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State of the Union Squatters

February 12, 2013 at 6:12 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The Washington Post reports on the lawmaker who will spend up to seven hours staking out seats near to the aisle to be seen shaking President Obama’s hand as he enters the House chamber.

“They’ve been around for at least 46 years. For the people on the aisle, the State of the Union is a rare night when a low-ranking legislator can score both a TV appearance and a personal audience with the president. Just try to ignore the elbows thrown by your colleagues. And be brief.”

“The squatters on the House aisle are now a familiar part of the State
of the Union ritual — a signal that the night has evolved from from a
speech into a show, and then from the president’s show to more of an
ensemble piece.”

Walsh Insists He’s Not Trying to Stop Paying Child Support

February 12, 2013 at 5:45 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

After insisting he wasn’t a “deadbeat dad” throughout his failed campaign for re-election, former Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) filed court papers seeking to end his obligation to pay $2,134 per month in child support, the Chicago Sun Times reports.

“But once again, Walsh insists he’s no deadbeat. Both he and his attorney say that since he is no longer employed as a congressman, they want to ‘modify’ the previous agreement so that he pays 20 percent of his current salary.”

Obama Prepares to Screw His Base

February 11, 2013 at 8:38 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Ben Smith: “President Obama’s enemies often accuse him, in the starkest political terms, of crudely acting to shift resources toward his political base: green-energy donors, single women, Latinos, African-Americans.”

“But the next 12 months are likely to reveal the opposite. Imminent elements of Obama’s grandest policy move, the health-care overhaul known as ObamaCare, are calculated to screw his most passionate supporters and to transfer wealth to his worst enemies.”

But Ezra Klein disagrees: “Universal health-care systems in general, and Obamacare in particular, move money from the rich to the poor.”

The Forgotten Presidents

February 11, 2013 at 8:00 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Coming soon: The Forgotten Presidents: Their Untold Constitutional Legacy by Michael J. Gerhardt

Rubio in 2016?

February 11, 2013 at 6:28 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The Cloakroom: 3 reasons Marco Rubio isn’t going to be the GOP nominee in 2016.

Top Capitol Hill Staffers

February 11, 2013 at 3:02 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Roll Call released it’s annual list Capitol Hill’s leading staffers — “the people behind the scenes who wield the power and drive their party’s message.”

GOP Renews Push for Balanced-Budget Amendment

February 11, 2013 at 2:26 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Frustrated by the months of non-stop budget fights, Senate Republicans are set to mount a fiscal counteroffensive this week with the reintroduction of a balanced-budget amendment,” National Review reports.

“According to a Senate GOP aide, the legislation would cap federal spending at 18 percent of GDP. It would also require a supermajority for tax hikes and debt-limit increases.”

Greg Sargent: “Requiring a supermajority on the debt ceiling is the direct opposite of fiscal responsibility: Since the debt ceiling only constitutes authorizing borrowing to pay bills already incurred by Congress, it could set spending by regular majority rule (as it currently does), while requiring a supermajority to borrow the money necessary to pay the bills it racks up. It would make default — and widespread economic havoc — more likely.”

The Art of Betrayal

February 11, 2013 at 2:07 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Just published: The Art of Betrayal: The Secret History of MI6 by Gordon Corera.

GOP Likely to Hold Up Hagel Nomination

February 11, 2013 at 1:50 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Roll Call: “The Senate panel overseeing Pentagon nominations plans to hold a vote Tuesday on the contentious nomination of Chuck Hagel to become Defense secretary, and while the panel may vote along party lines to recommend confirmation to the full Senate, some GOP lawmakers are expected to hold it up.”

Cuomo Losing His Mojo?

February 11, 2013 at 1:24 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) “has veered sharply away from the reform and pro-business policies he followed during his first two years in office and is ‘adrift’ on a course of murky proposals, frequent indecision, and political obsessions focused on re-election next year and the presidency in 2016,” insiders tell Fred Dicker.

“The insiders, some of whom have known Cuomo for decades, said the governor has become so obsessed with maintaining what until recently were record-high job-approval ratings that he has refused, for fear of alienating politically potent liberal voting blocs, to make tough decisions to cut costs for fiscally troubled local governments, reduce regulations to attract businesses, and approve hydrofracking for natural gas.”

Why Karl Rove May Fail

February 11, 2013 at 1:16 pm EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Nate Silver suggests Karl Rove’s latest effort to fund “electable” candidates in Republican primaries may actually fail.

“An analysis of Republican Senate primaries in 2010 and 2012 suggests that money is usually the least pressing problem for the incumbents and other establishment-backed candidates whom Mr. Rove’s group might be inclined to support. Instead, some insurgent candidates won their races despite having been at more than a 10-to-1 fund-raising disadvantage heading into the primary.”

“Does that mean there is literally no benefit to having more money in a Republican primary? Not exactly… there is a modest but positive correlation between the share of the funds that went to the establishment candidate and that candidate’s margin of victory or defeat. However, the relationship is much weaker than it is in general elections for the Senate, when fund-raising totals have about twice as much power to predict the margin between the Democratic and Republican candidates.”

Fox News: Rove under fire from the right.

Inside the Papal Election

February 11, 2013 at 11:55 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Although Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation is the first in 600 years, the election of the next Pope remains generally the same, Dylan Matthews reports.

“But, as with normal papal successions, it will prompt the vote of the College of Cardinals, a group of up to 120 church leaders (current estimates put the number around 118) below the age limit of 80 who convene to elect new popes. Exactly how that process works, however, changes frequently, and indeed has changed since the election that elevated Benedict in 2005.”

However, research into papal elections is a sensitive subject because, the next Pope’s selection is “attributed to the will of God, a force not amenable to any empirical test that is in our power to conduct.”

The Week has eight possible contenders for the job.

SNL’s Unaired Sketch Mocks Senate Republicans

February 11, 2013 at 11:29 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Saturday Night Live planned a skit making fun of the Senate Republicans’ grilling of defense secretary nominee Chuck Hagel but it was cut from the show at the last minute.

It was released later online.

[Read more…]

Former Florida GOP Chief Pleads Guilty

February 11, 2013 at 11:06 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Former Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer pleaded guilty “to charges of money laundering and theft, avoiding trial in a case that could have potentially embarrassed former Gov. Charlie Crist and much of the state’s Republican elite,” the Tampa Bay Times reports.

“As part of the deal, Greer faces a maximum of 42.6 months in prison. Sentencing is scheduled March 27.”

Grayson’s Big Swing

February 11, 2013 at 10:00 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) told Roll Call that the House historian “informed him the victory, a 43-point swing from
his 2010 loss, was the biggest comeback in history of the House. His
lesson from the experience is to press on, full steam ahead.”

What Americans Want in the State of the Union

February 11, 2013 at 9:56 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Quinnipiac poll finds President Obama “should focus on the economy in his State of the
Union Address, 35 percent of American voters say in a Quinnipiac
University national poll released today. Another 20 percent say the
federal deficit is the top priority, with 15 percent citing gun policy
and 12 percent listing health care.”

Meanwhile, two-thirds of people say they’re
either “likely” or “very likely” to watch.

White House Insists Focus Has Remained on Jobs

February 11, 2013 at 9:55 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Ron Fournier:
“White House officials tell me they feel stung by coverage of the
inaugural address. Reporters highlighted the president’s left-leaning
stances on immigration, gun control, climate change and gay and women’s
rights. Obama’s aides argue that he devoted more inaugural address
language to the economy, jobs and the deficit than all other issues
combined. Still, the perception remains that Obama lost focus on the
economy — the top issue in the minds of most voters. So look for an
address Tuesday tilted heavily toward policies pledging action on
joblessness, growing the economy and expanding the middle class, White
House officials said Friday. The other issues will be discussed, aides
said, but there will be no mistaking that Obama’s paramount concern is
the economy.”

Hagel Nomination Lingers

February 11, 2013 at 9:49 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The Senate Armed Services Committee could vote on Chuck Hagel’s nomination to be defense secretary as soon as Tuesday, “but Republican aides reacted to that idea by suggesting that some members could walk out in protest,” Politico reports.

First Read notes that while Hagel still has the votes to be confirmed “any day that goes by when there’s not a vote isn’t a good day for him.”