WV-SEN: Blankenship Slams 'Cocaine Mitch'

West Virginia Senate hopeful Don Blankenship is intensifying his offensive against Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, calling him “Cocaine Mitch” in a new TV ad released just over a week until the Republican primary.

“Blankenship… offers no context for the jab. But he may be referring to a 2014 report in the liberal Nation magazine that drugs were once found aboard a shipping vessel owned by the family of McConnell’s wife, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao.”


https://politicalwire.com/2018/04/30/blankenship-slams-cocaine-mitch/

Pence's doctor alerted WH aides about Ronny Jackson concerns last fall

(CNN) Vice President Mike Pence's physician privately raised alarms within the White House last fall that President Donald Trump's doctor may have violated federal privacy protections for a key patient -- Pence's wife, Karen -- and intimidated the vice president's doctor during angry confrontations over the episode.

The previously unreported incident is the first sign that serious concerns about Ronny Jackson's conduct had reached the highest levels of the White House as far back as September -- months before White House aides furiously defended Jackson's professionalism, insisted he had been thoroughly vetted and argued allegations of misconduct amounted to unsubstantiated rumors.

The episode -- detailed in three memos by Pence's physician -- is also the first documentation that has surfaced involving a specific allegation of medical misconduct by Jackson. It adds to a series of significant allegations leveled by unidentified current and former colleagues, including that he casually dispensed prescription drugs.



https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/04/30/politics/karen-pence-doctor-privacy-ronny-jackson/index.html

Woman Says Greitens 'Coaxed' Her As 'Wounded Animal

A woman with whom Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) acknowledged having a consensual affair told prosecutors that Greitens coaxed her into unwanted sexual activity as she was crying “like a wounded little animal on the ground, according to a legislative report that accuses the governor of mischaracterizing the woman’s testimony, the AP reports.

“The brief, graphic report from a special House investigatory committee is intended as a rebuttal to Greitens, who had asserted that the video interview of the woman ‘undermined the narrative’ of an earlier House report detailing the woman’s allegations that Greitens had been physically aggressive toward her.”

St. Louis Post Dispatch: “The report also included allegations the future chief executive, who ran on a family values platform, had spanked, slapped and shoved the woman during a series of sexual encounters that at times left her frightened and crying.”


https://politicalwire.com/2018/04/30/woman-says-greitens-coaxed-her-as-wounded-animal/

Wasserman: Increasing likelihood of Dem shutout in one or two CA House races.

Trump Campaign broke campaign finance laws by paying Cohen's legal bills

“The Trump campaign has spent nearly $228,000 to cover some of the legal expenses for President Trump’s personal attorney Michael Cohen, sources familiar with the payments tell ABC News, raising questions about whether the Trump campaign may have violated campaign finance laws.”

“Cohen has said that he did not have a formal role in the Trump campaign, and it is illegal to spend campaign funds for personal use.”


https://politicalwire.com/2018/04/30/trump-campaign-is-paying-for-some-of-cohens-legal-fees/

FL-SEN: Scott Posts Huge Fundraising Hau

Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s (R) Senate campaign says it raised $3.2 million in the three weeks since announcing his bid, a major show of fundraising force in his bid against Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), The Hill reports.

“The figure represents as much as Nelson raised during the first three months of 2018. The news is meant as a warning shot to Democrats about how quickly Scott can raise money — even before putting his personal wealth into the campaign.”


https://politicalwire.com/2018/04/30/scott-posts-huge-fundraising-haul/

Trump needs a new candyman. Ronny Jackson won't return to old job as White House physician

White House physician Ronny Jackson will not return to his role as the president’s personal physician, according to two senior administration officials, after a string of allegations caused the Navy rear admiral to withdraw his nomination last week to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Sean Conley, a Navy officer who took over Jackson’s role as the president’s personal doctor last month, will continue in the role, the officials said.

Jackson bowed out last week after Montana Sen. Jon Tester, the top Democrat on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, released a document summarizing allegations by current and former colleagues that Jackson overprescribed pills, drank on the job and created a hostile work environment. Jackson has denied the allegations and has returned to work in the White House Medical Unit.

President Donald Trump has continued defending Jackson, with whom he formed a tight personal bond.

On Saturday, Trump wrote on Twitter that Tester should resign, saying that the Secret Service had been unable to confirm any of the allegations against Jackson.


https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/29/ronny-jackson-trump-doctor-559529

Southern Baptist leader urged abused women to pray and avoid divorce

The leader of a major Southern Baptist seminary issued a statement Sunday pushing back after a 2000 tape surfaced purporting to quote him saying that abused women should focus on praying and “be submissive in every way that you can” and not seek divorce.

Paige Patterson is president of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, a Fort Worth school whose Web site says it is one of the largest seminaries in the world. About 15 million people are part of Southern Baptist churches, the largest Protestant group in the United States. Patterson is slated to deliver the primary sermon — a high-profile honor — in June at the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting in Dallas.

Patterson, who declined to comment Sunday, is heard on an audiotape being interviewed about what he recommends for women “who are undergoing genuine physical abuse from their husbands, and the husband says they should submit.”

“It depends on the level of abuse, to some degree,” Patterson says. “I have never in my ministry counseled anyone to seek a divorce and that’s always wrong counsel.” Only on an occasion or two in his career, he says, when the level of abuse “was serious enough, dangerous enough, immoral enough,” has he recommended a temporary separation and the seeking of help.


https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/southern-baptist-leader-pushes-back-after-comments-leak-urging-abused-women-to-pray-and-avoid-divorce/ar-AAwvUYN?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=mailsignout

McCain's son-in-law: 'John hugged me tonight. He asked me to take care of Meghan.'

John McCain's son-in-law, conservative pundit Ben Domenech, tweeted Saturday night that the senator, who is battling a deadly form of brain cancer, asked him to take care of his daughter, Meghan.

McCain, a six-term Arizona Republican, was released from the hospital last week. He had been in stable condition at the Mayo Clinic, according to his family and Senate office, following surgery for an intestinal infection related to diverticulitis.

McCain, 81, has been recovering at his family's retreat near Sedona, a tweet from his wife, Cindy, suggests.

Ben Domenech's tweet was posted at 8:16 p.m. Arizona time. It is unclear what prompted the message. He subsequently deleted the tweet sometime before 10 p.m.


https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.azcentral.com/amp/562544002

FLIPPABLE: Mari Manoogian for MI-HD40

Mari Manoogian was born and raised in Birmingham, Michigan. She attended Birmingham Public Schools and graduated with honors from Seaholm High School.

Mari’s great-grandparents escaped the Armenian Genocide and came to the United States in the early 1920s. Her father’s and mother’s families arrived in Michigan via Ellis Island, and ultimately settled in the Detroit area, due to the promise of jobs and a vibrant Armenian-American community. Her grandfather’s family rented a farm in Monroe, MI, and sold produce in the local neighborhoods. Her grandfather enlisted in the Army during World War II. He benefited from the GI Bill, training to eventually become an award-winning hairdresser. He worked in Birmingham and Southfield for more than fifty years. Her grandmother raised her four children in the family’s Allen Park home.

On her mother’s side, Mari’s grandfather’s entrepreneurial spirit led him to own several small businesses across Detroit and Oakland County. Following her graduation from Southwestern High School in Detroit, Mari’s grandmother worked in a bank until she married Mari’s grandfather. She raised their four children in Detroit and Southfield-Lathrup.

Mari’s mother and father met through Mari’s uncle, who has been a close friend of her father since childhood. Today, Mari’s mom is a small-business owner and vocational rehabilitation counseling expert. Mari’s dad took a job as a cable splicer at Detroit Edison after high school. During his career at Edison he also held various positions with the union. He was elected and served as President of Local 223, the union which represents Detroit Edison’s workers, from 1988 to 1997. He worked in the utility industry for fifty years, and retired in 2016 as Chief of Staff of the Utility Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO. Mari’s younger sister, Alis, is also a graduate of Seaholm High School. She’s currently a senior at the School of Hospitality Business at Michigan State University.

From a young age, Mari’s family instilled in her a strong work ethic. She began babysitting in the local community when she was twelve, and spent summers and breaks during high school and college waiting tables at Hunter House Hamburgers. Mari earned a varsity letter in figure skating, was an award-winning high school journalist, and played several seasons of basketball for St. John Armenian Church in the Orthodox Athletic League. She figure skated competitively, and was a member of the Figure Skating Club of Birmingham for fifteen years.

Education and public service has always been a priority for Mari’s family. Mari graduated from Elliott School of International Affairs at the George Washington University. During her studies, she interned for then-Congressman John D. Dingell, the Council on Foreign Relations, and for Ambassador Samantha Power at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. Mari volunteered in global education programs for DC public school students, teaching public speaking and research skills through Model United Nations, and was an active member of the GW College Democrats.

After graduation, Mari worked in the Office of English Language Programs at the U.S. Department of State. While working with foreign and civil service officers, Mari set her sights on a career in public service. She was accepted to complete graduate studies in Global Communication, and again chose the Elliott School of International Affairs at GW. She worked full-time in the Office of eDiplomacy at the department while in enrolled in school full-time. Mari is running for the Democratic nomination to be the 40th District’s state representative to serve the people of her home community. She understands the importance of quality K-12 education, will make affordable higher education a priority, and is keenly aware of the critical need for leadership in the State House representing her community. She is a member of the ACLU, NAACP, Sierra Club, and St. Sarkis Armenian Church in Dearborn.






https://www.mariformi.com