Political Wire

Members Get the Full Experience

  • Exclusive analysis you won’t find elsewhere
  • Real-time trending news page and access to Reader Wire
  • Private Trial Balloon podcast and Inside Elections newsletter
  • No advertising

Become a member. Already a member? Log in.


Pols Arrested in Plot to Rig New York City Mayoral Race

By Leave a Comment

New York State Sen. Malcolm Smith (D) and City Councilman Dan Halloran (R) “were arrested this morning on charges they plotted to rig this year’s mayoral election through fraud and bribes,” the New York Post reports.

“The pols allegedly formed an alliance built on cash payments and fraud to get Smith — one of the state’s top Democrats — placed on the GOP mayoral ballot, sources said.”

Law enforcement sources tell NBC 4 New York that Smith “was allegedly involved in a plot to try to get onto this year’s GOP mayoral ballot by offering payments to Republican county chairmen.”

Rubio Slows Down Immigration Debate

By Leave a Comment

Aides to Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) told Roll Call that the senator “views a lengthy, traditional process that includes hearings, a healthy committee markup and an open floor debate during which senators can offer amendments as key to his ability to build and maintain conservative support for a comprehensive immigration rewrite. Rubio does not have a specific timetable in mind. But anything viewed as ‘rushed’ would violate promises he made to grass-roots conservatives and could cost his support, even if he is OK with the bill in principle.”

Edward Morrissey: “No one doubts that momentum has quickly developed for a deal on
comprehensive immigration reform and border security. But by rushing to
get a deal done and working behind closed doors, Congress is cravenly
trying to sneak reform through without a full hearing before the
American public.”

Clinton’s Campaign Starts in Virginia

By Leave a Comment

“Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign begins this year in Virginia,” Politico reports.

“She hasn’t said anything about 2016, but Terry McAuliffe’s 2013 gubernatorial campaign is serving as a testing ground for Clinton’s clout, operatives and donors. In fact, McAuliffe and some of his top allies have suggested to big donors and consultants that supporting his campaign is a way to get in on the ground floor of Hillary 2016.”

Casey Now Supports Gay Marriage

By Leave a Comment

Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) told the Allentown Morning Call that he “had decided over time that the Defense of Marriage Act — the federal law that defines marriage as one man and one woman — should be repealed, and determined that such a belief could not be separate from the overall question of gay marriage.”

Said Casey: “I ultimately decided that to make a decision about DOMA was making a decision about marriage equality itself… It wasn’t until recently that I thought some point this year it will be reintroduced, so that was a question I was asking myself: Can you separate the vote on that [from] the ultimate question on marriage equality? There’s no way to do that.”

Connecticut Ready to Pass Toughest Gun Control in Nation

By Leave a Comment

Connecticut lawmakers “said they had met the solemn challenge presented by the Sandy Hook school massacre with a bipartisan agreement for the nation’s strongest gun control bill,” the Hartford Courant reports.

“Easy passage of the legislative response to the Dec. 14 killings is expected in House and Senate votes scheduled for Wednesday, leaders of both the Democratic majority and Republican minority said after completing weeks of negotiations on the bill.”

New York Times: “It would require new state-issued eligibility certificates for the purchase of any rifle, shotgun or ammunition; mandate that offenders convicted of any of more than 40 weapons offenses register with the state; require universal background checks for the sale of all firearms; and substantially expand the state’s existing ban on assault weapons.”

Extra Bonus Quote of the Day

By Leave a Comment

“Let’s not take on any more water on this sinking ship. Let’s patch the holes. Then we’ll decide what do we do with all this water that’s here.”

— Rep. Lou Barletta (R-PA), quoted by the New York Times, on why he opposes a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants until the nation’s borders are secure.

Gay Son Doesn’t Change Lawmaker’s View of Gay Marriage

By Leave a Comment

Rep. Matt Salmon (R-AZ) told KTVK-TV that he does not support gay marriage despite having a gay son.

Said Salmon: “I don’t support gay marriage. My son and I have had a lot of dialogue about it. I will say this: you know, my son is by far one of the most important people in my life. I love him more than I can say.”

He added: “My view is while I don’t believe we should be vitriolic and try to enact harmful policies, by the same token, I’m just not there as far as believing in my heart that we should change 2,000 years of social policy in favor of a redefinition of the family.”

O’Reilly vs. Limbaugh

By Leave a Comment

Peter Beinhart: “There are various ways to describe the civil war rising inside the
Republican Party: insiders versus outsiders, pragmatists versus
true-believers, establishment versus Tea Party. Here’s another: Bill
O’Reilly conservatives versus Rush Limbaugh conservatives.”

“O’Reilly and Limbaugh are both conservative; they both idealize an
older, pre-lapsarian America that they believe leftists want to destroy
in the name of progress. The difference is that Limbaugh’s conservative
vision is more static and more personal. For O’Reilly, traditional
morality is not an abstract, coherent set of beliefs; it’s the folk
wisdom of ordinary people at any given moment, and it can change.”

Bonus Quote of the Day

By Leave a Comment

“I hate that. Black tie benefit for homeless.”

— Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D), quoted by the Baltimore Sun, in an accidentally-released text message complaining about having to wear a tuxedo for a United Way fundraiser.

About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan 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.

Praise for Political Wire

“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.