McConnell (majority leader), and Cornyn (majority whip), lost this one.

(Via The Hill) Mitch McConnell staged an epic gamble over U.S. spying powers — and lost.
The Republican leader pledged to keep senators in Washington through the weekend to finish work on expiring provisions of the Patriot Act, but Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) called his bluff.
Instead, when the smoke cleared in the early hours of Saturday morning, the 2016 presidential contender was the one with bragging rights.
The battle between the two Kentucky Republicans spilled over on the Senate floor, with Paul using procedural tactics to force the chamber into an early Saturday vote. He then used his leverage to kill off McConnell’s repeated attempts to reauthorize the expiring National Security Agency (NSA) programs — first for two months, then for eight days, then for five, then three, then two. (more…)

Tell me again what benefit there was to re-electing Mitch McConnell, or giving Republicans the victory in the Senate?

Trade Promotion Authority or TPA contains fast-track provisions would allow Congress, under strict timelines, to consider trade deals with a simple up-or-down vote without any amendments or requirements of a Senate super-majority to end debate.
This would grant new power to the executive branch and reduce congressional ability to modify of block the TPP bill itself.  Obviously this would help Obama complete the final details of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), with the other 11 nations, a bloc that represents about 40 percent of the global economy.

(Via Washington Post)  President Obama won a big victory for his trade agenda Friday with the Senate’s approval of fast-track legislation that could make it easier for him to complete a wide-ranging trade deal that would include 11 Pacific Rim nations.

A coalition of 48 Senate Republicans and 14 Democrats voted for Trade Promotion Authority late Friday, sending the legislation to a difficult fight in the House, where it faces more entrenched opposition from Democrats.

(more…)

Democrats, led by Senator Elizabeth Warren, handed Obama a stinging defeat Tuesday afternoon when a procedural motion to proceed with the President’s trade bill, “Fast Track”, failed to get the 60 votes necessary to pass.  Only one Democrat, Sen. Tom Carper (Del.), voted for it.

WASHINGTON DC – […]  Fast-track is a top legislative priority for the White House, but it has run into significant Senate opposition that has been led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
It faces even more opposition from Democrats in the House, and the surprise Senate failure will raise doubts about whether the legislation will make its way through Congress.
Labor unions and other left-leaning groups have declared war on the fast-track bill, which they argue would ship jobs overseas. The Senate is generally a more pro-trade body than the House, and it has been easier to move trade agreements through the upper chamber.
(more…)

According to Democrat Rep. Elijah Cummings, Hillary Clinton is eager to present herself for testimony to the Congressional Select Benghazi Committee. Obviously the Democrats  would prefer it to be ASAP -and- we predict within a few weeks you will see a shift in strategy which will put Gowdy solidly back on his heels and marginalize his position.
According to Trey Gowdy the State Department is hiding documents and blocking witness testimony – which he demands prior to interviewing Hillary Clinton.  The Democrats scoff at his claims saying bazillions of pages, hearings, testimonials, and documents have been provided.  Cummings is playing Chess, Gowdy is playing checkers.
The White House, the State Department, and the Democrats on the panel have a well-planned strategy to derail any political risk stemming from Benghazi; and even though I know many readers are fans of Gowdy, it appears he is being played like a finely tuned instrument.

Example: 2013 President Obama announces 41 new legislative proposals.  Two actually came to fruition.

WASHINGTON – Judging by his recent history, it doesn’t really matter what President Obama says in Tuesday’s State of the Union address — Congress is going to ignore him anyway.
Mr. Obama has the second-worst record of getting his State of the Union policy requests enacted into law of any president in the last five decades, according to an analysis by two scholars that puts him only above the unelected two-year presidency of Gerald Ford.
From 2009 through 2014, Mr. Obama issued 209 different calls for action from Congress in his speeches, but only saw lawmakers follow through on 64 of them — good for just 30 percent. That’s only slightly better than Mr. Ford’s 28 percent success rate, and is well below the likes of President Clinton, the previous Democratic president, who won 44 percent of his policies even though he faced a Congress more Republican than Mr. Obama has. (more…)

Sharyl Attkisson has provided some new information on the closed door Benghazi Select Committee hearings and investigative inquiry.

Including the following from Trey Gowdy:

[…]  “The committee is continuing its probe into all aspects of Benghazi and is currently focused on ensuring access to all first-hand accounts from those on the ground that night. This process will be ongoing and in some respects must remain classified.”–Benghazi Select Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C.

We took a lot of fire -following the Benghazi Brief– when we explained why this would be the case.  The risks of sunlight are essentially equal to both Republicans -who approved the program(s) basic goals via intelligence oversight- and Democrats alike.
Apparently we were correct.

Four years ago we coined the phrase “Decepticons” to define a contrast between traditional establishment Republicans, and a modern shift to become intentionally deceptive Republicans . 
These Decepticons actually have planning meetings and assemble with a team of likeminded ideologues to construct plans, long-term strategy sessions, containing how they can undermine the basic principles of conservatism.
RINO’s are Republicans who don’t fight against big government, they have always existed.  Decepticons are a newer breed, and infinitely worse. Decepticons are intentional deceivers – they are far more dangerous than RINO’s because they don’t just vote wrong, they intentionally construct schemes in alignment with radical left-wing operatives.
The Decepticons are exposed right now; the constructs of both Boehner and McConnell –that support liberal policies– have more people questioning motive and intent.
Just like long-ball progressives who nudge the big government game along, the Decepticon goal is to deceive the audience.

I agree with everything this guy says about the Republican party and his sentiment, except the date. The date the principled conservative movement actually lost any hope of reforming the Republican party was May 20th 2014.  This is the same exact date that Jeb Bush became the absolute guaranteed GOP candidate for 2016.

Everything between May 20th 2014 and November 8th 2016 is baked into the cake. 

(Bell News) The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result.
Over the past 40 plus years of life I have been fed the line that if a person doesn’t vote for the Republicans then the Democrats will win. Or if we start a third party it will split the vote and the Democrats will win. (more…)

The Republican leadership of the U.S. government is acting French…
WASHINGTON DC – Incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is “not opposed” to negotiating with President Obama, he said in an interview with CNN that aired Sunday, and expressed eagerness to work with the president to find a middle ground in the coming year.

“Now he needs to talk to us,” McConnell said. “And that’s good, because when the American people elect a divided government, they’re not saying they don’t want anything done. What they are saying is, they want things done in the political center, things that both sides can agree on. We talk about the things where there may be some agreement.”
(more…)

It’s a forgone conclusion that Jeb Bush will be the GOP candidate for the 2016 Republican GOP Presidential ticket.  The only possible roadblock was eliminated on May 11th 2014.  Jeb’s anticipated pathway is essentially the same as Mitt Romney in 2012. 
Hold breath, don’t make any fabulous gaffes => Blow off Iowa, place 2nd or better in New Hampshire, show face in South Carolina, then begin to pull away by taking Florida.  The roadmap of The Romney 2.0.  
The Tom Donohue approved bilingual Chamber candidate committed to three essential principles: ¹Maintain ObamaCare, ²advocate for comprehensive immigration reform, and ³support Federal Common Core education standards.
IOWA – Former Florida governor Jeb Bush has declined an invitation to speak at a political event organized by U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Kiron.
A Bush aide said Wednesday that the former Florida governor appreciated the invite from Republican congressman Steve King but would not be able to attend the Iowa Freedom Summit on Jan. 24 because of a scheduling conflict.
More than a half-dozen potential Republican presidential contenders are set to appear, including New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
Bush’s absence is notable because of King’s status as a conservative power broker in Iowa, home of the nation’s first presidential caucuses. (read more)