying, but it’s a process.”
Wonk Wire: The threat of the nuclear option is the nuclear option.
A new Elway poll in Washington finds voters are not overly impressed with Gov. Jay Inslee’s (D) first six months in office.
Inslee’s job performance was rated “only fair” or “poor” by 49% of voters surveyed, compared to 40% who said he was doing a “good” or “excellent” job.
The first plane to be designated as Air Force One — first used by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on cross-country voyages — “now sits in a southern Arizona field decaying under the relentless glare of the sun,” the AP reports.
Said airport manager Steve Miller: “I think it’s one of these big secrets that, really, few people know that it’s out there. It’s sad that it’s just sitting out there, considering its history over the past 70 years.”
President Obama’s “low public profile on issues like immigration, Syria and health care underscores a calculated presidential approach that admirers consider nuanced and detractors call passive,” the New York Times reports.
“While other presidents have put the bully in the bully pulpit, Mr. Obama uses his megaphone, and the power that comes with it, sparingly, speaking out when he decides his voice can shape the trajectory of an issue and staying silent when he thinks it might be counterproductive. In his first year, the president seemed to be everywhere, talking about everything. In his fifth year, he is choosing his opportunities — even if it appears he is not always in command of events.”
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.
“There are a lot of blogs and news sites claiming to understand politics, but only a few actually do. Political Wire is one of them.”
— Chuck Todd, host of “Meet the Press”
“Concise. Relevant. To the point. Political Wire is the first site I check when I’m looking for the latest political nugget. That pretty much says it all.”
— Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the Rothenberg Political Report
“Political Wire is one of only four or five sites that I check every day and sometimes several times a day, for the latest political news and developments.”
— Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report
“The big news, delicious tidbits, pearls of wisdom — nicely packaged, constantly updated… What political junkie could ask for more?”
— Larry Sabato, Center for Politics, University of Virginia
“Political Wire is a great, great site.”
— Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”
“Taegan Goddard has a knack for digging out political gems that too often get passed over by the mainstream press, and for delivering the latest electoral developments in a sharp, no frills style that makes his Political Wire an addictive blog habit you don’t want to kick.”
— Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post
“Political Wire is one of the absolute must-read sites in the blogosphere.”
— Glenn Reynolds, founder of Instapundit
“I rely on Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire for straight, fair political news, he gets right to the point. It’s an eagerly anticipated part of my news reading.”
— Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.