July 1, 2015

GOP candidates shouldn’t try to outdo Donald Trump - By Jennifer Rubin

For those unfamiliar with Jennifer Rubin; she's the resident wing nut on the OpEd pages of the Washington Post -- DV

By Jennifer Rubin July 1 at 11:30 AM

The latest national CNN poll confirms what we suspected: The presence of Donald Trump in the race helps one candidate, Jeb Bush. If this is more than a passing phenomenon, the conservative pundits who fawned over Trump and the GOP contenders who seek to ingratiate themselves with him might want to rethink their approach.

In recent national and a raft of early primary state polling, Trump seems to have accumulated loose support from other not-Bush candidates. As the hard right’s not-Bush candidate du jour, Trump siphons support from both self-marginalizing candidates like Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), down to an appalling 3 percent in the CNN national poll, and candidates trying to straddle the mainstream/grassroots divide like Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (at 6 percent). The reaction of Cruz, Mike Huckabee (down to 5 percent), Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (at 2 percent), and Rick Santorum (4 percent) is to scream louder and be even wackier in their policy stances so as to compete with Trump. But not one beats Trump in the crazy department. If voters are looking for an outlandish loudmouth, they might go for the “real” thing, Trump.

The lesson for other serious, mainstream contenders is this: Don’t compete in Trump’s lane. Both Walker and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) are Bush’s stiffest competition. Each appears to be dealing with Trump and other gadflies in his own way. Rubio, to his credit, is essentially ignoring them. Although somewhat hesitant on the flag issue, he has been levelheaded on the gay marriage decision and consistently credible on foreign and domestic policy. Walker has sunk from his first-place position early in the race as each new candidate has entered the field. On one hand, this is partially of Walker’s own making as he deliberately focused on foreign policy preparation and his state’s budget (which was nearly finalized yesterday). On the other hand, he is sometimes seen looking over his shoulder at the Cruz-Trump-Huckabee contingent, hinting at limits on legal immigration and reversing himself on illegal immigration reform and Common Core as well as championing the idea of a constitutional amendment to reverse the Supreme Court decision. This, I would suggest, has only hurt him with mainstream Republicans who might be inclined to look for a not-Bush alternative, while failing to be “out there” enough for the far right.

The not-Bush competition is fierce, but I don’t believe it is mathematically possible to beat him by ignoring the centrist voters, or by scaring them off in a vain attempt to rob votes from fringe candidates. Let the latter squabble among themselves and self-destruct. Even if one of the them prevails in Iowa, a far-right candidate is not likely to do well in more diverse settings. To beat Bush, a top-tier candidate will have to be a slightly more conservative but entirely credible Republican who can, in essence, say he is more conservative than Bush but still electable and comes without the dynasty baggage.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2015/07/01/gop-candidates-shouldnt-try-to-outdo-donald-trump/?

July 1, 2015

Utah Gay Hate Crime Was a Hoax

Source: The Daily Beast/GaySaltLake.com

The Utah man who claimed in April that he was robbed twice by bigots who force-fed him bleach and carved “Die Fag” into his arms now says he made everything up. Rick Jones, who co-owns his family’s Delta, Utah, pizzeria told authorities he was bluffing when he said robbers attacked him before tossing a Molotov cocktail into his bedroom. The Millard County Sheriff’s Department said it may now press charges against the 21-year-old man for the fake report after inconsistencies were discovered. Jones’s lawyer, Brett Tollman, said his client has been seeking medical treatment and acknowledged that the attack tale spiraled out of control once it received national attention.

— M.L. Nestel

Read it at GaySaltLake.com

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Read more: http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2015/07/01/utah-gay-hate-crime-was-a-hoax.html

July 1, 2015

Mississippi AG Asks To Stop Defending Guv In Gay Marriage Case

Source: TPM

Now that the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have the right to marry, the attorney general and governor of Mississippi are butting heads over how to proceed. The Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood (D) on Tuesday asked a federal appeals court to allow his office to withdraw as counsel to Gov. Phil Bryant (R) in the case regarding the state's ban on same-sex marriage, according to Buzzfeed News.

The plaintiffs in the Mississippi same-sex marriage case asked on Friday that the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals lift the stay on its ruling striking down the state's ban following the Supreme Court ruling. Hood's office supported the plaintiff's request, but Bryant opposed the motion, according to Buzzfeed.

Following Bryant's opposition, Hood's office asked to withdraw as counsel to Bryant in the case "because (Hood and Bryant) have differing views regarding how to respond to the (same-sex couples)’ motion," according to the filing obtained by Buzzfeed.

Hood also sent the court a letter on Tuesday asking that they affirm the Supreme Court's ruling. Clerks in Mississippi began to issue marriage licenses to gay couples on Monday after Hood ordered them to do so.

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/jim-hood-phil-bryant-mississippi-gay-marriage

July 1, 2015

After 14 years of watching Christie, a warning: He lies | Moran

By Tom Moran | Star-Ledger Editorial Board
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on June 27, 2015 at 7:56 PM, updated June 30, 2015 at 11:23 AM

Most Americans don't know Chris Christie like I do, so it's only natural to wonder what testimony I might offer after covering his every move for the last 14 years.

Is it his raw political talent? No, they can see that.

Is it his measurable failure to fix the economy, solve the budget crisis or even repair the crumbling bridges? No, his opponents will cover that if he ever gets traction.

My testimony amounts to a warning: Don't believe a word the man says.

If you have the stomach for it, this column offers some greatest hits in Christie's catalog of lies.

Don't misunderstand me. They all lie, and I get that. But Christie does it with such audacity, and such frequency, that he stands out.

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http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/06/after_14_years_of_watching_christie_a_warning_he_l.html