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Jeb Bush Says Sarah Palin Is 'Fantastic'
Continue reading…Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, on the list of dark horse candidates of many Republicans eager for him to challenge President Obama in 2012, has rejected his mother's slap down of Sarah Palin, calling the Tea Party favorite's political skills "fantastic." In an obvious but diplomatic counter to former first lady Barbara Bush's wish that Palin would hole up in Alaska and not run for president, Bush heaped praise on the former Alaska governor who tops many 2012 presidential popularity polls. [See photos of Sarah Palin.]
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Gov. Bill Richardson Trades Politics for Ranching
Continue reading…Democratic New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson says he's done with politics. Once his second term expires in a few weeks, he'll be "fading away into the sunset." That means no second try for the presidency by the former Clinton-era energy secretary and United Nations ambassador—not even a cabinet post like the one Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to leave. In fact, he sees an Obama second term. "I think he will be able to be bipartisan, and if Republicans don't respond to his efforts of bipartisanship then they'll be the ones that will suffer," says Richardson. The governor's future: "I'm becoming a gentleman rancher."
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Pollsters Say Obama Will Win Re-election in 2012
Continue reading…Could President Obama be the luckiest guy in politics? Maybe so. Despite the November 2 election debacle, his cellar-dweller ranking in approval polls, and his status as Washington's modern-day Rodney "I don't get no respect" Dangerfield, the best and brightest of the Democratic Party see him as a virtual shoo-in for re-election. Don't laugh. Democratic consultant James Carville and his Democracy Corps partner pollster Stanley Greenberg have an understandable explanation: The Democratic presidential electorate is younger, less white, unmarried, and growing. Democrats outnumber the GOP's older, whiter base—if they show up.
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Obama Hits New Low in Zogby Poll
Continue reading…Pollster John Zogby updates our weekly Obama Report Card with a grade on the president's performance. Zogby uses his polling, expert analysis, and interaction with major players to come up with a grade and some comments that capture how he sees the president's week ending.
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Presidential Biographer Eyes Taylor Swift
Continue reading…Biographer Edmund Morris has made a career of charting the lives of Teddy Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan. Finally done with his TR trilogy with this month's publication of Colonel Roosevelt, he's looking for new projects, and country music has caught his attention. "As I finish a book, the subject goes out of my mind," he says. "I had no trouble writing biographies of Ronald Reagan and Beethoven in between these three [Roosevelt] volumes, and could start one tomorrow on [singer] Taylor Swift, if that cutie would permit me."
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Debt-Ceiling Hike to Test GOP
Continue reading…After the just-elected Republicans cast their largely symbolic votes next January to overturn Obamacare, they will face a real test of unity on an issue of immediate importance: Raising the debt ceiling or shutting down the government. The new and sharply conservative members aren't keen to raise the ceiling of government borrowing, but the leadership isn't eager to shut Washington down. Whispers hears that a deal is taking shape that would raise the ceiling in return for a cut in some program spending by up to 7 percent. Republican leaders haven't given the idea the green light yet, but a top aide says it's likely to be OK'd.
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Obama is the Top Presidential Traveler
Continue reading…He's only been in office for less than two years, but at the rate President Obama is flying Air Force One around the world, he is destined to become the most traveled president in history—and also the most costly, when it comes to travel expenses. [See photos of the Obamas behind the scenes.]
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Group Wants Hillary Clinton for President in 2012
Continue reading…Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says she done with running for president, but her fans aren't giving up so fast. A Facebook group called Hillary Clinton for 2012!! is organizing a meeting in Washington to talk about plans to coax her into the race. "Right now," says organizer and publicist Will Bower, "we are simply aiming to keep HRC's strongest supporters united for if and when that day comes when Hillary either challenges in 2012 and/or makes a run in 2016. And, of course, to rally as many people as possible to strongly encourage and petition her to do so— preferably the 2012 option.
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Florida's Senators Promote Seafood
Continue reading…They're sharks when it comes to politics. But Florida's Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson and Tea Party poster boy Republican Sen.-elect Marco Rubio say they'll swim together when it comes to promoting Florida's seafood industry. What's more, Nelson plans to take Rubio under his fin, er, wing. "You can see the chemistry. Whatever I can do to help him, of course I will. It's a mutual thing," Nelson told us at a celebrity chef event held this week to promote Florida seafood and show off the newest members of the state's congressional delegation. "It's important that two senators help each other and work together on projects that are of mutual interest to our state. I can sense that it will happen," says Nelson, proving that in Florida, fish are magical. More proof: Among those cooking was Gov. Charlie Crist's chef who says that after Crist's loss to Rubio, he served up a dish of stone crab and grouper that brought a smile to the governor's face.
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Tea Party Eyes 2012 Presidential Race in Iowa
Continue reading…Elements of the famously independent Tea Party movement are packing up their election-winning playbooks and moving to Iowa and other early 2012 presidential caucus and primary states. Their goal is to identify and energize supporters to pick Republican candidates that will appeal to the national movement, not just to small-state party regulars. "We are indeed preparing a full-scale ground game for Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, and Florida," says Eric Odom of Liberty.com and Americans for New Leadership, which played a big role in the Nevada Senate race. "This includes statewide conferences and events, traditional get-out-the-vote organizing, Tea Party organizing, advocacy campaigns, and pretty much everything we can do to help sway the outcome of the primary in these states," he adds.
