Month: August 2023

Biden appoints Ed Siskel, who shielded Obama from GOP’s Benghazi investigation, as new White House counsel

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

President Biden has appointed Ed Siskel, a veteran of the Obama-Biden administration who shielded then-President Obama amid House Republicans' inquiries into Benghazi and Solyndra, to be his new White House counsel. 

"Ed Siskel’s many years of experience in public service and a career defending the rule of law make him the perfect choice to serve as my next White House Counsel," Biden said in a statement Tuesday, announcing the new hiring.

The president added: "For nearly four years in the White House when I was Vice President, he helped the Counsel’s Office navigate complex challenges and advance the President’s agenda on behalf of the American people, and first as a federal prosecutor and then as the top counsel for one of America’s biggest and most vibrant cities, his hometown of Chicago, Ed has shown a deep commitment to public service and respect for the law."

Siskel’s arrival comes as the president faces a special counsel investigation into his alleged mishandling of classified documents, a special counsel investigation of his eldest son Hunter Biden, and as House Republicans have launched multiple investigations into him, his son and the origins of COVID-19. Also, some Republican lawmakers are pushing to impeach the president.

WHITE HOUSE COUNSEL DEPARTING AS HOUSE REPUBLICAN INVESTIGATIONS HEAT UP

On Tuesday, the White House announced that Biden selected Siskel, who rose to the rank of deputy counsel during his nearly four years previously serving in the White House Counsel’s Office, to replace current counsel Stuart Delery, who will leave the post in September. The change in Biden’s senior legal counsel comes as Republican-led investigations continue to heat up around the president, the administration and the Biden family.

Speaking of Siskel, Biden said: "His experience will let him hit the ground running as a key leader on my team as we continue making progress for the American people every day."

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Siskel helped the Obama administration navigate congressional inquiries and "other political land mines," including the solar panel company known as Solyndra that received government aid, and the terrorist attacks on the U.S. Consulate compound in Benghazi, Libya, that left four Americans dead.

Siskel also previously oversaw the rollout and subsequent legal challenges to the Affordable Care Act, or "ObamaCare."

As White House Counsel, Siskel will "lead a team serving the President with counsel on legal matters facing the White House and the country" as well as helping craft policies and executive actions to further push Biden’s agenda, the White House said.

During his previous role in the Obama-Biden White House Counsel’s Office, Siskel led the White House’s legal responses to numerous legal challenges concerning ObamaCare.

WHITE HOUSE IGNORES REPUBLICANS DEMANDING ANSWERS ON BIDEN'S KNOWLEDGE OF HUNTER BIDEN'S BUSINESS DEALINGS

Delery’s departure was announced last week in a statement where Biden said Delery was a "trusted adviser and a constant source of innovative legal thinking since Day One of my Administration."

He first joined Biden’s transition team in November 2020 before serving as deputy counsel. He was promoted to the top job in 2022 after Biden’s first counsel, Dana Remus, left the White House.

Delery notably oversaw the legal framework of the Inflation Reduction Act, which was the president’s signature environmental legislation, as well as helping Biden craft his student loan handout executive order last year that was ultimately struck down by the Supreme Court.

ELISE STEFANIK BACKS BIDEN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY: 'OH, ABSOLUTELY'

He also played a key role in helping the administration put new rules at the U.S.-Mexico border, in an effort to stop illegal border crossings. The border has seen a surge of migrant crossings, including historic records, under the Biden administration.

After his first stint in the White House, Siskel worked in private practice. He then served for two years as corporation counsel to former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who left office to become the U.S. ambassador to Japan.

Before his service in the Obama-Biden White House, Siskel was an associate deputy attorney general at the Justice Department and, prior to that, a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Illinois and a clerk within the U.S. Supreme Court.

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He graduated from Wesleyan University and the University of Chicago Law School.

Morning Digest: While Romney dithers, his rivals ramp up their campaigns

Posted on by Daily Kos Elections

The Morning Digest is compiled by David Nir, Jeff Singer, and Stephen Wolf, with additional contributions from the Daily Kos Elections team.

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Leading Off

● UT-Sen, UT-Gov: Mitt Romney tells the Wall Street Journal in a new interview that he remains undecided about seeking a second term as Utah's junior senator after spending the last few years as the Republican that MAGA world most loves to hate, and everyone's going to stay in suspense for a while longer. Romney reaffirmed his intention to make up his mind in the fall and added that the verdict could come, in the paper's words, "possibly around October."

As Romney deliberates, another prominent Republican, state House Speaker Brad Wilson, continues to raise money and secure endorsements for his own potential campaign, but Wilson is also keeping the Beehive State guessing as to whether he's actually willing to run against the incumbent. The speaker formed an exploratory committee in April—a move that the Salt Lake Tribune said infuriated Romney's camp—and his spokesperson now says that Wilson is "exploring his own potential race, irrespective of what other potential candidates may or may not do." However, the Journal writes that, according to unnamed sources, Wilson is indeed waiting to see what the senator will do.

Conservative hardliners, though, may not be satisfied if Wilson does end up taking on the GOP’s 2012 presidential nominee. The speaker told Fox 13 in April that he was someone who could "get a lot of people with very differing opinions together and get them to work together on hard things and solve hard challenges," which is not what you'd normally expect to hear from a member of Trump's GOP.

Wilson's team does seem to realize that running as a bipartisan problem solver isn't a winning strategy, though: His campaign rolled out endorsements earlier this month from fellow legislators that featured testimonials calling him a "conservative champion" and someone who worked to "advance pro-life legislation." (Altogether, three-quarters of House Republicans and two-thirds of the Senate caucus backed him.) However, while Wilson has indeed helped pass anti-abortion legislation, the Associated Press also noted that he helped stop the legislature from formally rebuking none other than Romney in 2020 for his vote to convict Trump during his first impeachment trial.

Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs offered Romney haters a more ideologically pure option in May when he kicked off his challenge by proclaiming that "the only thing I've seen him fight for are the establishment, wokeness, open borders, impeaching President Trump, and putting us even deeper into debt." Staggs, though, turned in a weak opening fundraising quarter by bringing in just $170,000 through June and self-funding another $50,000; Wilson, by contrast, raised $1 million and threw down another $1.2 million of his own money. (Romney himself only raised $350,000 from donors while bringing in another $710,000 by renting out his fundraising list.)

Two other prominent hardliners have publicly or privately talked about taking on Romney, but neither appears excited about the idea. Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz told ABC News last week that, while he hasn't ruled out running for Romney's Senate seat, he's more interested in a bid for governor at some point. When the Deseret News inquired if he was thinking about waging a GOP primary battle this cycle against Gov. Spencer Cox, who like Romney wants the GOP to move on from Trump, Chaffetz replied, "Not making any decisions yet on anything. Some day, some time I am interested in running for governor."

Attorney General Sean Reyes, meanwhile, once looked like an all but certain Romney foe; Politico even reported in March of 2022 that Reyes was "preparing" a bid and would "make a final decision and likely announce his intentions" two months hence. Reyes, however, still has yet to say anything about his plans well over a year later, and he wouldn't offer a comment when ABC contacted him earlier this month.

But Romney himself may be his own biggest obstacle toward renomination, as a July survey from Noble Predictive Insights gave him an upside-down 43-54 favorable rating with Utah Republicans. (NPI, which sometimes works for conservative groups, sampled 301 Republicans, which is one more than the minimum that Daily Kos Elections requires before we'll write up a survey and analyze it; the firm did not mention a client.) The poll did show Romney beating Reyes 30-13 in a hypothetical seven-way matchup as Wilson grabbed at 5%, but that's still a weak position for any incumbent to find themselves in.

Senate

● FL-Sen: State House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell announced Monday she would not challenge GOP Sen. Rick Scott, a move that will come as welcome news to national Democrats who want former Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell as their standard bearer. We may be hearing more from Driskell next cycle, though, as the Palm Beach Post reported earlier this month that some prominent party members preferred she run for governor in 2026 rather than take on Scott: State Sen. Bobby Powell said as much to the paper, calling Driskell "the most qualified candidate" to win the party its first gubernatorial race since 1994.

Governors

● LA-Gov: Republican Treasurer John Schroder has languished in the polls despite beating all his rivals to TV back in March, but he's hoping to change things with spots blasting each of his two most prominent intra-party rivals. The campaign tells the Shreveport Times this is the start of a $1.3 million TV buy that will last through the Oct. 14 all-party primary.

One ad begins by trashing Attorney General Jeff Landry for sending $420,000 in campaign contributions to the staffing company he owns, a move The Advocate in March called "an unusual arrangement that circumvents the common practice of political figures around the state and ensures the public does not know who he is paying to work on his campaign." The narrator continues by taking former state Chamber of Commerce head Stephen Waguespack to task for his service in then-Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration a decade ago, saying, "Waguespack and Jindal wrecked out public universities and our state budget."

The other piece argues that Landry and Waguespack are "political insiders" who would continue an unacceptable status quo, while Schroder would bring about "change." Schroder himself was elected to the state House in 2007 and won a promotion to statewide office a decade later, but he insists he's different by proclaiming, "As state treasurer, I beat the fat cats for you."

● NC-Gov: HuffPost's Jennifer Bendery has unearthed some previously unknown and "unbelievably bonkers" conspiracy theory ramblings from Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, including a 2019 Facebook post declaring, "Beyoncé's songs sound like Satanic chants." Robinson wrote two years earlier on the platform, "I don't believe the Moon Landing was faked and I don't believe 9/11 was an 'inside job' but if I found both were true… I wouldn't be surprised."

● WA-Gov: Democratic Attorney General Bob Ferguson last week gave up trying to contest a new policy from the state's Public Disclosure Commission, which determined earlier this year that the law barring individuals from contributing more than $2,400 to a candidate per election also counts toward donations he'd transferred from his account for past campaigns for attorney general into his new effort. Ferguson, with the permission of each donor, sent $1.2 million of these "surplus funds" to his exploratory campaign for governor just before the PDC's new directive was finalized, and he spent months arguing that those contributors were still free to give $2,400 more to his gubernatorial race.

The PDC disagreed and filed a complaint against him after he wouldn't identify how much money from the surplus fund came from each donor and instead classified the $1.2 million as "miscellaneous receipts." However, Ferguson ultimately provided this information last week: His team told the PDC it was taking this action to apply to its "new interpretation" of campaign finance law, adding that "we trust the [PDC] complaint will be dismissed and this matter concluded."

Ferguson, though, enjoys a massive financial edge over all his rivals ahead of next year's top-two primary. The attorney general, according to the Seattle Times, has taken in $3.6 million total, compared to $610,000 for state Sen. Mark Mullet; a third Democrat, Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz, has brought in $410,000. On the GOP side, former Rep. Dave Reichert has only taken in $240,000 for his comeback bid, while recently-recalled Richland school board member Semi Bird has raised $140,000.

House

● IN-05: Madison County Prosecutor Rodney Cummings announced last week that he was dropping out of the Republican primary for this gerrymandered seat, saying that "on June 15, I experienced a significant health event which has caused me to reconsider my candidacy."

Cummings' departure leaves a pair of self-funders, state Rep. Chuck Goodrich and trucking company owner Sid Mahant, as the only serious contenders running to succeed retiring Rep. Victoria Spartz, though the field may grow again soon. Howey Politics wrote last week that Max Engling, who is a former aide to Speaker Kevin McCarthy, is moving back to Indiana ahead of his own launch, while former state Sen. Mike Delph is also reportedly interested.

● NV-03: Republican Assemblywoman Heidi Kasama on Monday announced that she would take on Democratic Rep. Susie Lee for a district in the southern Las Vegas area where the GOP previously lacked a viable candidate. Kasama, who is a former president of the Nevada REALTORS, won her spot in the legislature 54-44 in 2020 as Donald Trump was pulling off a smaller 50-48 victory in the old version of her seat, and she pulled off the same performance two years later in what was still a light red constituency.

Kasama joins a nomination contrast that already included former state Sen. Elizabeth Helgelien and conservative columnist Drew Johnson, but both of them struggled to raise money during their opening quarter. Lee, for her part, finished June with $810,000 banked to defend a seat that Joe Biden carried 52-46.

Legislatures

● GA State Senate: Republican state Sen. Shawn Still, a fraudulent elector who was indicted last week alongside Donald Trump for his alleged role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, could get suspended from the Senate as a result of his legal woes, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's David Wickert.

Under the state constitution, a three-person panel to be convened by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp must decide whether Still's indictment both "relates to and adversely affects the administration" of his office and "that the rights and interests of the public are adversely affected thereby." If the panel concludes the answer to both questions is yes, then Still would be suspended until "the final disposition of the case" or his term expires, whichever happens first.

It's unclear when the matter will be resolved, though legal experts believe the case is unlikely to go to trial in March, as requested by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. As a result, Still could find himself contemplating whether to seek reelection next year while he's under suspension. Undoubtedly, party leaders would prefer he not do so, particularly because his district in the Atlanta suburbs is vulnerable despite extensive GOP gerrymandering.

Incidentally, Still can thank former state Labor Commissioner Sam Caldwell for his latest predicament. In 1983, Caldwell was indicted by Fulton County prosecutors on a variety of charges, including allegations that he'd defrauded the state by demanding his employees perform extensive repairs on boats he owned. He resisted calls to resign and was only removed from office under threat of impeachment following his conviction the next year.

To avoid a similar spectacle in the future, Georgia lawmakers placed an amendment on the ballot in 1984 that would allow for the suspension of indicted public officials. It passed with 93% support. Shortly thereafter, Caldwell was also found guilty in federal court of deliberately sinking his yacht in order to collect insurance proceeds. Ironically, Caldwell's earlier conviction in state court centered around RICO charges—the very same statute Fulton County's current district attorney, Fani Willis, is relying on to prosecute Trump, Still, and their alleged co-conspirators.

● NH State House: New Hampshire will hold a special election for the vacant 16th House District in Grafton County on Tuesday, which Democrats should easily hold. The race is significant, though, because it's one of three specials Democrats need to win between now and Nov. 7 in order to strip the GOP's majority in the state House and force the chamber into an exact tie.

At the moment, Republicans hold 199 seats in the House to 196 for Democrats, with two independents (one a former Democrat and one an ex-Republican) and three seats vacant. Those vacancies include Grafton's 16th, which covers the town of Enfield and became vacant in April after Democrat Joshua Adjutant resigned following a serious injury. Joe Biden carried the district by a wide 64-34 margin in 2020, according to Dave's Redistricting App, and Adjutant won without opposition last year, so Democrat David Fracht will be the heavy favorite against Republican John Keane on Tuesday.

If Fracht prevails, Democrats will also need to flip a swingy GOP-held seat in the 1st District in Rockingham County on Sept. 19 and then hold a seat in the solidly blue 3rd District in Hillsborough County on Nov. 7 to create a 199-199 tie in the House. If they do run the table, it's not clear exactly what might happen next, but at the very least, having more Democrats on the floor will make it harder for Republicans to pass their agenda, and it'll better position Democrats to retake the chamber next year.

Obituaries

● Al Quie: Minnesota Republican Al Quie, who won his only term as governor in 1978 after spending just over two decades in the U.S. House, died Friday at the age of 99. Quie, who was elected to represent southern Minnesota in a tight 1958 special before quickly becoming entrenched, decided to campaign statewide in what proved to be a horrible year for the dominant Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.

Gov. Wendell Anderson had responded to Sen. Walter Mondale's 1976 win as Jimmy Carter's running mate by resigning so that his elevated lieutenant governor, Rudy Perpich, could appoint him to the Senate. Republicans in 1978 were eager to ride the local backlash, which also took place as the nation was struggling with inflation, and the state party debuted a memorable slogan around Halloween, "Something scary is about to happen to the DFL. It’s called an election."

Quie unseated Perpich 52-45 as Republican Rudy Boschwitz was scoring a 57-40 victory over Anderson. The GOP also flipped Minnesota's other Senate seat that same night as David Durenberger, who had originally planned to run for governor himself, decisively won the special election to succeed the late Sen. Hubert Humphrey, and the Minneapolis Star's Austin Wehrwein immediately dubbed the Republican wave year "the Minnesota massacre."

Quie, though, would spend his four years in office dealing with a huge budget deficit, and he eventually made the unpopular decision to raise taxes to confront the crisis. The governor decided not to wage what would have been a difficult reelection bid, and Perpich went on to win back the governorship in a landslide. While Quie never again sought elected office, one of his Democratic successors, Mark Dayton, responded to his death by noting, "After leaving office, he lived his deep faith by mentoring men just released from prison. He accompanied one to the State Pardon Board during my service and personally gained him a pardon by his passionate advocacy."

MAGA’s most hated Republican plans to keep us guessing about his reelection plans a while longer

Posted on by Jeff Singer

Mitt Romney tells the Wall Street Journal in a new interview that he remains undecided about seeking a second term as Utah's junior senator after spending the last few years as the Republican that MAGA world most loves to hate, and everyone's going to stay in suspense for a while longer. Romney reaffirmed his intention to make up his mind in the fall and added that the verdict could come, in the paper's words, "possibly around October."

As Romney deliberates, another prominent Republican, state House Speaker Brad Wilson, continues to raise money and secure endorsements for his own potential campaign, but Wilson is also keeping the Beehive State guessing as to whether he's actually willing to run against the incumbent. The speaker formed an exploratory committee in April—a move that the Salt Lake Tribune said infuriated Romney's camp—and his spokesperson now says that Wilson is "exploring his own potential race, irrespective of what other potential candidates may or may not do." However, the Journal writes that, according to unnamed sources, Wilson is indeed waiting to see what the senator will do.

Conservative hardliners, though, may not be satisfied if Wilson does end up taking on the 2012 presidential nominee. The speaker told Fox 13 in April that he was someone who could “get a lot of people with very differing opinions together and get them to work together on hard things and solve hard challenges,” which is not what you'd normally expect to hear from a member of Trump’s GOP.

Wilson's team does seem to realize that running as a bipartisan problem solver isn't a winning strategy, though: His campaign rolled out endorsements earlier this month from fellow legislators that featured testimonials calling him a "conservative champion" and someone who worked to "advance pro-life legislation." (Altogether, three-quarters of House Republicans and two-thirds of the Senate caucus backed him.) However, while Wilson has indeed helped pass anti-abortion legislation, the Associated Press also noted that he helped stop the legislature from formally rebuking none other than Romney in 2020 for his vote to convict Trump during his first impeachment trial.

Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs offered Romney haters a more ideologically pure option in May when he kicked off his challenge by proclaiming that "the only thing I've seen him fight for are the establishment, wokeness, open borders, impeaching President Trump, and putting us even deeper into debt." Staggs, though, turned in a weak opening fundraising quarter by bringing in just $170,000 through June and self-funding another $50,000; Wilson, by contrast, raised $1 million and threw down another $1.2 million of his own money. (Romney himself only raised $350,000 from donors while bringing in another $710,000 by renting out his fundraising list.)

Two other prominent hardliners have publicly or privately talked about taking on Romney, but neither appears excited about the idea. Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz told ABC News last week that, while he hasn't ruled out running for Romney's Senate seat, he's more interested in a bid for governor at some point. When the Deseret News inquired if he was thinking about waging a GOP primary battle this cycle against Gov. Spencer Cox, who like Romney wants the GOP to move on from Trump, Chaffetz replied, "Not making any decisions yet on anything. Some day, some time I am interested in running for governor."

Attorney General Sean Reyes, meanwhile, once looked like an all but certain Romney foe; Politico even reported in March of 2022 that Reyes was "preparing" a bid and would "make a final decision and likely announce his intentions" two months hence. Reyes, however, still has yet to say anything about his plans well over a year later, and he wouldn't offer a comment when ABC contacted him earlier this month.

But Romney himself may be his own biggest obstacle towards renomination, as a July survey from Noble Predictive Insights gave him an upside-down 43-54 favorable rating with Utah Republicans. (NPI, which sometimes works for conservative groups, sampled 301 Republicans, which is one more than the minimum that Daily Kos Elections requires before we'll write up a survey and analyze it; the firm did not mention a client.) The poll did show Romney beating Reyes 30-13 in a hypothetical seven-way matchup as Wilson grabbed at 5%, but that's still a weak position for any incumbent to find themselves in.

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House Freedom Caucus is ready to force a government shutdown

Posted on by Laura Clawson

The House Freedom Caucus has set the stage for a government shutdown, issuing a list of demands on Monday that they know will never be met. They are thereby setting up a test of wills between themselves and basically everyone else in the House and Senate, starting with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Congress will need to pass a temporary funding bill to keep the government open when current funding ends on Sept. 30, and the Freedom Caucus is insisting it will not back a clean continuing resolution. Even a short-term bill, they insist, would need to include their far-right demands.

Freedom Caucus members are opposing any bill that “continues Democrats’ bloated COVID-era spending,” which is to say they’d oppose a short-term spending bill that didn’t make cuts right off the bat because they didn’t like the last government spending bill to pass. Additionally, they say, they won’t support any spending bill unless it includes the hateful immigration bill House Republicans said was a “first week” priority, but only managed to pass in May. They are vowing to oppose any bill that doesn’t “[a]ddress the unprecedented weaponization of the Justice Department and FBI to focus them on prosecuting real criminals instead of conducting political witch hunts and targeting law-abiding citizens” and “[e]nd the Left’s cancerous woke policies in the Pentagon undermining our military’s core warfighting mission.”

So first off they want a rollback to pre-pandemic spending levels, plus a bill that it took months for the House to pass as a stand-alone and that stands no chance in the Senate. But as unlikely as that is, at least it’s a concrete ask. From there, it gets murkier. How is a spending bill supposed to “address the unprecedented weaponization of the Justice Department and FBI”? Presumably cutting off the special counsel’s investigation into Donald Trump, but this is a demand that could cover a lot of ground, some of which the different members of the Freedom Caucus probably don’t even agree on. Finally, they are demanding a legislative ban on various military policies they don’t like, presumably starting with the military’s policy of paying for service members and their families to travel for medical care, including abortion, and maybe policies allowing trans service members to serve openly in the military. But again, railing against “cancerous woke policies” is pretty vague language, especially considering that these days “woke” means anything a Republican doesn’t like. In some Republican hands, “End the Left’s cancerous woke policies” could mean resegregating the military.

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In translation, the Freedom Caucus is saying that it wants a government shutdown because they know that these demands will never be met. The only way to keep the government open will be for McCarthy to rely on Democratic votes to get a clean continuing resolution and, ultimately, a funding bill through the House. The Freedom Caucus is banking—with good reason—on McCarthy being unwilling to do that. But just in case this is the moment McCarthy finds a spine, the Freedom Caucus said it would “oppose any attempt by Washington to revert to its old playbook of using a series of short-term funding extensions designed to push Congress up against a December deadline to force the passage of yet another monstrous, budget busting, pork filled, lobbyist handout omnibus spending bill at year’s end and we will use every procedural tool necessary to prevent that outcome.” In other words, if you try to pass this without us, we will do whatever it takes to block it from getting a vote.

It’s not clear that the Freedom Caucus demands could get through the House with its very narrow Republican control. They definitely can’t get through the Senate. So when the Freedom Caucus says that its support is contingent on getting all of their demands and that its members will do whatever possible to block a House vote on a bill they don’t like, they’re saying they want a shutdown. Let’s be very, very clear about that as the possibility of a government shutdown looms next month: It’s not both sides. It’s House Republicans.

American political parties might often seem stuck in their ways, but they can and in fact do change positions often. Joining us on this week's episode of "The Downballot" is political scientist David Karol, who tells us how and why both the Democratic and Republican parties have adjusted their views on a wide range of issues over the years. Karol offers three different models for how these transformations happen—and explains why voters often stick with their parties even after these shifts. He concludes by offering tips to activists seeking to push their parties when they're not changing fast enough.

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Former judge declines to serve as Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s adviser for Ken Paxton impeachment trial

Posted on by Texas Tribune

By Alejandro Serrano and Patrick Svitek The Texas Tribune

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A former state appeals court judge on Saturday turned down an appointment to serve as an adviser to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick during the upcoming impeachment trial of indicted Attorney General Ken Paxton. 

Just a day earlier, Patrick had named Marc Brown, a former Republican justice on the 14th Court of Appeals from Harris County, to be his counsel during the trial scheduled to begin Sept. 5.

Brown's announcement that he would not participate came suddenly after The Texas Tribune reached out about a campaign donation he made in 2021 to a Paxton political opponent. 

In a letter Saturday to Patrick declining the appointment, Brown cited the $250 contribution that he and his wife made in 2021 to the campaign of Eva Guzman, a former state Supreme Court justice who tried to unseat Paxton in the Republican primary. Brown said he had not actively campaigned for any candidate since becoming a district judge in 2010.

“I did not recall that during our meetings with your staff,” Brown wrote about the contribution. “I have full confidence in my ability to fairly offer legal advice in this matter. However, the proceedings commencing on Sept. 5, 2023 are far too important to the State of Texas for there to be any distractions involving allegations of favoritism or personal bias on my part.”

Patrick said Friday he had picked Brown “after several months of searching.”

Trial rules grant Patrick — who as the leader of the Senate serves as the impeachment trial’s presiding officer — the option of selecting his own legal counsel.

“I was looking for a candidate with real-life courtroom experience as a lawyer and a judge who would serve as counsel and work side-by-side with me through this process,” Patrick said in a statement. “Justice Brown meets these criteria with his years of front-line experience as a courtroom lawyer and trial court judge and also brings a well-rounded perspective from his experience as a former appellate justice.”

The House impeached Paxton in May, alleging a years-long pattern of misconduct and lawbreaking. He was immediately suspended from office on a temporary basis, and the trial will determine whether he will be permanently removed.

Paxton faces 20 articles of impeachment that accuse him of bribery and abusing his office.

The trial rules, which the Senate approved in June, say that the presiding officer “may select legal counsel licensed in the State of Texas who is not a registered lobbyist in this State.”

Brown served as a district court judge in Harris County, then won a seat on the 14th Court of Appeals, where he served from 2013 to 2019. He lost reelection in 2018, one of many GOP judges in the Houston area unseated as Democrat Beto O’Rourke came close to unseating U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune.

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.

Abbreviated Pundit Roundup: What can be done to make Trump ineligible for the presidency?

Posted on by Greg Dworkin

J Michael Luttig and Laurence H. Tribe/Atlantic magazine:

The Constitution Prohibits Trump From Ever Being President Again

The only question is whether American citizens today can uphold that commitment.

As students of the United States Constitution for many decades—one of us as a U.S. Court of Appeals judge, the other as a professor of constitutional law, and both as constitutional advocates, scholars, and practitioners—we long ago came to the conclusion that the Fourteenth Amendment, the amendment ratified in 1868 that represents our nation’s second founding and a new birth of freedom, contains within it a protection against the dissolution of the republic by a treasonous president.

This protection, embodied in the amendment’s often-overlooked Section 3, automatically excludes from future office and position of power in the United States government—and also from any equivalent office and position of power in the sovereign states and their subdivisions—any person who has taken an oath to support and defend our Constitution and thereafter rebels against that sacred charter, either through overt insurrection or by giving aid or comfort to the Constitution’s enemies.

It is rare that the right thing, the best thing & the best thing for the GOP are all the same thing. But two such possibilities await. One is Trump being disqualified for the presidency quickly by the courts. The second is Biden & the Dems win big ending MAGA once & for all.

— David Rothkopf (@djrothkopf) August 20, 2023

David French/New York Times:

Appeasing Donald Trump Won’t Work

While I believe the court should intervene even if the hour is late, it’s worth remembering that it would face this decision only because of the comprehensive failure of congressional Republicans. Let me be specific. There was never any way to remove Trump from American politics through the Democratic Party alone. Ending Trump’s political career required Republican cooperation, and Republicans have shirked their constitutional duties, sometimes through sheer cowardice. They have punted their responsibilities to other branches of government or simply shrunk back in fear of the consequences.

In hindsight, for example, Republican inaction after Jan. 6 boggles the mind. Rather than remove Trump from American politics by convicting him in the Senate after his second impeachment, Republicans punted their responsibilities to the American legal system. As Mitch McConnell said when he voted to acquit Trump, “We have a criminal justice system in this country.” Yet not even a successful prosecution and felony conviction — on any of the charges against him, in any of the multiple venues — can disqualify Trump from serving as president. Because of G.O.P. cowardice, our nation is genuinely facing the possibility of a president’s taking the oath of office while also appealing one or more substantial prison sentences.

Wow. Never seen it all put together like this. Definitely worth a watch. pic.twitter.com/yMJxdmbqin

— @mrrjnkns.bsky.social (@MrRJNKNS) August 20, 2023

Ross Douthat/New York Times:

Subjecting Trump to prosecution will subject the law to politics

This isn’t a judgment on the legal merits of any of the Trump indictments. It doesn’t matter how scrupulous the prosecutor, how fair-minded the judge; to try a man, four times over, whom a sizable minority of Americans believe should be the next president, is an inherently political act. And it is an especially political act when the crimes themselves are intimately connected to the political process, as they are in the two most recent indictments...

You can see all that and still support Trump’s prosecutions as a calculated but necessary risk — in the hopes that having him lose twice, in the courts and at the ballot box, will re-establish a political taboo against his kind of postelection behavior and on the theory that this outcome is worth the risk that the whole strategy will fail completely if he wins.

If you see things that way, good; you see clearly, you are acting reasonably. My concern is that not enough people do clearly see what’s risked in these kinds of proceedings, that many of Trump’s opponents still regard some form of legal action as a trump card — that with the right mix of statutory interpretation and moral righteousness, you can simply bend political reality to your will...

Then here is the point that I, a non-scholar, want to make (though I should note that Segall makes it as well): Even if Baude and Paulsen were deemed correct on some pure empyrean level of constitutional debate, and Salmon Chase or anyone else deemed completely wrong, their correctness would be unavailing in reality, and their prescription as a political matter would be so disastrous and toxic and self-defeating that no responsible jurist or official should consider it.

.@tribelaw and @judgeluttig team up for a tour de force on disqualification clause in 14th Am sec 3. This is certain to generate substantial attention. The riddle of the provision is how it’s executed but there has to be some definitive way. https://t.co/AYqLK4xgux

— Harry Litman (@harrylitman) August 19, 2023

Paul Krugman/New York Times:

Biden and America’s Big Green Push

For the new industrial policy has already generated a huge wave of private investment in manufacturing, even though very little federal money has gone out the door so far. Why?

A new blog post from Heather Boushey of the Council of Economic Advisers argues that Biden’s industrial policy helps solve what she calls the “chicken and egg problem,” in which private-sector actors are reluctant to invest unless they’re sure that others will make necessary complementary investments.

The easiest example is electric vehicles: Consumers won’t buy E.V.s unless they believe that there will be enough charging stations, and companies won’t install enough charging stations unless they believe that there will be enough E.V.s. But similar coordination issues arise in many other areas, for example in the complementarity between battery and vehicle manufacture.

Even before seeing Boushey’s post, I’d been thinking along similar lines. In particular, the ongoing investment surge reminded me of a once-popular concept in development economics, that of the Big Push. This was the argument that you needed an active government role in development because companies wouldn’t invest in developing countries unless assured that enough other companies would also invest.

While Kev highlighted this Krugman piece yesterday, this is a different selection (and a follow-up).

It’s almost like Trump is bragging that he has won the endorsement of the worlds most notorious war criminal. Actually, it’s exactly like that. It is that. https://t.co/vtDOggz6gZ

— David Rothkopf (@djrothkopf) August 19, 2023

Yarimar Bonilla/New York Times:

Enrique Tarrio and the Curious Case of the Latino White Supremacist

Yet however much Mr. Tarrio may identify with whiteness, it seems that in his time of need he turned to the Afro-Cuban gods. On the site formerly known as Twitter, Denise Oliver-Velez, a professor and former Young Lord and Black Panther, chastised his use of religious beads, commonly used among practitioners of Santería, as a “falta de respeto,” or disrespect. “Looks like the Orishas want him to go to prison,” she writes. If the Justice Department gets its way he will certainly have ample time to contemplate the paradoxes of his choices.

You might have seen this piece, but IMHO Denise cannot possibly get enough credit for her insight and, well, her life and work.

Blockbuster state unemployment rates out this morning. 💥 26 States at or below 3% in July, a new record number — for the 3rd straight month. New record lows in New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania and 8 other states. 2% or below (!) MD, NE, NH, ND, SD, VT https://t.co/TMdHoqNAM4

— Jesse Lee (@JesseLee46) August 18, 2023

Washington Post:

Trump to release taped interview with Tucker Carlson, skipping GOP debate

Former president Donald Trump intends to skip the first Republican presidential primary debate in Milwaukee on Wednesday and instead plans to post a prerecorded interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson that will be released that night, according to a person briefed on the matter.

Trump advisers said the interview had already been recorded. It is not yet clear where the interview will appear. Carlson has started a show on X, formerly called Twitter, but Trump sees the platform as a rival to Truth Social, which he helped create.

The coward won’t even do a live interview.

GOP voters aren't just delusional about Trump They believe the pablum fed them about Biden https://t.co/XbmcSImco9

— Greg Dworkin (@DemFromCT) August 20, 2023

Matt Robison video from Blue Amp:

YouTube Video

As Republicans head to Milwaukee to fight each other, we announce a historic, $25m ad campaign Including largest, earliest ever investments into Hispanic and AfAm media https://t.co/6EtAHXK44J

— Kevin Munoz (@munozka315) August 20, 2023

Josh Barro/”Very Serious” on Substack:

Memo to Ron DeSantis: Be Smarter The most embarrassing aspect of his super PAC's debate prep memo isn't the content. It's that he hobbled himself with a moronic campaign structure.

The memo’s content is embarrassing. It feeds narratives about DeSantis being aloof and unlikable (an anecdote about his family should involve “showing emotion,” the memo urges) and about him being too afraid to directly attack the candidate who’s beating him: Trump. Christie, whose career highlight involved dismantling an opponent for being canned and consultant-driven in a debate, is sure to beat DeSantis over the head with it.

But the strangest thing about these memos is that we’re able to see them at all.

Here’s your hot polling from the weekend:

🚨IOWA POLL Trump: 42% DeSantis: 19% Scott: 9% Haley: 6% Pence: 6% Christie: 5% Ramaswamy: 4% Burgum: 2% Hurd: 1% Elder, Hutchinson, Johnson, Suarez: >1% MOE +/- 4.9%https://t.co/cSsBNGKZpK

— Brianne Pfannenstiel (@brianneDMR) August 21, 2023

Pollster J. Ann Selzer says the race could be “closer than it may first seem.” 63% say they support Trump as their first or second choice in the caucuses or are actively considering him. That's on par with the 61% who say the same for DeSantis.https://t.co/cSsBNGKZpK pic.twitter.com/lftAocWvKi

— Brianne Pfannenstiel (@brianneDMR) August 21, 2023

We were in the field for this poll when the Georgia indictment came down against Trump. He got a bump. “This is the strongest evidence I’ve seen to date that these indictments, or at least this Georgia indictment, helped him," said pollster J. Ann Selzerhttps://t.co/4htpB9Wrdf

— Brianne Pfannenstiel (@brianneDMR) August 21, 2023

And:

Why haven’t the indictments hurt? In part it’s b/c Trump voters generally believe it's Trump who tells them the truth. More than conservative media and their own friends & family. Trump leads among those say it's very important a nominee is honest & trustworthy. pic.twitter.com/WwR8GWci8l

— CBS News Poll (@CBSNewsPoll) August 20, 2023

But:

Only 28% of respondents in the Iowa Selzer poll (42% * 66%) say their minds are made up about supporting Trump: pic.twitter.com/uhyyoUrqMy

— Conor Sen (@conorsen) August 21, 2023

I expect Trump to win Iowa (and the nomination) but I expect his lead to shrink.

By the way, a lot of this is Fox-fed Republicans convincing themselves that Biden is a doddering old man whom even Trump/anyone can beat.

They’re in for a rude awakening.

Very simple: Trump can’t win. 65% already against him. That’s before Dems launch barrage after getting him nominated. If we finally grasp that, his support will collapse. If not, we lose everything, and Dems use majorities to remake Supreme Court. Nominate him if you want, but…

— Andy McCarthy (@AndrewCMcCarthy) August 21, 2023

Of course he can win. But a dose of reality is bracing.

Georgia Judge blocks provision prohibiting the distribution of water at voting polls

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

A federal judge in Georgia temporarily blocked a provision in the state's voting law barring people from giving food and water to voters waiting in line to vote on election day, and stopped a requirement that voters include their date of birth on their absentee ballots.

U.S. District Judge J.P. Boulee is still allowing the enforcement of penalties against people who provide food and water to voters waiting in line if they are within 150 feet of the building where voting is taking place. But the judge paused enforcement of the ban in other areas within 25 feet of a voter standing in line.

"Central to this conclusion was the fact that, unlike the Buffer Zone’s reasonable 150-foot radius, the Supplemental Zone has no boundary," he wrote. "S.B. 202 prohibits organizations (such as Plaintiffs) from engaging in line relief activities in the Supplemental Zone, i.e., if they are within twenty-five feet of a voter—even if the organizations are outside the 150-foot Buffer Zone."

Boulee also blocked a part of the law requiring voters to provide their date of birth on the outer envelopes of absentee ballots. He wrote that the state "did not present any evidence that absentee ballots rejected for failure to comply with the Birthdate Requirement were fraudulent ballots."

GEORGIA EARLY VOTING SETS ALL-TIME RECORD FOR MIDTERM ELECTION DESPITE CLAIMS OF VOTER SUPPRESSION

But the judge rejected the groups' claims that certain restrictions imposed by the law deny voters with disabilities meaningful access to absentee voting.

The Election Integrity Act was passed by state lawmakers and signed into law by GOP Gov. Brian Kemp in the spring of 2021. Other provisions in the law include requiring identification to vote, extending the early voting period and ensuring a ballot drop box will be available in every county.

The controversial election law seeking to strengthen voting rules came shortly after the 2020 election and prompted criticism from Democrats and large corporations, including Major League Baseball and Coca-Cola. The MLB moved its 2021 All-Star Game from Atlanta to Denver in response to the election law.

Critics of the law, including President Biden and twice-failed Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, claimed it would restrict voting access, particularly for people of color. But Georgia saw record turnout in the primary and general elections in 2022, leading Republicans to argue the criticism was not justified.

Several civil rights and voting rights groups filed a lawsuit challenging the law.

DESANTIS MEETS WITH KEMP AMID TRUMP CASE, IMPEACHMENT CALLS AGAINST FANI WILLIS

Both sides declared victory after Boulee's mixed ruling on Friday.

NAACP Legal Defense Fund assistant counsel John Cusick said in a statement that the decisions "are important wins for our democracy and protecting access to the ballot box in Georgia."

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said the Peach State "continues to have one of the most secure and accessible voting systems in the country for all voters, including voters with disabilities." 

"I am glad that the court upheld Georgia's common sense rules banning ballot harvesting and securing absentee ballot drop boxes," he said in a news release. "Georgia's voting system is accessible to all voters, with multiple options for voters to choose how they want to exercise their right to vote."

A ruling on Texas' election law, which is similar to the one in Georgia, was also handed down Friday from a federal judge.

U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez struck down a provision of Texas' law requiring mail voters to provide the same identification number they used when they registered to vote. He ruled the requirement violated the U.S. Civil Rights Act because it prevented people from being able to cast ballots over an issue irrelevant to whether they are registered.

The provision led to skyrocketing mail ballot rejections in the first election after the law was passed in September 2021, and the U.S. Department of Justice challenged the provision.

"This ruling sends a clear message that states may not impose unlawful and unnecessary requirements that disenfranchise eligible voters seeking to participate in our democracy," Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said in a statement after the ruling.

Several election integrity bills have passed in GOP-controlled states since 2020 after the election that year.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

DeSantis meets with Kemp amid Trump case, impeachment calls against Fani Willis

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis met with the governor of Georgia this week for a brief, private conversation. 

DeSantis, a candidate for the Republicans' 2024 presidential ticket, met with Governor Brian Kemp at a hotel in Buckhead, Georgia, on Friday.

The Florida governor was in the area for an appearance alongside other presidential candidates on radio host Erick Erickson's talk show.

GOV. BRIAN KEMP HASN'T RECEIVED 'ANY EVIDENCE' STATE SEN. MOORE HAS MAJORITY NECESSARY FOR WILLIS IMPEACHMENT

The two governors did not discuss endorsements, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Politico.

Fox News Digital reached out to DeSantis's and Kemp's offices for comment on the private meeting.

Kemp additionally spoke Friday with former Vice President Mike Pence, who is also running for the Republican nomination.

Kemp is doing his best to stay out of his state's ongoing racketeering case against former President Donald Trump.

GEORGIA STATE SENATOR MOVES TOWARD IMPEACHING DA FANI WILLIS OVER TRUMP CHARGES

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis held a press conference late Monday after a Fulton County grand jury handed up charges against the former president and numerous others.

The Georgia district attorney gave Trump and the other 18 individuals charged in the indictment until noon on August 25 to surrender to law enforcement.

Willis said during the press conference that she would like a trial to take place within six months.

CNN LEGAL ANALYST DOUBTS FANI WILLIS, SAYS THERE IS 'NO PLANET' WHERE TRUMP IS TRIED IN MARCH: 'NOT HAPPENING'

In a letter to the governor filed Thursday, state Sen. Colton Moore claimed to have the support of "3/5 of each respective house" in the state legislature regarding his efforts to impeach Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

"We have not been provided any evidence to support that assertion," spokesman Garrison Douglas told Fox News Digital. 

Moore, in a statement to Fox News Digital, clarified that the statement in the letter alluding to having a majority in both houses was not accurate.

"Tell Brian Kemp and his team to turn off CNN and open their eyes. I've done 25 TV, radio and podcast interviews with one identical message: I need 3/5 of my colleagues to sign the letter," Moore told Fox News Digital. "The people of Georgia want action, not more empty promises from fluff politicians."

Cheers and Jeers: Rum and Georgia Peaches FRIDAY!

Posted on by Bill in Portland Maine

Three Simple Words Above the Fold This Evening Will Suffice:

Happy Birthday, Rosalynn.

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Cheers and Jeers for Friday, August 18, 2023

Note: A teeny-tiny but obnoxious reminder that Sunday is World Mosquito Day. I got mine a tiny pair of Garfield-eating-lasagna socks. So cute.

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By the Numbers:

7 days!!!

Days 'til the start of World Water Week: 2

Days 'til the Fallon Cantaloupe Festival & Country Fair in Nevada: 7

Increase in industrial production in July: 1.0%

Percent chance that the latest economic forecast from the Federal Open Market Committee still projects a recession later this year: 0%

Age of Rep. George Santos's paid campaign fundraiser who was indicted on charges of wire fraud and identity theft for impersonating an aide to Speaker Kevin McCarthy to get donations: 27

Rank of Barbie among Warner Bros. top-grossing domestic releases of all time, after topping The Dark Knight this week with $537 million: #1

Percent chance that the above number makes the misogynist MAGA cultists curl up into a little ball and cry: 100%

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Puppy Pic of the Day: Weekend plans... 

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CHEERS to being so good that even The New York Times has to admit it. Holy mother of Baby Fudiciary Jesus, Batman! Yesterday's morning email from the "newspaper of record" must've been a real bummer for them to write, because Bidenomics is humming along so well that even they had to admit it. Read it and weep, pessimists:

Over the past few weeks, sentiments about the economy have gone from bleak to optimistic.

Inflation is down. The U.S. is still adding jobs, but not so quickly that it is prompting fears of an overheating labor market. Wages are now rising faster than prices, but also not quickly enough to renew worries about higher inflation. In short: The economy is good, but not too good.

What does it all mean for you? The chances of a job-wrecking, wage-crushing recession appear lower than they have in years.

America’s central bank, the Federal Reserve, has been working since 2022to cool the economy and, with it, inflation. Yet each step the Fed took to raise the cost of borrowing money carried risks—namely, going too far and causing an economic downturn. While it’s too early for the Fed to declare victory, economists are now more optimistic that the economy will make a so-called soft landing: Prices will stabilize without a recession

What can we say? Biden-Harris 2024.

CHEERS to mexed missages. Republicans used to be so good at marching in lockstep. But with 91 charges now leveled at their most-recent president and current undisputed head of the party (coughcultcough), they're all discombobulated. And there's no better example at the moment than these two Senate titans reading off different scripts in reaction to Trump's leadership role in the January 6, 2021 insurrection and how it should be handled:

Mitch McConnell’s BFF Lindsey Graham, this week: “This should be decided at the ballot box and not in a bunch of liberal jurisdictions trying to put the man in jail."

Lindsey Graham’s BFF Mitch McConnell, February 2021: "President Trump is still liable for everything he did while he was in office. ... We have a criminal justice system in this country [and] we have civil litigation. And former presidents are not immune from being accountable by either one."

Your GOP, ladies and gentlemen. There is no furniture of their own making that they won’t eventually bump into.

CHEERS to do-gooders of yore. As part of his 'War on Poverty,' President Lyndon Johnson signed the Economic Opportunity Act 59 years ago this week.  It included funds for vocational training, loans to farmers and businessmen, establishment of a domestic version of the Peace Corps, and community action programs.  Or, as modern-day Republicans call them: Ick, Blech, Yuck and Feh.

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BRIEF SANITY BREAK

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Twitter/X needs this Wait for it… 😂 🔊 Sound up pic.twitter.com/WhbZbTeUqC

— Jessi 💫 (@its_jessi_grace) August 10, 2023

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END BRIEF SANITY BREAK

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CHEERS to #23.  Happy birthday Sunday to Benjamin Harrison, born on August 20, 1833 in North Bend, Ohio.  As president from 1889 to 1893, he was the filling in the Grover Cleveland sandwich.  And what a party animal!  From Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents by Cormac O'Brien:

[I]n person the staunchly Presbyterian president was a virtual corpse.

Chilly, frigid, frosty—words like these were routinely used to describe the unpleasant experience of meeting privately with the man. [...]

”I’m not wearing pants.”

Senator Thomas Platt was the one who coined the moniker "White House Iceberg."  As Platt explained, "Inside the Executive Mansion, in his reception of those who solicited official appointments, [Harrison] was as glacial as a Siberian stripped of his furs.  During and after an interview, if one could secure it, one felt even in torrid weather like pulling on his winter flannels, galoshes, overcoat, mittens and earflaps."

Even Harrison's handshake was a flop, likened to "a wilted petunia."

Like Mike Pence.  Minus the charm.

CHEERS to home vegetation. Quick roundup of TV fare for the weekend, starting tonight with Chris Hayes’ and Alex Wagner’s (in-)digestion of the Friday news dumps that landed in our collective lap today. Chris Christie unloads on Trump at 8:30 on PBS’s Firing Line. Or you can join me and the Trekkie Posse tonight at 8ET as we live-tweet the original series episode The Savage Curtain (via the H&I Network) at hashtag #allstartrek.  

Little League World Series this weekend. The main thing to remember: “When you’re slidin’ into third and you feel a juicy turd, diarrhea! Diarrhea!”

The most popular movies and streamers, new and old, are all reviewed here at Rotten Tomatoes. (The superhero movie Blue Beetle is getting good reviews, the R-rated animated Will Ferrell feature Strays not so much.) Tomorrow night at 8 on most networks there’s a star-studded Stand Up to Cancer fundraiser. The baseball schedule is here and the WNBA schedule is here. The Little League World Series is now underway, and the latest games air tomorrow and Sunday afternoon on ABC and ESPN. Oh, and there’s the Women’s World Cup Soccer final—England vs. Spain—that airs Sunday at 2 on Fox.

Sunday on 60 Minutes: Reports on stories that are so shocking they simply can’t reveal what they are until they air.

Now here's your Sunday morning lineup:

Meet the Press: Govs. Tim Walz (D-MN) and Doug Burgum (MAGA Cult-ND).

Sunday at noon. 

CNN's State of the Union: FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell; Sen. Bill Cassidy (MAGA Cult-LA); former Gov. Larry Hogan (R-MD); David Axelrod, Paul Begala.

Face the Nation: Gov. Josh Green (D-HI); Deanne Criswell; Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D); CBS polling guy Anthony Salvanto with new poll numbers; former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb.

This Week: Deanne Criswell; Mike Pence; former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara.

Fox GOP Talking Points Sunday: Future cleaning lady with a cigarette butt hanging off her lip Nikki Haley; Gov. Kim Reynolds (MAGA Cult-IA). 

Happy viewing!

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Ten years ago in C&J: August 18, 2013

CHEERS to Queer Eye for the Tough Guy.  Other than knowing that professional wrestling is mostly a highly-choreographed (and sweaty—lord how they sweat) stage show, my interest in it pretty much ended at the intersection of Andre the Giant Avenue and Rowdy Roddy Piper Boulevard.  But I know WWE is Theatre of the Macho, so it's cool to see the organization's official reaction to headliner Darren Young's exit from the closet and on his way to pride parade grand marshaldom:

On TMZ this morning, WWE Superstar Darren Young (Fred Rosser) revealed to the WWE Universe that he is gay. WWE is proud of Darren Young for being open about his sexuality, and we will continue to support him as a WWE Superstar. Today, in fact, Darren will be participating in one of our Be A STAR anti-bullying rallies in Los Angeles to teach children how to create positive environments for everyone regardless of age, race, religion or sexual orientation.

The response from his fellow WWE stars reveals the big-hearted lugs they are.  In fact, tonight I hear they'll do a group hug before they beat each other senseless with folding chairs.

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And just one more…

CHEERS to people with the greatest first name on the planet. 42nd President Bill Clinton turns 77 tomorrow. Some Clintonian fun facts:

✓ Clinton is one of 8 left-handed presidents. With lefty predecessors Bush I and Reagan, America was led by southpaw presidents from 1981 to 2001.

Buddy and Bubba. For all his flaws—and he has many—at least #42 has excellent taste in pets.

✓ In 1996, President Clinton became the first Democrat to be elected to a second term since Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1936. (16 years later Obama became the second.)

✓ He’s the only president who’s a Rhodes Scholar.

✓ Clinton was 16 when he shook hands with President John F. Kennedy in 1963, just four months before Kennedy’s death. Clinton later said he “muscled” his way through the line to meet JFK at the Boys Nation event.

✓ Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech so impressed a teenaged Clinton that he memorized the entire speech right after it was given.

In his negative column: DOMA, Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, DLC, Monica, repeal of Glass-Steagall, NAFTA, and I hear he reed-synched his sax solo on Arsenio.  In his plus column: charming, scary intelligent, beat Bush I, Dole, and Perot, humiliated Gingrich, made the economy hum, beat his McDonald's addiction, post-Oklahoma City bombing speech was empathy writ large, busy humanitarian, won the Bosnian campaign, tore Romney apart piece by robotic piece at the 2012 Charlotte Democratic convention, and these days is just laying low and enjoying retirement. On the whole: a president whose camels deserve blessing. Oh, almost forgot: regards to the missus.

Have a great weekend. Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?

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