"GOP adds for-profit muscle to the fray; Ex-Romney aide builds operation" by Noah Bierman | Globe Staff, February 14, 2014
ARLINGTON, Va. — Mitt Romney’s old campaign manager has a new mission: foiling Democratic candidates across the country.
Republicans say that Matt Rhoades’s fledgling political group, America Rising, is attempting to build the party’s most sophisticated, modern, and centralized opposition research effort ever. It is key to the GOP’s hopes of resurrecting itself after the soul-crushing presidential defeat of 2012.
Related: Romney in 2016
A three-time loser?
He would then join William Jennings Bryan and Henry Clay, making it a nice threesome.
*****************
After months of tuning up, America Rising has now hired more than 55 full- and part-time employees and is set to launch its first full website in the coming days. It will feature, among other attractions, a home page for each targeted candidate, “like a sports team’s home page,” according to Tim Miller, the group’s executive director and a former spokesman for Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman Jr.
I've had enough of that s***.
Viewers can also expect a steady diet of Hillary Rodham Clinton, the undeclared presidential candidate and the group’s most popular target. America Rising has been relentless in posting tweets, press releases, and links on the beta version of its website about Clinton, just as Democrats have been going after Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey, a potential Republican candidate for president.
I don't think so, not now.
Also see: McDonnell's Mischief
Looks like Rand Paul is going to be the candidate -- if they let him.
Wonder why the Globe has been quiet about those Clinton papers because I haven't seen a word.
Recent Clinton headlines on the site include “Hillary’s Motivation: Revenge,” and “Hillary, Flanked By Security And Assistants, Has Private Shopping Spree At Bergdorf Goodman.” There are taunting pictures and videos of Clinton, and a mock “Hillary’s hit list” with prominent Democrats’ names crossed out in red ink.
You don't think they have one?
Researchers have begun digitizing every detail of Clinton’s life — from Arkansas, to the White House, to the State Department — with the hope that some old ideas will look worse with age and that past controversies will seem fresh to a new generation of voters.
If nothing else it may deprive that monster of the presidency if not nomination.
The group is also targeting Democrats in House, Senate, and governors’ races, including New Hampshire’s three Democratic members of Congress and Representative John F. Tierney, the Salem Democrat expected to face a tough reelection. During the State of the Union address, the group posted public video showing Representative Annie Kuster of New Hampshire embracing President Obama, with links to polls showing his low popularity.
Throw them all out! Make this another anti-incumbent election.
America Rising has also broken new ground in annoying elected leaders — regularly sending two video trackers into the halls of Congress, an area once considered off-limits to political trackers. In other words, Rhoades is working directly in the world that helped destroy his candidate in 2012.
It is no accident. Republicans say their effort is a response to liberal groups’ success in painting Romney as a heartless plutocrat. The liberal groups talked early and often about layoffs and big management paydays at Bain Capital, the private equity firm Romney once ran. They feasted when video emerged showing Romney disparaging 47 percent of the electorate as freeloaders.
And that was all campaign rhetoric.
See: What to Expect for the 2014 Elections
Two years later they found wealth inequality again!
Then, when critics complained Obama and his surrogates were going too negative, outside groups such as American Bridge, the Democrats’ main opposition research super PAC, picked up the mantle.
Even as many voters say they loathe negative campaigning, Democrats were lauded among political insiders for updating the dark art of opposition research for the digital age.
The GOP “autopsy” of Romney’s loss demanded that Republicans catch up in time for the 2016 election, by creating a group to record Democrats’ “every movement, utterance, and action.”
Why? We already have the NSA.
Within weeks of the report’s release last March, Rhoades, 39, personally took up the cause. He had experience. He led opposition research for President George W. Bush’s 2004 reelection campaign, in which he painted John F. Kerry as an elite flip-flopper.
Though the group has big plans, it has yet to make a noticeable impact in elections. It failed to produce victories for Republicans in two early test elections: Senator Edward J. Markey’s Massachusetts special election win in June and Terry McAuliffe’s successful bid for Virginia governor in November.
Related: Your 2016 Presidential Nominees
Also see: Family is All in the Clinton Foundation
Looks like Virginia will stay blue.
Though the group specializes in attacks, its leaders sound downright chipper as they compare their work to “show and tell” in kindergarten.
First a sport teams home page, and now a kindergarten show and tell?
F*** this folly s***.
*********************
Rhoades declined an interview request, but Miller and Joe Pounder, the 30-year-old president, allowed a reporter to tour the facility.
Inside, 22 young political operatives, armed with MacBook laptops, sit in rooms sparsely decorated with hand-written flow charts, a large photograph of Kerry windsurfing, and a push-pin map marked with targeted races and tracker locations. They log YouTube videos, read Twitter feeds, monitor radio interviews, and collate daily surveillance shot by 30 trackers stationed around the country.
Imagine if they put all that energy into helping the country, huh?
If they are lucky, they will catch a gaffe, but they say they are not counting on that. They are creating thick books that can be searched in an instant to undermine House and Senate candidates’ statements or link them with unpopular policies for years to come.
Democrats say they are not worried about the new group, at least not yet....
Yeah, because “Republicans have their Tea Party problem” with people like me.
--more--"
I guess they don't like Chris Christie:
"Lawyer implies Christie knew more; Claim comes in suit over money" by Kate Zernike | New York Times, February 01, 2014
NEW YORK — The former Port Authority official who personally oversaw the lane closings at the George Washington Bridge, central to the scandal now swirling around Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey, said Friday that “evidence exists” that the governor knew about the lane closings when they were happening.
Then let's see it!
A lawyer for the former official, David Wildstein, wrote a letter describing the move to shut the lanes as “the Christie administration’s order” and said “evidence exists as well tying Mr. Christie to having knowledge of the lane closures, during the period when the lanes were closed, contrary to what the governor stated publicly in a two-hour press conference” three weeks ago....
A Clinton mole?
The letter, which was sent as part of a dispute over Wildstein’s legal fees, does not specify what the evidence was.
He wants immunity as well as his lawyer's fees paid!
Nonetheless, it marks a striking break with a previous ally. Wildstein was a high school classmate of Christie’s who was hired with the governor’s blessing at the Port Authority, which controls the bridge.
Christie’s office responded late in the day with a statement that backed away somewhat from the governor’s previous assertions that he had not known about the lane closings until they were reported in the media. Instead, it focused on what the letter did not suggest — that Christie knew of the closings before they occurred....
Oh, Christie is also a LIAR, huh?
Christie, a Republican who made a brief appearance Friday night at Howard Stern’s 60th birthday party in Manhattan and introduced Jon Bon Jovi, did not respond to reporters who shouted questions as he left.
See: $uper Memories of a $uper Weekend
Heard there was a good party though, even if I find some things gross.
Christie has repeatedly said that he did not know about the lane closings until they were first reported by The Record, a North Jersey newspaper, on Sept. 13, the day a senior Port Authority official ordered the lanes reopened.
The letter was sent from Wildstein’s lawyer, Alan Zegas of Chatham, N.J., to the Port Authority’s general counsel. It contested the agency’s decision not to pay Wildstein’s legal fees related to investigations into the lane closures by the US attorney’s office and the state Legislature. The allegations about Christie make up just one long paragraph in a two-page letter that otherwise focuses on Wildstein’s demand that his legal fees be paid and that he be indemnified from any lawsuits.
You can throw his $elf-$erving testimony out!
But Wildstein, a former political strategist and onetime author of a popular but anonymous political blog, seemed to be making an aggressive move against Christie at what should have been a celebratory moment for Christie, who eagerly anticipated the Super Bowl in New Jersey this weekend....
What a WILD man, huh?
Related:
"One former Christie loyalist, David Wildstein, indicated Friday there was contradictory evidence to show that the governor knew about the closings as they were happening. Five people close to the Republican governor and possible 2016 presidential candidate have been fired or resigned amid the scandal, including Wildstein, who is seeking immunity from prosecution. The support from former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and other prominent Republicans put party faithful on the offensive and Wisniewski on the defensive as East Rutherford, N.J., hosted the first outdoor Super Bowl in a cold-weather city on Sunday. Christie, who did not take questions at Super Bowl ceremonies and received a smattering of boos at an event in New York's Times Square on Saturday, was scheduled to appear on a radio call-in program Monday night. He and his family watched the game from a luxury box at MetLife Stadium."
Say goodbye to the nomination, Chris.
The scandal broke Jan. 8, when documents turned over by Wildstein in response to a previous subpoena from the Legislature revealed that a deputy chief of staff to the governor, Bridget Anne Kelly, had sent an e-mail to him in August saying, “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee,” the town at the New Jersey end of the bridge and where Christie’s aides had pursued but failed to receive an endorsement from the mayor, who is a Democrat.
“Got it,” Wildstein replied.
He then communicated the order to bridge operators. The closings caused extensive gridlock in Fort Lee. Christie fired Kelly the day after those e-mails were revealed, and his administration has tried to portray the closings as the actions of a rogue staff member.
But the documents from Wildstein were redacted, leaving clues but no answers as to who else might have been involved in the lane closings.
WTF is this?
--more--"
Related: Opening the Gates of the 2016 Presidential Campaign
It's Giuliani vs. Wildstein in a pre-primary preliminary.
"Top Republicans stay loyal to Chris Christie" Associated Press, February 03, 2014
TRENTON, N.J. —The support came from former mayor Rudy Giuliani of New York, Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, and US Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.
John Wisniewski, the Democratic chairman of a legislative committee investigating the September lane closures near the George Washington Bridge, was among those taking heat from Republicans who spoke out about the issue Sunday.
Christie, a potential 2016 presidential contender, has been going about Super Bowl ceremonial duties — New Jersey was the host of Sunday’s championship game — and has not taken questions about the scandal in recent days.
Related: Rob Ford the Role Model
Christina Genovese Renna, a member of Christie’s administration who has been subpoenaed in an alleged political payback investigation, resigned Friday, she confirmed Sunday. Renna reported to Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Kelly, who apparently set the lane closings in motion.
Giuliani, appearing on CBS’s ‘‘Face the Nation,’’ took aim at the credibility of Wisniewski and another figure central to the scandal — David Wildstein, the former Christie loyalist who as an executive at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey last year ordered the lane closures.
JWho is trying to save his own skin.
On Friday, Wildstein’s lawyer wrote a letter to the Port Authority saying evidence exists that Christie knew about the traffic jams in Fort Lee as they happened. But he did not disclose any evidence in the letter.
Hasn't forged it up yet?
--more--"
I guess they don't like Chris Christie:
"Lawyer implies Christie knew more; Claim comes in suit over money" by Kate Zernike | New York Times, February 01, 2014
NEW YORK — The former Port Authority official who personally oversaw the lane closings at the George Washington Bridge, central to the scandal now swirling around Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey, said Friday that “evidence exists” that the governor knew about the lane closings when they were happening.
Then let's see it!
A lawyer for the former official, David Wildstein, wrote a letter describing the move to shut the lanes as “the Christie administration’s order” and said “evidence exists as well tying Mr. Christie to having knowledge of the lane closures, during the period when the lanes were closed, contrary to what the governor stated publicly in a two-hour press conference” three weeks ago....
A Clinton mole?
The letter, which was sent as part of a dispute over Wildstein’s legal fees, does not specify what the evidence was.
He wants immunity as well as his lawyer's fees paid!
Nonetheless, it marks a striking break with a previous ally. Wildstein was a high school classmate of Christie’s who was hired with the governor’s blessing at the Port Authority, which controls the bridge.
Christie’s office responded late in the day with a statement that backed away somewhat from the governor’s previous assertions that he had not known about the lane closings until they were reported in the media. Instead, it focused on what the letter did not suggest — that Christie knew of the closings before they occurred....
Oh, Christie is also a LIAR, huh?
Christie, a Republican who made a brief appearance Friday night at Howard Stern’s 60th birthday party in Manhattan and introduced Jon Bon Jovi, did not respond to reporters who shouted questions as he left.
See: $uper Memories of a $uper Weekend
Heard there was a good party though, even if I find some things gross.
Christie has repeatedly said that he did not know about the lane closings until they were first reported by The Record, a North Jersey newspaper, on Sept. 13, the day a senior Port Authority official ordered the lanes reopened.
The letter was sent from Wildstein’s lawyer, Alan Zegas of Chatham, N.J., to the Port Authority’s general counsel. It contested the agency’s decision not to pay Wildstein’s legal fees related to investigations into the lane closures by the US attorney’s office and the state Legislature. The allegations about Christie make up just one long paragraph in a two-page letter that otherwise focuses on Wildstein’s demand that his legal fees be paid and that he be indemnified from any lawsuits.
You can throw his $elf-$erving testimony out!
But Wildstein, a former political strategist and onetime author of a popular but anonymous political blog, seemed to be making an aggressive move against Christie at what should have been a celebratory moment for Christie, who eagerly anticipated the Super Bowl in New Jersey this weekend....
What a WILD man, huh?
Related:
"One former Christie loyalist, David Wildstein, indicated Friday there was contradictory evidence to show that the governor knew about the closings as they were happening. Five people close to the Republican governor and possible 2016 presidential candidate have been fired or resigned amid the scandal, including Wildstein, who is seeking immunity from prosecution. The support from former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and other prominent Republicans put party faithful on the offensive and Wisniewski on the defensive as East Rutherford, N.J., hosted the first outdoor Super Bowl in a cold-weather city on Sunday. Christie, who did not take questions at Super Bowl ceremonies and received a smattering of boos at an event in New York's Times Square on Saturday, was scheduled to appear on a radio call-in program Monday night. He and his family watched the game from a luxury box at MetLife Stadium."
Say goodbye to the nomination, Chris.
I'm going to keep talking about this.
The scandal broke Jan. 8, when documents turned over by Wildstein in response to a previous subpoena from the Legislature revealed that a deputy chief of staff to the governor, Bridget Anne Kelly, had sent an e-mail to him in August saying, “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee,” the town at the New Jersey end of the bridge and where Christie’s aides had pursued but failed to receive an endorsement from the mayor, who is a Democrat.
“Got it,” Wildstein replied.
He then communicated the order to bridge operators. The closings caused extensive gridlock in Fort Lee. Christie fired Kelly the day after those e-mails were revealed, and his administration has tried to portray the closings as the actions of a rogue staff member.
But the documents from Wildstein were redacted, leaving clues but no answers as to who else might have been involved in the lane closings.
WTF is this?
--more--"
Related: Opening the Gates of the 2016 Presidential Campaign
It's Giuliani vs. Wildstein in a pre-primary preliminary.
"Top Republicans stay loyal to Chris Christie" Associated Press, February 03, 2014
TRENTON, N.J. —The support came from former mayor Rudy Giuliani of New York, Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, and US Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.
John Wisniewski, the Democratic chairman of a legislative committee investigating the September lane closures near the George Washington Bridge, was among those taking heat from Republicans who spoke out about the issue Sunday.
Christie, a potential 2016 presidential contender, has been going about Super Bowl ceremonial duties — New Jersey was the host of Sunday’s championship game — and has not taken questions about the scandal in recent days.
Related: Rob Ford the Role Model
Christina Genovese Renna, a member of Christie’s administration who has been subpoenaed in an alleged political payback investigation, resigned Friday, she confirmed Sunday. Renna reported to Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Kelly, who apparently set the lane closings in motion.
Giuliani, appearing on CBS’s ‘‘Face the Nation,’’ took aim at the credibility of Wisniewski and another figure central to the scandal — David Wildstein, the former Christie loyalist who as an executive at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey last year ordered the lane closures.
JWho is trying to save his own skin.
On Friday, Wildstein’s lawyer wrote a letter to the Port Authority saying evidence exists that Christie knew about the traffic jams in Fort Lee as they happened. But he did not disclose any evidence in the letter.
Hasn't forged it up yet?
--more--"
