hotair--2020-02-18--"This guy is designated by the United States": Pompeo blasts Senate Dems over Zarif meeting

Did a delegation of Senate Democrats hold a secret meeting with Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif in Munich — and if they did , why ?
According to The Federalist ’ s Mollie Hemingway , French diplomats passed the word along during the security conference taking place in Germany .
Hemingway pointed out that the purported leader of the delegation , Sen. Chris Murphy ( D-CT ) , appears to have had a serious change of heart when it comes to Senate diplomacy and Iran : Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut and other Democratic senators had a secret meeting with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Munich Security Conference last week , according to a source briefed by the French delegation to the conference .
Murphy ’ s office did not respond to repeated requests for comment by press time .
Such a meeting would mean Murphy had done the type of secret coordination with foreign leaders to potentially undermine the U.S. government that he accused Trump officials of doing as they prepared for Trump ’ s administration .
In February 2017 , Murphy demanded investigations of National Security Advisor Mike Flynn because he had a phone call @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Any effort to undermine our nation ’ s foreign policy – even during a transition period – may be illegal and must be taken seriously , ” Murphy said in 2017 after anonymous leaks of Flynn ’ s phone call with Russian ambassador Sergey Kisylak were published .
He also strongly criticized the open letter some Republican senators sent Iranian leaders during the Obama administration ’ s campaign for a nuclear agreement .
This meeting has even greater electoral overtones — and perhaps motive — than the letter sent to the Iranians in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it was just business as usual : Er , no , Congress does not “ set foreign policy too , ” although they can certainly influence an administration in its direction .
Foreign policy is the prerogative of the executive , and the only constitutional role for Congress in it is to ratify treaties in the Senate .
Plus , as Hemingway points out , Murphy ’ s idea of normalcy seems to have evolved in the last five years when it comes to foreign-policy interventions .
Murphy also made clear in Munich @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as usual .
Murphy spoke at the conference to warn that Donald Trump might see a war with Iran as an “ electoral benefit , ” strongly suggesting that Murphy and his delegation were interfering in diplomacy for their own electoral benefit : “ I think many of us worry that as the election approaches , the president may also be interested in sort of rattling sabers , whether it ’ s in the Middle East or in other regions of the world , ” Murphy said at the Munich Security Conference .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ window closes for mediation [ between the U.S. and Iran ] the aperture may open for the president to act in provocative ways that may provide him electoral benefit , ” he added .
In other words , whatever Trump does might benefit him electorally — so Democrats want to block him from doing anything , which in our two-party system benefits them electorally .
If all Murphy did was show up to complain about this at the conference , that would be bad enough .
We ’ re long past the days @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s edge , but this is still a notable breach in protocol .
Murphy ’ s undermining official US policy to make an electoral argument far away from any actual voters in the upcoming election .
This is an argument — more of an insinuation , actually — best made on the stump or on the Sunday morning talk shows , not in Munich .
If Murphy really did meet with Zarif to interfere for Democrats ’ electoral benefit , then … wow .
We are also long past the Logan Act @ @ @ @ @ @ @ flog political opponents even though it ’ s unenforceable , but this is a particularly nasty example of its theoretical application .
Given that the Iranians have active anti-US militia operations in constant flow and that the Iranians have operated a terrorist state for the last 41 years under its present regime , unauthorized discussions by Senate Democrats with Zarif to gain an electoral advantage is about as cynical as it gets .
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made it very clear earlier today that any such meeting was entirely unauthorized — and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ designated by the United States , ” Pompeo said , referring to Zarif ’ s recent addition to official U.S. terrorism lists .
“ He ’ s the foreign minister for a country that shot down an airliner and has yet to turn over the black boxes , ” Pompeo continued , referencing Iran ’ s recent downing of a commercial airliner that killed all of those aboard .
“ This is the foreign minister of a country that killed an American on December 27 .
This is the foreign minister of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ largest state sponsor of terror and the world ’ s largest sponsor of anti-Semitism.
” “ If they met , ” he said of the Democratic senators .
“ I don ’ t know what they said .
I hope they were reinforcing America ’ s foreign policy , not their own.
” The Free Beacon ’ s Adam Kredo suggests that Murphy and his delegation intended to find a way to resurrect the Obama-era JCPOA .
That seems unlikely , however , if the State Department didn ’ t authorize the talks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ treaties or deals , which Zarif would certainly know .
It seems much more likely that it was a kind of Obama-esque “ we ’ ll have more flexibility after the election , so hang tight ” kind of discussion that would inevitably reduce whatever leverage that the White House might have gained over Iran .
Whatever the reason , Murphy and Senate Democrats have no business conducting unauthorized negotiations with hostile governments .
Pompeo is right to call them out for doing so .

Did a delegation of Senate Democrats hold a secret meeting with Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif in Munich — and if they did, why? According to The Federalist’s Mollie Hemingway, French diplomats passed the word along during the security conference taking place in Germany. Hemingway pointed out that the purported leader of the delegation, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), appears to have had a serious change of heart when it comes to Senate diplomacy and Iran:
Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut and other Democratic senators had a secret meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif during the Munich Security Conference last week, according to a source briefed by the French delegation to the conference. Murphy’s office did not respond to repeated requests for comment by press time. Such a meeting would mean Murphy had done the type of secret coordination with foreign leaders to potentially undermine the U.S. government that he accused Trump officials of doing as they prepared for Trump’s administration. In February 2017, Murphy demanded investigations of National Security Advisor Mike Flynn because he had a phone call with his counterpart-to-be in Russia. “Any effort to undermine our nation’s foreign policy – even during a transition period – may be illegal and must be taken seriously,” Murphy said in 2017 after anonymous leaks of Flynn’s phone call with Russian ambassador Sergey Kisylak were published. He also strongly criticized the open letter some Republican senators sent Iranian leaders during the Obama administration’s campaign for a nuclear agreement.
This meeting has even greater electoral overtones — and perhaps motive — than the letter sent to the Iranians in 2015. Murphy insisted this morning that it was just business as usual:
3/ Congress is a co-equal branch to the executive. We set foreign policy too. Many of us have met w Zarif over the years, under Obama and Trump. So though no one in Congress can negotiate with Zarif or carry official U.S. government messages, there is value in having a dialogue. — Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) February 18, 2020
Er, no, Congress does not “set foreign policy too,” although they can certainly influence an administration in its direction. Foreign policy is the prerogative of the executive, and the only constitutional role for Congress in it is to ratify treaties in the Senate. Plus, as Hemingway points out, Murphy’s idea of normalcy seems to have evolved in the last five years when it comes to foreign-policy interventions.
Murphy also made clear in Munich that his motive wasn’t business as usual. Murphy spoke at the conference to warn that Donald Trump might see a war with Iran as an “electoral benefit,” strongly suggesting that Murphy and his delegation were interfering in diplomacy for their own electoral benefit:
“I think many of us worry that as the election approaches, the president may also be interested in sort of rattling sabers, whether it’s in the Middle East or in other regions of the world,” Murphy said at the Munich Security Conference. “We certainly worry that while the window closes for mediation [between the U.S. and Iran] the aperture may open for the president to act in provocative ways that may provide him electoral benefit,” he added.
In other words, whatever Trump does might benefit him electorally — so Democrats want to block him from doing anything, which in our two-party system benefits them electorally.
If all Murphy did was show up to complain about this at the conference, that would be bad enough. We’re long past the days where domestic politics stopped at the water’s edge, but this is still a notable breach in protocol. Murphy’s undermining official US policy to make an electoral argument far away from any actual voters in the upcoming election. This is an argument — more of an insinuation, actually — best made on the stump or on the Sunday morning talk shows, not in Munich.
If Murphy really did meet with Zarif to interfere for Democrats’ electoral benefit, then … wow. We are also long past the Logan Act, a hoary statute pulled out to flog political opponents even though it’s unenforceable, but this is a particularly nasty example of its theoretical application. Given that the Iranians have active anti-US militia operations in constant flow and that the Iranians have operated a terrorist state for the last 41 years under its present regime, unauthorized discussions by Senate Democrats with Zarif to gain an electoral advantage is about as cynical as it gets.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made it very clear earlier today that any such meeting was entirely unauthorized — and flat-out despicable:
“This guy is designated by the United States,” Pompeo said, referring to Zarif’s recent addition to official U.S. terrorism lists. “He’s the foreign minister for a country that shot down an airliner and has yet to turn over the black boxes,” Pompeo continued, referencing Iran’s recent downing of a commercial airliner that killed all of those aboard. “This is the foreign minister of a country that killed an American on December 27. This is the foreign minister of a country that is the world’s largest state sponsor of terror and the world’s largest sponsor of anti-Semitism.” “If they met,” he said of the Democratic senators. “I don’t know what they said. I hope they were reinforcing America’s foreign policy, not their own.”
The Free Beacon’s Adam Kredo suggests that Murphy and his delegation intended to find a way to resurrect the Obama-era JCPOA. That seems unlikely, however, if the State Department didn’t authorize the talks. Congress has no authority to negotiate treaties or deals, which Zarif would certainly know. It seems much more likely that it was a kind of Obama-esque “we’ll have more flexibility after the election, so hang tight” kind of discussion that would inevitably reduce whatever leverage that the White House might have gained over Iran.
Whatever the reason, Murphy and Senate Democrats have no business conducting unauthorized negotiations with hostile governments. Pompeo is right to call them out for doing so.


hotair--2020-02-18--Bloomentum: Bloomberg now tied with Bernie for the lead in Virginia

I wonder if Bloomberg ’ s done the math yet on how much it would cost to start buying off actual voters instead of just Democratic staffers and party influencers .
Figure $ 100 in cash per vote .
All he ’ d need to do is identify , say , five million undecideds across the remaining primary states and that ’ s five million extra votes for him at a cost of half a bil .
Pocket change for Bloomy .
In the general election ?
Identify five million swing voters in the handful of battleground states that ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ payout to $ 1,000 each .
Is $ 5 billion too much to pay for the presidency for a man who ’ s worth $ 60 billion ?
Meh , I think Bernie ’ s going to beat him regardless .
But maybe not in Virginia : Among Virginia voters who are likely to participate in the Democratic primary on March 3 , support currently stands at 22 % for Bloomberg , 22 % for Sanders , and 18 % for Biden .
They are trailed by Pete Buttigieg ( 11 % ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and Elizabeth Warren ( 5 % ) .
Another 11 % of likely primary voters remain undecided and do not lean toward any candidate at this time .
The poll asked voters how they would vote in a hypothetical two-person race pitting Sanders against one of the more moderate candidates .
In these scenarios , Sanders edges past both Klobuchar ( 45 % to 42 % ) and Buttigieg ( 44 % to 42 % ) but comes out on the losing end against Bloomberg ( 41 % to 47 % ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden ( 38 % to 51 % ) … Virginia voters are looking for electability – 62 % say beating Trump is more important to their vote than lining up with a candidate on any policy issue .
Another 22 % say electability is as important as their top policy concern while just 14 % say it is less important than issue alignment .
Among those who say beating Trump is their top priority , 23 % support Biden , 23 % support Bloomberg , and 17 % support Sanders .
Among those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ priority , 31 % support Sanders and 21 % back Bloomberg .
The topline numbers show clearly how much Bernie is benefiting from the muddle in the middle , which has been made even worse by Bloomberg ’ s entry into the race .
Four years ago he was stomped in Virginia by Hillary , 64/35 , an unsurprising result given what a poor match the state was demographically for him at the time .
Virginia has a large black population ( 26 percent of the electorate in the 2016 primary ) and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 41 percent of the electorate in that contest made $ 100,000 or more ) .
He ’ s made inroads with black voters this year but the upper-middle-class is still a tough get for him given the sticker price for his agenda .
And yet he ’ s tied for the lead in today ’ s Monmouth poll even though the four “ moderate ” candidates — Biden , Bloomy , Buttigieg , and Klobuchar — combine for 60 percent ( ! )
of the vote .
They also draw a collective 52 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ second choice .
If Warren drops out before Super Tuesday , which is highly likely , and the four moderates dig in their heels and compete vigorously , it ’ s possible Sanders wins this state with 25 percent after losing it by nearly 30 points four years ago .
Even if he doesn ’ t win , the winner is likely to receive a relatively small share of delegates from Virginia due to the moderate muddle , making it that much harder to close any delegate gap nationally with Sanders .
Peek @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poll and you ’ ll see how Bloomberg is killing Biden among the constituencies he needs to win — and vice versa .
Bloomy actually leads among self-described “ moderate ” and “ conservative ” Democrats at 25 percent ( and is a surprising tie for second with Biden at 16 percent among self-identified “ liberals ” ) .
Among Joe ’ s base of senior citizens , it ’ s Bloomberg who leads , 32/20 , with Bernie far back at 10 percent .
On the other hand , in hypothetical head-to-head @ @ @ @ @ @ @ among black voters , 63/27 , whereas Bloomberg *trails* Sanders narrowly , 49/43 .
And among the $ 100,000+ cohort that you ’ d assume would lean Bloomberg , it ’ s actually Biden who ’ s ahead , 19/18 , with Bernie close behind at 16 percent .
However you slice and dice that data , the takeaway is clear : Either Biden or Bloomberg would be leading the state comfortably if not for the other ’ s presence and would be on their way to a blowout if Buttigieg and Klobuchar @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to wonder how many establishment Dems are quietly rooting for a Biden meltdown in his South Carolina “ firewall ” next week .
As risky as it would be to them to have Sanders sweep the four early states , the only way to resolve their collective action problem is to have the field clear ASAP behind Bloomberg .
Bloomy ’ s not leaving before Super Tuesday ; Biden might , and Mayor Pete and Amy might do poorly enough in Nevada and South Carolina to be nonfactors by March 3 even if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But maybe tomorrow night ’ s debate will rescue the Dems .
Sean Trende makes a good point here : Maybe Democratic voters have been flirting with Bloomberg , seduced by his ad campaign , but once they get a snoutful of attacks on him tomorrow the infatuation will begin to dim .
That ’ ll be good news for Biden — unless , as I say , he flames out in South Carolina and suddenly moderate Dems are in the worst of all worlds , with Joe damaged beyond repair and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ performance .
On top of that , as Trende notes elsewhere , some Super Tuesday states are already in the midst of early voting .
Which means that even if disaster befalls Biden or Bloomberg over the next 10 days and suddenly clarifies the moderate lane in the race , many votes for each will already be banked in key states .
Imagine Bloomberg losing Virginia narrowly to Sanders even after Biden has dropped out because a lot of Joe voters turned out to vote early in Virginia this year .
Hoo boy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to jump in sometime soon with an endorsement ?
Doesn ’ t sound like it , per this New York magazine piece .
Reportedly his team has assured Bernie ’ s that he won ’ t get involved in the primary .
Quote : “ Obama and those around him ‘ have a very clear understanding that if they put their finger on the scale right now , all of a sudden half of the Democratic Party hates him , ’ an influential Democrat who keeps in touch with Obama explained .
”

I wonder if Bloomberg’s done the math yet on how much it would cost to start buying off actual voters instead of just Democratic staffers and party influencers. Figure $100 in cash per vote. All he’d need to do is identify, say, five million undecideds across the remaining primary states and that’s five million extra votes for him at a cost of half a bil. Pocket change for Bloomy.
In the general election? Identify five million swing voters in the handful of battleground states that’ll decide the presidency and up the payout to $1,000 each. Is $5 billion too much to pay for the presidency for a man who’s worth $60 billion?
Meh, I think Bernie’s going to beat him regardless. But maybe not in Virginia:
Among Virginia voters who are likely to participate in the Democratic primary on March 3, support currently stands at 22% for Bloomberg, 22% for Sanders, and 18% for Biden. They are trailed by Pete Buttigieg (11%), Amy Klobuchar (9%), and Elizabeth Warren (5%). Another 11% of likely primary voters remain undecided and do not lean toward any candidate at this time. The poll asked voters how they would vote in a hypothetical two-person race pitting Sanders against one of the more moderate candidates. In these scenarios, Sanders edges past both Klobuchar (45% to 42%) and Buttigieg (44% to 42%) but comes out on the losing end against Bloomberg (41% to 47%) and by an even wider margin against Biden (38% to 51%)… Virginia voters are looking for electability – 62% say beating Trump is more important to their vote than lining up with a candidate on any policy issue. Another 22% say electability is as important as their top policy concern while just 14% say it is less important than issue alignment. Among those who say beating Trump is their top priority, 23% support Biden, 23% support Bloomberg, and 17% support Sanders. Among those who say it is not a top priority, 31% support Sanders and 21% back Bloomberg.
The topline numbers show clearly how much Bernie is benefiting from the muddle in the middle, which has been made even worse by Bloomberg’s entry into the race. Four years ago he was stomped in Virginia by Hillary, 64/35, an unsurprising result given what a poor match the state was demographically for him at the time. Virginia has a large black population (26 percent of the electorate in the 2016 primary) and a very large well-heeled suburban population (41 percent of the electorate in that contest made $100,000 or more). He’s made inroads with black voters this year but the upper-middle-class is still a tough get for him given the sticker price for his agenda. And yet he’s tied for the lead in today’s Monmouth poll even though the four “moderate” candidates — Biden, Bloomy, Buttigieg, and Klobuchar — combine for 60 percent(!) of the vote. They also draw a collective 52 percent of the vote as voters’ second choice.
If Warren drops out before Super Tuesday, which is highly likely, and the four moderates dig in their heels and compete vigorously, it’s possible Sanders wins this state with 25 percent after losing it by nearly 30 points four years ago. Even if he doesn’t win, the winner is likely to receive a relatively small share of delegates from Virginia due to the moderate muddle, making it that much harder to close any delegate gap nationally with Sanders.
Peek into the crosstabs of Monmouth’s poll and you’ll see how Bloomberg is killing Biden among the constituencies he needs to win — and vice versa. Bloomy actually leads among self-described “moderate” and “conservative” Democrats at 25 percent (and is a surprising tie for second with Biden at 16 percent among self-identified “liberals”). Among Joe’s base of senior citizens, it’s Bloomberg who leads, 32/20, with Bernie far back at 10 percent. On the other hand, in hypothetical head-to-head match-ups with Sanders, Biden crushes Bernie among black voters, 63/27, whereas Bloomberg *trails* Sanders narrowly, 49/43. And among the $100,000+ cohort that you’d assume would lean Bloomberg, it’s actually Biden who’s ahead, 19/18, with Bernie close behind at 16 percent.
However you slice and dice that data, the takeaway is clear: Either Biden or Bloomberg would be leading the state comfortably if not for the other’s presence and would be on their way to a blowout if Buttigieg and Klobuchar had already quit. Which leaves me to wonder how many establishment Dems are quietly rooting for a Biden meltdown in his South Carolina “firewall” next week. As risky as it would be to them to have Sanders sweep the four early states, the only way to resolve their collective action problem is to have the field clear ASAP behind Bloomberg. Bloomy’s not leaving before Super Tuesday; Biden might, and Mayor Pete and Amy might do poorly enough in Nevada and South Carolina to be nonfactors by March 3 even if they’re still in the race.
But maybe tomorrow night’s debate will rescue the Dems. Sean Trende makes a good point here:
There are two way to interpret this. The first is that Bloomberg has been able to spend his way up to a tie for first place. The other way is that Bloomberg has had the field completely to himself in these states for weeks, and has only spent his way up to a tie. https://t.co/DwEVeeYtql — Sean T at RCP (@SeanTrende) February 18, 2020
Maybe Democratic voters have been flirting with Bloomberg, seduced by his ad campaign, but once they get a snoutful of attacks on him tomorrow the infatuation will begin to dim. That’ll be good news for Biden — unless, as I say, he flames out in South Carolina and suddenly moderate Dems are in the worst of all worlds, with Joe damaged beyond repair and Bloomberg *also* damaged by his poor debate performance. On top of that, as Trende notes elsewhere, some Super Tuesday states are already in the midst of early voting. Which means that even if disaster befalls Biden or Bloomberg over the next 10 days and suddenly clarifies the moderate lane in the race, many votes for each will already be banked in key states. Imagine Bloomberg losing Virginia narrowly to Sanders even after Biden has dropped out because a lot of Joe voters turned out to vote early in Virginia this year. Hoo boy.
Exit question: Is Obama going to jump in sometime soon with an endorsement? Doesn’t sound like it, per this New York magazine piece. Reportedly his team has assured Bernie’s that he won’t get involved in the primary. Quote: “Obama and those around him ‘have a very clear understanding that if they put their finger on the scale right now, all of a sudden half of the Democratic Party hates him,’ an influential Democrat who keeps in touch with Obama explained.”


hotair--2020-02-18--It's on: Chamber of Commerce versus The Sunrise Movement in Texas

The Sunrise Movement is going all-in on 2020 congressional elections and three congressional races in Texas are squarely in its sights .
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce , in an unprecedented move , is taking on the climate alarmists .
Super Tuesday is right around the corner and early voting begins today in Texas .
The Sunrise Movement and their “ army of young people ” who fight climate change is shifting its focus from the presidential race to three congressional primaries in Texas on March 3 .
The top target is Rep. Henry Cuellar , a Democrat , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s favorite Democrat ” .
The hope is that a victory in Texas , the epicenter of the oil and gas industry , will build momentum for the Green New Deal .
The group has been promoting that fairy tale initiative for over two years .
The Sunrise Movement supports Bernie Sanders .
They saw some success in the early primary and caucuses , thanks to its organized efforts .
Sunrise Movement , the youth campaign behind the Green New Deal , called 25,000 Iowans and persuaded 7,000 to sign pledges to vote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ambitious plan for rapidly lowering planet-heating emissions along with guaranteeing federal jobs to displaced workers .
In New Hampshire , the group called 33,000 voters and racked up 12,000 pledges that it claimed delivered a win for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders .
The movement has not seen much in the way of success on the national level as they hold sit-ins and protests on Capitol Hill , though – even Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez admits that the Green New Deal is not a real piece of legislation but a blueprint , an exercise @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sunrise Movement has over 350 local chapters across the country .
The plan is to get all of them on board to make phone calls into Cuellar ’ s district in support of Jessica Cisneros , his far-left challenger .
Also on the agenda is phone calls in support of Heidi Sloan , a democratic socialist running on the Green New Deal who is challenging Rep. Roger Williams , a Republican .
Mike Siegel has their support in his primary race against Rep. Michael McCaul .
Cuellar ’ s district is the 28th @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Antonio to the Mexican border .
He has represented the district since 2005 .
His reputation is one of a moderate Democrat who works with Republicans – the very kind of Democrat that the AOC wing of socialists in Congress now wants to kick to the curb and replace with a new wave of far-left politicians .
You may remember that AOC herself was supported by Justice Democrats and unseated a longtime Democrat , a key member of Speaker Pelosi ’ s leadership team , Rep. Joe Crowley .
Cuellar has worked closely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as former Texas Gov .
Rick Perry ’ s secretary of state .
Cuellar often votes with Republicans for President Trump ’ s agenda and business-friendly groups are coming to his rescue .
Cuellar has voted in line with President Donald Trump ’ s policy positions nearly 45 % of the time since 2017 , and 69 % during the administration ’ s first two years , according to a FiveThirtyEight tally .
The League of Conservation Voters gave Cuellar a 42 % cumulative score on its ranking of lawmakers ’ pro-environmental votes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in cavalry of their own .
Oil and gas political action committees spent $ 116,000 on his campaign since 2019 , filings collected by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics show .
Nine electric utilities , most of whose business depends on fossil fuels , pitched in another $ 28,500 .
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is jumping in , too .
Liberal publications like HuffPo are snarky about that development .
The left likes to claim that the Chamber of Commerce “ funds climate misinformation campaigns ” .
The U.S. Chamber of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ donors but spent years funding climate misinformation campaigns , is already airing a 30-second ad in Spanish touting Cuellar ’ s record of passing the new U.S.-Mexico-China trade agreement and boosting auto manufacturing in the state .
The group told the Federal Election Commission in a filing that it planned to spend $ 200,000 on TV ads mentioning Cuellar .
A top U.S. Chamber of Commerce official publicly vowed to lock horns with Justice Democrats , the progressive group behind the campaign of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ( D-N.Y. ) , which has backed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for us , and we ’ re putting our money where our mouth is , ” Scott Reed , the U.S. Chamber ’ s senior political strategist , told The Texas Tribune this month .
“ It ’ s game on , Justice Democrats.
” Cueller ’ s district leans Democrat by 9 points according to the Cook Political Report .
He is a prime target because he is a business-friendly Democrat , not a Green New Deal socialist ready for The Revolution .
Cuellar ’ s spokesman in Texas is brushing off @ @ @ @ @ @ @ war .
Both Elizabeth Warren and Julian Castro have endorsed Cueller ’ s main opponent , Jessica Cisneros .
She is a 26-year-old human rights lawyer .
But Colin Strother , a Cuellar spokesman , said he ’ d never even heard of what he called “ that Sunshine thing.
” “ If they have a footprint in this district , it must be the size of a small rabbit , ” he said .
He accused Cisneros ’ s campaign of being a social media Potemkin village , where the nationwide eyeballs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Facebook posts don ’ t match the general disinterest on the ground in the district .
“ Our opponent ’ s entire campaign has been doing it for the ’ Gram , ” he said .
“ None of it ’ s been real , but they ’ ve made it look real.
” Strother also pointed out that Julian Castro is historically wrong in his choice of candidate endorsements – his preferred candidates lose .
It will be a surprise if Sunrise Movement and Justice Democrats are successful in the other two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Cuellar will defeat the far-left in his district race .
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce plans to spend $ 200,000 to help Cuellar .
Their activity in a primary race is unprecedented , which shows the importance this race may have .
The Sunrise Movement is going on to other states after Texas .
Heads up , Illinois and Ohio .

The Sunrise Movement is going all-in on 2020 congressional elections and three congressional races in Texas are squarely in its sights. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, in an unprecedented move, is taking on the climate alarmists.
Super Tuesday is right around the corner and early voting begins today in Texas. The Sunrise Movement and their “army of young people” who fight climate change is shifting its focus from the presidential race to three congressional primaries in Texas on March 3. The top target is Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Democrat, who they label as “Big Oil’s favorite Democrat”. The hope is that a victory in Texas, the epicenter of the oil and gas industry, will build momentum for the Green New Deal. The group has been promoting that fairy tale initiative for over two years.
The Sunrise Movement supports Bernie Sanders. They saw some success in the early primary and caucuses, thanks to its organized efforts.
Sunrise Movement, the youth campaign behind the Green New Deal, called 25,000 Iowans and persuaded 7,000 to sign pledges to vote for the candidate who advocated the most ambitious plan for rapidly lowering planet-heating emissions along with guaranteeing federal jobs to displaced workers. In New Hampshire, the group called 33,000 voters and racked up 12,000 pledges that it claimed delivered a win for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
The movement has not seen much in the way of success on the national level as they hold sit-ins and protests on Capitol Hill, though – even Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez admits that the Green New Deal is not a real piece of legislation but a blueprint, an exercise in putting aspirations on paper. The Sunrise Movement has over 350 local chapters across the country. The plan is to get all of them on board to make phone calls into Cuellar’s district in support of Jessica Cisneros, his far-left challenger. Also on the agenda is phone calls in support of Heidi Sloan, a democratic socialist running on the Green New Deal who is challenging Rep. Roger Williams, a Republican. Mike Siegel has their support in his primary race against Rep. Michael McCaul.
Cuellar’s district is the 28th Congressional District which stretches southwest from San Antonio to the Mexican border. He has represented the district since 2005. His reputation is one of a moderate Democrat who works with Republicans – the very kind of Democrat that the AOC wing of socialists in Congress now wants to kick to the curb and replace with a new wave of far-left politicians. You may remember that AOC herself was supported by Justice Democrats and unseated a longtime Democrat, a key member of Speaker Pelosi’s leadership team, Rep. Joe Crowley. Cuellar has worked closely with Republicans in Texas and once served as former Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s secretary of state. Cuellar often votes with Republicans for President Trump’s agenda and business-friendly groups are coming to his rescue.
Cuellar has voted in line with President Donald Trump’s policy positions nearly 45% of the time since 2017, and 69% during the administration’s first two years, according to a FiveThirtyEight tally. The League of Conservation Voters gave Cuellar a 42% cumulative score on its ranking of lawmakers’ pro-environmental votes. Cuellar’s allies are sending in cavalry of their own. Oil and gas political action committees spent $116,000 on his campaign since 2019, filings collected by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics show. Nine electric utilities, most of whose business depends on fossil fuels, pitched in another $28,500.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is jumping in, too. Liberal publications like HuffPo are snarky about that development. The left likes to claim that the Chamber of Commerce “funds climate misinformation campaigns”.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which does not disclose its donors but spent years funding climate misinformation campaigns, is already airing a 30-second ad in Spanish touting Cuellar’s record of passing the new U.S.-Mexico-China trade agreement and boosting auto manufacturing in the state. The group told the Federal Election Commission in a filing that it planned to spend $200,000 on TV ads mentioning Cuellar. A top U.S. Chamber of Commerce official publicly vowed to lock horns with Justice Democrats, the progressive group behind the campaign of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), which has backed Cisneros. “This is a first for us, and we’re putting our money where our mouth is,” Scott Reed, the U.S. Chamber’s senior political strategist, told The Texas Tribune this month. “It’s game on, Justice Democrats.”
Cueller’s district leans Democrat by 9 points according to the Cook Political Report. He is a prime target because he is a business-friendly Democrat, not a Green New Deal socialist ready for The Revolution. Cuellar’s spokesman in Texas is brushing off The Sunrise Movement’s declaration of war. Both Elizabeth Warren and Julian Castro have endorsed Cueller’s main opponent, Jessica Cisneros. She is a 26-year-old human rights lawyer.
But Colin Strother, a Cuellar spokesman, said he’d never even heard of what he called “that Sunshine thing.” “If they have a footprint in this district, it must be the size of a small rabbit,” he said. He accused Cisneros’s campaign of being a social media Potemkin village, where the nationwide eyeballs on the candidate’s Instagram and Facebook posts don’t match the general disinterest on the ground in the district. “Our opponent’s entire campaign has been doing it for the ’Gram,” he said. “None of it’s been real, but they’ve made it look real.”
Strother also pointed out that Julian Castro is historically wrong in his choice of candidate endorsements – his preferred candidates lose.
It will be a surprise if Sunrise Movement and Justice Democrats are successful in the other two races and I hold out hope that Cuellar will defeat the far-left in his district race. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce plans to spend $200,000 to help Cuellar. Their activity in a primary race is unprecedented, which shows the importance this race may have.
The Sunrise Movement is going on to other states after Texas. Heads up, Illinois and Ohio.


hotair--2020-02-18--Eugene Robinson is angry about Democrats "doing Trump's job for him"

Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson has a bone to pick with pretty much the entire field of Democratic presidential hopefuls this year .
Why , oh why , he wonders , must everyone be so meanspirited toward each other ?
In a rather questionable effort to convince his party that a house divided against itself can not stand , Robinson calls for the candidates to focus less on pointing out each other ’ s flaws and instead work on highlighting the distinctions between them that make them superior choices .
To do any less , he claims , is simply @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him .
In other words , can ’ t we all just get along ?
Somebody , eventually , is going to win the Democratic nomination .
If the candidates are sincere when they say this is the most important election of our lifetimes and ousting Trump must be the top priority — and I believe they are — then how does it make sense to generate so much fodder for Trump campaign ads in the fall ?
Look , I know that politics ain ’ t “ Kumbaya.
” It would be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of running for president without trying to win , and that means convincing voters you ’ re the best for the job .
There ’ s a difference , though , between making the most effective case for yourself and arguing that your opponents are so flawed as to be disqualified for office .
Rather than being nailed to the wall for something they did or said 20 years ago , the candidates need to be given time and space to evolve , just as the nation has evolved .
Were I looking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an impartial bystander , I might agree with the author , at least in general terms .
Completely tearing down your opponent with messy oppo research definitely provides ammunition for the eventual winner ’ s opponent in the general election .
But as the lengthy op-ed grinds on , Robinson strangely decides to do precisely what he ’ s accusing the candidates of by listing most of their perceived sins that are currently flooding the airwaves .
The reference above to things the candidates “ did or said 20 years ago ” is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rather than burying the past , Robinson immediately turns around and lists the ways that Mike ’ s opponents are digging up his past as a racist , sexist and Republican at heart ( with links to examples of each ! )
.
He then follows that up by saying “ all of which is basically true.
” It ’ s not hard to imagine Bloomberg reading this and not being terribly appreciative of all the “ help.
” Robinson similarly lists ( and links to ) Bernie Sanders ’ history of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vote cast in favor of an NRA-backed measure and the aggressive tactics of the Bernie Bros .
He brings up a dodgy conviction that Amy Klobuchar obtained back when she was a county prosecutor in Minnesota .
He refers to Joe Biden ’ s “ lack of sharpness ” ( to put it kindly ) and the mediocre nature of the campaign he ’ s run so far , along with reminding everyone that Uncle Joe helped write the crime bill that “ led to mass incarceration.
” Pete Buttigieg is described as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Black voters and has a tendency “ to lecture rather than speak from the heart.
” Not for nothing here , Eugene , but are you trying to throw these people a life preserver or an anchor ?
It ’ s also worth noting that Robinson ’ s concerns over civility and team-building seem to be somewhat situational .
I took a few minutes to Google some of his columns relating to the GOP primary in 2016 and ( try not to faint from shock ) I was unable to dig up a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over the Republicans tearing each other down .
In fact , he seemed to be rather enjoying the show , much as many conservatives are today while watching the Democrats rip each other to pieces .
And if we ’ re being honest , the last GOP primary got a lot nastier than what we ’ re seeing among the Democrats this year .
Primary fights tend to be blood feuds toward the end when the desperate second-tier candidates are struggling for one last chance at the brass ring .
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the party of the incumbent tends to just sit back , munch on some popcorn and enjoy the show .
When you compare this year ’ s Democratic primary to those of previous cycles , it really doesn ’ t strike me as all that different .

Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson has a bone to pick with pretty much the entire field of Democratic presidential hopefuls this year. Why, oh why, he wonders, must everyone be so meanspirited toward each other? In a rather questionable effort to convince his party that a house divided against itself cannot stand, Robinson calls for the candidates to focus less on pointing out each other’s flaws and instead work on highlighting the distinctions between them that make them superior choices. To do any less, he claims, is simply doing Donald Trump’s job for him. In other words, can’t we all just get along?
Somebody, eventually, is going to win the Democratic nomination. If the candidates are sincere when they say this is the most important election of our lifetimes and ousting Trump must be the top priority — and I believe they are — then how does it make sense to generate so much fodder for Trump campaign ads in the fall? Look, I know that politics ain’t “Kumbaya.” It would be insane to go through the grueling experience of running for president without trying to win, and that means convincing voters you’re the best for the job. There’s a difference, though, between making the most effective case for yourself and arguing that your opponents are so flawed as to be disqualified for office. Rather than being nailed to the wall for something they did or said 20 years ago, the candidates need to be given time and space to evolve, just as the nation has evolved.
Were I looking at this situation from the perspective of an impartial bystander, I might agree with the author, at least in general terms. Completely tearing down your opponent with messy oppo research definitely provides ammunition for the eventual winner’s opponent in the general election. But as the lengthy op-ed grinds on, Robinson strangely decides to do precisely what he’s accusing the candidates of by listing most of their perceived sins that are currently flooding the airwaves.
The reference above to things the candidates “did or said 20 years ago” is probably a reference to Bloomberg. But rather than burying the past, Robinson immediately turns around and lists the ways that Mike’s opponents are digging up his past as a racist, sexist and Republican at heart (with links to examples of each!). He then follows that up by saying “all of which is basically true.” It’s not hard to imagine Bloomberg reading this and not being terribly appreciative of all the “help.”
Robinson similarly lists (and links to) Bernie Sanders’ history of a trip to the Soviet Union, a vote cast in favor of an NRA-backed measure and the aggressive tactics of the Bernie Bros. He brings up a dodgy conviction that Amy Klobuchar obtained back when she was a county prosecutor in Minnesota. He refers to Joe Biden’s “lack of sharpness” (to put it kindly) and the mediocre nature of the campaign he’s run so far, along with reminding everyone that Uncle Joe helped write the crime bill that “led to mass incarceration.”
Pete Buttigieg is described as someone who can’t connect with Black voters and has a tendency “to lecture rather than speak from the heart.” Not for nothing here, Eugene, but are you trying to throw these people a life preserver or an anchor?
It’s also worth noting that Robinson’s concerns over civility and team-building seem to be somewhat situational. I took a few minutes to Google some of his columns relating to the GOP primary in 2016 and (try not to faint from shock) I was unable to dig up a single essay where he expressed similar concerns over the Republicans tearing each other down. In fact, he seemed to be rather enjoying the show, much as many conservatives are today while watching the Democrats rip each other to pieces. And if we’re being honest, the last GOP primary got a lot nastier than what we’re seeing among the Democrats this year.
Primary fights tend to be blood feuds toward the end when the desperate second-tier candidates are struggling for one last chance at the brass ring. It’s the nature of the beast. And the party of the incumbent tends to just sit back, munch on some popcorn and enjoy the show. When you compare this year’s Democratic primary to those of previous cycles, it really doesn’t strike me as all that different.


hotair--2020-02-18--Too dumb to check: Did Bernie Bros brawl over a "Black Guns Matter" T-shirt?

It ’ s not much of a brawl , but it ’ s a bit more than the slapfight you ’ d imagine .
At a Bernie Sanders rally on Sunday in Colorado — a Super Tuesday primary state — two men got into a wrestling match near the media riser covering Sanders ’ speech .
The local CBS affiliate caught the action , but didn ’ t capture what started the fight .
Yesterday , the mystery cleared up … somewhat .
Both men came forward to claim that they were the victim and accused the other of starting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on one thing .
The brawl began because one of the men wore a “ Black Guns Matter ” T-shirt to the rally , which prompted an argument over its “ racist ” message .
The man who wore the T-shirt told CBS that he himself is African-American : A fight broke out in the middle of the Bernie Sanders rally on Sunday evening at the Colorado Convention Center .
The Democratic presidential candidate rallied thousands of supporters in Denver in a campaign stop before the March 3 Colorado primary .
… It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s crew what the two men were fighting about , but someone contacted CBS4 on Monday by phone and said he is a Sanders supporter and one of the people involved .
He said his name is Tyler and that a person with a T-shirt on that read “ Black Guns Matter ” was with two other men and they were booing during the speech .
When Tyler tried to capture video of the booing on his phone ’ s camera , the man shoved him through the barrier .
Tyler then @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was captured by CBS4 ’ s camera .
Another video provided to CBS4 by an anonymous viewer shows the moments leading up to the brawl .
It allegedly shows Tyler , in a jeans jackets , and another man arguing about the man ’ s shirt .
That man with the “ Black Guns Matter ” shirt also contacted CBS4 , although anonymously .
He called Tyler the aggressor and said he is African American .
“ He had a problem with the shirt I was wearing , ” this man said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ he walks up and calls me a racist .
But I thought , ‘ What ’ s he know about black lives , about discrimination , or , for that matter , the representation of the shirt.
’ ” Throughout American history , the man continued , “ Black people and their ability to own firearms has historically been very restricted .
The shirt I got from a conceal-carry class.
” The CBS affiliate has an additional video which makes the conflict more clear , taken by a close bystander with a cell @ @ @ @ @ @ @ embeddable ; someone else has uploaded it to YouTube but not terribly well , thanks to the way they converted it from portrait to landscape mode .
The embed below has the audio , but check the video out on the CBS page to get a clearer look : This video tends to corroborate that “ Tyler ” instigated the fight rather than the anonymous wearer of the T-shirt , who insists that he wasn ’ t a provocateur .
He supports Sanders for president but disagrees with him on gun control .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ NRA gun-rights advocate Maj Toure , examples of which can be seen ( and purchased ) here .
Another or Maj Toure ’ s t-shirt models sports the message “ All Gun Control is Racist , ” which might make “ Tyler ’ s ” head explode .
For those hoping to see the violence inherent in the BernieBro system , it ’ s not all that satisfying .
For those expecting to see the foolishness exhibited by the extremes and the lack of self-control therein , though , this is *chef ’ @ @ @ @

It’s not much of a brawl, but it’s a bit more than the slapfight you’d imagine. At a Bernie Sanders rally on Sunday in Colorado — a Super Tuesday primary state — two men got into a wrestling match near the media riser covering Sanders’ speech. The local CBS affiliate caught the action, but didn’t capture what started the fight.
Yesterday, the mystery cleared up … somewhat. Both men came forward to claim that they were the victim and accused the other of starting the fight, but they did agree on one thing. The brawl began because one of the men wore a “Black Guns Matter” T-shirt to the rally, which prompted an argument over its “racist” message. The man who wore the T-shirt told CBS that he himself is African-American:
A fight broke out in the middle of the Bernie Sanders rally on Sunday evening at the Colorado Convention Center. The Democratic presidential candidate rallied thousands of supporters in Denver in a campaign stop before the March 3 Colorado primary. … It wasn’t immediately clear to CBS4’s crew what the two men were fighting about, but someone contacted CBS4 on Monday by phone and said he is a Sanders supporter and one of the people involved. He said his name is Tyler and that a person with a T-shirt on that read “Black Guns Matter” was with two other men and they were booing during the speech. When Tyler tried to capture video of the booing on his phone’s camera, the man shoved him through the barrier. Tyler then retaliated. It was that action which was captured by CBS4’s camera. Another video provided to CBS4 by an anonymous viewer shows the moments leading up to the brawl. It allegedly shows Tyler, in a jeans jackets, and another man arguing about the man’s shirt. That man with the “Black Guns Matter” shirt also contacted CBS4, although anonymously. He called Tyler the aggressor and said he is African American. “He had a problem with the shirt I was wearing,” this man said. “I was recording the event, he walks up and calls me a racist. But I thought, ‘What’s he know about black lives, about discrimination, or, for that matter, the representation of the shirt.’” Throughout American history, the man continued, “Black people and their ability to own firearms has historically been very restricted. The shirt I got from a conceal-carry class.”
The CBS affiliate has an additional video which makes the conflict more clear, taken by a close bystander with a cell phone. Unfortunately it’s not embeddable; someone else has uploaded it to YouTube but not terribly well, thanks to the way they converted it from portrait to landscape mode. The embed below has the audio, but check the video out on the CBS page to get a clearer look:
This video tends to corroborate that “Tyler” instigated the fight rather than the anonymous wearer of the T-shirt, who insists that he wasn’t a provocateur. He supports Sanders for president but disagrees with him on gun control. The T-shirt looks like those promoted by NRA gun-rights advocate Maj Toure, examples of which can be seen (and purchased) here. Another or Maj Toure’s t-shirt models sports the message “All Gun Control is Racist,” which might make “Tyler’s” head explode.
For those hoping to see the violence inherent in the BernieBro system, it’s not all that satisfying. For those expecting to see the foolishness exhibited by the extremes and the lack of self-control therein, though, this is *chef’s kiss* perfection.


hotair--2020-02-18--California allows more election meddling

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new bill into law this month that changes the way voters can register their party affiliation for primary elections .
Under this new measure , residents of the Golden State will be able to change parties at any time during the final two weeks before the vote , including on the day of the election .
The stated purpose of this law is to boost election turnout , but what it will really do is make it easy for “ Operation Chaos ” maneuvers to crop up in congressional races around the state .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ governor signed a bill last week that allows state residents to switch their party affiliation on election day , a change expected to increase primary election participation .
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Gov .
Gavin Newsom ( D ) signed the bill Thursday , allowing voters to fill out a short form at any point in the last two weeks before an election including the day itself declaring their party affiliation .
The bill ensures that a resident may vote in their intended party ’ s primary even if they miss @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their application is accepted by county officials .
Describing this as a method of increasing voter turnout seems deceptive at best .
In addition to motor voter , California already had same-day registration , allowing people to cast provisional ballots if they forgot to register earlier .
There was no barrier to any legal resident ( and in some cases , illegal ones ) being able to show up at their precinct and vote .
This change doesn ’ t promise much impact on statewide races since Democrats generally win all of them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up doing is allowing voters in swing districts to register to vote in the other party ’ s primary and then switch back to their own party for the general election .
Imagine a scenario where a Democratic incumbent in Congress is facing a potentially tight race .
If there is a less popular or problematic Republican running in the primary as a dark horse candidate and the Democrat doesn ’ t have a viable primary challenger , hordes of Democrats could switch parties on election day and vote for the Republican least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
( The same scenario works with the parties reversed . )
That ’ s one of the factors that make the entire party registration process messy .
In some other states , like New York , you can fill out a form to change your party affiliation whenever you like , but the change doesn ’ t take effect until after the next general election .
That type of system at least cuts down on potential mischief .
If you don ’ t want to bother registering with a party and participating @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get a say in their rules or who their nominees are ?
On top of all that , did California really need to complicate their voter registration process even further ?
We previously learned that in 2018 the state wound up improperly registering nearly 25,000 people through the motor voter system , with most of them being non-citizens .
Now they ’ re inviting people to start mixing and matching the state party rolls at the drop of a hat .
What could possibly go wrong ?

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new bill into law this month that changes the way voters can register their party affiliation for primary elections. Under this new measure, residents of the Golden State will be able to change parties at any time during the final two weeks before the vote, including on the day of the election. The stated purpose of this law is to boost election turnout, but what it will really do is make it easy for “Operation Chaos” maneuvers to crop up in congressional races around the state. (The Hill)
California’s governor signed a bill last week that allows state residents to switch their party affiliation on election day, a change expected to increase primary election participation. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed the bill Thursday, allowing voters to fill out a short form at any point in the last two weeks before an election including the day itself declaring their party affiliation. The bill ensures that a resident may vote in their intended party’s primary even if they miss the official registration deadline, presuming that their application is accepted by county officials.
Describing this as a method of increasing voter turnout seems deceptive at best. In addition to motor voter, California already had same-day registration, allowing people to cast provisional ballots if they forgot to register earlier. There was no barrier to any legal resident (and in some cases, illegal ones) being able to show up at their precinct and vote.
This change doesn’t promise much impact on statewide races since Democrats generally win all of them anyway. But what it could wind up doing is allowing voters in swing districts to register to vote in the other party’s primary and then switch back to their own party for the general election. Imagine a scenario where a Democratic incumbent in Congress is facing a potentially tight race. If there is a less popular or problematic Republican running in the primary as a dark horse candidate and the Democrat doesn’t have a viable primary challenger, hordes of Democrats could switch parties on election day and vote for the Republican least likely to win in the general election. (The same scenario works with the parties reversed.)
That’s one of the factors that make the entire party registration process messy. In some other states, like New York, you can fill out a form to change your party affiliation whenever you like, but the change doesn’t take effect until after the next general election. That type of system at least cuts down on potential mischief. If you don’t want to bother registering with a party and participating in their efforts, why should you get a say in their rules or who their nominees are?
On top of all that, did California really need to complicate their voter registration process even further? We previously learned that in 2018 the state wound up improperly registering nearly 25,000 people through the motor voter system, with most of them being non-citizens. Now they’re inviting people to start mixing and matching the state party rolls at the drop of a hat. What could possibly go wrong?


hotair--2020-02-18--Bloomberg makes it in for Nevada debate

Bloomberg makes it in for Nevada debate

When we looked at the new DNC debate qualification rules yesterday , the only outstanding question was whether Michael Bloomberg would get the last poll he needed to make it onto the stage or if we ’ d just wind up with the same five candidates we saw last time .
That question was answered last night when a new Marist poll saw Mayor “ Throw Them Up Against the Wall ” surging to 19 percent nationally , pulling into second place behind Bernie Sanders .
That was the fourth poll in the past month showing Bloomberg in double digits @ @ @ @ @ @ @ since the donor requirements have been dropped .
Former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York has qualified for Wednesday ’ s debate in Las Vegas , the first time the billionaire will appear onstage alongside his Democratic presidential rivals .
A national poll from NPR , PBS NewsHour and Marist released on Tuesday showed Mr. Bloomberg with 19 percent support among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents , putting him in second place behind Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont , who had 31 percent .
That was a substantial surge since the group ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bloomberg received only 4 percent support… The debate , which will air on Wednesday at 9 p.m. Eastern time , will be hosted by NBC News , MSNBC and The Nevada Independent .
It ’ s kind of hard to write this one off as an outlier ( unlike that weird poll showing Steyer leading in Nevada with Klobuchar in second ) .
Marist is well established and the sample size in this one was fairly robust .
Here ’ s one odd factor to consider .
Bloomberg may be on the stage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t even been campaigning in that state .
In fact , until just this week he wasn ’ t even running any ads there .
And the new ads are only targeting the Reno market because it crosses over into part of California .
We should keep in mind the old rule about retail politicking in caucus states .
You know… if you don ’ t go and personally shake everybody ’ s hand at least twice there ’ s no way they ’ re going to vote for you .
So just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t likely to give Mike a leg up in the caucus .
Nationally , Bloomberg is breaking all sorts of rules it seems .
He shouldn ’ t be doing well with minority voters , given his reputation as Mr. Stop and Frisk .
And yet when you look into the crosstabs on this poll , he pulls a very respectable 19 % of the non-white vote , including 16 % among African-Americans .
( He still trails both Sanders and Biden in both categories , but those are surprisingly solid numbers .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the self-described “ moderate ” Democrats and independents .
In that Demographic he ’ s getting 29 % support .
But he doesn ’ t appear to be drawing from Biden ’ s pool of moderate voters because he ’ s still ringing up 23 % .
Bloomberg looks to have primarily sucked all the life out of Buttigieg ’ s campaign because Mayor Pete is only registering 8 % with moderates and 7 % with progressives .
While this is probably generating a lot of excitement among Bloomberg fans ( since @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such people now exist ) , it ’ s worth noting that this is only one poll and Bloomberg is still trailing Sanders by a wide margin .
( Bernie has a twelve-point lead over him . )
And second place doesn ’ t get you much more than a consolation trophy , though it would likely generate enough heat for him to end up qualifying for the South Carolina debate .
And in the Nevada debate , the other candidates will undoubtedly be going after Mike ’ s record on racist and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
After the dust settles from that show we ’ ll find out of the Bloomberg boomlet has any legs to it .
I ’ ll personally be shocked if it does .

When we looked at the new DNC debate qualification rules yesterday, the only outstanding question was whether Michael Bloomberg would get the last poll he needed to make it onto the stage or if we’d just wind up with the same five candidates we saw last time. That question was answered last night when a new Marist poll saw Mayor “Throw Them Up Against the Wall” surging to 19 percent nationally, pulling into second place behind Bernie Sanders. That was the fourth poll in the past month showing Bloomberg in double digits, leading to the Nevada debate invitation since the donor requirements have been dropped.
Former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York has qualified for Wednesday’s debate in Las Vegas, the first time the billionaire will appear onstage alongside his Democratic presidential rivals. A national poll from NPR, PBS NewsHour and Marist released on Tuesday showed Mr. Bloomberg with 19 percent support among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents, putting him in second place behind Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who had 31 percent. That was a substantial surge since the group’s poll in December, when Mr. Bloomberg received only 4 percent support… The debate, which will air on Wednesday at 9 p.m. Eastern time, will be hosted by NBC News, MSNBC and The Nevada Independent.
It’s kind of hard to write this one off as an outlier (unlike that weird poll showing Steyer leading in Nevada with Klobuchar in second). Marist is well established and the sample size in this one was fairly robust.
Here’s one odd factor to consider. Bloomberg may be on the stage in Nevada, but he hasn’t even been campaigning in that state. In fact, until just this week he wasn’t even running any ads there. And the new ads are only targeting the Reno market because it crosses over into part of California. We should keep in mind the old rule about retail politicking in caucus states. You know… if you don’t go and personally shake everybody’s hand at least twice there’s no way they’re going to vote for you. So just showing up for the debate isn’t likely to give Mike a leg up in the caucus.
Nationally, Bloomberg is breaking all sorts of rules it seems. He shouldn’t be doing well with minority voters, given his reputation as Mr. Stop and Frisk. And yet when you look into the crosstabs on this poll, he pulls a very respectable 19% of the non-white vote, including 16% among African-Americans. (He still trails both Sanders and Biden in both categories, but those are surprisingly solid numbers.)
Where Bloomberg really cleans up is with the self-described “moderate” Democrats and independents. In that Demographic he’s getting 29% support. But he doesn’t appear to be drawing from Biden’s pool of moderate voters because he’s still ringing up 23%. Bloomberg looks to have primarily sucked all the life out of Buttigieg’s campaign because Mayor Pete is only registering 8% with moderates and 7% with progressives.
While this is probably generating a lot of excitement among Bloomberg fans (since I guess we’re assuming that such people now exist), it’s worth noting that this is only one poll and Bloomberg is still trailing Sanders by a wide margin. (Bernie has a twelve-point lead over him.) And second place doesn’t get you much more than a consolation trophy, though it would likely generate enough heat for him to end up qualifying for the South Carolina debate. And in the Nevada debate, the other candidates will undoubtedly be going after Mike’s record on racist and sexist comments for half of the evening. After the dust settles from that show we’ll find out of the Bloomberg boomlet has any legs to it. I’ll personally be shocked if it does.


hotair--2020-02-18--Cher endorses Biden on Twitter: "Don't give up Joe"

Cher has delivered her all-important aging boomer pop singer and actress endorsement to Joe Biden .
Her show of support for the old guy was shown in a tweet , as happens in 2020 .
Her lack of proper punctuation can give her tweets an unfortunate meaning .
So , it is on-brand for Cher to tweet support for Biden while the tweet ’ s punctuation doesn ’ t quite nail the landing .
Several days ago , her tweets about the need for using her head , not her heart in choosing a candidate began .
Above all else @ @ @ @ @ @ @ President Trump on Election Day as the top priority when choosing a candidate .
That message seems to have sunk in with Cher .
She even re-tweeted a link to James Carville ’ s scolding to his party on their embrace of socialist candidates ( Bernie Sanders ) and included a quote , “ THERE ’ S ONLY WINNING ” .
She frequently uses capital letters randomly in tweets .
So , she ’ s willing to be practical instead of emotional in her choice of candidate .
She doesn ’ t think @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who can beat Trump .
She tweets to describe what voters must look for – the usual litany of requirements follows .
Does Joe Biden ’ s record scream “ MAGNETIC , LEADER TO BRING US TOGETHER , WITH IMPECCABLE-BACKGROUND ” ?
No , of course not .
Joe Biden is so subdued on the campaign trail that President Trump refers to him as Sleepy Joe .
The troubling whiff of corruption surrounding Hunter Biden and Joe Biden in the Burisma scandal , along with the emerging story of the same kind of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do not give good old Joe an “ impeccable ” background .
The Biden family ’ s swampiness reeks .
Yet , Cher persists .
She points out what a terrible candidate he truly is while sounding resigned to support him .
Then Monday she tweeted out a little pep talk for Biden .
She tells him she forgot for a minute how great he is and she has his back .
“ Don ’ t give up Joe ” .
Welp .
If she had tweeted , “ Don ’ t give @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been clearer than reading as though the Democrats in general shouldn ’ t give up on Joe ’ s candidacy .
Maybe it ’ s just me .
She ends her stream of conscious tweeting about Joe by saying he ’ s smart , honest , and “ civil ” who won ’ t “ Have 2 Learn On The Job.
” Ok , boomer .
Bless her heart .
She ’ s a smidge younger than Uncle Joe , at the age of 73 , but she wants to let him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for the job .
She believes in life after love with candidates , if you will pardon the pun .
I ’ ve got you , babe .
As the far-left spoke up and criticized Cher for her choice of candidates , she took a swing at Bloomberg to appease them .
It ’ s interesting that Cher almost excuses her choice by claiming to be a neophyte in politics and that she “ studies everything ” .
Cher is one of the charter members of the Hollywood chapter of The Resistance .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ again on social media .
There is no indication that an end is in sight .
Joe Biden is pleased with her endorsement .
Lord knows he can use all the help he can get at this point .
I don ’ t think Cher needs Joe ’ s help as an opening act , though .
It ’ s the other way around – he could use her help to open up a last-minute rally in Nevada since she ’ ll be in Vegas with her “ Here We Go Again Tour @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Back Time ” would be a good choice .
I ’ m a fan of Cher ’ s music .
I have a vivid childhood memory of my parents taking me and my sister to see her and Sonny perform in a dinner club in New Orleans , back in their early days .
Her politics , though , leave me cold .
At least Sonny was a Republican .

Cher has delivered her all-important aging boomer pop singer and actress endorsement to Joe Biden. Her show of support for the old guy was shown in a tweet, as happens in 2020. Her lack of proper punctuation can give her tweets an unfortunate meaning. So, it is on-brand for Cher to tweet support for Biden while the tweet’s punctuation doesn’t quite nail the landing.
Several days ago, her tweets about the need for using her head, not her heart in choosing a candidate began. Above all else, Democrats hold the ability to beat President Trump on Election Day as the top priority when choosing a candidate. That message seems to have sunk in with Cher. She even re-tweeted a link to James Carville’s scolding to his party on their embrace of socialist candidates (Bernie Sanders) and included a quote, “THERE’S ONLY WINNING”. She frequently uses capital letters randomly in tweets.
this year i will vote with my head not my heart — Cher (@cher) February 11, 2020
So, she’s willing to be practical instead of emotional in her choice of candidate. She doesn’t think the current roster of candidates has anyone who can beat Trump. She tweets to describe what voters must look for – the usual litany of requirements follows.
Don’t Think Dems Running 4
PRES.Can Beat Trump.WE NEED DEM WITH STRONGEST CHANCE 2 WIN MAJORITY OF🇺🇸,& INSPIRE AMERICANS OF ALL COLORS,TO FIGHT
TO THE END,AS A FAMILY.WE NEED MAGNETIC,LEADER TO BRING US TOGETHER,WITH IMPECCABLE-BACKGROUND,
WHO CAN HIT GROUND RUNNING.we need🙏🏻 — Cher (@cher) February 15, 2020
Does Joe Biden’s record scream “MAGNETIC, LEADER TO BRING US TOGETHER, WITH IMPECCABLE-BACKGROUND”? No, of course not. Joe Biden is so subdued on the campaign trail that President Trump refers to him as Sleepy Joe. The troubling whiff of corruption surrounding Hunter Biden and Joe Biden in the Burisma scandal, along with the emerging story of the same kind of corruption with Hunter and China, certainly do not give good old Joe an “impeccable” background. The Biden family’s swampiness reeks. Yet, Cher persists. She points out what a terrible candidate he truly is while sounding resigned to support him.
Trust & Love In Candidate Is Heaven..BUT WE LIVE HERE🌎.
FOR ME ITS LESSER OF TWO EVILS.I LOVED JOE, BUT JOE
HAD MANY STRIKES AGAINST HIM. MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE..HES A GOOD, HONEST MAN WHO COULD BE PRES, BUT NOT RUN 4 PRES.
He Doesn’t Do Social Media,&
He’s Joe Warts & All. — Cher (@cher) February 15, 2020
Then Monday she tweeted out a little pep talk for Biden. She tells him she forgot for a minute how great he is and she has his back. “Don’t give up Joe”.
Good🍀Today &Everyday @JoeBiden .I 4Got 4 Min. What a Good,Wise,Kind Man You Are,But I WONT Turn My Back On You Now That You’re Struggling.Many Times In My Life Ppl Said,”Shes,Untalented, Too Old For Movies,Music,The Stage.Dont Give Up Joe.
“Your Head is Bloodied🩸,But Unbowed” — Cher (@cher) February 17, 2020
Welp. If she had tweeted, “Don’t give up, Joe” the tweet would have been clearer than reading as though the Democrats in general shouldn’t give up on Joe’s candidacy. Maybe it’s just me.
She ends her stream of conscious tweeting about Joe by saying he’s smart, honest, and “civil” who won’t “Have 2 Learn On The Job.” Ok, boomer.
This will Most Likely Be Unpopular,but Last Nite I Asked Myself,”Who, Would I Be,if I denied a Man I Know & Respect 4 a Shiny,New,Tech Savey BILLIONAIRE”.Joe’s Made Mistakes,like all of Us,but I Believe He Would Be Honest,Smart,”CIVIL”PRES.Who Doesn’t Have 2 Learn On The Job. — Cher (@cher) February 17, 2020
Bless her heart. She’s a smidge younger than Uncle Joe, at the age of 73, but she wants to let him know he’s not too old for the job. She believes in life after love with candidates, if you will pardon the pun. I’ve got you, babe. As the far-left spoke up and criticized Cher for her choice of candidates, she took a swing at Bloomberg to appease them.
In re-affirming her support for Biden, she also amplified her attack against Bloomberg with a not exactly subtle: “💸[What the f**k] 💰 is 💸 Bloomberg 💸”
It’s interesting that Cher almost excuses her choice by claiming to be a neophyte in politics and that she “studies everything”. Cher is one of the charter members of the Hollywood chapter of The Resistance. She has slammed Trump over and over again on social media. There is no indication that an end is in sight.
Joe Biden is pleased with her endorsement. Lord knows he can use all the help he can get at this point.
.@Cher — thanks for the kind words. I’m in Vegas this week. Let me know if you need an opener! https://t.co/zKKoyC10nU — Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) February 18, 2020
I don’t think Cher needs Joe’s help as an opening act, though. It’s the other way around – he could use her help to open up a last-minute rally in Nevada since she’ll be in Vegas with her “Here We Go Again Tour”. “If I Could Turn Back Time” would be a good choice.
I’m a fan of Cher’s music. I have a vivid childhood memory of my parents taking me and my sister to see her and Sonny perform in a dinner club in New Orleans, back in their early days. Her politics, though, leave me cold. At least Sonny was a Republican.


hotair--2020-02-18--Panic time for centrist Dems: Bernie now leads by 12 nationally

Panic time for centrist Dems: Bernie now leads by 12 nationally -- and leads Bloomberg head to head by 20

Rest assured , tomorrow night ’ s debate live thread will contain plenty of blather by yours truly hyping it as very important indeed to the outcome of the race .
It ’ s the first Bloomberg debate , right ?
And it ’ s coming at a moment when Buttigieg , Klobuchar , and Elizabeth Warren all need to make magic happen to keep their slim chances at the nomination alive .
Should be explosive !
But let ’ s not kid ourselves .
To all appearances , Sanders is going to be the nominee .
Even if you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the centrist candidates all find themselves tangled and hand one of them a one-on-one race with Bernie , there ’ s no strong evidence that Bernie would lose that race .
To the contrary , a YouGov poll last week claimed that he ’ d win handily against any opponent .
A new NBC/WSJ poll corroborates that finding , specifically with respect to Mike Bloomberg ( and Buttigieg ) : “ There is one clear and inescapable set of results : Bernie Sanders is the definitive [ Democratic ] front-runner , and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but instead his base with room to grow , ” said Democratic pollster Peter Hart , who conducted this survey with Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies… When the Democratic field is reduced is just Sanders and Bloomberg , the Vermont senator holds a 20-point national lead over the former New York City mayor , 57 percent to 37 percent .
And Sanders also holds a double-digit lead over Buttigieg in a hypothetical two-person race , 54 percent to 38 percent .
Overall it ’ s Sanders 27 , Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Buttigieg 13 , Klobuchar 7 .
A month ago Biden stood at 26 percent , just a point behind Bernie ; he ’ s crumbled thanks to Bloomberg and Buttigieg eating away at his centrist support , gaining five and six points over the same period , respectively .
Benjy Sarlin ’ s conclusion seems inescapable : Not just in this poll .
I wrote at length this morning about how the new numbers from Virginia show centrist Democrats murdering each other ’ s chances in a state that would otherwise be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against Bernie .
He lost Virginia to Hillary Clinton in a landslide in 2016 but he ’ s tied for the lead there with Bloomberg right now thanks to the 40-car pile-up at the top of the moderate lane .
It ’ s the same story in North Carolina per this new poll : Bloomy , Biden , and Buttigieg have 53 percent of the vote between them but right now Sanders , who lost North Carolina to Clinton by 14 points four years ago , is right in the thick of it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drops out before NC votes on March 15 , odds are decent that the centrist frontrunner will continue to bleed some delegates to lower-polling rivals , making it that much harder to catch up to Sanders in the race to the convention .
Just to make this even more painful for establishment Democrats , both Biden and Bloomberg do better head-to-head nationally against Trump in NBC ’ s new poll than Sanders does .
Buttigieg does basically just as well as Bernie , with each leading Trump by four points .
Democratic voters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ candidate like Bernie even though they seem pretty comfortable with the actual Bernie given his healthy favorable rating across various surveys : By comparison , just 41 percent say they ’ re very uncomfortable with a candidate who spends hundreds of millions of dollars to fund his campaign .
This shouldn ’ t be as easy for Sanders as it ’ s shaping up to be , but the perfect storm seems inbound — two early-state wins with a third on the way on Saturday , Biden underperforming , Warren fading and ceding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ royal in the middle between Joe , Pete , Amy , and Mike .
Change any one of those variables and we ’ re probably chatting right now about whether Sanders will try to damage the frontrunner by going all the way to the convention or whether he ’ ll drop out early .
As it is , probably only Bloomberg has the financial wherewithal to hang with him in state after state , and as you can see in NBC ’ s results , there ’ s every reason to think Bloomy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Especially as the oppo on him keeps dropping .
BuzzFeed is out with a piece tonight noting something Bloomberg said last year about the Democrats ’ lurch to the left on identity issues like transgenderism : “ If your conversation during a presidential election is about some guy wearing a dress and whether he , she , or it can go to the locker room with their daughter , that ’ s not a winning formula for most people.
” That ’ s true , but the reference to “ it ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ opposition .
In lieu of an exit question , here ’ s Meghan McCain fighting with her co-hosts today over the lack of enticing options in the Democratic field , very much including Bloomberg .
“ You guys have done a piss-poor job of convincing me that I should vote for a Democrat .
”

Rest assured, tomorrow night’s debate live thread will contain plenty of blather by yours truly hyping it as very important indeed to the outcome of the race. It’s the first Bloomberg debate, right? And it’s coming at a moment when Buttigieg, Klobuchar, and Elizabeth Warren all need to make magic happen to keep their slim chances at the nomination alive. Should be explosive!
But let’s not kid ourselves. To all appearances, Sanders is going to be the nominee.
Even if you could cut the Gordian knot in which the centrist candidates all find themselves tangled and hand one of them a one-on-one race with Bernie, there’s no strong evidence that Bernie would lose that race. To the contrary, a YouGov poll last week claimed that he’d win handily against any opponent. A new NBC/WSJ poll corroborates that finding, specifically with respect to Mike Bloomberg (and Buttigieg):
“There is one clear and inescapable set of results: Bernie Sanders is the definitive [Democratic] front-runner, and the current numbers do not represent his ceiling, but instead his base with room to grow,” said Democratic pollster Peter Hart, who conducted this survey with Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies… When the Democratic field is reduced is just Sanders and Bloomberg, the Vermont senator holds a 20-point national lead over the former New York City mayor, 57 percent to 37 percent. And Sanders also holds a double-digit lead over Buttigieg in a hypothetical two-person race, 54 percent to 38 percent.
Overall it’s Sanders 27, Biden 15, Bloomberg 14, Warren 14, Buttigieg 13, Klobuchar 7. A month ago Biden stood at 26 percent, just a point behind Bernie; he’s crumbled thanks to Bloomberg and Buttigieg eating away at his centrist support, gaining five and six points over the same period, respectively. Benjy Sarlin’s conclusion seems inescapable:
The universe where Bloomberg spends $500 million to stop Sanders and accidentally divides the field and enables him to win the nomination even faster sure looks like the universe in this poll https://t.co/T7n4rLcpEQ — Benjy Sarlin (@BenjySarlin) February 18, 2020
Not just in this poll. I wrote at length this morning about how the new numbers from Virginia show centrist Democrats murdering each other’s chances in a state that would otherwise be a walkover win for any of them against Bernie. He lost Virginia to Hillary Clinton in a landslide in 2016 but he’s tied for the lead there with Bloomberg right now thanks to the 40-car pile-up at the top of the moderate lane. It’s the same story in North Carolina per this new poll:
WRAL/ Survery USA poll of 2020 D primary: Mike Bloomberg- 22
Bernie Sanders- 22
Joe Biden- 20
Pete Buttigieg- 11
Elizabeth Warren- 8
Amy Klobuchar- 5
Other- 2
Undecided- 11 N= 698 likely D voters, 2/13- 2/16, +/- 5.6 #ncpol @wsoctv — Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) February 18, 2020
Bloomy, Biden, and Buttigieg have 53 percent of the vote between them but right now Sanders, who lost North Carolina to Clinton by 14 points four years ago, is right in the thick of it. Even if one of those centrists drops out before NC votes on March 15, odds are decent that the centrist frontrunner will continue to bleed some delegates to lower-polling rivals, making it that much harder to catch up to Sanders in the race to the convention.
Just to make this even more painful for establishment Democrats, both Biden and Bloomberg do better head-to-head nationally against Trump in NBC’s new poll than Sanders does. Buttigieg does basically just as well as Bernie, with each leading Trump by four points. Democratic voters also have lots of misgivings about a candidate like Bernie even though they seem pretty comfortable with the actual Bernie given his healthy favorable rating across various surveys:
A combined 67 percent say they have reservations or are “very uncomfortable” with a candidate being a socialist. Fifty-seven percent have reservations/are very uncomfortable with someone who had a heart attack in the last year. Fifty-three percent have reservations/are very uncomfortable with someone who’s older than 75 years of age.
By comparison, just 41 percent say they’re very uncomfortable with a candidate who spends hundreds of millions of dollars to fund his campaign. This shouldn’t be as easy for Sanders as it’s shaping up to be, but the perfect storm seems inbound — two early-state wins with a third on the way on Saturday, Biden underperforming, Warren fading and ceding the progressive vote, and a battle royal in the middle between Joe, Pete, Amy, and Mike. Change any one of those variables and we’re probably chatting right now about whether Sanders will try to damage the frontrunner by going all the way to the convention or whether he’ll drop out early. As it is, probably only Bloomberg has the financial wherewithal to hang with him in state after state, and as you can see in NBC’s results, there’s every reason to think Bloomy will be finishing second if he does.
Especially as the oppo on him keeps dropping. BuzzFeed is out with a piece tonight noting something Bloomberg said last year about the Democrats’ lurch to the left on identity issues like transgenderism: “If your conversation during a presidential election is about some guy wearing a dress and whether he, she, or it can go to the locker room with their daughter, that’s not a winning formula for most people.” That’s true, but the reference to “it” will be noted and further encourage lefty opposition. In lieu of an exit question, here’s Meghan McCain fighting with her co-hosts today over the lack of enticing options in the Democratic field, very much including Bloomberg. “You guys have done a piss-poor job of convincing me that I should vote for a Democrat.”


hotair--2020-02-18--Team Bernie to MSNBC: You know who's been more fair <i>and balanced</i> to us, right?

It ’ s an epic troll from the Bernie Sanders campaign , but it ’ s also a bit of theater as they begin to develop some polling strength in the Democratic primary .
Team Bernie has stopped making much of a pretense about their feud with the most openly progressive major-media cable channel in the US , a feud based on what they claim is a coordinated campaign by the establishment to slow their path to the nomination .
Vanity Fair offers a profile of the victimization felt by the Sanders campaign , and it ’ s not just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ire , either : Team Bernie campaign manager Faiz Shakir has had enough , going public to vent his frustration with the channel some on his campaign are calling MSDNC .
Why , the establishmentarianism of the NBC affiliate channel is so bad that even Fox News gives them a fairer shake , Shakir claims .
Or at least a more honest one : Shakir credited CNN for making “ efforts to try and diversify their voices , ” citing the network ’ s hire of Alexandra Rojas , the executive director of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ veteran of the 2016 Sanders campaign .
Even Fox News has been “ more fair than MSNBC , ” according to Shakir .
“ That ’ s saying something , ” he said .
“ Fox is often yelling about Bernie Sanders ’ s socialism , but they ’ re still giving our campaign the opportunity to make our case in a fair manner , unlike MSNBC , which has credibility with the left and is constantly undermining the Bernie Sanders campaign.
” I ’ m fairly confident that Fox News won ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Socialists !
any time soon .
Fair and balanced works well enough , thank you very much .
At any rate ( and whether you believe it or not ) , they work as a foil to MSNBC just as much as MSNBC does for Fox .
Shakir ’ s praise of Fox will sting a lot more at MSNBC than his praise of CNN will .
So why is this theater ?
Because Team Sanders continues to engage MSNBC .
They just want the network to engage on their terms : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ case several times on MSNBC , sitting down with Rachel Maddow earlier in the race and appearing last week on Chris Hayes ’ s show .
His campaign surrogates get airtime too .
On the night before the Iowa caucuses , Sanders campaign cochair Nina Turner accused Michael Bloomberg of being an oligarch trying to buy his way into the election .
Johnson , the MSNBC contributor , disputed Turner ’ s characterization as “ dismissive ” and “ unfair.
” Vanity Fair also links back to a mid-summer piece at The Daily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t really new , and apparently not serious enough to cut off MSNBC and stick with Fox News .
The network has shrugged off these complaints as a campaign just “ working the refs , ” so to speak .
However , The Daily Beast also said that perhaps Sanders should consider going in that direction : A spokesperson for MSNBC seemed to dismiss the campaign ’ s claims , without mentioning Sanders by name .
“ A presidential campaign complaining about tough questions and commentary speaks for itself , ” the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ analysts are doing their jobs : discussing day-to-day developments that have an impact on the race.
” … For all the campaign ’ s gripes with the left-leaning news network , there ’ s early indication that his message is going over better with an ideologically opposite cable news network .
A recent Morning Consult poll found that Fox News viewers are more likely to support Sanders than those who prefer to watch MSNBC .
According to the survey , 22 percent of Fox News viewers who identified as possible Democratic primary voters @ @ @ @ @ @ @ opposed to 13 percent of MSNBC viewers .
That statistic was bolstered further by Sanders ’ ratings during his own town hall appearance on Fox News , where more than 2.5 million viewers tuned in to hear Sanders make his case , according to Nielsen data .
So Team Bernie ’ s throwing a brushback pitch here , a warning not to get too hostile when Sanders is picking up momentum .
Thanks to the DNC ’ s efforts to tilt the playing field in 2016 , Sanders supporters are already suspicious-bordering-on-paranoid of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are leveraging their outrage in this case to demand that MSNBC consider just how small their niche will be if the hard-progressive Left abandons them .
Not that there ’ s much chance of that , though ; it ’ s as rational a threat as MAGA Nation walking away from Fox News on the occasions where the network criticizes Trump .
Both camps have nowhere else to go , especially not to their ideological opposites .

It’s an epic troll from the Bernie Sanders campaign, but it’s also a bit of theater as they begin to develop some polling strength in the Democratic primary. Team Bernie has stopped making much of a pretense about their feud with the most openly progressive major-media cable channel in the US, a feud based on what they claim is a coordinated campaign by the establishment to slow their path to the nomination. Vanity Fair offers a profile of the victimization felt by the Sanders campaign, and it’s not just Chris Matthews who’s stoking their ire, either:
The anti-Bernie highlight reel grew in recent weeks, with some moments verging on parody. Joy Reid hosted a body-language expert who said Sanders’s posture revealed that he was “lying” about a recent dispute with Elizabeth Warren. Chris Matthews’s appearances, meanwhile, have become appointment viewing for his anguished warnings about Sanders. On the day of the Iowa caucuses, a glum Matthews invoked the ghost of George McGovern in forecasting a wipeout for Sanders in the general election. “Bernie Sanders is not going to be president of the United States, okay?” Matthews declared. Following the most recent debate in New Hampshire, Matthews breathlessly offered another history lesson. “I have my own views of the word socialist and I’d be glad to share them…They go back to the early 1950s. I have an attitude about them. I remember the Cold War,” Matthews said. “I have an attitude towards [Fidel] Castro. I believe if Castro and the Reds had won the Cold War there would have been executions in Central Park and I might have been one of the ones getting executed. And certain other people would be there cheering, okay?” Chuck Todd Lawrence O’Donnell While Matthews’s rant was mostly met with mockery, there was anger last week when quoted a story from a conservative publication on-air that described Sanders supporters as a “digital brown-shirt brigade,” prompting a condemnation from the Anti-Defamation League. (Todd will be one of five moderators at Wednesday’s debate.) And despite his newly minted status as the party’s national front-runner, Sanders has continued to face skepticism about his viability. The real story out of New Hampshire, said , was “how much ground [Sanders has] lost from four years ago,” when he won the state’s primary in a decidedly smaller field than this year. “I don’t understand how Bernie is considered a front-runner,” Todd said after Sanders’s primary win. Sanders supporters’ frustration spilled out on-air last week when a New Hampshire voter told host Ari Melber that she backed the Vermont senator in response to the “Stop-Bernie cynicism” on MSNBC, a clip the network later tweeted out to its nearly 3 million followers. “I watch MSNBC constantly, so I heard that from a number of commentators, and it made me angry enough, so I said, ‘Okay, Bernie’s got my vote,’” she told Melber.
WATCH: A New Hampshire voter tells @AriMelber why the "stop Bernie cynicism" from commentators on @MSNBC made her "angry enough" to vote for Senator Bernie Sanders. pic.twitter.com/h6Uk3fjQ4l — The Beat with Ari Melber on MSNBC 📺 (@TheBeatWithAri) February 11, 2020
Team Bernie campaign manager Faiz Shakir has had enough, going public to vent his frustration with the channel some on his campaign are calling MSDNC. Why, the establishmentarianism of the NBC affiliate channel is so bad that even Fox News gives them a fairer shake, Shakir claims. Or at least a more honest one:
Shakir credited CNN for making “efforts to try and diversify their voices,” citing the network’s hire of Alexandra Rojas, the executive director of the progressive organization Justice Democrats and a veteran of the 2016 Sanders campaign. Even Fox News has been “more fair than MSNBC,” according to Shakir. “That’s saying something,” he said. “Fox is often yelling about Bernie Sanders’s socialism, but they’re still giving our campaign the opportunity to make our case in a fair manner, unlike MSNBC, which has credibility with the left and is constantly undermining the Bernie Sanders campaign.”
I’m fairly confident that Fox News won’t be changing its motto to Fair to Socialists! any time soon. Fair and balanced works well enough, thank you very much. At any rate (and whether you believe it or not), they work as a foil to MSNBC just as much as MSNBC does for Fox. Shakir’s praise of Fox will sting a lot more at MSNBC than his praise of CNN will.
So why is this theater? Because Team Sanders continues to engage MSNBC. They just want the network to engage on their terms:
Still, Sanders has made his own case several times on MSNBC, sitting down with Rachel Maddow earlier in the race and appearing last week on Chris Hayes’s show. His campaign surrogates get airtime too. On the night before the Iowa caucuses, Sanders campaign cochair Nina Turner accused Michael Bloomberg of being an oligarch trying to buy his way into the election. Johnson, the MSNBC contributor, disputed Turner’s characterization as “dismissive” and “unfair.”
Vanity Fair also links back to a mid-summer piece at The Daily Beast, noting that these complaints aren’t really new, and apparently not serious enough to cut off MSNBC and stick with Fox News. The network has shrugged off these complaints as a campaign just “working the refs,” so to speak. However, The Daily Beast also said that perhaps Sanders should consider going in that direction:
A spokesperson for MSNBC seemed to dismiss the campaign’s claims, without mentioning Sanders by name. “A presidential campaign complaining about tough questions and commentary speaks for itself,” the spokesperson said. “Our anchors and analysts are doing their jobs: discussing day-to-day developments that have an impact on the race.” … For all the campaign’s gripes with the left-leaning news network, there’s early indication that his message is going over better with an ideologically opposite cable news network. A recent Morning Consult poll found that Fox News viewers are more likely to support Sanders than those who prefer to watch MSNBC. According to the survey, 22 percent of Fox News viewers who identified as possible Democratic primary voters said they would back Sanders, as opposed to 13 percent of MSNBC viewers. That statistic was bolstered further by Sanders’ ratings during his own town hall appearance on Fox News, where more than 2.5 million viewers tuned in to hear Sanders make his case, according to Nielsen data.
So Team Bernie’s throwing a brushback pitch here, a warning not to get too hostile when Sanders is picking up momentum. Thanks to the DNC’s efforts to tilt the playing field in 2016, Sanders supporters are already suspicious-bordering-on-paranoid of anything hinting at unfair treatment. They are leveraging their outrage in this case to demand that MSNBC consider just how small their niche will be if the hard-progressive Left abandons them. Not that there’s much chance of that, though; it’s as rational a threat as MAGA Nation walking away from Fox News on the occasions where the network criticizes Trump. Both camps have nowhere else to go, especially not to their ideological opposites.