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October 21, 2010
The third-ranking Republican plans to tell an audience in Florida on Thursday that GOP congresses of yesteryear compromised “too much” — a warning to Republicans who are signaling that they’d be willing to work with the Obama administration on some issues.
House Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence of Indiana, in a clear jab at a Wall Street Journal story that indicated the GOP would look to avoid gridlock, plans to say that “there can be no compromise that allows more borrowing, more spending, more deficits and more debt.”
“Now, the last few days there has been some talk about how Republicans could avoid the ‘mistakes’ of 1995 by seeking compromise with this administration,” according to an excerpt reported by the conservative blog Redstate. “The last Republican Congress didn’t suffer from too little compromise, it suffered from too much. Republicans lost their majority because of too much compromise on spending and deficits and debt.”
Many House Republicans would agree with Pence: They’ve been criticizing Democratic spending all year. But few in leadership are campaigning on not working with the president. Pence, running for his fifth term in Congress in eastern Indiana, is a favorite of tea party Republicans; he won the nod of the Value Voters earlier this fall in Washington.
Pence, who plans to give the speech at the Hillsboro County Republican dinner tonight in Tampa, Fla., is in the Sunshine State to campaign for Daniel Webster, the Republican running against Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson.
Posted by Jake Sherman 05:31 PM
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October 21, 2010
A Pennsylvania man Thursday was charged, and will likely stand trial, for threatening House Minority Whip Eric Cantor.
Norman LeBoon of Philadelphia was arrested in March for posting a YouTube video threatening Cantor (R-Va.) and his family. He was charged Thursday with threatening a government official, and transmitting it between states. He is currently in custody.
Cantor’s office couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
LeBoon was one of the most serious threats in a string of vitriol thrown at lawmakers around the health care debate. He called Cantor’s wife “evil” and said that he was an “abomination” and said the Virginia Republican would get bullets “in your heads,” the Justice Department alleges.
“You and your children are Lucifer’s abominations,” LeBoon said in a video, according to the Justice Department.
If convicted, LeBoon faces 15 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.
Posted by Jake Sherman 03:51 PM
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October 20, 2010
Its been popular of late for Democratic candidates for Congress to sprint away from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
But in South Dakota, Republican candidate Kristi Noem isn’t saying that she would support House Minority John Boehner (R-Ohio).
Speaking to the editorial board of the Argus Leader, the candidate for the state’s at-large House seat said others could challenge Boehner.
“If there was another person that was running that represented South Dakota better and more with South Dakota’s industries and interests and values, I certainly would support them, too,” Noem told the paper’s editorial board.
Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, the Democrat Noem is trying to unseat, said Boehner and Pelosi haven’t been a “picnic” for the state. Furthermore, she’s distanced herself from the speaker in the past.
But for Noem, Boehner’s money is good. She’s taken $5,000 from the Ohioan’s leadership political action committee, according to the Center for Responsive Politics' website.
Posted by Jake Sherman 10:31 PM
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October 20, 2010
House Minority Leader John Boehner’s Freedom Project donated $335,000 to Republicans running for Congress last month.
The Ohio Republican’s leadership political action committee cut 67 checks worth $5,000 a piece to candidates for Congress and one PAC — Sen. Lamar Alexander’s TennPAC.
Don Seymour, a spokesman for Boehner, said "Leader Boehner is doing everything possible to make sure our team has the resources to win a new majority that will fight to cut spending, create jobs, and change the way Congress does business."
The doling out of dollars is a certain push for the House’s top Republicans to usher more GOP candidates to Washington so that Boehner may become speaker. He has spent the summer campaigning for Republicans — indeed, this week he is in Georgia and Mississippi stumping. Other Republican leaders, like House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.), are also on the road trying to elect Republicans. Friends of John Boehner, the lawmaker's reelection account, gave $126,000 to candidates. An aide said Boehner has raised more than $44 million for Republican candidates and party committees.
You have to spend money to raise money — as is standard for all Congressional leaders. A Federal Election Commission report filed today by the PAC show expenditures at ritzy Washington eateries like The Monocle and BLT Steak and H Street Northeast hotspot Granville Moore’s. There’s also the quintessential Boehner expense: $24,277.95 at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin Ohio.
The PAC is also is carrying a bit of debt — $19,200 for a fundraising website.
Posted by Jake Sherman 10:21 PM
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October 19, 2010
New Orleans Republican Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao is hedging his bets when it comes to who he’ll support for speaker.
The first-term Republican, who represents a solidly Democratic district, speaking told a local NBC affiliate he would “weigh those two names” — referring to House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
“I have not heard of their platforms,” Cao said, according to the New Orleans Times Picayune. “I have not read what they're looking for with respect to the country. So I will weigh those names, if those are the two names, and I will weigh them equally like I weigh other issues.”
Cao has long been walking a narrow rope when it comes to how Republican he can actually be in Washington. He represents Louisiana’s 2nd Congressional District, which is among the most Democratic in the country. It was previously represented by William Jefferson, who was ushered out after federal investigators found money in his refrigerator.
Cao voted for health care overhaul legislation in its first form, but reversed his position when the bill came up for a final vote.
Posted by Jake Sherman 11:32 AM
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October 15, 2010
Democrats have a lot on their hands. High unemployment, a tough midterm election — but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) are placing bets on the MLB playoffs.
Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Specter wagered chocolate on who wins the series between the San Francisco Giants and Philadelphia Phillies. Pelosi is betting San Francisco’s Ghirardelli and Specter put Pennsylvania favorite Hershey’s on the line. Pelosi says the Giants are going “all the way,” and she’ll enjoy munching on the Pennsylvania chocolate during the World Series.
Specter dissents.
“I am not sure which part of this bet will be sweeter, the Phillies in the World Series again, or enjoying Ghirardelli’s chocolate while watching the Phillies in the World Series,” Specter said. “I commend Speaker Pelosi for sticking with her team — but Charlie Manuel’s lineup is just unstoppable and unhittable.”
Posted by Jake Sherman 04:32 PM
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October 14, 2010
Promising to "utilize the vast talents of our membership" and "more actively engage the broader progressive community," Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison has asked fellow members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus to elect him chairman in the next Congress.
Ellison made his pitch in a letter sent to caucus members on Wednesday.
The CPC, currently under the leadership of co-chairmen Lynn Woolsey of California and Raul Grijalva of Arizona, has struggled to achieve its loftiest goals in this Congress, despite the election of a Democratic president who espoused progressivism on the campaign trail and large Democratic majorities in both chambers.
The coveted goal of a universal, government-based health care system fell by the wayside, as did the compromise "public option." Though tens of thousands of American troops have been withdrawn from Iraq, the war rages on in Afghanistan. And progressives have lost out on countless efforts to bolster domestic programs, typically falling victim to the political necessity of protecting moderate "Blue Dog" Democrats.
Without directly criticizing Woolsey or Grijalva — indeed, the Minnesotan takes care to praise the caucus's efforts this Congress — Ellison issued a call to action for progressive elected officials to better connect with liberal grass-roots activists to achieve their shared ends. And he makes clear that the caucus has been too fractured when pushed by Democratic leaders to vote for the party's legislation.
"Moving forward, I believe that the CPC can, and must, be the driving force behind a core set of principles and policies aimed at securing immediate and long-term prosperity for America's working families. If elected chair, I would work to utilize the vast talents of our membership, particularly by expanding CPC communication and policy efforts," he wrote. "In addition, I will work to strengthen our internal cohesion and discipline as a voting bloc within the Congress."
If Democrats are cast into the minority, as many election experts are predicting, neither Ellison nor any other chairman of the caucus should have trouble cultivating bloc voting, as the caucus would surely oppose Republican-written bills at every opportunity.
It is not clear whether other candidates will step forward to vie for the post, which Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) used as a springboard into party leadership.
Posted by Jonathan Allen 05:30 PM
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October 14, 2010
Now this isn’t a surprise.
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Thursday signed former New York Gov. George Pataki’s pledge to repeal and replace the health care law.
Revere America, Pataki’s group, also has signatures from California Republican Reps. Elton Gallegly and Mary Bono Mack. The pledge is seeking “responsible reforms to our nation’s health care system.”
“We are pleased that Leader Boehner is joining this effort,” Pataki said in a release. “We will count on his leadership in the 111th Congress. Revere America is receiving signed pledges every day.”
The effect of Boehner’s signature means little, but it does further reaffirm the leader’s commitment to trying to roll back the signature item on the Democrats’ agenda.
Posted by Jake Sherman 04:10 PM
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October 14, 2010
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) is challenging her constituents to channel their inner Colbert with witty Facebook posts in advance of the much-hyped Oct. 30 Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart rallies.
Norton says she’s tired of sparring with "The Colbert Report" host over her inability to vote in Congress. So she’s asking constituents to post on her Facebook page why they think D.C. should gain full voting rights. Her only stipulation: The post has to use “as much wit as Colbert uses to make fun of us for not having our full rights,” Norton said.
“The buzz surrounding the Colbert and Jon Stewart rallies coming to D.C. on Oct. 30 is too great an opportunity to miss to pay back Colbert and to remind those who come that, unlike Colbert, D.C. has a cause worthy of a rally,” Holmes said in a statement today.
Norton frequently jokes with Colbert over her voteless status but finds no humor in the delay of her D.C. voting rights bill, which has more than enough votes for passage but has been stalled by a gun amendment.
Colbert’s involvement in D.C. politics has been a touchy subject on Capitol Hill. Members on both sides of the aisle decried an appearance by the comedian earlier this month in which he testified before a House committee in character.
At the time, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer called the appearance “an embarrassment.”
Posted by Erika Lovley 12:23 PM
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October 12, 2010
The diversity officer for the U.S. Capitol Police has quit after just six months on the job.
Marcus Williams left the department in mid-August, and the department is still searching for a replacement.
POLITICO called Williams at his new job — as a diversity employment counsel with the U.S. Department of Justice — but he said he could not comment on the situation.
Department spokeswoman Sgt. Kimberly Schneider said Chief Phillip Morse remains fully committed to establishing a diversity office.
“During [Williams’s] tenure, he was able to provide valuable guidance and insight. He also drafted policy and procedures for his newly established position and a diversity plan for the agency. He recently left the U.S. Capitol Police to accept a position for a highly desirable position in the executive branch. We are in the process of announcing the position and finding a new diversity officer,” Schneider said in a statement to POLITICO.
Williams was the department’s first diversity officer. The diversity office was created in 2008 after Capitol Police Inspector General Carl Hoecker recommended to Congress that the department create one.
Race- and gender-based discrimination lawsuits have been an ongoing part of the department’s history. The department is currently battling a 250-officer suit by former and current officers who claim they were denied promotions because of their race.
Posted by Erika Lovley 02:17 PM
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October 11, 2010
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) fancies himself a modern day Paul Revere.
But instead of warning about the British invasion, Ryan is warning of an entitlement apocalypse.
Ryan told the Appleton Post-Crescent’s editorial page board Monday he aims to be “the Paul Revere on the fiscal situation in this country,” hoping to send a message that will save Social Security and Medicare just like famed colonial silversmith’s midnight ride with news of the British army’s planned march to Lexington, Mass.
“What I was trying to do was get through what I call the political paralysis of entitlement reform, of budget reform. Get a plan out there, get us to an adult level of conversation about how we tackle the fiscal problems in this country before they tackle us,” he said.
Unlike Revere, he’s not having as much success getting the message across.
“What I want to do is jump in the pool and tell my colleagues, “Hey, the water’s not so bad, come on, jump in and swim in this pool,” he said. “So far, I’m kind of doing laps on my own.”
Explaining why he started working on the Roadmap for America’s Future in 2008, Ryan said he genuinely expected other members would offer counter-proposals to his plan. He expressed frustration that his plan has proved rich fodder for Democrats’ ads attacking Republicans on Social Security and Medicare benefits. And he acknowledged that the ads are powerful.
“I really sincerely thought other Republicans and Democrats would come up with their own ideas, so we’d start having a good debate going,” he said. “Nothing’s happened. And now it’s, you know, all these TV ads. Everybody’s running these ads. ... It’s the oldest trick in the book. It seems to work sometimes.”
Ryan’s plan has only 13 co-sponsors in the House. Republican candidates who say anything remotely positive about it risk getting accused of wanting to privatize Social Security. In May, state lawmaker Kristi Noem of South Dakota came under fire for calling the plan the “right direction for our country to go.” Noem has since signed a pledge saying she won’t support privatizing Social Security.
Posted by Simmi Aujla 09:03 PM
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October 11, 2010
A top-tier Republican House candidate won’t commit to supporting Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) for speaker if Republicans win the House on Nov. 2.
Republican Kristi Noem, who’s challenging Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-S.D.), said through a spokesman that she would support a “Republican candidate” but wouldn’t get more specific.
“She would definitely not support Nancy Pelosi as speaker,” said Josh Shields, Noem’s campaign manager.
“She will support a Republican candidate for speaker. It’s premature to see how that shakes out, between now and January.” he said.
Some other Republican candidates who are presenting stiff challenges to freshmen Democrats are also staying noncommittal on Boehner as speaker.
Bill Flores, who’s looking to oust Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Texas), tried to avoid the issue in August.
"I would rather not answer that question," he told voters at an event in the district.
Posted by Simmi Aujla 03:17 PM
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October 07, 2010
A top House Republican said Thursday that Congress should reconvene before Nov. 2 to vote on extending the Bush tax cuts.
Republican Conference Chair Mike Pence told the WOWO talk radio station in Fort Wayne, Ind., that he’s hoping members will get a chance to show where they stand on the cuts.
“I’m still hoping against hope that Congress may be called back into session before this election and take an up-or-down vote on extending all the current tax rates. I just thought it was unconscionable that the Democrat majority in Congress adjourned to go home to campaign to keep their jobs without doing anything to protect the jobs of millions of Americans who are threatened by either higher taxes on themselves or on their employers,” he said.“I think Congress ought to come back into session before the election and take a straight up-or-down vote on extending all the tax relief.”
That’s highly unlikely, as the adjournment resolution approved by the House has Congress coming back Nov. 15 for a lame-duck session. However, a bloc of vulnerable Democrats voted against adjourning last week, citing the tax cuts as an important issue they wanted to tackle before leaving Washington.
Posted by Simmi Aujla 01:44 PM
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October 06, 2010
Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.), under fire for steering charity college scholarships to his stepdaughter and wife’s niece, denied any role in granting the awards to relatives.
However, during an interview Wednesday with The Associated Press, Bishop admitted that his wife, Vivian Creighton Bishop, “had a role in the selection process.” Mrs. Bishop is a longtime Georgia state employee. She now serves as clerk of the municipal court in Columbus, Ga.
The scholarships were part of a program run by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, the charitable arm of the congressional caucus for African-American lawmakers. Each CBC member is provided $10,000 annually to hand out to qualified applicants.
In 2003, Emmaundia Whitaker, the niece of Vivian Creighton Bishop, was given an education scholarship. She was given a similar award in 2005.
And in 2003, Aayesha Owens Reese, the congressman’s stepdaughter, was granted an education scholarship as well.
POLITICO first reported in August that Bishop had steered the awards to relatives.
Bishop insists that he personally played no part in deciding who would get the CBC scholarships.
"I was not involved in that at all," told the AP.
"Let's just say that the selections were made," Bishop added. "She [Vivian Creighton Bishop] had a role in the selection process. And, you know, it was unfortunate that the process allowed the family members to be awarded scholarships."
The CBC Foundation’s scholarship program has been rocked by scandal as both Bishop and Rep.Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) were found to have steered scholarships to various relatives and children of senior aides.
Bishop has not admitted any impropriety, although he did announce after the POLITICO report that he would repay the scholarships. Johnson also said she has repaid $31,000 to the CBC Foundation.
Rep. Donald Payne (D-N.J.), chairman of the CBCF, has promised an "extensive audit" of the scholarship program by the end of the year.
Posted by John Bresnahan 09:19 PM
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October 05, 2010
Rep. Patrick Kennedy, who is retiring from the House after eight terms, is planning to write a memoir called “Coming Clean,” which will detail not only his time in Congress but his struggles with substance abuse.
Kennedy, a Rhode Island Democrat, is penning the book with Mary Ann Akers, a former staff writer at The Washington Post.
“Kennedy is writing the first truly revealing, intimate portrait of growing up a Kennedy, and coming clean about his own inner demons, as part of a major effort to de-stigmatize all diseases of the mind,” according to a release by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, which is publishing the book. “After leaving Congress in January, he plans to launch a major endeavor to fight all neurological disorders, from addictions to PTSD to depression, among many others. Coming clean about his family and himself is an important first step in his initiative to help the millions of Americans who suffer from similar afflictions.”
The son of the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), Patrick has struggled with addition throughout his time in Congress. He was in rehab as recently as 2009. In 2006, he checked into the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota after he crashed his car into a police barrier on Capitol Hill.
Posted by Jake Sherman 02:48 PM
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October 01, 2010
A 40-year old Tennesseean was charged with threatening to burn down the home of Rep. John Boccieri, an Ohio Democrat who voted for federal health-care overhaul legislation.
James Schmidlin was charged with leveling an arson treat, according to a federal indictment. The threat was made near to the time Boccieri voted for health care reform legislation in Washington
Boccieri, who represents a large northeastern Ohio district that includes Canton, voted against the bill before voting for it in its final form.
Threats were relatively common during and around Congress was debating health-care reform. Democratic Reps. Louise Slaughter (N.Y.), Steve Driehaus (Ohio), Tom Perriello (Va.) and Bart Stupak (Mich.) were among the lawmakers who were allegedly harrassed during the lengthy debate over the legislation.
The call was made to Boccieri’s office, according to the indictment obtained by POLITICO.
“In America we enjoy the ability to engage in important conversations about national issues,” Boccieri said in a release. “It is a process I put my life on the line to protect in the U.S. Air Force. However we also have the responsibility of making sure these conversations do not descend into acts of violence. The federal government chose to press charges in this case and I trust our country's system of law to handle it appropriately.”
Posted by Jake Sherman 04:11 PM
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September 29, 2010
A suspicious substance has been discovered on the U.S. Capitol campus, prompting access to the Ford Office Building to be temporarily restricted, according to the U.S. Capitol Police.
Spokeswoman Sgt. Kimberly Schneider told POLITICO that the area near Room 620 in the Ford Building is being tested to determine what the substance is.
There were no evacuations, Schneider said.
Posted by Erika Lovley 02:44 PM
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September 29, 2010
House Minority Leader John Boehner threw his full support behind Rep. Darrell Issa’s (R-Calif.) plan to bombard the Obama administration with subpoenas if Republicans take back the House in November.
“I think Congress has an appropriate role under the Constitution to provide oversight of the executive branch. And I would pledge that it’s going to happen,” he told reporters Wednesday.
Issa, the top Republican on the House Oversight and Government Committee, has said he’ll double the size of his staff if he becomes chairman of the committee next year. He called for an investigation of the Obama administration earlier this year for offering Rep. Joe Sestak an unpaid job if he would drop out of the Democratic primary, and he has promised to investigate the White House in search of similar controversies.
A Chairman Issa would prove a huge headache for Obama, much as Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.) was as the committee’s chairman during the Clinton administration. Burton issued 1,052 subpoenas to the White House and other Democrats from 1997 to 2002.
CORRECTED: Issa's party affiliation was incorrect in the original post.
Posted by Simmi Aujla 11:28 AM
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September 29, 2010
Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) recommended Glenn Beck for admission to Yale in the 1990s, according to a New York Times profile of the conservative television star.
Buried a few pages into a Mark Leibovich magazine piece creating beltway buzz Wednesday is this nugget about Lieberman, who ran for reelection to the Senate as an independent in 2006 after losing in the Democratic primary to a challenger from his left.
"He even enrolled at Yale, with a written recommendation from an alum who was a listener at the time, Sen. Joe Lieberman. He took one class, early Christology, but says he "spent more time trying to find a parking space than in class and quickly dropped out."
Posted by Meredith Shiner 11:24 AM
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September 29, 2010
Dr. No is at it again.
Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn took to the Senate floor and blocked a whole series of environmental measures that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid sought to quickly pass.
The Crane Conservation Act?
“I object,” Coburn said.
The Marine Mammal Assistance Act?
“Mr. President, I object,” Coburn said.
The Great Cats and Rare Canids Act?
“I object,” he said.
How about the Shark Conservation Act?
“I object,” Coburn said.
The Southern Sea Otter Recovery and Research Act?
“Is there any objection?” asked Sen. Al Franken, who was presiding over the chamber.
“I object,” Coburn said.
At which point, Reid relented from the floor and Coburn sought to be recognized.
Reid’s response? He objected, preventing Coburn from taking the floor.
But a few seconds later, Reid relented, allowing Coburn to rail against what he said were bills that would increase the budget deficit.
Posted by Manu Raju 10:25 AM
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