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☆ In tribute to rights leader King, Biden invokes 'battle for the soul of this nation'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Steve Holland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Marking Monday's national holiday celebrating King, Biden delivered a sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church at the invitation of its pastor, Democratic U.S. King worked for voting rights, Biden said, but "we do well to remember that his mission was even deeper. King was pastor of Ebenezer church from 1960 until his death. "The battle for the soul of this nation is perennial," Biden said in his tribute to King. Many presidents, including Biden, have visited Ebenezer to honor King, usually during events around the time of his birthday.

☆ President Biden to give sermon at Martin Luther King's church in Atlanta
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Steve Holland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WILMINGTON, Del., Jan 15 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden will become the first sitting American president to speak at a Sunday service at Martin Luther King Jr.'s church in Atlanta as he seeks to bolster support among African Americans ahead of an expected run for re-election in 2024. Marking the national holiday celebrating the slain civil rights leader, Biden will deliver a sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church at the invitation of its pastor, Democratic U.S. King was pastor of Ebenezer church from 1960 until his death. Many presidents, including Biden, have visited Ebenezer to honor King, usually during events around the time of his birthday. The Atlanta visit comes as Biden girds for what is expected to be an announcement of his re-election bid in the weeks ahead.

☆ Kellyanne Conway says it's 'ridiculous' that voters could cast ballots 'nearly two months before Election Day' in 2020, but argues that Republicans need to 'invest' in early voting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Kellyanne Conway in a new essay wrote that a 2024 Trump White House campaign shouldn't be dismissed. Conway in her New York Times piece also emphasized that GOP leaders needed to embrace early voting. "Republicans must ... invest in and be vocal about early voting," Conway wrote in the essay. "Republicans must ... invest in and be vocal about early voting," Conway wrote in the essay. I don't like it because it's not Election Day, it's election season, election trimester.

The GOP-controlled House passes a rules package for 118th Congress with just one GOP defection, NBC’s Kyle Stewart reports. ... President Biden spends his final day in Mexico City at North American Leaders’ Summit. But first: The news that the Justice Department is reviewing Obama Era classified documents found at a think tank tied to President Biden is quite a political gift to Donald Trump. “When is the FBI going to raid the many homes of Joe Biden, perhaps even the White House?” Trump posted on his Truth Social account. 6: The number of shootings recently at or near the homes of New Mexico Democratic political leaders, including the incoming state House speaker.

☆ Trump exalts himself over Kevin McCarthy's elevation to House speaker: 'I did our Country a big favor!'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Trump on Saturday took to Truth Social to pat himself on the back for McCarthy's speakership win. "I greatly helped Kevin McCarthy attain the position of Speaker of the House," he wrote. After 15 rounds of balloting, McCarthy was selected by the House as its speaker in a 216-212 vote. "The Fake News Media was, believe it or not, very gracious in their reporting that I greatly helped Kevin McCarthy attain the position of Speaker of the House," he wrote. McCarthy has long allied himself with Trump, and backtracked in his criticism of the former president after the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021.

The exact contours of the Democrats' majority is in flux after Senator Kyrsten Sinema switched her party affiliation from Democrat to independent. But either she caucuses with Democrats and gives the party a 51-49 majority or she does not, leaving Democrats with a 50-49 edge. But in a 50-50 Senate where Democrats and Republicans had an even number of seats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, several civil rights lawyers and nominees supported by progressive advocates stalled with deadlocked votes. And in a 50-50 Senate, occasionally Vice President Kamala Harris was needed to cast a tie-breaking vote. Assuming they are renominated, their path to confirmation could be smoothed, as the Judiciary Committee under Durbin's leadership will now have a majority of Democrats.

☆ Democrats will be defending a slim Senate majority in 2024. Here's an early look at the states that will likely be in play for both political parties.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The 2024 Senate elections — which will run concurrent with the presidential race — are approaching. In 2024, 34 senators will be up for reelection: 20 Democrats, 11 Republicans, and three Independents. But Sinema's election itself is another matter; she has not yet announced whether she will run for reelection in 2024. He has not yet decided if he will run in 2024, but Republicans have been eyeing his seat for years. But he has done it before, winning in 2018 despite Republicans going all-out to defeat him.

☆ Six battleground states will hold the key to the White House in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

AP Photo/Andrew HarnikGeorgia2012 margin: Romney +7.8%2016 margin: Trump +5.1%2020 margin: Biden +0.2%For decades, Republicans could easily depend on the Peach State's electoral votes falling into their column. Two years later, Biden won the state by roughly 12,000 votes over Trump, followed by the dual 2021 runoff victories of Sens. AP Photo/Matt RourkePennsylvania2012 margin: Obama +5.4%2016 margin: Trump +0.7%2020 margin: Biden +1.2%Biden's hometown of Scranton is dear to his heart so Pennsylvania was always going to be a key state for the party in 2024. AP Photo/Andy Manis, FileWisconsin2012 margin: Obama +6.9%2016 margin: Trump +0.8%2020 margin: Biden +0.6%Wisconsin is one of the most politically-divided states in the country. But Trump flipped Wisconsin to the GOP in 2016, the first time it had supported a Republican presidential nominee since 1984.

☆ Warnock says voter suppression remains an issue in Georgia even though he won, tells critic Brad Raffensperger 'we can do better'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Sen. Raphael Warnock told CBS This Morning that voter suppression was still an issue in Georgia. He also addressed a WSJ opinion piece from Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger that called him an "election denier." Raffensperger in his piece was referring to Warnock's victory speech, in which he said voter suppression occurred in the state. Georgia voters reelected Raffensperger in November over a Trump-backed challenger. While voters elected Republicans to other statewide offices in Georgia during the midterms, Democratic voters had strong turnout during early voting.

☆ Fact Check-Shifting figures in Georgia runoff race caused by human error, not fraud
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A sudden change in the vote tallies during a live TV broadcast of the Georgia runoff race was not proof of fraud, as some social media users have suggested. #1776AlloverAgain,” a caption on one of the social media posts read. The incorrect figures (1,417,926 for Walker and 1,429,004 for Warnock) can then be seen at timestamp 1:42s. An apparent surge in votes for Walker and Warnock occurred due to human error when the Associated Press was compiling unofficial tallies on election night in Georgia. Read more about our work to fact-check social media posts here.

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Wednesday called for the state Legislature to end general election runoff contests. “Georgia is one of the only states in the country with a General Election Runoff,” he said in a statement. It was the state's third Senate general election runoff in the past two election cycles. Under Georgia law, a runoff occurs if no candidate wins more than 50% of the vote in an election. Georgia is one of only two states — the other is Louisiana — that continue to hold general election runoffs (though another nine use runoffs in primaries).

☆ Trump hits 7-year low in new national poll as Biden approval climbs
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Just 31% of registered voters surveyed hold a favorable view of Trump, versus 59% who have an unfavorable opinion of him, the poll found. That's the lowest rating Trump has received since July 2015, shortly after he launched his first presidential bid, according to Quinnipiac. Trump's declining marks were even worse among independent voters, the poll showed. Majorities of registered-voter respondents told Quinnipiac they would not like to see Trump or Biden as a 2024 presidential nominee. Asked for comment, a source close to Trump noted that a recent Morning Consult poll showed Trump holding court as the frontrunner, backed by 49% of potential GOP primary voters compared with 31% who favored DeSantis.

☆ Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger calls on state legislators to eliminate runoff elections
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger called for an end to general election runoffs. "Georgia is one of the only states in the country with a General Election Runoff. I'm calling on the General Assembly to visit the topic of the General Election Runoff and consider reforms," Raffensperger said in a statement. In the November general election, Warnock edged out Walker 49.4%-48.5%, but since neither candidate met the 50 percent threshold, the race was extended for an additional four weeks. State courts sided with the plaintiffs and voting took place on November 26 in select jurisdictions across the state.

☆ Georgia's top election official calls for end to runoffs in the state
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Joseph Ax | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 14 (Reuters) - Georgia's top election official on Wednesday called on lawmakers to eliminate the state's unusual runoff election system, a week after Democrats again prevailed in a runoff for a closely fought U.S. Senate race. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, said runoff elections put a significant strain on election officials. Under Georgia law, if no candidate secures at least half of the votes in November's regular election, a runoff between the two top vote-getters is triggered. Democrats in January 2021 swept two Senate runoff races, giving them control of the chamber and allowing President Joe Biden to advance his legislative agenda. Only Louisiana and Georgia employ a runoff system for general elections.

CNN —Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has called on state lawmakers to eliminate general election runoffs. “Georgia is one of the only states in country with a General Election Runoff,” Raffensperger, a Republican, said in a statement on Wednesday. I’m calling on the General Assembly to visit the topic of the General Election Runoff and consider reforms.”Georgia’s general election runoff system, rooted in its segregationist past, says that if no candidate in a general election gets more than 50% of the vote, the race must go to a runoff four weeks later between the two candidates who received the most votes. Raffensperger’s statement comes a little more than a week after Georgia’s third US Senate runoff election in two years, which saw Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock defeat Republican challenger Herschel Walker. The secretary of state pointed to the additional impact the four-week runoff period had on voters and county election officials this year.

☆ Mitch McConnell says Trump's 2022 endorsements limited the GOP's 'ability to control a primary outcome' which led to 'candidate quality' issues
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell blamed Trump for the GOP's poor showing in this year's Senate races. He reiterated previous comments on Tuesday about "candidate quality" issues with Senate candidates. "Hopefully in the next cycle, we'll have quality candidates everywhere and a better outcome," he added. McConnell also reiterated previous comments he's made about the party's roster of Senate candidates, including that he "never said there was a red wave." "I do think we had an opportunity to relearn, one more time: you have to have quality candidates to win competitive Senate races," he added.

☆ Sinema's switch to independent driven by ‘political aspirations,’ Sen. Bernie Sanders says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Summer-Concepcion-Byline-Jm.Jpg | Summer Concepcion | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s decision to leave the Democratic Party was driven by “political aspirations for the future in Arizona," Sen. Bernie Sanders said Sunday. “I happen to suspect that it’s probably a lot to do with politics back in Arizona," Sanders, a Vermont independent who caucuses with the Democrats, said in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union." Along with fellow centrist Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., Sinema held strong negotiating power on Democratic priorities in the evenly divided Senate. “She is a corporate Democrat who has, in fact along with Senator Manchin, sabotaged enormously important legislation,” said Sanders, a prominent progressive lawmaker. Sinema's announcement to register as an independent came just days after Democrats reached a 51-49 Senate majority following Sen. Raphael Warnock’s victory in the Georgia runoff election, which expanded the party's narrowest of majorities.

☆ Sen. Sinema's switch to Independent will not impact Democrats' control of the chamber, representatives say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema announced her decision on Friday to leave the Democrats and register as an independent, but many members of Congress have said the switch likely won't impact the Democrats' narrow control of the U.S. Senate. The pair have been wild cards for Democrats since the party gained narrow control of the Senate from Republicans in 2020. In a tweet Friday, Sinema said her decision to switch parties was a "natural extension" of her service. "I think whether she's a Democrat or a Republican, that really doesn't matter," the Democrat told NBC's "Meet the Press." By keeping her assignments, Sinema signaled she intends to continue to caucus with Democrats as an independent.

☆ Meet the megadonors backing the Trump super PAC as some top donors opt out of supporting 2024 candidacy
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Yet, the latest disclosure, which shows fundraising for the super PAC from Oct. 20 through Nov. 28, also lists nine other individual contributions totaling over $900,000. Wealthy businessman Timothy Mellon contributed $1.5 million to the super PAC on Oct. 5, according to the records. This small group of megadonors arrived in support of the super PAC just prior to other influential financiers deciding they will not back Trump's 2024 candidacy for president. During Trump's first run for the White House in 2016, Pate financed the anti-Trump super PAC We The People Foundation. Anthony Lomangino, a recycling mogul, donated $100,000 to the super PAC on Nov. 4.

☆ Kellyanne Conway slams GOP senators who didn't stump for Herschel Walker ahead of the Senate runoff: 'Why weren't you in Georgia?'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Kellyanne Conway last week criticized GOP senators who didn't stump for Republican Herschel Walker. "Where were the other senators to say, 'I want Herschel Walker, not Raphael Warnock in the Senate with me?'" In last month's general election, Warnock edged out Walker 49.4%-48.5% statewide, which triggered a runoff as neither candidate hit the requisite 50% of the vote to declare victory. Warnock on Tuesday won the runoff over Walker 51.4%-48.6%. I don't like it because it's not Election Day, it's election season, election trimester.

☆ Florida Sen. Rick Scott says defeated Georgia Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker will 'continue to be a leader' in the GOP 'for years to come'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Sen. Rick Scott said Herschel Walker would "continue to be a leader" in the GOP "for years to come." Scott made the comments following Walker's runoff defeat to Sen. Raphael Warnock in Georgia. The Florida lawmaker was a visible presence at many Walker rallies throughout the campaign. But throughout the course of the campaign, Walker's campaign suffered from a series of scandals. After the runoff loss, Republicans are continuing to do a lot of soul-searching, as every statewide GOP candidate besides Walker was victorious at the ballot box in Georgia this year.

☆ Bernie Sanders blasts Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema as a 'corporate Democrat' who has 'sabotaged enormously important legislation'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sen. Bernie Sanders on Sunday blasted fellow Sen. Kyrsten Sinema as a "corporate Democrat." Sanders on CNN's "State of the Union" said Sinema has "sabotaged enormously important legislation." Sinema on Friday announced that she was leaving the Democratic Party to become an Independent. "She is a corporate Democrat who has, in fact, along with Senator Manchin sabotaged enormously important legislation." Sinema will retain her committee assignments through the Democratic Party going forward, meaning that 51-49 balance will hold despite her switching to become an Independent.

☆ What the pro-business tax agenda is chasing in a changing Congress
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Cheryl Winokur Munk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Main Street could find itself stuck in gridlock next year in terms of advancing pro-business tax objectives. For House Republicans, legislative priorities are likely to include extending business-friendly provisions of The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, passed by the Trump Administration in 2017. Even so, a divided Congress means that major pro-business legislative changes will be difficult to enact. Rather, tax and policy professionals expect House Republicans to focus on a number of positioning moves next year — ones that will establish their pro-business agenda ahead of the 2024 presidential election. "There are a host of provisions in the tax code that businesses would like to see changed or revised," said Rochelle Hodes, a principal in Crowe's Washington National Tax office.

On Tuesday, for example, Fox News host Sean Hannity said Republicans “have been unwilling for whatever reason” to vote early and by mail. Ahead of the general election, registered Democrats held an 8-point edge over registered Republicans in Georgia in early voting. Now about to enter his seventh term, Schweikert said that Republicans in his state used to enjoy a robust early voting edge. Kirk, who had raised concerns about mail-in voting, changed his tune after the November midterms, tweeting that Republicans must recognize the “power of early voting.” But Johnson has called for a ban on mail-in voting. At the forefront of GOP concerns over early voting is Pennsylvania, where Democrats enjoyed an edge so substantial that Republicans did not come close to overcoming it.

Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s announcement Friday morning that she was abandoning the Democratic Party to become an independent may require Democrats to modify their catchphrase. Her desperate leap out of the Democratic Party will someday make a compelling story for her book. In response, the Arizona Democratic Party took the serious step of censuring Sinema for her behavior. She’ll almost certainly need to fend off that challenge without the institutional Democratic Party resources she would otherwise have enjoyed. Her desperate leap out of the Democratic Party will someday make a compelling story for her book.

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