“For my daughter, this therapy means life, death or some horrible surgery, but she’s not alone — there are 27 other military families who use the center where Kaitlyn goes,” Jennifer Samuels told Military Times.

DOD decided not to pay for a physical therapy program for Kaitlyn Samuels, a 15-year-old girl with severe neuromuscular scoliosis – a spinal curvature caused by her brain’s inability to send the signals needed to keep her spine in proper alignment. Initially, DOD’s Tricare paid for the therapy sessions. The government eventually revoked coverage on the theory that the therapy, because it took place while Kaitlyn sat on a horse, is an experimental “hippotherapy” not covered by law.

Read More…

Overreach. In case you missed the memo, it’s the lone arrow left in the Democratic operative quiver.

Have a few questions of the IRS and the Administration’s knowledge? “OVERREACH!”  Do you question why the Administration didn’t release a comprehensive timeline after the murder of four Americans in Benghazi? “OVERREACH!” Are you concerned that the government is dangerously encroaching on a free press by asserting a reporter is an “aider and abettor” to espionage? “OVERREACH!”  Do you wonder why Obama’s Secretary of HHS is raising money from private entities to implement ObamaCare? “OVERREACH!”

Here’s the problem: The outrage over the smorgasbord of scandal is bipartisan.  Yesterday, Democratic Senate Candidate Bruce Braley called for the resignation of IRS officials.
It was Massachusetts Democrat Stephen Lynch warning that unless questions are answered, there will be “hell to pay” and it “will lead to a special prosecutor.” And the kicker? White House Press Secretary Jay Carney acknowledged yesterday that criticisms over the White House’s handling of the scandals are “legitimate.”

Let’s be clear: It is not 1998. No matter where you fall on the issue, these scandals cannot be perceived to be unfairly focused on marital fidelity.

It’s 2013.  The Obama White House is embroiled in a multitude of scandals that involve abuses by a federal government that Americans already believe is out of control. Abuses that target taxpaying citizens, journalists, and obscure the truth behind the murder of four Americans. Oversight over the executive branch is the job of Congress.

The truth is that Democrats, already facing a tough mid-term election, are terrified of the political ramifications of scandals.   As Stu Rothenberg wrote yesterday, “The new focus on the Obama administration puts it on the defensive and should boost enthusiasm on the political right throughout this year,” and that, “it is undeniable that recent events have altered, at least for now, the trajectory of the 2014 elections.”

Overreach: to defeat oneself by seeking to do or gain too much.
The only overreach evident is by partisan Democrats overreaching with their claims of “overreach.”

Seize the day,

Brad Dayspring
@BDayspring

Brook Hougesen
@Brook_H

2014 BATTLEGROUND SONAR

(MULTIPLE STATES) NRSC ramps up attacks on Dems over IRS scandal
The committee is asking 12 Democrats — most of whom are up for reelection or running for Senate in 2014 — why they haven’t made more noise about the IRS’s admission it targeted conservative groups for additional scrutiny. “Senate Democrats — who pressured the IRS to target conservative groups — have an obligation to defend the citizens and organizations that were bullied by their own federal government,” NRSC Communications Director Brad Dayspring said in a release.

(MASSACHUSETTS) Markey takes marching order from green billionaire Steyer, more special interests over Keystone
Gomez’s campaign strategist, Lenny Alcivar, said the attacks from Steyer were typical for Markey, whom he characterized as beholden to special interests. “Here comes more mud from dirty Ed Markey and his special interest sugar daddies. After 37 years of taking money from special interest lobbyists, including those he regulates, its no surprise Congressman Markey is once again selling his services to the highest bidder,” he said.

• While Gomez reports tax returns, hypocritical Markey paid by taxpayers, continues to keeps finances hidden from them
• Markey campaign still noncommittal to SouthCoast debate

(NORTH CAROLINA) Hagan stuggles, Obama’s approval drop in new liberal PPP poll
For the first time in our polling of the 2014 Senate race Kay Hagan doesn’t lead all of her challengers. Berry pulls even with her at 45%, owing in large part to a 56/36 advantage with independents.  She has a +9 net favorability rating at 29/20 and pulls off the unusual feat of being viewed positively by Republicans (33/22), Democrats (29/19), and independents (25/21) alike.

(ARKANSAS) Rothenberg Moves Arkansas Senate Race To ‘Toss-Up’
“Senate Democrats – who pressured the IRS to target conservative groups – have an obligation to defend the citizens and organizations that were bullied by their own federal government,” said NRSC Communications Director Brad Dayspring, who also pointed out that Pryor took $11,000 in contributions from an IRS employee PAC. “Mark Pryor is a United States Senator, and that requires action not just hollow press releases – but he continues to hide behind them.”

(KENTUCKY) Ad hit Grimes before N.Ky. public appearance
The ad references Grimes’ town hall “listening”session she’s holding around the state and asks, “Who is she listening to?” It then ties her with the “Obama-Pelosi agenda.”…“During her listening tour, we thought it was important to ask the question, since she claimed Mitch McConnell was obstructing policies in Washington, which of these agenda items you wouldn’t obstruct, cap and trade, higher taxes?” Lewis said.

(LOUISIANA) Landrieu flips out over efforts to stop wasteful spending
Landrieu, one of the red-state Democrats running for re-election in 2014, drew a response from the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), which recalled that she attacked described the high federal debt as “bad for business” during the George W. Bush years, when the debt was $9.6 trillion lower than it is today. “Throughout her 16 years in Washington, Landrieu has gone from ‘unsettled’ over the debt to demanding that she be able to max out the government credit card, and reducing anyone who disagrees to that of a ‘dictator,’” NRSC Press Secretary Brook Hougesen said in a statement.  “The Landrieu family has a long history in Louisiana, but as the national debt nears $17 trillion, it’s clear just how ingrained in the Washington culture Mary Landrieu has become.”

(LOUISIANA) Dr. Laura Cassidy: Angelina Jolie’s surgery illustrates options in dealing with breast cancer risk
As a surgeon who treated women with breast cancer for two decades, I applaud Angelina Jolie’s courage to discuss her personal family story. Her story involves her mom, herself, her partner and her children. Modern medicine has given us the tools and information so that women can make informed decisions about their health care. Her story is about the BRCA-1 tumor suppressor gene, the subsequent risk of breast or ovarian cancer and the diagnosis and death of her mom at an early age. 

ON THE TWITTERS

@gatewaypundit - BREAKING: Former IRS Chief Shulman Met With Obama 4 Times During His 118 Visits to White House http://shar.es/Zi6Mj 

@McConnellPress - Mitch McConnell: The IRS scandal and Obama’s culture of intimidation http://wapo.st/16QLX5V  vi

@CraigCaplan - Heather French at DSCC fundraiser in Oct ’99 w/Al Gore, talked about her switch to Dem Party #KYSEN  http://www.c-spanvideo.org/clip/4452843  @cspanPolitics

@thedeadpelican - Landrieu Flips Out Over Efforts to Stop Wasteful Spending –THE DEAD PELICAN 2013© http://ow.ly/ljWVf
NATIONAL RADAR

(WASHINGTON POST) Is Senate slipping away from Dems?
These scandals may or may not be as bad as Watergate, but 2014 could be a lot like 1974. Richard Nixon wasn’t on the ballot; he’d already been forced to leave office. Republicans lost nearly 50 House seats and four Senate seats, ceding control of both houses to the Dems. Before anyone belabors the point that no one thinks Obama will resign, understand that the point of the reference is to remind us that scandal-plagued White Houses are bad for their own party in midterms. The counter-example is 1998 when the Republicans were perceived as going nuts on the Monica Lewinsky scandal and lost five seats in the House and gained none in the Senate. (Not since 1934 did the party out of power in the White House fail to make gains in the midterm of the president’s second term.)

(FOX NEWS) Poll: 56 percent want to go back to pre-ObamaCare system
Majorities of American voters say their family will be worse off under the Affordable Care Act, and think it would be better to go back to the pre-ObamaCare health care system. A Fox News poll released Wednesday finds that while 26 percent of voters say their health care situation will be better under the new law, twice as many — 53 percent — say it will be worse.  Another 13 percent say it won’t make a difference. 

(WALL STREET JOURNAL) The Unaccountable Executive
Every day brings new revelations about who knew what about the IRS targeting conservative groups during President Obama’s re-election campaign, but the overall impression is of a vast federal bureaucracy run amok. While the White House continues to peddle the story of a driverless train wreck, taxpayers are being treated to a demonstration of the dangers of an unwieldy and unaccountable administrative state. Look, Ma, no hands!

(POLITICO) Why leaks controversy could linger
Until this week, the recent debate over leaks largely fit a familiar frame: Republicans and national security hardliners faulted President Barack Obama’s administration for dishing out self-serving national security secrets to news outlets that many conservatives view as liberal.

(WASHINGTON TIMES) BARRASSO: The healing powers of pencil pushers
Anger at the Internal Revenue Service’s abuse of power is reaching an all-time high across the country. Americans are justifiably outraged that the IRS has chosen to play favorites for political reasons. Citizens will be even more troubled when they learn how involved the agency will soon be in their health care choices. Over the next several months, the IRS will take over as the chief enforcer of much of President Obama’s health care law. The agency has a role in 47 provisions of the law, including determining whose insurance meets Obamacare requirements and who qualifies for a tax credit.

Fellow Conservatives:

Senator John McCain (R-AZ) is attacking conservatives again. This time, he’s upset at their efforts to stop a backdoor increase in the debt limit.

As you know, the House and Senate each passed budget resolutions earlier this year. Neither budget included an increase in the debt limit, yet House and Senate leaders want to air-drop one into a final agreement negotiated behind closed doors.

They want to do this because it allows them to avoid an open debate on the issue and pass it in the Senate with only 51 votes rather than the 60 votes normally required.

Thankfully, Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Ted Cruz (R-TX) are working to stop this secret plan to raise the debt limit.

They have objected to Harry Reid’s request to create the budget conference several times and are insisting on an agreement to keep it from being used to increase the debt limit.

Yesterday, John McCain defended Harry Reid on the Senate floor and criticized Rand Paul, Mike Lee, and Ted Cruz. McCain called their efforts “bizarre” and “out of line”.

What’s out of line is a Republican senator working with the Democrats to raise the debt limit while nobody is looking.

This raises a couple questions:

First, how much longer can we tolerate John McCain and his hostility toward conservatives and our principles? He already lashed out at Senators Paul, Lee, and Cruz earlier this year, calling them “wacko birds” for standing up for the Constitution. Now he’s at it again.

POLL QUESTION: If John McCain runs for re-election again in 2016, should SCF work to find a strong candidate to defeat him in the Republican primary?

Second, where is Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) while all of this is happening? As the Republican leader, shouldn’t he also be fighting to stop this backdoor increase in the debt limit?

The outcome of the upcoming debt limit debate is a test of McConnell’s leadership. He worked with President Obama to raise the debt limit in 2011 and he helped the president raise taxes and fund Obamacare earlier this year. Americans need more principled leadership from him.

We’re grateful that Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, and Mike Lee are standing strong. If the debt limit is raised, it must be done through regular order where it can be fully debated and where conservatives can demand a balanced budget and the full repeal of Obamacare.

Thank you for supporting the principles of freedom that make this country great.

Best regards,

Matt Hoskins
Executive Director
Senate Conservatives Fund

Sen. Jeff Sessions, an Alabama Republican, has entered a letter into the congressional record from law enforcement personnel around the country who are warning S.744, officially titled the “Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act,” would grant sweeping, discretionary powers to “political appointees” – bureaucrats – while stripping law enforcement of authority.

‘Virtually unlimited discretion’

The letter, from the National Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Council of the American Federal of Government Employees Affiliated with AFL-CIO, states:

Congress can and must take decisive steps to limit the discretion of political appointees and empower ICE and CBP to perform their respective missions and enforce the laws enacted by Congress. Rather than limiting the power of those political appointees within DHS, S. 744 provides them with nearly unlimited discretion, which will serve only to further cripple the law enforcement missions of these agencies.

The members warn that the bill conveys to DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano “virtually unlimited discretion to waiver” prohibitions on getting legal status, such as previous deportations or criminal activity:

This same section (Section 2101 of S. 744) gives the Secretary of Homeland Security virtually unlimited discretion to waive any manner of crimes that would otherwise make an individual ineligible for legal status – for such expansive reasons as family unity, humanitarian purposes, or what the Secretary believes is in the public interest.

ICE agents would become ‘powerless’

The letter continues:

At least two of these standards appear undefined by S. 744 or current law, providing political appointees with broad authority to establish their own definitions of these terms and pardon criminal acts under almost any circumstance.

The bill states that individuals who have previously been deported or otherwise removed from the country are ineligible to apply for legal status. However, the Secretary is given the ‘sole and unreviewable discretion’ to waive that ineligibility for large classes of qualifying aliens.

CNSNews.com noted that in seven instances, the measure grants “unreviewable” powers (see them here).

“Congress can and must take decisive steps to limit the discretion of political appointees and empower ICE and CBP to perform their respective missions and enforce the laws enacted by Congress. Rather than limiting the power of those political appointees within DHS, S. 744 provides them with nearly unlimited discretion, which will serve only to further cripple the law enforcement missions of these agencies,” the letter continues.

Crafters of the letter went on to conclude that ICE agents would essentially become “powerless” to protect the general public, or be able to perform their duties as required, if the bill passes the House.

Jimmy Lee Garrett, a 48-year-old male residing at 116 Dusty Trail Lane, was arrested and charged for second-degree burglary, but not before a catching a bullet in the foot for his troubles.

According to Talladega County Sheriff Jimmy Kilgore, a female resident told investigators she woke up and saw Garrett in her kitchen.

At that point, she yelled for her husband, who began chasing Garrett throughout their home while wielding a firearm.

The husband fired two shots at Garrett, simultaneously wounding the intruder and thwarting the home invasion.

Garrett, a registered sex offender, had been arrested twice in 1985 for first-degree sodomy and first-degree sexual abuse of a 69-year-old woman.

Read more: The Daily Home – Resident stops home invasion shoots suspect

]]> http://www.theminorityreportblog.com/2013/05/22/alabama-homeowner-shoots-registered-sex-offender-just-released-from-prison-during-home-invasion/feed/ 4 http://www.theminorityreportblog.com/2013/05/22/uncle-buck-white-house-aides-insulated-president-obama-from-irs-targeting-conservatives/ http://www.theminorityreportblog.com/2013/05/22/uncle-buck-white-house-aides-insulated-president-obama-from-irs-targeting-conservatives/#comments Wed, 22 May 2013 15:20:55 +0000 Steve Foley http://www.theminorityreportblog.com/?p=61254 Uncle Buck

This week, the White House admitted that senior aides insulated President Obama from the IRS audit, deciding it was best to keep him “out of the loop.”  While, the president has insisted numerous times that, ultimately, the buck stops with him, Jay Carney said that the president agreed with the decision of senior staff to keep him in the dark.  With top IRS officials pleading ignorance (and the fifth) and given the evolving story from the White House, it’s worth asking: Is anyone going to take responsibility – or is this just big government in action?

TOP IRS OFFICIALS PASS THE BUCK

Washington Post: “IRS Official Lois Lerner To Take The Fifth.” “Lois Lerner, the IRS official who first disclosed the agency’s improper targeting of conservative groups two weeks ago, will invoke her right not to testify Wednesday for fear of self-incrimination, her lawyer has told the House Oversight Committee.” (Aaron Blake, “IRS Official Lois Lerner To Take The Fifth,” The Washington Post, 5/21/13)

IRS Chiefs Claim They Didn’t Know About Targeting: “Testifying before the Senate Finance Committee, former IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman, who was in charge when the targeting began in the agency’s Cincinnati office, and acting IRS Commissioner Steven Miller, who took the top job last year and is now departing, said they didn’t know about the IRS’s practice of targeting conservative groups right away. When they found out in 2012, they said, they didn’t tell Congress immediately because they couldn’t be sure they had all the facts.” (Siobhan Hughes, Damien Paletta and Michael Crittenden, “IRS Chiefs Dispute Senators’ Allegations,” The Wall Street Journal, 5/21/13)

Former IRS Commissioner “Dismayed” And “Saddened” By Findings: “Former IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman told a Senate panel he was ‘dismayed’ and ‘saddened’ after reading an inspector general’s report last week that concluded agency employees wrongly targeted conservative groups seeking a tax exemption. “  (Lauren French, “Former IRS chief Doug Shulman ‘dismayed’ at targeting, POLITICO, 5/21/13)

But Refuses To Accept Responsibility: “Shulman didn’t offer any apologies, telling committee members that he wasn’t responsible for the targeting program. ‘I certainly am not personally responsible for creating a list that had inappropriate criteria on it,’ Shulman said. ‘I very much regret that it happened on my watch.’” (Lauren French, “Former IRS chief Doug Shulman ‘dismayed’ at targeting, POLITICO, 5/21/13)

Instead, IRS Chiefs Shift Blame To Lower-Level Employees: “The current and former Internal Revenue Service chiefs sounded a defiant note at the second congressional hearing into a newly revealed IRS practice of giving extra scrutiny to conservative groups, disputing allegations that they weren’t forthcoming with Congress and blaming lower-level employees for practices that began in 2010. “ (Siobhan Hughes, Damien Paletta and Michael Crittenden, “IRS Chiefs Dispute Senators’ Allegations,” The Wall Street Journal, 5/21/13)

NBC News: “Ex-Cincy IRS Official Doubts Agency’s Explanation For Tea Party Scandal.” “A former manager at the IRS Cincinnati office at the center of the controversy over the targeting of conservative political organizations seeking tax-exempt status tells NBC News she doesn’t think low-level employees acted on their own in flagging them for further scrutiny.”  (Rich Gardella and Lisa Meyers, “Ex-Cincy IRS Official Doubts Agency’s Explanation For Tea Party Scandal,” NBC News, 5/21/13)

SO, WHO HAS THE BUCK?  NOT THE PRESIDENT

POLITICO: “White House Defends Keeping Obama In Dark On IRS.” (Jennifer Epstein, “White House Defense Keeping Obama In Dark On IRS, POLITICO, 5/21/13)

Jay Carney: Senior Staff “Did The Right Thing” In Not Informing Obama of IRS Audit. “White House senior staff did the right thing in not informing President Obama of the ongoing IRS investigation, press secretary Jay Carney said Tuesday. …’If the opposite had happened in this or any other White House, there would have been questions … about what the president might have done with that information,’ Carney said.” (Jennifer Epstein, “White House Defends Keeping Obama in Dark on IRS,” POLITICO, 5/21/13)

Jay Carney Defends Decision of Not “Looping In” Obama. “’People in the know and people who understand why it’s important to maintain distance from these kinds of things for the White House understand that that was the right call,’ Carney said.” (Jennifer Epstein and Reid J. Epstein, “White House IRS Timeline Shifts Again,” POLITICO, 5/21/13)

Despite Embracing Accountability, President Obama Agrees With Decision To Keep Him Out Of The Loop:

SHOT: President Obama: “Ultimately, The Buck Stops With Me.” “Well, here’s what I remember, is that when I came into office, I knew I was going to have a big mess to clean up and, frankly, the mess has been bigger than I think a lot of people anticipated at the time. We have made steady progress on these fronts, but we’re not making progress fast enough. And what I continue to believe is that ultimately the buck stops with me. I’m going to be accountable…” (David Jackson, “Obama: ‘The Buck Stops With Me’,” USA Today, 8/17/11)

CHASER: Obama Comfortable With Counsel’s Decision To Keep Him In The Dark: “President Barack Obama has faith in his chief lawyer and agrees with her decision not to inform him of a pending report on the Internal Revenue Service’s improper targeting of conservative groups, White House press secretary Jay Carney said Tuesday.” (Jared A. Favole,” Spokesman: Obama Agrees With Counsel’s IRS Decision,” The Wall Street Journal, 5/21/13)

HERE’S WHAT THEY’RE SAYING ABOUT THE WHITE HOUSE INSULATION

Associated Press: “More Obama Aides Who Knew of IRS Audits, Obama Not Told.” “The apparent decision to keep the president in the dark about the matter underscores the White House’s cautious legal approach to controversies and reflects a desire by top advisers to distance Obama from troubles threatening his administration.” (Charles Babington and Julie Pace, “More Obama Aides Knew of IRS Audit; Obama Not Told,” Associated Press, 5/20/13)

Press Secretary Jay Carney:  “Some Matters Are Not Appropriate To Convey To Him, And This Is One Of Them.” (Charles Babington and Julie Pace, “More Obama Aides Knew of IRS Audit; Obama Not Told,” Associated Press, 5/20/13)

New York Times: “White House Says It Didn’t Loop Obama In On I.R.S. Inquiry.” “The Treasury Department’s legal office informed the White House counsel’s office about the nearly finished I.R.S. audit along with other reviews nearly a month before its release, the White House said. Kathryn Ruemmler, the White House counsel, was personally told on April 24, and she notified the White House chief of staff, Denis McDonough, and other senior aides without informing the president, the White House said.” (Peter Baker and Jonathan Weisman, “White House Says It Didn’t Loop Obama In On I.R.S. Inquiry,” The New York Times, 5/20/13)

Reuters: Obama Aides “Knew Weeks Ago.” “Those questions gained more urgency on Monday when the White House revealed that two senior aides to Obama knew weeks ago about a draft Treasury Department watchdog report detailing the IRS targeting that occurred for an 18-month period starting in early 2010. …Obama has said he did not learn of the report’s findings until May 10, when IRS official Lois Lerner apologized for the targeting at an American Bar Association conference.” (John Whitesides, “IRS Officials Back On Capitol Hill Hot Seat Over Targeting,” Reuters, 5/21/13)

POLITICO: White House Counsel Concluded Investigation Was “Not A Matter She Should Convey to the President.” (Jennifer Epstein, “Senior W.H. Staff Knew Of IRS Investigation, Did Not Tell Obama,” POLITICO, 5/20/13)

NBC News: “White House Aides Learned of IRS Details in April, But Didn’t Tell Obama.” “The White House first learned of a draft report detailing abuses by IRS officials in targeting conservative groups in late April, though the top administration spokesman maintained on Monday that President Barack Obama was not notified of the emerging controversy at that time.” (Michael O’Brien, “White House Aides Learned of IRS Details in April, But Didn’t Tell Obama,” NBC News, 5/20/13)

Bloomberg: “Obama’s Defense in IRS Case: Pre-Election Ignorance.” “What’s now an embarrassment to President Barack Obama’s administration would be elevated to a lasting stain if evidence emerges that anyone outside the IRS knew or was involved, either in inspiring the selective scrutiny or in withholding disclosure to the public, during the sensitive election season.” (Mike Dorning and Richard Rubin, “Obama’s Defense in IRS Case Is Pre-Election Ignorance,” Bloomberg, 5/21/13)

Washington Times: “Aides Insulated Obama From IRS Scandal.” “White House aides first learned of a draft report detailing the IRS abuses in late April, but chose to insulate President Obama by not informing him until it exploded in the press, the president’s spokesman said Monday.” (Susan Crabtree, “Carney: White House Aids Insulated Obama From IRS Scandal,” Washington Times, 5/20/13)

The Hill: Jay Carney: “Obama Out of IRS Loop.” “Senior White House officials were briefed about a federal audit of the IRS’s improper focus on conservatives, but they decided not to tell President Obama about it, press secretary Jay Carney claimed Monday.” (Bernie Becker and Jonathan Easley, “Carney: Obama Out of IRS Loop,” The Hill, 5/20/13)

FLASHBACK: ABC News: “Obama’s Inability to Hire Good Help Rears Its Head … Again.” (Jennifer Parker, “Obama’s Inability to Hire Good Help Rears Its Head … Again,” ABC News, 5/12/08)

After trying to claim that the President and his party were feeling no effects of the plethora of scandals that have engulfed them, there’s been a breach in the Democratic security wall.

The Washington Post’s Morning Fix reports that “Libya is shaping up as a real political problem for President Obama, with concern extending well beyond the conservative base. More than half of Americans say his administration is trying to cover up the facts of the attack, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.” Read the poll here.

• 55% say the Obama administration is trying to hide the facts compared to  just 33% that say it has been honest.
• Six in 10 independents and nearly three in 10 Democrats say the administration is not being forthright.

But it doesn’t stop there. The poll shows that most Americans think the IRS scandal was “a deliberate effort to harass the groups, rather than a administrative mistake.” More respondents believe that the Obama administration is trying to cover up the facts in the scandal than believe it’s being honest.

According to political analyst Stu Rothenberg, “it is undeniable that recent events have altered, at least for now, the trajectory of the 2014 elections. …The new focus on the Obama administration puts it on the defensive and should boost enthusiasm on the political right throughout this year…. the new political narrative increases the risk for Democratic candidates in red states, where Democrats must win independent and, in many cases, Republican voters to be successful.”  

As a result of the sea-change, Rothenberg shifts the following 2014 Senate seats to an even more favorable outlook for Republicans: West Virginia (open), South Dakota (open), Arkansas (Mark Pryor), Louisiana (Mary Landrieu), Alaska (Begich), and North Carolina (Kay Hagan).

That doesn’t take into consideration how this undeniable change in the political atmosphere is affecting first time Red State Democratic candidates considering running like Alison Lundergan Grimes in Kentucky, or Michelle Nunn in Georgia, or Nick Preservati in West Virginia. All must be wondering whether they’d be better off running in a cycle and environment in which they could actually win. Right now, it doesn’t exist.

Seize the day,

Brad Dayspring
@BDayspring

Brook Hougesen
@Brook_H

2014 BATTLEGROUND SONAR

(BATTLEGROUNDS) VIA POLITICO’S HUDDLE: FIRST LOOK: THE NRSC is trying to hang the IRS scandal around the necks of 2014 Democrats: It’s blasting news releases today targeting a dozen senators — most who received campaign money from the IRS union – and asking a series of tough questions. Here’s an example: Does Senator Mary Landrieu think an independent special counsel is needed to investigate the IRS efforts? Why didn’t Mary Landrieu speak out when her Senate Democratic friends and colleagues publicly pressured the IRS to target conservative groups? Will Mary Landrieu return the $23,000 in campaign contributions from IRS union? Does Mary Landrieu believe that President Obama should apologize to citizens and groups that were unfairly targeted? Does Mary Landrieu believe that President Obama and other senior White House staffers were wrong to publicly suggest that conservative groups were breaking the law? Landrieu Release.

• Here are others: Pryor, Shaheen, Hagan, Franken, Durbin, Begich.

(MASSACHUSETTS) Gomez’s goal — sensible centrism
In sum, with five weeks left in this campaign, a ploddingly predictable Markey is relying on the state’s Democratic default dynamic. It’s the higher-energy Gomez who is making this an interesting race — and winning attention and consideration as he does.

• New Gabriel Gomez TV ad attacks Ed Markey for negative ads in Massachusetts U.S. Senate campaign

(MASSACHUSETTS) Ed Markey Falls Short on National Security
Democratic Congressman Ed Markey is feeling the heat over his weak record on national security in the tight race to fill the vacant Senate seat in Massachusetts…Gomez condemned two votes by Markey in the House against resolutions honoring the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, 206 of whom lived in Massachusetts. Gomez said Markey’s vote against a 9/11 resolution was “unconscionable.”

(LOUISIANA) Landrieu attacking  tea party member for trying to legislate responsibly
Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., scolded Tea Party Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, for acting like a “dictator” by demanding that Senate Democrats promise not to raise the debt limit during conference meetings with House Republicans. “We don’t have kings anymore,” Landrieu said in response to Lee on the Senate floor this afternoon. “We don’t have dictators anymore. We don’t have people with special powers . . . not anyone in this chamber is entitled to write the budget exactly the way they want it.”

• Landrieu calls Lee a “dictator” for asking that a simple and honest process be followed.

(ARKANSAS) Pryor Politicizes Oklahoma Tornado Tragedy
Normally politicians are quick to put aside politics when a tragedy strikes, but Sen. Mark Pryor took the opportunity to try score some points.  His seemingly tame statement is a thinly-veiled attempt to take a shot as his potential 2014 Republican opponent Congressman Tom Cotton.
ON THE TWITTERS

@HotlineJosh - This prediction, just 5 days ago, isn’t looking too good http://ow.ly/lhntV 

@djrothkopf - Chuck Todd on Morning Joe re: Obama and Holder:”They are trying to criminalize journalism.” If GOP were doing it,all hell would break loose.

@BeltwayConfid - Senate Dem tells Tea Partier that he’s acting like a ‘dictator’: Joel Gehrke Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., scolde… http://bit.ly/14v1YKj

@woodhouseb - .@bdayspring you are a funny guy. Thanks for the book – I’ll put it to good use. Be well. http://ow.ly/lhsXc

@Brendan_Buck - Happy birthday, @PressSec http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skdwrdVSjjo …
NATIONAL RADAR

(WESH ORLANDO) Orlando man killed by FBI had ties to Boston Marathon bombing suspect, NBC News confirms
An FBI agent shot and killed a man overnight in Orlando who had ties to one of the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombings, NBC News has confirmed.  According to NBC News, a special agent was interviewing the suspect regarding his connections to bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev and other extremists. The suspect, who was not immediately identified by officials, was originally cooperative, but he was shot after attacking the agent, NBC News reported.

(WASHINGTON POST) With more clarity, White House adds to confusion on IRS
There are still many unknowns about internal White House transactions over the past three weeks. No one has said just how explicit Ruemmler was with McDonough or others about the nature of what she was told. Did she play down the implications of the report to the point that others did not regard it as a potential problem? Maybe it didn’t seem worrisome enough to tell the president. And, had he been told, would he have responded more quickly when the news broke, rather than waiting three days to express his disapproval?

(FOX NEWS) Poll: Obama ratings dip, voters say government ‘out of control’
After a week of revelations about government spying on reporters and the Internal Revenue Service targeting conservatives, most voters feel “like the federal government has gotten out of control and is threatening the basic civil liberties of Americans.”  At the same time, a new Fox News poll finds disapproval of President Obama’s job performance is above 50 percent for the first time in a year, his honesty rating is at a new low and half of voters already think he’s a lame-duck. More than two-thirds of voters — 68 percent — feel the government is out of control and threatening their civil liberties. Nearly half of Democrats (47 percent), as well as large numbers of independents (76 percent) and Republicans (87 percent) feel Uncle Sam is taking liberties with their liberties. Those who identify with the Tea Party movement, one of the groups targeted by the IRS, are among those most likely to say things are out of control and civil liberties are being threatened:  92 percent of Tea Partiers feel that way.

(JONAH GOLDBERG) Obama’s ‘Idiot’ Defense
But, suddenly, when the administration finds itself ensnared by errors of its own making, the curtain is drawn back on the cult of expertise and the fantasy of statist redemption. Early on in the IRS scandal, before the agency’s initial lies were exposed, David Axelrod defended the administration on the grounds that the “government is so vast” the president “can’t know” what’s going on “underneath” him. Of course, it was Obama who once said, “I know more about policies on any particular issue than my policy directors.” That is, when things are going relatively well. When scandal hits the fan, he goes from the “government is us” to talking of his own agencies the way a czar might dismiss an injustice in some Siberian backwater. The hubris of omnicompetence gives way to “lighten up, we’re idiots.”

(POLITICO) FIRST LOOK: THE NRSC is trying to hang the IRS scandal around the necks of 2014 Democrats.
It’s blasting news releases today targeting a dozen senators — most who received campaign money from the IRS union – and asking a series of tough questions. Here’s an example:
Does Senator Mary Landrieu think an independent special counsel is needed to investigate the IRS efforts?
Why didn’t Mary Landrieu speak out when her Senate Democratic friends and colleagues publicly pressured the IRS to target conservative groups?
Will Mary Landrieu return the $23,000 in campaign contributions from IRS union?
Does Mary Landrieu believe that President Obama should apologize to citizens and groups that were unfairly targeted?
Does Mary Landrieu believe that President Obama and other senior White House staffers were wrong to publicly suggest that conservative groups were breaking the law?  http://bit.ly/10kL0hF

Crucial evidence needed to develop an accurate answer to that question would include the records of any communications that went back and forth between the IRS and the White House on the topic.

In a May 14 letter signed by Chairman Dave Camp and Ranking Member Sander Levin, the House Ways and Means Committee demanded precisely those records from the IRS. In the same letter, the committee also demanded the records of any communications between IRS and the Treasury on the matter, plus other information and records that would help the committee understand the facts about IRS actions that subjected to heightened scrutiny conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status.

Chairman Camp and Ranking Member Levin gave the IRS a deadline of Tuesday, May 21 to comply with their committee’s demand for the information and records.

The IRS–which requires working Americans to file their tax returns by an April 15 deadline each year or else face penalties–did not comply with this deadline imposed by the congressional committee that has oversight over its activities.

“The Committee has not received a response to the Camp-Levin letter,” House Ways and Means Spokeswoman Sarah Swinehart told CNSNews.com late Tuesday after the IRS had closed for business for the day.

“Chairman Camp expects the IRS to comply and provide full and complete responses to the letter since many of these questions were asked, but went unanswered, in Friday’s hearing,” said Swinehart.

The letter that Camp and Levin sent to the IRS a week ago Tuesday asked the agency to answer thirteen questions about its targeting of conservative groups and, where relevant, provide all internal agency documents and communications substantiating its answers.

Two of the committee’s questions sought records of any communications between the IRS and the Treasury and the IRS and the White House about the targeting of conservatives groups.

“As the Committee on Ways and Means continues its investigation into these IRS practices,” Camp and Levin wrote the IRS, “we request that the IRS provide the following information by May 21, 2013: …”

“Did the IRS at any time notify the Treasury Department of the targeting of conservative or any other groups?” Camp and Levin asked. “Provide all documents and communications between the IRS and Treasury on this matter.”

“Did the IRS at any time notify the White House of the targeting of conservative or any other groups?” asked Camp and Levin. “Provide all documents and communications between the IRS and the White House on this matter.”

In their letter, Camp and Levin said the IRS had not been “completely truthful” with the committee in the past on this matter.

“We are deeply troubled by the recent admission of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that the agency has been singling out organizations for additional review based on their political beliefs,” Camp and Levin said in their letter to the agency. “Despite repeated calls for cooperation, the agency failed to be completely truthful in its responses to the committee during its nearly two-year long investigation of this matter, and in testimony before the committee.”

On Monday through Tuesday morning, CNSNews.com made multiple phone and email inquiries to the IRS press office asking if the agency intended to comply with this request for information and records from the House Ways and Means Committee. The IRS did not respond.

Gateway Grassroots has secured an open lot, two large trucks, and the blood, sweat, and tears of volunteers seeking to serve their brothers and sisters. GGI invites you in this initiative to gather and ship desperately needed items for the victims of Monday’s devastating EF5 tornado.

We will be staging the effort at Kirkwood Lowes, time and day TBA once structures are up in Moore to receive aid. Non-perishable items may be dropped off for donation. Non-perishables will not be accepted.

Items most requested:  Bottled water – Gatorade – Wipes – Diapers – Baby formula – Hand towels – Individually wrapped snacks – Work gloves

No clothing, please.

If you would like to make an immediate donation, per Dana Loesch:

Salvation Army: Text STORM to 80888 to donate $10 to the recovery and relief efforts

Red Cross: Text REDCROSS to 90999 for Redcross to give $10

ONLINE DONATIONS:

Mercury One is taking online donations and sending trucks

Moore Recovers

Items that you may purchase on location to donate: boxes- work gloves- work aprons- eye protection- face masks- hand trucks- hard hats- shop cloths (towels)- gift cards- bottled water- storage bins- food and water bowls for pets

Also, if you care to join us and help collect and load items, and you happen to have a hand-truck or dolly, please bring it. It would be tremendously helpful.

Posted by Jen

cc: Members of the Senate and Assembly Committees on Education
Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald
Speaker of the Assembly Robin Vos
Governor Scott Walker

Hand-delivered to all recipients, May 20th, 2013

Senator Olsen and Representative Kestell:

Recently, we were encouraged to learn that as respective chairs of the Senate and Assembly Committees on Education, you had responded to concerns and called a May 22nd joint informational hearing on Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Indeed, the many worrisome realities surrounding CCSS development and implementation warrant full and immediate investigation – the elimination of local control; lowered educational standards and fraudulent representation of benchmarking; invasion of children’s privacy; taxation without representation; and a host of other matters besides.

While an informational hearing on CCSS represents only a first step in such an investigation, it meant a great deal to us to see one called. Initially, we were even more impressed by your willingness and courage in opening an inquiry since a series of conversations with you had revealed you both to be pro-CCSS. We respected and trusted your open- mindedness in seeking out and evaluating evidence that might contradict your currently held perspectives.

Regrettably, over the past week, we have begun to question the balance that is being struck among experts and the manner in which it will affect the quality of the hearing.

Out of a total of nine experts invited to speak at the joint hearing, a mere three are known to have serious concerns pertaining to CCSS. One of those three experts was added only at the last minute as a result of public pressure. Moreover, as of May 15th, we learned in writing that no further experts would be added to the hearing roster. This despite several extremely reasonable requests to include, at the very least, individuals who refused to sign off on CCSS math standards and/or came away from their experience on CCSS committees with deep misgivings about the standards, and/or college and university educators with concerns that CCSS will only contribute to a growing gap in preparedness for higher education.

How is this approach representative of a truly balanced investigation into CCSS?

How, for that matter, shall we interpret the formulation of the publicly noticed list of experts as anything but a stacking of the deck in order to achieve a predetermined outcome? If the greater weight of testimony suggests that CCSS is worthy, further investigation can be deemed superfluous. The naysayers can be conveniently dismissed. No need for further expert testimony. No need for a second hearing at which citizens could rightly comment and bring their own experience to bear. No need to hassle with the headache of a possible change in educational course. Problem solved. Full steam ahead with CCSS.

This is not the manner in which we want to read the current situation; but we’re being left with little choice.

Senator Olsen, Representative Kestell, each of you has a sworn fiduciary duty to protect the rights of Wisconsin citizens – children, parents, and taxpayers included. The lives of every Wisconsinite will be affected well into the future by all that CCSS brings with it. Should we stand by while important stones are left unturned? Should you? It is always tragic to discover after the fact that one could have done something more but failed.

We hope you will act to rectify the lack of balance in expert testimony pertaining to CCSS. We hope you will work to ensure that the citizens of Wisconsin are not shortchanged by a failure to investigate all CCSS angles, whatever the challenges of doing so. Please show us our faith in you is well-placed.

Sincerely,
[the undersigned]

Open Letter to Olsen and Kestell5.20.13 _3_