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MAY 6,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:56 P.M. ET: 

JEB REJECTS TRUMP – From Facebook:  "In November, I will not vote for Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, but I will support principled conservatives at the state and federal levels, just as I have done my entire life. For Republicans, there is no greater priority than ensuring we keep control of both chambers of Congress. I look forward to working hard for great conservatives in the Senate and House in the coming months."  This is not "let's talk," it's an utter rejection.  Some major Republicans are digging in, with the "never" word.  Talk of a third party or independent candidate continues to grow, but the rebels lack the necessary man on a white horse, or in a Honda, or something.

BUT CHENEY GOES DONALD – From CNN:   Washington (CNN) Former Vice President Dick Cheney will support Donald Trump, he told CNN Friday, an important move as the presumptive Republican nominee is encountering intense resistance from senior members of his own party.  Cheney told CNN Special Correspondent Jamie Gangel that he has always supported the GOP nominee and will do so this year as well.
The announcement makes Cheney one of the few Republican Party elders to announce their support of Trump and comes a day after House Speaker Paul Ryan told CNN he is "just not ready" to back Trump.  Very bold of Cheney, especially after Trump's savaging of the Iraq War.  Cheney is an architect of that war.

ONLY AN AVERAGE LIE – From Weekly Standard:  Clinton campaign spokesman Brian Fallon said Friday that Hillary Clinton's attorney has been in contact with the Justice Department throughout the investigation into her use of a private email server as secretary of state.  "David Kendall is her top counsel and he has been in touch with the Justice Department throughout this review. We've always been very upfront about that," Fallon said in an interview on CNN.  The FBI has already interviewed Clinton's closest aide, Huma Abedin, as well as some other Clinton confidantes, CNN reported Thursday. However, in an interview with MSNBC Tuesday, Clinton said that the FBI had still not contacted her "representatives."  Fallon did not address Clinton's apparent mistruth.  We cannot expect Clinton's spokesman to address every lie.  Let's be reasonable here.  The man must be allowed a life.

May 6, 2016       Permalink

DEMS FEAR DON – AT 10:55 A.M. ET:  While Republicans tear their party apart over Donald Trump, Dems are getting nervous.  Their political operatives don't see Trump as a pushover.  They see him as a serious threat.  From NRO:   

Listen for a few minutes to Republicans in the “Never Trump” camp, and you’d think the outcome of November 8’s election a foregone conclusion. Donald Trump’s unfavorables are so high, they argue, his bridges to minority voters so thoroughly burnt, that Hillary Clinton will inevitably trounce him in a landslide akin to Lyndon Johnson’s historic victory against Barry Goldwater in 1964.

But talk to Democratic strategists and you’ll hear a different story. Despite Clinton’s persistent lead in the polls, many of them are far from sanguine about her prospects against the presumptive Republican nominee. They view Trump’s ability to harness the anger of America’s dispossessed white working class as a powerful threat in several Midwestern swing states, especially now that he’s openly courting Bernie Sanders supporters and aping the Vermont senator’s rhetoric on trade. They worry the New York real-estate mogul’s brash, bullying campaign style could throw the easily flustered Clinton off balance, upending her campaign at a crucial moment. And they fear that a relentlessly negative campaign would turn women voters away from politics altogether, depriving Clinton of the votes she’ll need to overcome Trump’s likely advantage with white men.

“Ted Cruz and almost any other Republican would’ve been much easier, because they’re conventional politicians,” says Mary Anne Marsh, a veteran Democratic strategist from Boston. “Donald Trump was always going to be the hardest candidate, because he is so unconventional. . . . I think this has the potential to be as close as the 2000 election.”

COMMENT:   I agree.  No matter what you may think of Trump, he's pulled off a political miracle.  No one knows if he can mine that to pull off a second miracle, victory in November.  But I'd never underestimate him.  He may appeal only to anger, but if 50% plus one of Americans are angry, he's president.

May 6, 2016       Permalink

SASSE GETS SASSY – AT 10:12 A.M. ET:  Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska is considered a young Republican star.  When he speaks, the party listens.  Now he's gone out on a limb, and it will be fascinating to see what happens.  From the Washington Examiner:   

Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse lit up Twitter for the second time in 24 hours Wednesday night in a rant against presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and the GOP that backs him.

It started with Sasse jokingly asking if the GOP's tweet thanking the entire Republican field for a "hard fought race" was sent from a "parody account"?

The first-term Tea Party senator said GOP politicos have attempted to reach out to him since his Tuesday rant that Trump and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton are both dishonest people.

Sasse sassed those who said either candidate are the people's only choices this November.

But this was not just another Twitter rant for the lawmaker. Sasse said he was in the middle of penning an open letter that asks, "Why would Americans settle for a choice like this?"

"The two political parties resort to character attacks because they think voters are too dumb for a real debate," Sasse tweeted.

And...

...Sasse commanded the party to "reject them and go bigger." The call to action, though not referring to himself as the answer, could be seen as his opening to a third-party run.

COMMENT:  You've got to give the guy credit.  At least he has convictions.  He is risking his career with such outspoken comments. 

Sasse is a very attractive guy, and very articulate.  If he runs as a third-party candidate, he will probably lose, but maybe he sees his future as the head of a new party.  Hey, you never know. 

May 6, 2016        Permalink

ECONOMIC GLOOM – AT 9:55 A.M.  ET:  Day by day the numbers are getting worse, and that's trouble for Hillary.  From Bloomberg: 

Employers in April added the fewest number of workers in seven months and the U.S. jobless rate held steady as subdued economic growth prompted a more moderate rate of hiring.

The 160,000 gain in payrolls followed a revised 208,000 rise in March, a Labor Department report showed Friday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey called for a 200,000 April advance. The jobless rate, projected to ease, stayed at 5 percent, while wage growth accelerated.

Industries that showed strong first-quarter job growth pulled back, with retailers cutting payrolls by the most in two years and construction companies adding the fewest positions since June. More tempered additions to headcounts shows hiring managers are adjusting in the wake of economic growth that has slowed for three straight quarters.

“Employment was never going to continue rising at more than 200,000 a month indefinitely,” Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics in Toronto, said in a research note. “Those monthly gains are simply unsustainable in an economy with a potential economic growth rate of less than 2 percent.”

COMMENT:  And of course we have to look at the kind of jobs being created.  They haven't been all that great, and wage stagnation has been the rule, not the exception.

Not much for Hillary to run on.  Calling the woman card!

May 6,  2016     Permalink

MAY 5,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:52 P.M. ET:

CHILL FOR TRUMP – Many Republican bigwigs are reluctant to jump on the Trumpwagon.  From USA TODAY:    Donald Trump may be trying to consolidate his party’s support but there are two big names he shouldn’t count on.  Spokesmen for former presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush told The Texas Tribune the Bushes won't be on the list of Trump endorsers.  “At age 91, President Bush is retired from politics,” a spokesman for Bush 41 told The Texas Tribune. “He came out of retirement to do a few things for Jeb, but those were the exceptions that proved the rule.”  And his son Bush 43? No plans either.  He “does not plan to participate in or comment on the presidential campaign,” a spokesman for Bush 43 told the Tribune.  And Laura Bush hinted that she might support Hillary Clinton.  Clearly, there is no love lost for Trump, who savaged Jeb Bush during the campaign.  It's now Trump's proper role to try to mend fences.  His viciousness is coming back to haunt him.

YEAH, RIGHT – From Newsbusters:   With no sense of irony or humor, a new MSNBC ad claims the network “seeks different perspectives.” Yes, the cable channel home to some of most liberal hosts and journalists on the planet, touted, “We seek different perspectives, connect the dots, approach the story from all the angles.”  The condescending commercial started airing on Tuesday. The unidentified voice lectured, “We break news. Yeah. But we do more than that. If all you want is headlines, check your Twitter feed.” The announcer smugly continued, “We go beyond the sound bites.”  Incredible.  They must think very little of their audience to believe that viewers can't tell that MSNBC is the voice of the political left.  The "different perspectives" go from near left to far left.  Maybe middle left on a generous day.

GREAT MOMENTS IN TEACHER TRAINING – From Fox:   A 7-year-old girl in Texas managed to get out of an after-school program Monday after she tricked her school’s staff to believe a fake excuse note some say is clearly written by a child.  ABC13.com reported that the letter penned in over-sized print was succinct: “I want Rosabella to go too dus (sic) 131 today.” She misspelled "bus."  The girl was allowed to leave. Neighbors later said they spotted her waiting outside her home.   Her father, Charlie Dahu, criticized staff at her school — Sheldon Elementary in Harris County — for believing that her parents wrote such a childlike note.  The Sheldon school district told the station it was investigating the situation and reviewing its training procedures.  I can just see those teachers five years from now – teaching political history and social justice.

May 5, 2016       Permalink

TRUMP PREPARES – AT 10:58 A.M. ET:  We've not been fans of Donald Trump here, but he'll be covered as we cover anyone else – fairly.  He clearly has a lot of work to do to heal, if possible, some of the wounds he caused in his almost brutal campaign for the Republican nomination.  At least he's starting.  From Fox: 

Donald Trump, after effectively locking up the Republican nomination, is shifting gears to launch a national search for a running mate while teasing the possibility he could roll out key Cabinet picks as well before the July convention.

“I like the idea of doing some of this before we go into Cleveland,” Trump told Fox News’ Bill O'Reilly Wednesday night, when asked about announcing Cabinet posts early. “I could do that and I think it would be well received.”

Considering how packed the GOP field was this cycle – at one point, containing 17 candidates – Trump’s VP “short-list” is bound to be rather lengthy, especially as the campaign says they plan to consider most of his former presidential primary rivals.

Some analysts and observers put Ohio Gov. John Kasich in the top tier of that list, considering he leads the critical general election swing state. Trump said he hasn’t spoken with Kasich since he dropped out of the race Wednesday, but “would certainly consider him.”

One open question is whether many of these potential running mates would, in turn, consider Trump. Personal and partisan tensions flared throughout the 2016 primary, as barbed insults flew between Trump and whichever candidate represented the biggest threat of the moment – and his opponents frequently challenged his conservative credentials.

Several of those vanquished foes have since reconciled with Trump, including New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, now involved in the running mate selection process.

COMMENT:  I don't see what gain there is in naming people early, including the vice presidential choice.  All a presidential candidate does is produce new targets for the opposition.  Of course, if a nominee can haul in a major star for vice president, it's a different story.  But I don't see anyone out there in that category.  We don't seem to have many major stars right now. 

A great danger for Trump, and the story suggested it, is that Trump may be turned down by some of his choices, and those rejections could go public, diminishing Trump's status as a presidential nominee.  He should tread carefully.  He is not overly loved.

May 5, 2016       Permalink

LET THE MUDSLINGING BEGIN – AT 10:18 A.M. ET:   The Dems are organizing to fight Donald Trump, and they will go all out.  As readers know, I've not supported Trump, but you may be certain that the battle against him will be ugly, personal, and probably filled with fabrications.  From the New York Daily News: 

WASHINGTON — A Democratic group is trolling for anti-Donald Trump stories — and trolling the presumptive Republican nominee — with a new website called DonaldTrumpScrewedMe.com.

Real class.

American Bridge, a Democratic outside group whose head has ties to Hillary Clinton, is launching the new website aimed at getting some nasty facts on The Donald. The website is geo-targeted so if you're in or near one of Trump's many properties, it will pop up in your Google ads.

"Were you one of Donald Trump's victimized employees? Do you know of illegal or inappropriate behavior at one of Trump's businesses or construction sites?" the website asks. "If you have been personally screwed by Donald Trump, or have a friend or relative who has been taken advantage of by Trump, we want to hear from you!"

The digital ads will target Trump's properties in Manhattan, Atlantic City, and Palm Beach to seek information from current and former employees and tenants, as well as "people who were scammed by Trump's various business ventures," according to the group.

COMMENT:  I'll suspect they'll come up with a lot.  Trump is a rough, tough businessman surrounded by a protective squad of lawyers.   He has made enemies.

But there are dangers to the Democrats in a campaign like this.  The first is that it depends on claims that are probably not easily verified.  If Trump can prove one or two of the claims false, the campaign collapses.

The second is that Trump has also made many friends.  People have had wonderful careers in his company.  They'll be called upon to give testimony to his qualities as an employer, and creator of jobs, and that can neutralize the Democratic campaign.

May 5, 2016       Permalink

ANOTHER CRITICAL ELECTION – AT 9:03 A.M. ET:  And it ain't here.   Important local elections are being held across Britain today.  They test the strength, or more happily the weakness, of the Labour Party's new, militant leftist head, Jeremy Corbyn.  He is the most left-wing party leader in British history, and pals around with folks like Hamas and Hezbollah.  From The New York Times:

LONDON — Londoners will decide whether to elect Sadiq Khan, the Labour front-runner, as their first Muslim mayor on Thursday, but in elections being held across Britain the wider results will pose a bigger test for the party as a whole — especially for Jeremy Corbyn, its left-wing leader.

Ahead of this election cycle it would usually be the governing party — not the opposition — feeling the pressure. And these elections come at a particularly precarious time for Prime Minister David Cameron’s governing Conservatives as the party faces a crisis in the steel industry and strikes by doctors. In March, a cabinet minister quit, and the Conservative Party is deeply split over a referendum in June on whether Britain should quit the European Union.

In London, Labour’s mayoral candidate, Mr. Khan, who is the son of an immigrant bus driver, is the favorite to replace the outgoing mayor, Boris Johnson, a Conservative.

But outside London the elections may provide Labour with more ominous results that could increase pressure on Mr. Corbyn at a time when newspapers have been filled with speculation about plots against him from within the party in the aftermath of a dispute over allegations of anti-Semitism in its ranks.

And...

Things would be “pretty bad” for Labour, apart from the London mayoral contest “and London should not be of much comfort to Jeremy Corbyn because Sadiq Khan campaigned despite Jeremy Corbyn,” said Steven Fielding, director of the Center for British Politics at the University of Nottingham. He was referring to the fact that Mr. Khan has distanced himself from Mr. Corbyn since last year, when Mr. Khan nominated Mr. Corbyn in Labour’s leadership contest, but then opted not to vote for him.

COMMENT:  Britain is one of our closest allies, and what happens in Britain politically is of importance here.  Keeping the Labour Party out of power is in the national interest of the United States.  Mr. Corbyn is so extreme that he actually wants to abolish the British army.

These are local races, but they usually indicate national trends.  Hope for conservative victories.

May 5,  2016     Permalink