Sex Trafficking Victim Says Katie Britt Was ‘Not Fair’
The woman whose story Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) appeared to have shared in the Republican response to the State of the Union as an example of President Biden’s failed immigration policies told CNN she was trafficked before Biden’s presidency and said legislators lack empathy when using the issue of human trafficking for political purposes.
Said Karla Jacinto: “I hardly ever cooperate with politicians, because it seems to me that they only want an image. They only want a photo — and that to me is not fair.”
“Jacinto said she met the senator at an event at the southern border with other government officials and anti-human-trafficking activists, instead of one-on-one as Britt stated.”
Ernst to Run Against Cotton for GOP Conference Chair
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) is running for Senate Republican Conference chair, setting up a blockbuster fall race against Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) for the No. 3 position in party leadership in the next Congress, Politico reports.
Katie Britt Defends False Allegations Against Biden
Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) on Sunday “sought to defend comments she made in her response to President Biden’s State of the Union address on Thursday, when she described the experience of a woman who was sexually trafficked in Mexico between 2004 and 2008 in a way that falsely implied it had happened in the United States under President Biden,” the New York Times reports.
Said Britt: “I very clearly said I spoke to a woman who told me about when she was trafficked when she was 12. I didn’t say a teenager. I didn’t say a young woman. A grown woman, a woman, when she was trafficked when she was 12.”
What’s Wrong with Katie Britt
Reed Galen: “Britt represents a long, unhealthy tradition of staffers running for their boss’s old seat. They come not with beliefs but an ingrained sense of how to ‘play the game.’ She was an aide and then chief of staff for retired Alabama Senator Richard Shelby.”
“This is not new in American (or human) history, but that doesn’t make it better. It allows someone like Britt to achieve an incredible amount of power and prestige powered not by belief and conviction, but timing, fundraising, and connections. They now sit on the other side of the desk, and along with their staff and bevy of consultants, triangulate every issue, every vote, and every press release based on what’s best for their career. She represents not the people of Alabama, but her own ambition.”
Katie Britt Falsely Linked Story to Biden
Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) falsely linked a sex-trafficking case to President Biden, the Washington Post reports.
The woman’s story is tragic, but she was not trafficked across the border — and her story has nothing to do with Biden.
Katie Britt’s Strange Speech
Elaina Plott Calabro: “It was just five days ago that Newt Gingrich was imagining the possibilities for Britt’s future, framing the freshman senator from Alabama’s coming rebuttal to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address as her ‘big audition.’ ‘It will be interesting to see if Britt rises to the occasion,’ the former House speaker had mused to a New York talk-radio host.’“If she does, it will be a major step up in her potentially being Trump’s vice-presidential candidate.'”
“When I called Gingrich this morning and asked if Britt had, in fact, risen to the occasion last night, he sounded flustered. ‘Ah, well, um, I don’t have any comment right now, thank you.’ He hung up.”
“Gingrich is far from the only Republican skirting on-the-record conversations today about Britt’s performance. The Alabamian’s 17-minute address, delivered from her own kitchen, surprised many in the party for its tonal confusion and the dramatic affectations that often distracted from the message itself—a party-line discourse on illegal immigration and the imperiled future of American families. The speech has been mocked widely on social media and cable news, including by various right-wing commentators. But lawmakers and other prominent Republicans—those who had cast the event as Britt’s potential star turn—have mostly stayed quiet.”
Quote of the Day
“The sad part of it is, Mitch McConnell knows full well that the president was guilty of a crime on Jan. 6. So for him to know how bad the president’s predecessor was on all of this, and then come to the conclusion that he would endorse him when we thought he was going to convict him — the word was, he was close to conviction, and now he’s endorsing — it’s really very, very sad.”
— Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), quoted by the HuffPost.
Katie Britt, With Smiles and Menace, Delivers GOP Response
“With a sunny, inviting smile, Senator Katie Britt of Alabama welcomed Americans into her kitchen on Thursday night,” the New York Times reports.
“Many soon backed away nervously.”
“In the Republican Party’s official response to President Biden’s State of the Union address, Ms. Britt delivered a jarring speech that toggled between an increasingly strained cheerfulness and a fierce glare as she gave ominous warnings about illegal immigration.”
Daily Beast: “The performance was so bad that some Republicans watched the high-profile speech with a grimace. A GOP strategist told The Daily Beast that Britt’s delivery quickly became a gossip item Thursday night among operatives connected to Donald Trump—something that could have potential implications for her consideration as a vice presidential pick for the former president.”
Said this Republican: “Everyone’s fucking losing it. It’s one of our biggest disasters ever.”
Katie Britt to Call Biden ‘Diminished’ During Rebuttal
Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) will call President Joe Biden a “dithering and diminished leader” in the Republican rebuttal to his State of the Union address Thursday evening, the AP reports.
Most Want Bob Menendez to Resign
A new Monmouth poll in New Jersey finds Sen. Bob Menendez’s (D-NJ) approval has plummeted since he was charged in a second corruption case in less than ten years.
A clear majority of New Jersey residents (63%) want him to resign now – including most of his fellow Democrats – which is a reversal of opinion from the last time he was under federal indictment.
Just 16% of Garden State voters approve of the job Menendez is doing while 3 in 4 (74%) disapprove. This is his record low rating – by far – in Monmouth polling going back to 2008. The last time Menendez faced federal corruption charges, he held a much better job rating of 42% approve and 38% disapprove (May 2015).
Flashback Quote of the Day
“Mr. President, January 6 was a disgrace. American citizens attacked their own government. They used terrorism to try to stop a specific piece of domestic business they did not like. Fellow Americans beat and bloodied our own police. They stormed the Senate floor. They tried to hunt down the Speaker of the House. They built a gallows and chanted about murdering the Vice President. They did this because they had been fed wild falsehoods by the most powerful man on Earth because he was angry he lost an election. Former President Trump’s actions preceding the riot were a disgraceful disgraceful-dereliction of duty.”
— Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), three years before he endorsed Donald Trump for president again.
Senate Braces for Long Battle to Succeed McConnell
“The race to succeed Mitch McConnell atop the Senate GOP could last for months without a clear winner, thanks to one big wildcard: Election Day,” Politico reports.
“Although Republicans are optimistic about their chances of winning the Senate in November, they still don’t know which candidates might deliver them the majority, or even how big that majority could be. Not to mention if Donald Trump wins back the presidency, his preference is bound to prove a critical factor in the leadership battle — if he loses, on the other hand, the GOP may look for a clean break from Trump’s pick.”
Bernie Sanders Won’t Miss Kyrsten Sinema
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said he will not miss Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) “at all,” the Daily Beast reports.
Said Sanders: “We had zero Republican support. We had 48 people in the Democratic caucus prepared to transform this country on behalf of the working class of America. Two people, Sinema being one, Manchin the other, refused to support it. We couldn’t pass it. So no, I will not miss Senator Sinema.”
Cornyn Backs Term Limits for Next Senate GOP Leader
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) “is throwing his weight behind an effort to instate term limits for the next Senate Republican leader, as he seeks to differentiate himself from the still emerging field,” Politico reports.
Said Cornyn: “I believe the Senate needs more engagement from all of my colleagues, and that includes the opportunity for any Member to serve in Leadership.”
The Filibuster’s Days Are Numbered
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Bonus Quote of the Day
“Compromise is a dirty word. Because I choose civility, understanding, listening, working together to get stuff done, I will leave the Senate at the end of this year.”
— Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), quoted by Roll Call, announcing she won’t run for re-election.
Menendez Charged with Using Position to Help Qatar
A superseding indictment filed today charges Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) with using his position to benefit Qatar in addition to Egypt.
Bloomberg: “The latest indictment complicates the legal challenges for Menendez, who has pleaded not guilty and faces a May 6 trial in New York federal court. FBI agents seized 13 gold bars, nearly $500,000 in cash and the Mercedes in a raid on Menendez’s home, and prosecutors displayed that haul in indictment photos that brought widespread condemnation to the senator.”