The DCCC never seems to be very enthusiastic about targeting Republican leaders. This cycle, for example, they made sure there would be relatively strong opponents for the candidates in the districts that surround Kevin McCarthy's CA-23, while ignoring McCarthy entirely. They have no candidate opposing him, not even someone viable enough to build towards a 2020 challenge.
With Paul Ryan going into retirement-- thank you, Randy Bryce!-- three ambitious, careerist Republicans are running to be House GOP top dog, likely Minority Leader:
Yesterday, Josh Marshall brought up the June 14, 2016 incidents again-- it can never be brought often frequently enough... the one where GOP House Majority Leader blurts out that Putin is paying off Trump and Rohrabacher... "so help me God." My favorite part of this story-- other than the pays offs themselves-- is how Ryan and McCarthy tried to cover it up and kept changing their stories as the Washington Post closed in on them and finally revealed they had a tape. Oops!
I can't imagine why Paul Ryan would want to stay on as Speaker. Is it to help the GOP minimize their losses in November and to hold off on leadership elections and instead allowing the GOP to focus on campaign season rather than engaging in a bloody intra-party feud? Ryan may be popular with billionaire contributors but the independent voters who will decide the midterm certainly don't like him.
Albatross by Nancy OhanianThis morning's first post, Time For New House Leadership-- On Both Sides Of The Aisle, mentions the GOP struggle to replace Ryan but was really about the Democratic struggle to replace Pelosi.
Albatross by Nancy OhanianThis morning, Politico made it sound like the McCarthy vs Scalise battle to take over as Speaker is breaking news. It isn't. The two of them have been aware Ryan won't be running in November and they have been quietly courting supporters for the better part of a month as Ryan gets ready for the big announcement.
Yesterday, the House passed H.R. 36, Trent Franks' so-called "Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act." It passed 237-189, every Republican but Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ) and Charlie Dent (R-PA) voting YES, and every Democrat except 3 far right Blue Dogs voting NO:
(ANTIMEDIA) Washington, D.C. — Know of any jobs that pay $174,000 a year, plus benefits, for only working 147 out 365 days? You may laugh off the notion, but in fact, the answer is yes, you do. Because that’s what your elected House representatives make, and the number 147 is how many days they’re actually working during a congressional session.
No one ever accused House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of being brilliant but, according to a report from the Washington Post yesterday there's a tape of him telling fellow Republicans that Putin was paying Trump and Dana Rohrabacher, the Orange County GOP crackpot long known as "Putin's favorite congressman." McCarthy's office at first denied he ever said it and, after being told there's tape, change the story to claim he had only been joking.But he hadn'
