How far has the Republican Party shifted rightward? So far that Bob Dole says he doubts he could make it in today’s GOP. And Dole says Ronald Reagan couldn’t have made it, either. There’s no question the GOP has moved far to the right in the 17 years since Dole was the party’s presidential nominee, but Reagan is still held up by the Republican rank and file as an icon. But Reagan was a practical leader who compromised with Democrats, something that’s a cardinal sin in today’s GOP.
President Obama is planning a bold move in the face of Republican obstruction: The New York Times reports the president will nominate three judges to the important D.C. Court of Appeals, which is often seen as a stepping stone to the U.S. Supreme Court. Republicans have often stymied this presidents judicial nominees, and by filling all three openings simultaneously, the president is adopting an aggressive strategy that may add fuel to the fire over judicial filibusters in the Senate.
President Obama’s shift on terror strategy is an attempt to set the rules for future administrations, as well as cement his own legacy. Still, Republicans criticized the president for his efforts to wind down the so-called ‘war on terrorism’; Sen. Lindsey Graham called the president ‘tone-deaf.”
The boys are back in town: President Obama and New Jersey governor Chris Christie will meet along the Jersey shore today. Their partnership after Hurricane Sandy was one of the enduring pictures of the 2012 presidential campaign, and Christie’s effusive praise of the president’s efforts angered some in his own party just days before the election.
Turns out some of the groups who applied for tax-exempt status actually engaged in the type of political activity prohibited by the terms of the 501(c)(4) laws.
Sen. John McCain traveled to Syria to meet with anti-Assad forces. He’s the first senator to do so. Politico looks at why the 2014 election may be the biggest threat facing Rep. Michele Bachmann. The Right to Vote: A pair of Democratic congressman want to enshrine the right to vote in the United States Constitution.
Hardball staff Recommended
