Democrats May Strip Weiner of Committee Seat
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on June 16th, 2011 4:38 am by HL
Democrats May Strip Weiner of Committee Seat
House Democratic leaders are likely to discuss the next steps in their response to the scandal surrounding Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) later today, “including potentially relieving the New York Democrat of his spot on a key committee in an effort to pressure him to resign,” the Washington Post reports.
“If Democratic leaders choose to act more forcefully to pressure Weiner to give up his seat, one available option is relieve Weiner of his spot on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees a broad range of issues, from consumer protection and the telecommunications industry to public health and the environment. Such a move would require the approval of the full House.”
Politico: “The renewed effort comes even as some of Weiner’s closest friends in the House are criticizing Democratic colleagues for piling on.”
Romney Solidifies Lead
A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll finds Mitt Romney way ahead of the other Republican presidential candidates with 30%, followed by Sarah Palin at 14%, Herman Cain at 12%, Rick Perry at 8%, Ron Paul at 7%, Newt Gingrich at 6%, Tim Pawlenty and Rick Santorum at 4% and Michele Bachmann at 3%.
Nonetheless, 45% said they would probably vote to re-elect President Obama, while 40% said they would choose a Republican. Against specific GOP contenders, the president’s lead widened with Obama beating Romney, 49% to 43%.
Presidential Losers
The Crystal Ball finds that 31 of 43 U.S. presidents had been defeated in elections at least once on their way to the White House.
“Remarkably, two presidents were defeated three times (William McKinley and George H.W. Bush), and four others lost four times (William Henry Harrison and his grandson, Benjamin Harrison, as well as one of our best presidents, Abraham Lincoln; and one of our worst, James Buchanan).”
“Of the 12 presidents who entered the White House with an undefeated electoral record, Gerald Ford is the most recent. Of course, he wasn’t elected president — or vice president, for that matter — and his victories consisted entirely of a string of U.S. House wins from 1948 to 1972 in his Grand Rapids, MI district. The last elected president who won every prior political contest was Woodrow Wilson. Of course, Wilson wasn’t a professional politician and had only run once before gaining the presidency, for governor of New Jersey in 1910. (Dwight Eisenhower isn’t included, since he never ran at all before his elevation to the White House.)”
Quote of the Day
“Look, Callista and I have a very similar relationship to Nancy and Ronnie Reagan. And people blame Nancy Reagan for things that Ronald Reagan did.”
— Newt Gingrich, in an interview on Fox News, on reports his wife didn’t get along with his now departed campaign staff.