Peggy Noonan: “The next king is the firstborn son of the current king. In political terms, the guy who came in second in the last presidential cycle stands most likely to be crowned and anointed in the current one. Republicans, for all their drama, still tend toward the orderly and still credit experience.”
Secret Service Agents Relieved of Duty in Prostitution Scandal
Secret Service agents sent to Colombia ahead of President Obama were sent home amid allegations of misconduct, CNN reports.
“The incident — reportedly related to involvement with prostitutes in Cartagena — overshadowed the start of the sixth Summit of the Americas, where the president was to focus on trade, energy and regional security.”
Ronald Kessler, author of In the President’s Service, said it’s “the biggest scandal in Secret Service history.”
According to Kessler, “One of the agents did not pay one of the prostitutes, and she complained to the police.”
Obama Holds Electoral College Edge
An Associated Press analysis of the presidential battleground finds Mitt Romney likely has 188 electorate votes in states that are either solidly Republican or leaning Republican while President Obama has 242 electoral votes in safe Democratic or likely Democratic states.
That leaves 104 electoral votes in states that are purely tossups: Colorado, Florida, Iowa, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia.
270 electoral votes are needed to win.
Adviser Says Romney Not as Anti-Immigrant as he Sounds
Fred Barnes suggests Mitt Romney “would be wise to move away from his harsh position” on immigration in the primaries because he “can’t afford to lose the Hispanic vote as decisively as John McCain — who won just 31% of it — did in 2008.”
“According to a Romney adviser, his private view of immigration isn’t as anti-immigrant as he often sounded.”
E.J. Dionne: “How many other ‘private’ positions does Romney hold that we don’t know about?”
Quote of the Day
“He has been on Wall Street’s side since day one.”
— Former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D), in a Reuters interview, on President Obama’s “minimal steps” to regulate banks.
Today’s Republicans Most Conservative in 100 Years
NPR reports on research by political scientists Keith Poole and Howard Rosenthal who find that the Republican Party is the most conservative it has been a century.
Said Poole: “The short version would be since the late 1970s starting with the 1976 election in the House the Republican caucus has steadily moved to the right ever since. It’s been a little more uneven in the Senate. The Senate caucuses have also moved to the right. Republicans are now furtherest to the right that they’ve been in 100 years.”
Obama Celebrates RomneyCare
President Obama’s re-election campaign puts out a video to mark the 6th anniversary of Mitt Romney’s health care reform in Massachusetts.
Why Clinton 2016 Speculaton Won’t Die
Paul Begala notes the speculation that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will run for president in four years has only intensified in the months since she declared she wouldn’t run.
It helps that she’s required to stay out of electoral politics.
“Hillary benefits from the fact that the job is designed to be above the political fray; she hasn’t had to comment on, say, gay marriage or the Trayvon Martin case. It’s a paradox Hillary must understand: the less political you are, the more popular a politician you become; the less you yearn for the presidency, the more the country yearns for you.”
Giffords War Chest Prompts Talk of Comeback
Two months after stepping down from Congress, former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) “appears to be holding on to much of the nearly $1 million left in her campaign account, in order to leave the door open for a potential run for the House or the Senate in the next campaign cycle,” the New York Times reports.
“Ms. Giffords is still going through intensive rehabilitation in Houston, and her supporters say they are careful not to set expectations too high. Still, they openly speak of the possibility of her running for the Senate seat now held by John McCain or perhaps running for the House again.”
Muslim Brotherhood Makes Move in Egypt
The Muslim Brotherhood “nominated its chief strategist and financier Khairat el-Shater on Saturday as its candidate to become Egypt’s first president since Hosni Mubarak, breaking a pledge not to seek the top office and a monopoly on power,” the New York Times reports.
“Because of the Brotherhood’s unrivaled grass-roots organization and popular appeal, Mr. Shater, 62, a multimillionaire business tycoon who was a political prisoner until just a year ago, immediately became a presidential front-runner.”
Reuters: “The move will worry liberals and others who fret about the rising influence of Islamists after they swept parliament and now dominate an assembly writing the new constitution.”
Rebuild the Dream
Out next week: Rebuild the Dream by Van Jones.
“Van Jones reflects on his journey from grassroots outsider to White House insider. For the first time, he shares intimate details of his time in government – and reveals why he chose to resign his post as a special advisor to the Obama White House.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“If you’re looking for something to go after in a political sense, just listen to the Vice President. He’s got plenty of material for us.”
— Mitt Romney, quoted by NBC News.
Haley Never Faced Tax Investigation
Quote of the Day
“I think the mistakes made in 2008 will have a big effect, as they should in 2012. The 2008 process was evaluated almost entirely through a political prism.”
— GOP strategist Steve Schmidt, quoted by the Washington Post, who oversaw Sen. John McCain’s selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate.
Wisconsin Republicans To Run Fake Primary Challengers
Joshua Spivak reports the four Democratic state Senate hopefuls in Wisconsin will all face “fake” primary opponents. Republican leaders confirmed the tactic which they also used in last year’s recall races.
“The goal is to push the election so it is on the same day as the Walker recall — otherwise, the Democrats may have had a serious advantage in those races (as their votes would be more likely to come out for the Gubernatorial primary vote).”
Romney Still Leads in Wisconsin
A new Rasmussen survey in Wisconsin finds Mitt Romney with a double-digit lead over Rick Santorum in next week’s GOP presidential primary, 44% to 34%, with Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul each at 7%.
Gingrich Finally Admits Romney is Likely to Win
Though he’s promised a fight all the way to the convention, Newt Gingrich told WTMJ that Mitt Romney “is clearly the front-runner” and “will probably” win enough delegates to secure the Republican presidential nomination.
Endorsing the Winner
As well-regarded Republicans continue to line up behind Mitt Romney–including George H.W. Bush, Marco Rubio, and Paul Ryan — Adam Sorensen underlines why there has been a sudden rush to back the likely nominee.
“You might read these statements as examples of lukewarm sentiment for the candidate — Dave Weigel compares them to Ted Kennedy’s swooning endorsement of Obama at the height of the epic 2008 Democratic primary — but I’m not sure that’s entirely fair. There is a real and legitimate concern among Republicans that in recent years, their party has at times lost focus on winning general elections (see Christine O’Donnell). The Establishment endorsers’ target audience — Republicans who want to see the primary play out a bit longer — is not one that needs to be swept off its feet… The goal is to show that Romney has already won it, and that it’s time to move on to taking down Obama.”
