| | March 6, 2015 | |
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No, the controversy over Hillary Clinton's use of personal emails during her time as secretary of state isn't going to hurt her with Democrats or spark a truly contested Democratic primary. (After all, Democrats' 2016 pickings beyond Clinton are quite slim.) And, no, the matter is unlikely to make her less of a viable general-election candidate. (If the Clintons are good at something, it's getting out of a jam.) But the controversy, we think, has created two lasting issues for her all-but-certain presidential campaign. One, it's already led to a new congressional Republican investigation, which could last for months. And here's the thing about fishing expeditions: You never know what you're going to catch. (Here's a video take from one of us on this very point.) Two, the episode has already revealed a pretty hostile relationship with the political press corps. Being a frontrunner means you get tough press, but there's a difference between getting tough press and getting NO benefit of the doubt from the media. And right now on this story, Clinton doesn't have the benefit of the doubt.
Obama returns to Selma
On Saturday, President Obama will travel to Selma, AL to participate in events marking the 50th anniversary of the bloody march there that helped lead to passage of the Voting Rights Act. USA Today reminds us of Obama's visit there when he was a candidate running for president in 2007. "Eight years ago, an up-and-coming black politician from Chicago talked about how he owed his career to bloodshed on a bridge in Selma, Ala. 'I'm here because somebody marched,' then-senator Barack Obama said in Selma that day. 'I'm here because you all sacrificed for me.' Now the first African-American president of the United States, Obama returns to Selma on Saturday along with thousands of others who have led very different lives because of what happened there 50 years ago." More: "Obama and others attending Selma events this weekend are expected to praise racial progress but also address many remaining challenges" -- including what happened in Ferguson, MO last summer.
John Lewis to appear on "Meet the Press"
Speaking of Selma, NBC's "Meet the Press" this Sunday will interview one of the heroes from the Selma march -- Rep. John Lewis (D-GA). Other guests will include Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), plus Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) and Curt Schilling on the coarsening of cultural and political rhetoric.
When a cattle call is actually almost a real cattle call
Saturday also brings us another 2016 GOP cattle call, and this time it's pretty much a literal cattle call - the 2015 Iowa Ag Summit, which is organized by agribusiness mega-donor Bruce Rastetter. As National Journal wrote last month: "Outside of Iowa, Rastetter is virtually unknown. But in the state, he is a major Republican power player whose own sway-combined with Iowa's influence in the race for the GOP nomination-is enough to convinces comers from all corners of the party to heed his call." By the way, this is Jeb Bush's first trip to Iowa since making his presidential ambitions known. Here is the list of scheduled speakers, per NBC's Dave Forman:
- 10:10 am ET: Chris Christie
- 10:45 am ET: Mike Huckabee
- 11:25 am ET: Jeb Bush
- Noon ET: Ted Cruz
- 12:30 pm ET: Rick Perry
- 2:05 pm ET: Lindsey Graham
- 2:40 pm ET: George Pataki
- 3:05 pm ET: Rick Santorum
- 3:40 pm ET: Scott Walker
(FYI: Marco Rubio is no longer attending due to a family wedding.)
Another strong jobs report: 295,000 jobs created in February, unemployment rate declines to 5.5%
Finally, the U.S. economy keeps truckin' along: 295,000 jobs were created in February, and the unemployment rate has declined to 5.5%.
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OBAMA AGENDA: Marking Selma
The New York Times reports on Republican plans to replace the health care law in the event of a Supreme Court ruling gutting subsidies. "A legislative scramble is underway. On Monday, Representatives Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, Fred Upton of Michigan and John Kline of Minnesota, the chairmen of the powerful committees that control health policy, proposed what they called an "off ramp" from the Obama health act that would let states opt out of the law's central requirements. On the other side of the Capitol, Senators John Barrasso of Wyoming, Lamar Alexander of Tennessee and Orrin G. Hatch of Utah, all Republicans, offered their own plan this week to provide temporary assistance to those who would lose their subsidies and new freedom to all states to redesign their health care marketplaces without the strictures and mandates of the health care law."
(But we'll believe it when we see actual legislation ....)
Obama, George W. Bush and almost 100 members of Congress will mark the Selma anniversary tomorrow.
As the Selma anniversary approaches, Meet the Press mined the archives for this appearance by Martin Luther King Jr. from right after the march.
Obama spoke about racial bias and the Ferguson police department in an radio interview. ""I don't think that is typical of what happens across the country, but it's not an isolated incident," Obama told The Joe Madison Radio Show on Sirius XM radio's Urban View channel. "I think that there are circumstances in which trust between communities and law enforcement have broken down, and individuals or entire departments may not have the training or the accountability to make sure that they're protecting and serving all people and not just some."
CONGRESS: Still waiting on Lynch
Democrats are not happy with how long it's taking to confirm AG nominee Loretta Lynch, writes the New York Times.
The Washington Post looks at how Nancy Pelosi is still managing to exert power despite being in the minority.
Frank Thorp reports: "Senate Republican leadership will postpone consideration of a bill that would require Congressional approval of any Iran nuclear deal, citing Democratic opposition to moving on the bill before the deal's deadline at the end of March." (So it's March 24 or bust for the administration to get a deal...)
OFF TO THE RACES: Same ol', same ol?
BUSH: The Des Moines Register looks at whether Republicans view Jeb Bush as a rock-ribbed conservative or a RINO.
And the New York Times asks Iowa conservatives about him and finds this sentiment: "We're tired of the same old same old."
CHRISTIE: From the National Review's big new Christie story: "Christie's administration could have achieved so much more. It might have demonstrated to the state's cynical and beleaguered voters that it is possible to change the culture of Trenton, to overturn the greedy, profligate, dysfunctional politics that has so consistently earned New Jersey a reputation as one of the worst-managed states, and to set state government on a path toward financial stability and regulatory sanity. But Christie still has time to demonstrate just how destructive years of tax-borrow-and-spend policies have been, and this would be a real achievement."
CLINTON: Here's a take from one of us(!) on why Hillary Clinton's emails could lead to months of investigations.
"Hillary Clinton won't be presiding over a soul-searching press conference or sitting down for a come-clean interview about her use of a private email address any time soon - at least if everything goes according to her team's plan. The former secretary of state and her advisers have decided to adopt a time-tested Clintonian approach: take a concrete step to ease the pressure, then wait out the storm, according to three sources with knowledge of her team's approach," writes Bloomberg.
The Washington Post reports that the State Department is reviewing whether Clinton's use of personal email violated rules about security protocols.
GOP strategist Rick Wilson gives his advice to fellow Republicans: Stop talking.More: "In the next two weeks, try something new; maintain discipline, hold focus, and keep an eye to a bigger objective than your daily press release. Try to play the long game, and help Hillary Clinton self-destruct."
The New York Times looks back at tensions between the White House and Hillary Clinton's orbit of staff.
Writes David Brooks: "Hillary Clinton's record is more moderate than the Democratic primary voter today. So it was always likely that she would move left as the primary season approached. It's now becoming clearer how she might do it. She might make a shift from what you might call human capital progressivism to redistributionist progressivism."
RUBIO: Marco Rubio has won the support of a big donor, Miami billionaire Norman Braman, National Review reports.
SANDERS: From the LA Times: Bernie Sanders "speaks to a distinct strain of Democratic discontent, to liberals who view Hillary Rodham Clinton as too moderate, populists who see her as too wedded to Wall Street, doves who consider her too hawkish and Iowans who fret their state, which kicks off the presidential nominating process, will be ignored by the party's overwhelming front-runner."
Press release: "On Friday, March 6, from 9:00 a.m. to 10:15 a.m., the Center for American Progress will partner with a new "action tank," the State Innovation Exchange, or SiX, to host state legislators from Minnesota, New Jersey, and Texas to address how states are forging ahead to improve economic security by raising the minimum wage, breaking down barriers to employment, extending access to paid sick days, and more."
PROGRAMMING NOTES.
*** Friday's "News Nation with Tamron Hall" line-up: Tamron Hall speaks with MSNBC's Alex Seitz-Wald and Former Clinton Advisor Lanny Davis about the latest on the controversy surrounding former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of her private email account while in office, Executive Director of the Arab American Association of New York Linda Sarsour about two new Muslim holidays added to the Public School calendar, Economic analyst Zachary Karabell about the latest job numbers, Civil rights activist Rev. Bernard Lafayette about the 50th anniversary of the March in Selma, and John Gainey of Students UNITE about his petition to rename the Edmund Pettus bridge in Selma.
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About 48 hours after it first began, Hillary Clinton last night personally tried to contain the firestorm over her use of personal emails while serving as secretary of state." I want the public to see my email. I asked State to release them. They said they will review them for release as soon as possible," she tweeted. The State Department then followed up, saying it's reviewing her emails for public release. "We will undertake this review as quickly as possible; given the sheer volume of the document set, this review will take some time to complete." Although last night's statements don't end the controversy (that won't happen until we finally see the emails), here's what we've learned from this episode so far: The Clintons and their supporters haven't changed their ways. In fact, they've played into every negative stereotype:
- They will follow the letter of the law but not always its spirit: How do they explain that Clinton was a member of a presidential cabinet where almost everyone else was using government emails to conduct official business?
- They will drag their heels when it comes to transparency: We never would have learned of Clinton's use of personal emails if not for the Benghazi committee.
- When it doubt, Clinton allies go on the attack: When this email controversy first surfaced, Clinton defenders' first instinct was to go on the attack -- against the personal emails that Scott Walker and Rick Perry have used, or the private email server that Jeb Bush had. But remember this: Jeb has at least RELEASED his emails, while Clinton hadn't released ANY of hers.
- Clinton's close aides aren't doing her any favors: The emails that one of Clinton's closest aides sent to reporters during this story wasn't helpful at all. One of the reasons why the Clintons don't get the benefit of the doubt from reporters is because it takes yelling and screaming to get anything.
Does this encourage Clinton to start her campaign sooner rather than later? Or it is more reason to delay?
What we don't know is whether these things change when Clinton's campaign -- with its infusion of Obama World -- begins to take shape. And this raises the question: Should Clinton start her campaign sooner rather than later to better combat these kinds of stories? Or does it continue to delay -- knowing that a delay keeps her from having to answer reporter questions at every campaign stop or event? Remember the benefits to delaying: You freeze the rest of the Democrats who might be thinking about a run, and you still aren't treated like a 100% candidate.
This is only going to empower congressional Republicans
Another consequence of this story is that it's only going to empower congressional Republicans investigating Clinton over Benghazi. Yes, there's the GOP danger of overreaching here -- especially since Benghazi has become so politically charged -- but they've given themselves some new legitimacy to dig into Clinton's activities as secretary of state.
The Clintons have escaped from MUCH bigger stories
While some in the press wonder if this story is hurting Hillary's presidential chances or encouraging Democrats to think of a Plan B for 2016, keep this in mind: The Clintons have escaped from MUCH bigger stories than this. Yes, it looks like the Clintons haven't changed their ways. But maybe one of the reasons why they haven't is that they know they USUALLY win -- with 2008 being a BIG exception, of course.
Both Roberts and Kennedy are in play for the Obama administration in King vs. Burwell
As for yesterday's oral arguments before the Supreme Court over the federal health-care law, here is the take from NBC's Pete Williams: "After hearing arguments for about 90 minutes, the U.S. Supreme Court gave little indication Wednesday about how it plans to rule in the latest challenge to Obamacare. Chief Justice John Roberts, who cast the crucial vote in 2012 to save the health care reform law, didn't pepper government lawyers with questions this time. A possible swing vote, Justice Anthony Kennedy, appeared to find constitutional problems with the case against Obamacare, but didn't fully tip his hand one way or the other." Yet here is where the Obama administration stands compared with three years ago: BOTH Roberts and Kennedy are in play for them, which wasn't the case after the oral arguments in the 2012 constitutional challenge over the law.
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OBAMA AGENDA: Justices split in health-care challenge
Here's Pete Williams' take on Wednesday's King v Burwell oral arguments:
The U.S. fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria is increasingly reliant on Iranian fighters just as the administration is coming under pressure to contain Iran's nuclear ambitions, writes the New York Times.
How did the Netanyahu speech play at home? The Washington Post: "According to polls carried out by Israeli TV news channels Wednesday, the day after his high-stakes speech to Congress, Netanyahu's address had only a modest influence on the Israeli electorate."
In an exclusive interview with NBC News, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Iran is not seeking a nuclear weapon. "Once we reach that understanding, once this hysteria is out, once this fear mongering is out, then we can have a deal, and a deal that is not going to hurt anybody," he said.
CONGRESS: "They can never take ... OUR FREEDOM"
The Washington Post looks at the House Freedom Caucus, the group of conservatives causing headaches for John Boehner. But leader Rep. Jim Jordan says there's no effort underway to oust the Speaker.
Roll Call: "For Hoyer and McCarthy, the Floor Dance is Getting Tense"
The president's war authorization bill is in big trouble on Capitol Hill, reports POLITICO.
OFF TO THE RACES: Q-poll: Walker and Bush leading the GOP pack
A new Quinnipiac poll shows Scott Walker narrowly leading Jeb Bush in a nationwide poll of GOP voters, 18 percent to 16 percent. Chris Christie and Mike Huckabee are next, at eight percent each.
CHRISTIE: "For more than a decade, the New Jersey attorney general's office conducted a hard-fought legal battle to hold Exxon Mobil Corporation responsible for decades of environmental contamination in northern New Jersey. But when the news came that the state had reached a deal to settle its $8.9 billion claim for about $250 million, the driving force behind the settlement was not the attorney general's office - it was Gov. Chris Christie's chief counsel, Christopher S. Porrino, two people familiar with the negotiations said," according to the New York Times.
CLINTON: She tweeted last night that she's asked the State Department to release her emails.
From the New York Times: "An aide who had been with the Clintons since the 1990s, Justin Cooper, registered the domain name, clintonemail.com, which had a server linked to the Clintons' home address in Chappaqua, N.Y. Obtaining an account from that domain became a symbol of status within the family's inner circle, conferring prestige and closeness to the secretary."
And the House Committee on Benghazi says it has issued subpoenas for Clinton's emails related to the attacks.
The Associated Press: "Hillary Rodham Clinton's use of a private email address and private computer server for official State Department business heightened security risks to her communications, such as the inadvertent disclosure of sensitive information and the danger from hackers, several information security experts said." Also, the White House counsel was reportedly not aware of her email habits.
The Washington Post ed board: "Her decision to exclusively use a private e-mail account while secretary suggests she made a deliberate decision to shield her messages from scrutiny. It was a mistake that reflects poor judgment about a public trust."
Former Vilsack adviser Matt Paul will manage her Iowa campaign.
CRUZ: His book will be published on June 30, the AP reports.
RUBIO: He unveiled his new tax code overhaul effort yesterday.
WALKER: NARAL Pro-Choice America is taking on Scott Walker's record on abortion with a full-page ad in the Des Moines Register.
And around the country...
IOWA: A 2016 number to remember: About 39,000 Iowans would be affected by a Supreme Court decision gutting subsidies.
MARYLAND: Rep. Chris Van Hollen says he's running for Senate.
UTAH: Mitt Romney wants a presidential primary in Utah, not a caucus, reports the Salt Lake Tribune.
PROGRAMMING NOTES.
*** Thursday's "News Nation with Tamron Hall" line-up: Tamron Hall speaks with NBC's Rehema Ellis and Defense attorney Jon Sheldon about The Boston Bomber trial, Civil rights attorney John Burris to discuss the report by the Department of Justice concerning police tactics in Ferguson MO., Executive Director of the Arab American Association of New York Linda Sarsour about two new Muslim holidays added to the Public School calendar, and MSNBC's Alex Seitz-Wald about the latest on the controversy surrounding former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of her private email account while in office.
*** Thursday's "Andrea Mitchell Reports" line-up: NBC's Andrea Mitchell interviews Senator John McCain, Congressman Xavier Becerra, Congresswoman Terri Sewell, Bloomberg's Jeanne Cummings
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Democratic Rep. Chris Van Hollen says he will run for the Maryland Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Barbara Mikulski.
Van Hollen is a leading House Democrat who had been long-discussed as a possible successor to Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. But in a letter to supporters that was posted on Facebook Wednesday, he announced that he'll instead be jumping into what will likely be a very competitive primary in the heavily Democratic state.
"I am very much looking forward to the upcoming campaign and a healthy exchange of ideas. In my very first election for Congress I believed that people were tired of politics as usual, and I ran a campaign based on key issues and ideas that matter to our future. The same is true today," he wrote.
Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, who is weighing a 2016 presidential bid, has announced that he will not seek the post. But other possible candidates include Rep. Donna Edwards, Baltimore mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and former Maryland Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, among others.
- Carrie Dann
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