After impeachment acquittal, Trump’s bitter feud with Pelosi continues

Posted on February 6, 2020 by PBS NewsHour - Politics

On Thursday, President Trump declared victory, one day after his acquittal in the Senate impeachment trial. He celebrated among supporters at the White House and claimed Democrats had conducted "corrupt" investigations. Hours earlier, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters at a news conference that she prays for the president, and that his impeachment will stand forever. Judy Woodruff reports.

It’s Back To Work For The GOP And The President

Posted on February 6, 2020 by LifeZette

By David Kamioner | February 6, 2020

Now that the impeachment saga has come to a close the administration and its GOP congressional cohorts can go back to doing what they were elected to do: run the country.

While the Republican members of the House are for now outnumbered in that chamber, there are deals that can be worked out with House Democrats and sent to the GOP Senate for approval and subsequent presidential signature.

There are other issues, like federal judicial appointments, that thankfully are solely in the hands of the president and the Republican Senate.

The president will continue to send qualified conservative jurists to that body for a vote. His impressive total of 191 federal judicial appointments so far in his administration has done amazing things like turning the formerly notoriously leftist 9th Circuit Court into a solid shade of conservative red.

And to paraphrase Trump, the fun is just beginning.

The president mentioned in the SOTU that infrastructure was on his mind. Like the recent USMCA trade deal with Canada and Mexico, he may be able to get a big bill on infrastructure through the Democratic House because Big Labor will pressure Pelosi to pass it.

The bill would bring billions in federal dollars to the construction and transportation industries and create a great number of jobs. The only reason it wouldn’t pass is because Pelosi may not want to see the president get the credit for it in an election year.

Spite before economic progress, the modern Democratic Party creed.

Under the general infrastructure umbrella there is an actually bipartisan highway bill that the Senate Public Works Committee advanced last July. It hasn’t got to the floor for a vote as of yet. The current five year highway transportation bill expires at the end of September 2020.

The president will continue to push for funds for the border wall and border security. Democrats may compromise somewhat on this as they know both measures evoke poll numbers that range into the 70 percentiles in support.

Dem proposals that are DOA in the Senate include net neutrality, universal background checks on gun sales, and funding to burn down the Reichstag.

I kinda made that last one up.

This piece originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

The post It’s Back To Work For The GOP And The President appeared first on The Political Insider.

Romney provokes Republican wrath by voting to convict Trump

Posted on February 5, 2020 by PBS NewsHour - Politics

The U.S. Senate has spoken, and President Trump will remain in office. On Wednesday, he was acquitted of both impeachment counts, almost entirely down party lines. Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney was the only senator to break ranks, prompting criticism from his party and praise from Senate Democrats. Amna Nawaz reports, and Yamiche Alcindor and Lisa Desjardins join Judy Woodruff to discuss.

Trump ‘acquitted forever,’ says Kellyanne Conway

Posted on February 5, 2020 by PBS NewsHour - Politics

President Trump was acquitted Thursday of both impeachment charges brought to the Senate by the House. The vote was along party lines, with the exception of Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah, who sided with Democrats and considered Trump guilty of abuse of power. Kellyanne Conway, counselor to the president, joins Judy Woodruff to discuss her "delight" at the outcome and Trump's State of the Union address.

Schiff: Romney displayed ‘moral courage’ in breaking with GOP on conviction

Posted on February 5, 2020 by PBS NewsHour - Politics

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, was lead House manager in President Trump's Senate impeachment trial. He joins Judy Woodruff to discuss the Senate's decision to acquit Trump of both impeachment charges, the "moral courage" he feels Sen. Mitt Romney displayed by breaking with his party and why the choice not to call witnesses sets a "dangerous precedent."

Trump State of the Union Speech a Triumph

Posted on February 5, 2020 by LifeZette

By David Kamioner | February 5, 2020

President Donald Trump, riding good news on several fronts, gave a masterful performance in front of both houses of Congress and other luminaries Tuesday night during his State of the Union address. He hit all the right notes of policy and emotion and was received well regardless of small Democratic attempts to disrupt his presentation.

He ignored impeachment and focused on his past policy achievements and plans for his next term in office.

His comms staff made sure the speech contained the kind of moments and lines that would force the Democrats to respond positively or look like partisan hacks. Most of them took the bait and stood and clapped on numerous occasions, especially the telegenic Democratic Senator Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona.

Trump was not daunted by the tired trope of unintelligibly shouting and chanting hard left Democratic female House members all dressed in white. Nor was his game affected by the sad little stunts House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tried to pull off to distract the camera.

High points of the evening were comprised of the president’s recognition of audience members such as legitimate Venezuelan President Juan Guaido, Tuskegee Airman USAF Brigadier General Charles McGee, Philadelphia student Janiyah Davis and her mother, and Afghanistan hero U.S. Army SFC Townsend Williams. Williams was reunited with his wife and children, who were in attendance, during the event.

Another powerful moment was the awarding of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award, to conservative media titan Rush Limbaugh. After the president recognized Limbaugh for his talent and devotion to American values, the First Lady presented the award to the talk show host as he stood there in the audience.

The ailing Limbaugh, who was just diagnosed with advanced fourth stage lung cancer, was visibly moved by the medal and the standing ovation he received by many members of Congress and other leaders.

Other notable aspects included the presence of Brexit leader Nigel Farage, the wry smile of satisfaction between Trump-appointed Supreme Court justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, and the impotent ripping up of the president’s speech by Nancy Pelosi after the SOTU had finished.

The Democrats were once a great political party. They are now reduced to a socialist mob, ripping up sheets of paper after a speech as a forlorn gesture of opposition, such is what the president has done to them.

That, along with the booming economy and the resurgent U.S. posture around the around, may be President Trump’s greatest accomplishment.

This piece originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

The post Trump State of the Union Speech a Triumph appeared first on The Political Insider.

Manchin and Murkowski Solid for President in Senate Impeachment Vote

Posted on February 4, 2020 by LifeZette

By David Kamioner | February 4, 2020

Less than two days before the historic impeachment vote in the U.S. Senate, two senators who were thought to be swing votes, Democrat Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Republican Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, announced they could not vote to remove the president from office.

Thus, they will vote for the president and no on the charges.

Most analysts had predicted the GOP’s Murkowski would hold the line. But Manchin was more of an educated guess. LifeZette called it. However, others thought Manchin would not defy his Senate leadership. So either he got a doomed cause waiver to help him in his home state or he’s planning a jump to the GOP. Either is possible and the party switch would not hurt him in deep red conservative West Virginia.

Murkowski’s independent libertarian-trending Alaskans probably just want the whole show over with and will have no problem with her vote.

The only remaining possible holdouts are Collins, Jones, Tester, and Romney.

Republican Susan Collins of Maine may vote guilty on one or both counts because she knows the president will win anyway and at least one guilty vote could help her in blue-leaning Maine. She could have received the done deal waiver from McConnell. The Left may also consider an anti-Trump vote a thrown bone because of her yes vote for Brett Kavanaugh.

Democrat Doug Jones of Alabama is in a hard place. He’s likely to lose this year no mater how he votes on impeachment, as he won in a fluke in 2017. However, even the slightest hope would be gone if he votes against the president. So does he vote to convict and pray the Democrats take care of him after he leaves office or does he vote with the president and hope GOP infighting once again gives him an upset victory?

Democrat Jon Tester of Montana was once considered a possible vote for the president on impeachment. But smart money now says he will vote with his party. But there’s a small chance he bucks them, which would help him in deep red Montana.

And then there’s Mittens.

Hates the president but loves his GOP Senate seat from conservative Utah. The pressure in Utah is already getting intense for him to hold up the GOP shield wall. Could vote with the president on one count and against on the other. Our call is that he sticks with the GOP on both counts.

This piece originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

The post Manchin and Murkowski Solid for President in Senate Impeachment Vote appeared first on The Political Insider.

Trump Easily Wins Iowa, Twitter Roasts Democrats for Disastrous Night

Posted on February 4, 2020 by LifeZette

By David Kamioner | February 4, 2020

The Republican National Committee couldn’t have asked for a better Iowa caucuses script if they had written it themselves.

On one hand, the GOP caucuses.

Efficient, timely, organized, nothing out of place. The president won most, if not all, of the delegates in the contest. At last count he had 38 out of 40 delegates and the other two should fall to him today when the few votes left are counted. It was a display of political professionalism on all GOP fronts, except for hapless presidential challengers Bill Weld and Joe Walsh. They hardly registered on radar.

We’ll spare you the details of the Democratic manure show, as we already covered it in our last article. We’ll let the president and others fill you in this time.

Trump campaign chief Brad Parscale chimed in with this.

“Democrats are stewing in a caucus mess of their own creation with the sloppiest train wreck in history. It would be natural for people to doubt the fairness of the process. And these are the people who want to run our entire health care system?”

Don Trump, Jr. joined the fun.

“If the Democrats can’t run a caucus that they had four years to prepare for, how the hell can anyone think they could actually run the country?”

Even Dems piled on.

Former Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson said of the young mayor, “Did Pete Buttigieg just claim victory in Iowa when the results haven’t been announced yet?”

Also this guy.

Former 2020 Democratic primary candidate Julian Castro tweeted: “This is a total mess. I respect the people of Iowa, they’ve been great—but it’s become very clear that our democracy has been misserved by a broken system.”

Then there’s this.

It's even more hilarious now that Dems screamed for 4 years straight that the greatest threat to confidence in US elections were Russian Twitter trolls

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) February 4, 2020

And this.

Unreal. A precinct secretary was on hold on the hotline for an hour and they took him off hold as he was talking to CNN. He didn't respond fast enough and they hung up on him. pic.twitter.com/hPgKhDge7i

— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) February 4, 2020

And my personal favorite, from the Democratic National Committee before they knew what their idiocies had wrought.

Outstanding job so far https://t.co/A1SABEttLJ

— Comfortably Smug (@ComfortablySmug) February 4, 2020

And how could the laugh riot be complete without the president.

The Democrat Caucus is an unmitigated disaster. Nothing works, just like they ran the Country. Remember the 5 Billion Dollar Obamacare Website, that should have cost 2% of that. The only person that can claim a very big victory in Iowa last night is “Trump”.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2020

For good measure, he even insinuated the whole thing was a ruse to stop Bernie Sanders from winning. Perfect.

Heads will roll at the Iowa Democratic Party, and perhaps at the DNC, over this. It rained on their impeachment show, it takes the spotlight away from any planned Democratic hijinks at the State of the Union address, and it plays right into the GOP message of the general incompetence of the Democratic Party and its candidates.

All in all a good night, for Republicans.

This piece originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

The post Trump Easily Wins Iowa, Twitter Roasts Democrats for Disastrous Night appeared first on The Political Insider.

Next Three Days Vital for President Trump

Posted on February 3, 2020 by LifeZette

By David Kamioner | February 3, 2020

Monday marks the beginning of three of the most important days in the history of modern America.

On Monday the resumption of the Senate impeachment trial will likely bring the process only two days away from a finish. Senators will get to make speeches on the Senate floor for or against impeachment. From those speeches a good count on the final votes on the charges before the Senate should be able to be discerned. Our call remains 55-45 for the president, thus handing him an impressive victory and complete vindication.

This is the de facto and de jure result no matter what the Democratic strategy may be to ignore the trial outcome and possibly embark on another impeachment investigation and vote. That would be timed for the GOP convention or the fall, when the Democrats still have control of the House. If they do that they will lose the House. So pray that they at least try.

The Iowa Democratic caucus on Monday looks like a close battle between Sanders and Biden. We think Biden will pull it off because many Sanders supporters are young and those under 30 do not usually vote or caucus in large numbers. Trump is probably pulling for Sanders, as are we, for the obvious reason of his non-electability in November. But the Democratic establishment will probably not allow his nomination, just as they cheated him out of it in 2016.

Tuesday brings more trial speeches and the State of the Union address by the president. Expect the Democrats to try a stunt to disrupt the president’s speech. Shouting from the audience, a walkout or boycott, even turning their back on the president are all in their playbook. One or more may take place.

Wednesday should close the chapter, for now, on one of the most divisive and unnecessary dramas in American history, as the Senate will likely vote to acquit President Trump on one count of abuse of power and another of obstruction of Congress. Current smart money has Democrats Manchin and Sinema possibly voting with the president on one or both counts. Jones could also jump to Trump on the votes.

Republicans Romney and Collins could vote to remove the president on one or both counts, with Romney the more likely guilty vote on both charges.

Stay with LifeZette for the latest fast breaking coverage on all these events.

This piece originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

The post Next Three Days Vital for President Trump appeared first on The Political Insider.

GOP Tops Democrats in Fundraising Haul

Posted on January 31, 2020 by LifeZette

By David Kamioner | January 31, 2020

The impeachment drama may be annoying in some ways and a national calamity in others. But it certainly hasn’t dulled the fundraising acumen of the president and the Republican National Committee.

They pulled off their best ever non-election year by smashing their former numbers for December.

The GOP raised $26.5 million in the last month of 2019. That’s a $6 million gain on their November number and their best December ever. The increase is likely caused by a backlash effect from the presidential impeachment.

In 2019 the Republicans and Trump together raised $463 million, with an end of the year cash on hand balance of $194 million and $0 debt. The RNC raised $241 million of that amount.

The Democrats were $6.5 million in debt as of November of 2019.

Democrat contenders for the top also raised steep amounts, by Dem standards, in the last quarter of 2019. Biden raised $22.7 million. That puts him below Buttigieg at $24.7 million. Warren only raised $21.2 million. She was bested by the party cash leader, Bernie Sanders, at $34.5 million. For socialists, Sanders’ minions seem to have found at least enough money to pay for his Quixotic run for the White House.

These numbers may seen like a lot to you. But as a former political campaign director I can tell you a modern national campaign can go through $100 million before the voting even starts. No? Look at Michael Bloomberg’s media purchases just up to this point, before the first voting starts in Iowa.

He has already well surpassed that mark.

What’s it spent on? Mostly media, logistics, and personnel. Television ad buys don’t come cheap in media markets like New Jersey that boast really only two markets, New York City and Philadelphia. Los Angeles, Miami, and Chicago political ad prices, even sometimes the cable buys?

Fougedaboudit.

It also takes a small army of drivers, advance staff, stage crews, digital nerds, oppo jocks, pollsters, media lounge lizards, graying honchos, and a host of others to run a modern presidential campaign. And they all want to be fed, housed when on the road, flown or bused about in a timely manner, and paid semi-well.

In return they will usually work like dogs seven days a week without much sleep. They will run on caffeine and hate and their only solace is that somehow, some way, the coiffed idiot they have hitched their star to doesn’t politically auger into a mountain and they end up with a cushy staff job at some obscure DC federal agency.

These men and women are the true deciders of America’s political fate, because if they drop the ball their clients do too and history is changed.

Welcome to your republic.

This piece originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

The post GOP Tops Democrats in Fundraising Haul appeared first on The Political Insider.