It is interesting that a conglomerate of Ted Cruz Political Action Committees are reporting to have collected $31 million in the first two weeks. However, these reports should be tempered against the backdrop that reports from inside the Jeb Bush team assembly have reportedly told their own donors to hold off on writing any more mega-checks because the coffers were gathering too much money. The Bush insiders were leaking that Jeb’s collections were exceeding $100 million per week.

(Via Breitbart) Super PACs backing Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) for president of the United States are taking in a “record haul” that is “eye-popping,” Bloomberg’s Mark Halperin writes.

“Ted Cruz’s presidential effort is getting into the shock-and-awe fundraising business,” Halperin wrote.

An associate of the Texas senator, a recently announced presidential candidate, tells Bloomberg that a cluster of affiliated super-political action committees was formed only this week, and among them they are expected to have $31 million in the bank by Friday.

(more…)

Over the weekend, as part of the administration’s full court press to support the construct of a deal with Iran, President Obama gave an interview to NPR. In the interview President Obama was asked about the deals’ critics and specifically Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin who shared that any agreement with Iran should be reversed by the next president.

President Obama responded by ridiculing Walker, and saying he should “bone up on foreign policy”:

(Via CBS) […]  “The president was asked in an NPR News interview about Walker’s recent comments promising to reject any Iran deal Mr. Obama reaches on his first day as president.

(more…)

Before We Can Reach Liberty, We Must First Travel Through Chaos !

Don’t get us wrong, if he wins the nomination – fine.  Most of us, I think, would probably be ok with that.  However, let us not be blind to the reality that not too many people are fully prepared for the chaos that would be delivered.

He’s widely expected to announce a presidential bid today, and Rand Paul has something the other GOP candidates do not have – “Paulbots”.

UPDATE: As Expected Rand Paul Launched his presidential bid today (READ MORE)

Will you join us in showing support from across the country? Print this out and use #standwithrand tweet back photo https://t.co/pT9IpZTGBo

— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) April 7, 2015

(more…)

….Yeah, good luck with that. How do you rebrand a person who is known so well as a self-centered, do anything, say anything, secretive in the extreme, political wind-tester and notorious liar, who has been chauffeured for 3 decades -between her three houses- and has disconnected from anything remotely resembling average sensibilities?

The reluctance of Continetti to give the label of “establishment” candidate to Jeb Bush is a strategy. A strategy not of Continetti’s construction, but more of Jeb’s team.

This is one of the central nuances we find annoyingly not outlined. Jeb is the “establishment” BIG GOP pick – however, Team Jeb also recognize that such an openly discussed self-evident truth is also a barrier to their victory plan.

Team Jeb’s path is brutally obvious to those willing to accept it. It is not far away from the Romney path, and therefore considered a successful strategy in the GOP primary. (more…)

…”I think this is a ginned-up controversy by people who play identity politics that has divided the nation in a way that is really unhelpful”…

Spot on, albeit a little politely presented.

(Via The Hill) Former Hewlett-Packard chief Carly Fiorina on Thursday blasted Apple CEO Tim Cook’s opposition to Indiana’s religious freedom law as “hypocrisy.”

Fiorina, a potential 2016 GOP presidential contender, said Cook had a double standard and cited Apple’s operations in other countries with controversial laws about gays and women in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.

“When Tim Cook is upset about all the places that he does business because of the way they treat gays and women, he needs to withdraw from 90% of the markets that he’s in, including China and Saudi Arabia,” Fiorina argued. “But I don’t hear him being upset about that.”

Fiorina said his stance exposed a “level of hypocrisy here that is really unfortunate.”
She added that Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act contained “nothing objectionable” and that Cook’s criticism stemmed from “narrow special interests” rather than reality. (more…)

STOP THE PRESSES !! We’ve got to prioritize… you can almost hear the thunderclap declaration inside Politifact.

Iran? Nuclear Weapons? 150+ Christian students slaughtered in Kenya? Another U.S. woman arrested joining ISIS? Research about not having a federal budget since 2007? ….Nope, none of those things. Something far more important for the Politifact people to focus their attention toward.

“Gov. Scott Walker says he bought a sweater for $1 at Kohl’s”

O-M-G !! On March 14th Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker said he and his wife paid $1 for a sweater at Kohls after using their “Kohls bucks”.

But, but, but…. not just any sweater; nope, it’s far more dubious a scheme than that, it’s a “brown sweater”!  Oh the humanity – NOW we’re certain the threshold has been breached. (more…)

We are beginning to assemble the trail of what has factually taken place within the backstory of the Iranian nuclear negotiations. The dots are all over the place, but essentially the construct looks very familiar.

♦ The White House Team constructed the political “talking points” approximately 2 days ago 3/31/15 (photo above).  [Note subsequent to this meeting not a single media interview by the State Department team]

♦ Those White House points are based on domestic political needs and influenced by increasing domestic backlash.  Goal = Historic, Magnificent, Amazing, etc.

♦ The State Dept. Team in Switzerland (Kerry et al) told to keep quiet as the White House talking points are constructed/finalized. (link) 4/1 and 4/2 absolute silence.

♦ A deal is reached by the Secretary of State team with the Iranian team which does not align with the White House construct (talking points). [The actual deal doesn’t really need to line up with the talking points because that’s not the most important aspect – Think “Tax” VS. “Mandate” in ObamaCare].

♦ The White House talking points are used by President Obama in the Rose Garden.  (link) [Note not a “joint” statement – a pure construct of the White House]

♦ The Iranian team then points out those talking points don’t align in fact with the deal reached by the negotiation teams.  Subsequently calls them “LIES” (link)

Politically the White House now has options: (more…)

As you read the following media report it is important to remember: ♦ Hillary Clinton has previously stated, unequivocally, that no classified communication traveled through her self-created personal communication network. 

So what exactly is there to review?  Either the U.S. government believes the statements by the Secretary of State to be true, or they do not.

Second, ♦ the government knowingly allowed the secret communication network to exist and allowed all the construction issues therein to take place.  Therefore the burden of any administrative compliance issue should reside upon them to reconcile expeditiously.

(The Washington Times) The Obama administration told a federal court Monday that it needs “several months” more to go through former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s government emails, saying it’s proving time-consuming to sort out exactly what information they can release to the public,

Justice Department lawyers also bristled at accusations that the government perpetrated a fraud by hiding the existence of the emails, as Mr. Obama’s team begins to fully grapple with the legal complications Mrs. Clinton has left them. (more…)

As we have outlined (with considerable criticism) over the past year, the only substantive inquiry into the Benghazi scandal will have to be held in non-public settings. When you dig into the substance, and avoid the political aspects, everything that matters regarding the Benghazi fiasco is covered under U.S. national security protections.

There is little of value available to discuss in public hearings. If you understand the Benghazi Brief you understand why.

The CIA and the State Department were conducting a joint covert operation labeled “Zero Footprint” in Libya. That operation was expanded into Syria after Panetta left the CIA. The congressional intelligence oversight known as the Gang of Eight were fully briefed.

Hence, if House Select Committee Chair Trey Gowdy wants to discuss email use, or communication methods therein, during the tenure of Clinton and Panetta, around Operation Zero Footprint, Gowdy has to make those inquiries in private.

WASHINGTON — The chairman of the House select committee investigating the Benghazi attacks asked Hillary Rodham Clinton on Tuesday to appear for a private interview about her exclusive use of a personal email account when she was secretary of state.

“The committee believes a transcribed interview would best protect Secretary Clinton’s privacy, the security of the information queried, and the public’s interest in ensuring this committee has all information needed to accomplish the task set before it,” the chairman, Trey Gowdy, Republican of South Carolina, said in a letter sent Tuesday morning. (more…)