Who will Sheldon & Miriam want to get into bed with?Roland is in Las Vegas for the long weekend. So are some of the most venal characters in American politics-- Gov. Scott Walker, Gov. John Kasich, Gov. Chris Christie, John Bolton, ex-Gov. Jeb Bush and Dick Cheney. The Republicans-- other than Cheney, who just shows up wherever evil is pulsing strongest on earth-- are there for the Sheldon and Miriam Adelson Primary where each presidential wanna-be is vetted in terms of how slavish they are to the national interests of Israel-- this is a strictly Israel-first/America-second confab-- and the gambling interests of the Adelson branch of the Mafia.Although the government of Binyamin Netanyahu and the Adelsons have a lot of say in the decision of who will be the next Republican nominee, they don't get to decide all by themselves. The grassroots, of course, are ignored. They can suck air with their fervent intentions for winning the nomination for right-wing extremists like Ted Cruz or Rand Paul. The serious people don't consider them any more serious than the German plutocrats considered Hitler in the early 1930s. The power brokers who laugh at the teabaggers and the religious right grassroots dredges, have pretty much settled on Jeb Bush now that Christie is damaged goods. If this sounds like it was written by a Jeb Bush press flack… well… how coy can one be when one is breaking sucking up to the detestable Adelsons in their garish Mafia haven?
Many of the Republican Party’s most powerful insiders and financiers have begun a behind-the-scenes campaign to draft former Florida governor Jeb Bush into the 2016 presidential race, courting him and his intimates and starting talks on fundraising strategy.Concerned that the George Washington Bridge traffic scandal has damaged New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s political standing and alarmed by the steady rise of Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.), prominent donors, conservative leaders and longtime operatives say they consider Bush the GOP’s brightest hope to win back the White House.Bush’s advisers insist that he is not actively exploring a candidacy and will not make a decision until at least the end of this year. But over the past few weeks, Bush has traveled the country delivering policy speeches, campaigning for Republicans ahead of the fall midterm elections, honing messages on income inequality and foreign policy, and cultivating ties with wealthy benefactors-- all signals that he is considering a run.Many if not most of Mitt Romney’s major donors are reaching out to Bush and his confidants with phone calls, e-mails and invitations to meet, according to interviews with 30 senior Republicans. One bundler estimated that the “vast majority” of Romney’s top 100 donors would back Bush in a competitive nomination fight.“He’s the most desired candidate out there,” said another bundler, Brian Ballard, who sat on the national finance committees for Romney in 2012 and John McCain in 2008. “Everybody that I know is excited about it.”But Bush would have serious vulnerabilities as a candidate. Out of public office for seven years, he has struggled in some appearances and has had difficulty navigating the Republican Party’s fault lines on immigration and other issues. A Bush candidacy also would test whether the nation still has a hangover from the George W. Bush administration.On Thursday night, Bush was feted here at a VIP dinner held by Sheldon Adelson inside the billionaire casino magnate’s airplane hangar. When one donor told Bush, “I hope you run for president in 2016,” the crowd of about 60 guests burst into applause, said a donor in attendance.Bush also met privately with Adelson. One person with knowledge of the conversation said that the former governor was “very laid back and comfortable” and that they did not discuss the 2016 campaign.…He would enter a wide-open contest for the GOP nomination with other advantages, as well: deep ties to his party’s establishment and evangelical wings, and a reputation as a reform-minded policy wonk. Fluent in Spanish, Bush has credibility within the Hispanic community that could help broaden his coalition. He also has the gravitas many Republicans say is required to compete with former secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton, the Democrats’ leading potential contender.“Jeb has the capacity to bring the party together,” said [Nixon's Jew counter] Fred Malek, a top Republican official who said he has been in regular contact with Bush.…Bush’s vocal support for immigration reform and Common Core education standards-- lightning-rod issues for tea party activists-- could dog him in the GOP primaries… In any campaign, Bush would have to grapple with the legacy of his brother George W. Bush and his unpopular wars. A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll found that almost half of all Americans surveyed say they “definitely would not” vote for Jeb Bush for president.“The ‘Bush fatigue’ question is always there,” said former Mississippi governor Haley Barbour (R). “If his name was Jeb Brown instead of Jeb Bush, he’d be the front-runner.” … Strategists for other prospective candidates said they are growing nervous about Bush and fear that he could lock up the donor class. “He would take some of the oxygen out of the air,” said David Carney, an ally of Texas Gov. Rick Perry ®.
Paul Ryan may not have been there this weekend… but apparently someone grabbed his iPod to better entertain the fat cats: