Jim Zeigler calls out Luther Strange for missing Ala. debate, while he’s casting vote in DC
Sitting politicians often find themselves on the receiving end of public scrutiny when they choose to dismiss their duties in Washington, D.C. to hit the campaign trail. U.S. Sen. Luther Strange, however, found himself in the exact opposite position Monday evening. State Auditor Jim Zeigler took to Facebook Monday night to call out Strange for missing GOP Senate candidate forum in Wetumpka, Ala. that evening. “Luther Strange failed to show up at Senate debate in Wetumpka,” Zeigler wrote on his Facebook post. Over 300 attendees packed the Wetumpka Civic Center for the Wetumpka Tea Party hosted forum, where the “top 3” Republican candidates for the U.S. Senate seat — Mo Brooks, Roy Moore and Luther Strange — were invited to face-off. Strange was not in attendance. Zeigler however failed to realize that Strange was absent because he was fulfilling his Senatorial duties in the nation’s capital — casting a vote for President Donald Trump‘s nominee for the 11th Circuit Court, fellow-Alabamian Kevin Newsom. Shana Teehan, a spokeswoman for Strange was quick to defend her boss’ absence on Zeigler’s Facebook page, explaining that the event’s organizers were told nearly two weeks ago that the Senator would be unable to attend due to the fact that the Senate was in session. “The organizers were told almost two weeks ago that the senate would be in session and that the Senator would not be able to make it,” Teehan said. According to official record, the Senate did not recess until 6:37 p.m. ET on Monday. It will reconvene Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. ET for another day of regular business. Strange, who was appointed to Alabama’s Senate seat in February by former Gov. Robert Bentley, has found himself the target of many attacks and criticisms both on and offline in recent weeks as the Aug. 15 primary nears. Over the weekend, the Wetumpka Tea Party tweeted an article questioning Strange’s ascension to the U.S. Senate. It was one of several against the Senator they’ve made in the past week. A Strange State Of Corruption | The Resurgent https://t.co/HljZHiZKJU — Wetumpka TEA Party (@wetumpkatea) July 31, 2017
Anthony Scaramucci out of White House job as John Kelly takes charge
Anthony Scaramucci is out as White House communications director after just 11 days on the job – and just hours after former Gen. John Kelly took over as President Donald Trump‘s new chief of staff. Hoping to turn the page on a tumultuous opening chapter to his presidency, Trump had insisted earlier Monday that there was “no chaos” in his White House as he swore in the retired Marine general as his second chief of staff. Not long after, Scaramucci, who shocked many with his profane outburst last week against then-chief of staff Reince Priebus, was gone. In the words of the White House announcement, he was leaving because he “felt it was best to give Chief of Staff John Kelly a clean slate and the ability to build his own team.” The three-sentence release concluded, “We wish him all the best.” The statement about Scaramucci’s departure used the same “clean slate” language that departing press secretary Sean Spicer used to describe his own reason for resigning the day Trump brought Scaramucci aboard. Spicer remained in the White House on Monday, saying he was there to assist with the communications transitions. As the Scaramucci news spread, Kelly was in the East Room smiling and taking pictures with guests who were gathering for a Medal of Honor presentation. Earlier, in an Oval Office ceremony, Trump predicted Kelly, who previously served as Homeland Security chief, would do a “spectacular job.” And the president chose to highlight the rising stock market and positive jobs outlook rather than talk about how things might need to change in his White House under Kelly. Trump on Friday ousted Priebus as chief of staff and turned to Kelly, who he hopes will bring military discipline to an administration weighed down by a stalled legislative agenda, infighting among West Wing aides and a stack of investigations. Scaramucci’s brief tenure shoved internal White House disputes into the open. In media interviews, he trashed Priebus as a “leaker” and senior White House aide Steve Bannon as a self-promoter. One of Scaramucci’s first – and it turns out only – acts was to force out a communications aide seen as loyal to Priebus. Spicer, Priebus and Bannon had all objected to Trump’s decision to hire Scaramucci, who would have reported directly to the president. While Trump is looking for a reset, he pushed back against criticism of his administration with this tweet: “Highest Stock Market EVER, best economic numbers in years, unemployment lowest in 17 years, wages raising, border secure, S.C.: No WH chaos!” In fact, economic growth averaged 2 percent in the first half of this year, a pace Trump railed against as a candidate and promised to lift to 3 percent. The stock market first hit a record under President Barack Obama and has kept growing. The unemployment rate, too, started to decline on Obama’s watch. And wage gains have been weak. Trump on Monday convened his first Cabinet meeting with Kelly at his side, telling his team it is “doing incredibly well” and “starting from a really good base.” On how he would deal with rising tensions with North Korea, Trump said only: “It will be handled.” Seated across from Trump was Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who has stayed on the job while Trump has publicly savaged him in interviews and on social media. Kelly’s success in a chaotic White House will depend on how much authority he is granted and whether Trump’s dueling aides will put aside their rivalries to work together. Also unclear is whether a new chief of staff will have any influence over the president’s social media histrionics. Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, who was ousted from the campaign in June 2016, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he expected Kelly would “restore order to the staff” but also stressed that Trump was unlikely to change his style. “I say you have to let Trump be Trump. That is what has made him successful over the last 30 years. That is what the American people voted for,” Lewandowski said. “And anybody who thinks they’re going to change Donald Trump doesn’t know Donald Trump.” Kelly’s start follows a wild week, marked by a profane tirade by Scaramucci, the president’s continued criticism of his attorney general and the failed effort by Senate Republicans to overhaul the nation’s health care law. In addition to the strains in the West Wing and with Congress, Kelly starts his new job as tensions escalate with North Korea. The United States flew two supersonic bombers over the Korean Peninsula on Sunday in a show of force against North Korea, following the country’s latest intercontinental ballistic missile test. The U.S. also said it conducted a successful test of a missile defense system located in Alaska. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that she hopes Kelly can “be effective,” and “begin some very serious negotiation with the North and stop this program.” Another diplomatic fissure opened Sunday when Russian President Vladimir Putin said the U.S. would have to cut its embassy and consulate staff in Russia by several hundred under new sanctions from Moscow. In a television interview, Putin indicated the cutback was retaliation for new sanctions in a bill passed by Congress and sent to Trump. Trump plans to sign the measure into law, the White House has said. After Putin’s remarks, the State Department deemed the cutbacks “a regrettable and uncalled for act” and said officials would assess the impact and how to respond to it. While Trump is trying to refresh his team, he signaled that he does not want to give up the fight on health care. On Twitter Sunday, he said: “Don’t give up Republican Senators, the World is watching: Repeal & Replace.” The protracted health care fight has slowed work on Trump’s other policy goals, including a tax overhaul and infrastructure investment. But Trump aides made clear that the president still wanted to see action on health care. White House
Personnel note: Rachel Adams leaving Ala. Speaker’s office for new gig with ACCS
After more than four and a half years working as the Communications Director in the Alabama House Speaker’s office, Rachel Adams on Monday announced she’s moving on. The University of Missouri grad starts a new gig on Tuesday working with the Alabama Community College System as their Communications and Marketing Administrator. There, she will be responsible for building and coordinating news media relations and serving as the primary contact for all external media outlets for the ACCS.Additionally, she will manage and update content on the ACCS website, social media pages, and other online platforms. Prior to her time in the Speaker’s office she worked as the Communications Director for the Republican National Committee’s Victory office in North Carolina, where among other things she created and implemented traditional and social media campaigns to drive RNC and Romney Campaign message to NC voters. Before that, she was a senior account executive at the Washington, D.C.-based Vox Global, , a bipartisan public affairs and strategic communications firm, where she developed internal event planning structure for Fortune 10 Corporation and coordinated the company’s presence at major stakeholder events. Adams’ replacement in the Speaker’s office has yet to be announced.
Anthony Scaramucci out of White House job as John Kelly takes charge
Anthony Scaramucci is out as White House communications director after just 11 days on the job – and just hours after former Gen. John Kelly took over as President Donald Trump‘s new chief of staff. Hoping to turn the page on a tumultuous opening chapter to his presidency, Trump had insisted earlier Monday that there was “no chaos” in his White House as he swore in the retired Marine general as his second chief of staff. Not long after, Scaramucci, who shocked many with his profane outburst last week against then-chief of staff Reince Priebus, was gone. In the words of the White House announcement, he was leaving because he “felt it was best to give Chief of Staff John Kelly a clean slate and the ability to build his own team.” The three-sentence release concluded, “We wish him all the best.” The statement about Scaramucci’s departure used the same “clean slate” language that departing press secretary Sean Spicer used to describe his own reason for resigning the day Trump brought Scaramucci aboard. Spicer remained in the White House on Monday, saying he was there to assist with the communications transitions. As the Scaramucci news spread, Kelly was in the East Room smiling and taking pictures with guests who were gathering for a Medal of Honor presentation. Earlier, in an Oval Office ceremony, Trump predicted Kelly, who previously served as Homeland Security chief, would do a “spectacular job.” And the president chose to highlight the rising stock market and positive jobs outlook rather than talk about how things might need to change in his White House under Kelly. Trump on Friday ousted Reince Priebus as chief of staff and turned to Kelly, who he hopes will bring military discipline to an administration weighed down by a stalled legislative agenda, infighting among West Wing aides and a stack of investigations. Scaramucci’s brief tenure shoved internal White House disputes into the open. In media interviews, he trashed Priebus as a “leaker” and senior White House aide Steve Bannon as a self-promoter. One of Scaramucci’s first – and it turns out only – acts was to force out a communications aide seen as loyal to Priebus. Spicer, Priebus and Bannon had all objected to Trump’s decision to hire Scaramucci, who would have reported directly to the president. While Trump is looking for a reset, he pushed back against criticism of his administration with this tweet: “Highest Stock Market EVER, best economic numbers in years, unemployment lowest in 17 years, wages raising, border secure, S.C.: No WH chaos!” In fact, economic growth averaged 2 percent in the first half of this year, a pace Trump railed against as a candidate and promised to lift to 3 percent. The stock market first hit a record under President Barack Obama and has kept growing. The unemployment rate, too, started to decline on Obama’s watch. And wage gains have been weak. Trump on Monday convened his first Cabinet meeting with Kelly at his side, telling his team it is “doing incredibly well” and “starting from a really good base.” On how he would deal with rising tensions with North Korea, Trump said only: “It will be handled.” Seated across from Trump was Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who has stayed on the job while Trump has publicly savaged him in interviews and on social media. Kelly’s success in a chaotic White House will depend on how much authority he is granted and whether Trump’s dueling aides will put aside their rivalries to work together. Also unclear is whether a new chief of staff will have any influence over the president’s social media histrionics. Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, who was ousted from the campaign in June 2016, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he expected Kelly would “restore order to the staff” but also stressed that Trump was unlikely to change his style. “I say you have to let Trump be Trump. That is what has made him successful over the last 30 years. That is what the American people voted for,” Lewandowski said. “And anybody who thinks they’re going to change Donald Trump doesn’t know Donald Trump.” Kelly’s start follows a wild week, marked by a profane tirade by Scaramucci, the president’s continued criticism of his attorney general and the failed effort by Senate Republicans to overhaul the nation’s health care law. In addition to the strains in the West Wing and with Congress, Kelly starts his new job as tensions escalate with North Korea. The United States flew two supersonic bombers over the Korean Peninsula on Sunday in a show of force against North Korea, following the country’s latest intercontinental ballistic missile test. The U.S. also said it conducted a successful test of a missile defense system located in Alaska. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that she hopes Kelly can “be effective,” and “begin some very serious negotiation with the North and stop this program.” Another diplomatic fissure opened Sunday when Russian President Vladimir Putin said the U.S. would have to cut its embassy and consulate staff in Russia by several hundred under new sanctions from Moscow. In a television interview, Putin indicated the cutback was retaliation for new sanctions in a bill passed by Congress and sent to Trump. Trump plans to sign the measure into law, the White House has said. After Putin’s remarks, the State Department deemed the cutbacks “a regrettable and uncalled for act” and said officials would assess the impact and how to respond to it. While Trump is trying to refresh his team, he signaled that he does not want to give up the fight on health care. On Twitter Sunday, he said: “Don’t give up Republican Senators, the World is watching: Repeal & Replace.” The protracted health care fight has slowed work on Trump’s other policy goals, including a tax overhaul and infrastructure investment. But Trump aides made clear that the president still wanted to see action on health care. White
Alabama Republican Assembly backs Roy Moore for Senate
With just over two weeks to go until the special primary election for the rest of Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ Senate term, the Alabama Republican Assembly announced it would back former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore for the GOP nomination. The Alabama Republican Assembly announced its support for Moore on July 26, citing his “correct moral and constitutional principles” as what sets him apart in the crowded Republican Primary race. “Judge Moore is a proven fighter, personally and politically, and will stand strong for government that abides by the Constitution,” said ALRA President Jennifer Montrose. Don Wallace, who heads up the Southeast Region of the ALRA, said “while there are several good candidates that are running for this position and who would serve Alabama well in the Senate, the Republican Assembly voted overwhelmingly for Judge Moore because of his demonstrable commitment to conservative principles and a willingness to stand up against an out of control Federal Judiciary.” Montrose closed out the endorsement by issuing a call to arms for “all conservatives to join us in supporting Judge Roy Moore in the August Republican Primary. Moore’s major rivals in the primary race are sitting U.S. Sen. Luther Strange, who was appointed to the seat earlier this year by scandal-plagued former Gov. Robert Bentley, and CD 5 U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks, who is a member of the House Freedom Caucus and has recently doubled down on his concerns with President Donald Trump’s administration. A recent poll from Raycom News Network put Strange and Moore in a statistical tie heading into the final stretch, with Brooks coming in as the only other GOP candidate in the nine-person field with double digit support. Alabama requires a primary runoff election if no candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote, which seems likely given current poll numbers. The primary race is set for Aug. 15. The primary runoff, if necessary, will be Sept. 26; the general election is Dec. 12.
New SLF ad attacks Mo Brooks on Donald Trump, war funding
With about two weeks before the Alabama U.S. Senate Republican primary, Mo Brooks is once again on the receiving end of a new attack ad from the Senate Leadership Fund. First reported by POLITICO, “’Back’ Al,” which launched last week, features several direct-to-camera interviews of Alabamians attacking Brooks, the Huntsville Republican congressman seeking Jeff Sessions’ old Senate seat. “Mo Brooks said we can’t trust Donald Trump,” a woman says in the ad opening. “You know what I don’t trust? Career politicians like Mo Brooks.” The 30-second spot touches on Brooks’ votes against continuing resolutions by featuring military veterans accusing Brooks of “voting to cut off funding to fight ISIS.” A second veteran says: “We fought for our freedom … Brooks, he fought to cut off funding.” “Mo Brooks didn’t have my back, and he won’t be getting my vote,” another veteran says. Watch the ad here on YouTube. Brooks, former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore and sitting Sen. Luther Strange are part of the 9-person field running in the midsummer Republican U.S. Senate primary. Senate Leadership Fund, the group behind the ad, is a political committee controlled by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. SLF is strongly backing Strange in the Senate race. For his part, Moore — a member of the House Freedom Caucus — has returned the criticism. During a recent breakfast event hosted by the Heritage Foundation, Brooks called for the leader’s ouster as “head of the swamp.” “Inside the Republican conference, Mitch McConnell’s got to go,” Brooks said. “Absolutely, he is the head of the swamp in the United States Senate.” New WBRC polling puts the race at a statistical tie between Moore and Strange. Strange received 35 percent of “likely” registered voters, with Moore getting 33 percent. Brooks took 16 percent. Alabama voters have until Aug. 10 to apply for an absentee ballot for the Aug. 15 primary. If there is no winner — with 50 percent plus one of the vote — a runoff is Sept. 26; the general election is Dec. 12.
Bradley Byrne: Cutting the noise
There has been a lot of noise coming out of Washington and in the national news media. If you listen to all the noise, you would think the only thing happening in our nation’s capital is staffing drama at the White House and an ongoing Russia investigation. Those topics consume the national headlines day in and day out. Sadly, that narrative does not match the reality of what is happening in the House of Representatives. In fact, we are getting our work done and following through on our promises. I bet you would be surprised to know that already this year the House has passed over 295 bills. I doubt that is something you have heard from the national news media. To help illustrate how much we are getting done in the House, let’s consider just what happened this past week. Most notably, the House passed the Make America Secure Appropriations Act, a major national security funding bill. The bill provides funding for the military, veterans, border security, and much more. Having state-of-the-art facilities and resources is vital to the success of our military. To help repair dilapidated and aging military infrastructure, the bill provides a 25% increase in military construction funding. Supporting our service-members and their families is also a high priority in the bill, as it provides for the largest military pay raise in eight years. The bill allocates the highest level of funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs in our nation’s history. This will help cut down on the claims backlog and move forward with a new electronic medical health record system. The American people sent a strong message last November that they wanted a wall securing our southern border. This bill will begin this process by providing over $1.5 billion requested by President Trump for physical barrier construction along the Southern border. This is a major breakthrough in our efforts to secure the border. We also passed bills to reauthorize our nation’s intelligence programs and to provide emergency funding for the VA, including the VA’s Choice program. Both of these bills passed the House with broad bipartisan support. On Thursday, I introduced the Save Local Business Act, which rolls back the extreme joint employer scheme to protect American jobs and entrepreneurship. My bill is all about making sure federal labor policies focus on benefiting workers and helping small businesses grow instead of creating barriers that limit opportunity. I am pleased it is already earning bipartisan support. Also last week, a major announcement was made regarding the future of tax reform. House, Senate, and White House leaders issued a joint statement outlining the key principles of tax reforming and making clear that simplifying the tax code is a shared priority. On the local front, the House-passed national security bill includes important funding for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program, which is great news for the over 4,000 men and women who work at the Austal shipyard in Mobile. I also joined with a number of my Gulf Coast colleagues in introducing a bill on Friday to help permanently solve the Red Snapper issue in the Gulf of Mexico. Introducing this legislation is an important first step in advancing a solution to ensure all our fishermen have access to Red Snapper in the Gulf. So, I encourage you to make every effort to cut through the noise and focus on what the House is actually getting done. To help you get all the facts on what the House is accomplishing, I encourage you to check out DidYouKnow.gop. This website highlights the fact that the House is getting our job done, as we promised the American people. • • • Bradley Byrne is a member of U.S. Congress representing Alabama’s 1st Congressional District.
White House: Donald Trump to decide soon on ending health payments
The White House is insisting that the Senate resume efforts to repeal and replace the nation’s health care law, signaling that President Donald Trump stands ready to end required payments to insurers this week to let “Obamacare implode” and force congressional action. “The president will not accept those who said it’s, quote, ‘Time to move on,’” White House adviser Kellyanne Conway said. Those were the words used by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., after the stunning early Friday morning defeat of the GOP bill to repeal former President Barack Obama‘s signature legislative achievement. McConnell is already moving to other business, having scheduled Senate consideration later Monday on a judicial nomination. Conway said Trump was deciding whether to act on his threat to end cost-sharing reduction payments, which are aimed at trimming out-of-pocket costs for lower-income people. “He’s going to make that decision this week, and that’s a decision that only he can make,” Conway said. Trump vented his frustration on Twitter Monday. He said: “If ObamaCare is hurting people, & it is, why shouldn’t it hurt the insurance companies & why should Congress not be paying what public pays?” In fact, most members of Congress get their coverage through the Affordable Care Act like millions of other Americans. The 2010 law was specifically written to include lawmakers, and starting in 2014, members and their staffs had to use federal or state health care exchanges. Most members who use the coverage buy it off the health care exchange created by the District of Columbia. For seven years, Republicans have promised that once they took power, they would scrap Obama’s overhaul and pass a replacement. But that effort crashed most recently in the Senate on Friday. Republicans hold a 52-48 majority in the Senate, where no Democrats voted for the GOP bill and three Republicans defected in the final vote Friday. One of the GOP defectors, Sen. John McCain, has since returned to Arizona for treatment for brain cancer. “Don’t give up Republican senators, the World is watching: Repeal & Replace,” Trump said in a tweet. White House budget director Mick Mulvaney, when asked Sunday if no other legislative business should be taken up until the Senate acts again on health care, responded “yes.” While the House has begun a five-week recess, the Senate is scheduled to work two more weeks before a summer break. McConnell has said the unfinished business includes addressing a backlog of executive and judicial nominations, coming ahead of a busy agenda in September that involves passing a defense spending bill and raising the government’s borrowing limit. “In the White House’s view, they can’t move on in the Senate,” Mulvaney said, referring to health legislation. “They need to stay, they need to work, they need to pass something.” Trump warned over the weekend that he would end federal subsidies for health care insurance for Congress and the rest of the country if the Senate didn’t act soon. He was referring in part to a federal contribution for lawmakers and their staffs, who were moved onto Obamacare insurance exchanges as part of the 2010 law. “If a new HealthCare Bill is not approved quickly, BAILOUTS for Insurance Companies and BAILOUTS for Members of Congress will end very soon!” Trump tweeted. The subsidies, totaling about $7 billion a year, help reduce deductibles and copayments for consumers with modest incomes. The Obama administration used its rule-making authority to set direct payments to insurers to help offset these costs. Trump inherited the payment structure, but he also has the power to end them. The payments are the subject of a lawsuit brought by House Republicans over whether the health law specifically included a congressional appropriation for the money, as required under the Constitution. Trump has only guaranteed the payments through July, which ends Monday. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, one of the three Republican senators who voted against the GOP health bill on Friday, said she’s troubled by Trump’s claims that the insurance payments are a “bailout.” She said Trump’s threat to cut off payments would not change her opposition to the GOP health bill and stressed the cost-sharing reduction payments were critical to make insurance more affordable for low-income people. “The uncertainty about whether that subsidy is going to continue from month to month is clearly contributing to the destabilization of the insurance markets, and that’s one thing that Congress needs to end,” said Collins, who wants lawmakers to appropriate money for the payments. “I certainly hope the administration does not do anything in the meantime to hasten that collapse,” she added. Trump previously said the law that he and others call “Obamacare” would collapse immediately whenever those payments stop. He has indicated a desire to halt the subsidies but so far has allowed them to continue on a month-to-month basis. Conway spoke on “Fox News Sunday,” Mulvaney appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union” and Collins was on CNN as well as NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Mobile-mom launches Change.org petition to change Alabama car seat laws
One Mobile, Ala. mom is looking to her fellow Alabamians for support in protecting children across the Yellowhammer State. On Saturday, Katelynn Singleton started a Change.org petition to change state law requiring children’s car seats to be rear facing rather than forward facing. According to current Alabama law, children of certain ages and sizes to be seated in appropriate child car seats or face a $25 fine. Singleton’s problem the law is that it requires one to five year old children to sit in a forward-facing car seat, rather than a rear-facing seat despite studies that have shown rear-facing to be safer for the child. “Child car seat laws in Alabama are outdated and unsafe. They are so detrimental to children’s safety, any accident could cause severe harm or worse.. death. We need YOUR voice to speak for the innocent,” the petition reads. “Studies have shown that children riding in a rear-facing car seat are 5 times safer. This is because when rear facing children’s backs, necks and heads are all being supported by the seat during a crash. Once they are turned forward facing their bodies are being restrained by the harness straps but their necks and heads are left unsupported experience the crash energy.” Singleton is looking for at least 500 signatures before delivering her letter to Gov. Kay Ivey, the Alabama Legislature and U.S. Senators Richard Shelby and Luther Strange requesting a change in car seat policy. “It’s the absolute responsibility of our governing body to implement laws that protect our children and grandchildren,” commented Jennifer Stephens from Rainsville, Ala. on the petition. “Alabama’s children deserve to be safe and the laws should reflect it! Please change the laws to protect our children!,” echoed fellow petition signer Jocelyn Logan from Cullman, Ala. At the time of publishing, the petition had 201 signatures.
Incoming Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke has served 3 presidents
Elaine Duke, set to become acting U.S. homeland secretary on Monday, has the rare distinction of serving in high-level positions in three administrations. She was DHS undersecretary for management from 2008 to 2010, tapped by President George W. Bush and kept on by President Barack Obama. After she headed her own business consulting firm in the Washington area for seven years, President Donald Trump nominated her to return to government as deputy secretary and the Senate approved her appointment 85-14 without a hitch. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, who was named Trump’s chief of staff on Friday, said at a conference last week that Duke was “a wonderful woman” with deep experience in government. He said her biggest assignment as the sprawling department’s No. 2 official was to bring more efficiency. Duke will manage an annual budget of more than $40 billion and 240,000 employees. Created in 2003 in the aftermath of the terror strikes on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, Homeland Security comprises more than 20 agencies, from the Coast Guard and Secret Service to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Customs and Border Protection is the nation’s largest law enforcement agency with 60,000 employees. Her positions and background have largely kept her out of the spotlight on some of the department’s most politically charged assignments, like deporting people in the country illegally and deciding who enters the country by air, land and sea. “She is a very experienced person when it comes to all aspects of management in the federal government,” Michael Chertoff, Homeland Security secretary during the final years of the Bush administration, said Friday night. “In terms of ability to understand all management elements in the department, you couldn’t find a better person.” Duke began her government career 28 years ago as an Air Force contracting officer and worked in the Navy, the Federal Railroad Administration and the Smithsonian Institution before joining Homeland Security in 2008. Sen. Rob Portman, a Republican who represents Duke’s home state of Ohio, said at her confirmation hearing this year that she was an expert on contracting, property management, organizational change and human resources. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Email insights: Roy Moore declares himself the ‘firebrand conservative change agent”
In a weekend email to his supporters, former Alabama Chief Justice and current U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore declared himself the “firebrand conservative change agent” in the senate race. “I’m writing you as the firebrand conservative change agent running for U.S. Senate against Mitch McConnell’s hand-picked candidate in the upcoming August 15 special election to fill the seat held by Attorney General Jeff Sessions,” Moore said in the email. Without naming names, Moore consistently refers to sitting U.S. Sen. Luther Strange as McConnell’s hand-picked candidate. Saying McConnell-controlled outside groups have already lined up more than $10 MILLION to replace Sessions Strange — “a former D.C. lobbyist turned politician guaranteed to do the establishment’s bidding in Washington.” Moore goes to say if elected, he’ll stand with Senators Rand Paul, Mike Lee and Ted Cruz to “fight against the Washington Establishment” accomplish his policy goals, which include: Rebuild our military, crack down on illegal immigration and secure our borders; Repeal ObamaCare — 100%; Stop liberal judges that threaten religious liberty and the Second Amendment; Return American manufacturing to our nation by rescinding unfair “free trade” agreements which have severely damaged our economy through the loss of jobs and skill development; FIGHT tooth-and-nail with everything I’ve got against the entrenched establishment with everything I’ve got. Read Moore’s full email below: Friend, After defeating Hillary Clinton and electing a Republican Majority in Congress, there’s only one obstacle left standing in the way of passing real conservative reforms through Congress . . . . . . and that’s establishment Republicans like Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham and the rest of the insiders in Washington. My name is Judge Roy Moore. You may know me as “The Ten Commandments Judge” because of my long time support of displaying The Ten Commandments at the Alabama Supreme Court. But today I’m writing you as the firebrand conservative change agent running for U.S. Senate against Mitch McConnell’s hand-picked candidate in the upcoming August 15 special election to fill the seat held by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. If you’ve had enough of Mitch McConnell and the Washington establishment, I’m counting on you to chip in a donation to my campaign’s “Defeat the Establishment Money Bomb” to help me get to Washington and TRUMP THE SENATE! Friend, according to most political experts, the upcoming August 15 Republican Primary is the most important special election of the year because it’s the first MAJOR showdown between Mitch McConnell and grassroots conservatives of Donald Trump’s Presidency. In fact, U.S. News and World Report are calling it “GROUND ZERO in the political and cultural war” taking place right now in America. You see, right now there are 9 Republican candidates running on the August 15 Primary ballot. As it stands, I’m currently running neck-and-neck with Mitch McConnell’s hand-picked candidate. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote on August 15, the top two candidates face off in a run-off on election September 26. That’s why Mitch McConnell-controlled outside groups have already lined up more than $10 MILLION to replace Jeff Sessions with a former D.C. lobbyist turned politician guaranteed to do the establishment’s bidding in Washington. The stakes are simply too high for McConnell not to go all-out to defeat me and try to keep me out of Washington. They know if I’m the next U.S. Senator from the great state of Alabama, I’ll stand with Rand Paul, Mike Lee and Ted Cruz on the frontlines of the fight against the Washington Establishment. I’ll stand against the weak-kneed Republican establishment and fight to: >>> Rebuild our military, crack down on illegal immigration and secure our borders; >>> Repeal ObamaCare — 100%; >>> Stop liberal judges that threaten religious liberty and the Second Amendment; >>> Return American manufacturing to our nation by rescinding unfair “free trade” agreements which have severely damaged our economy through the loss of jobs and skill development; >>> FIGHT tooth-and-nail with everything I’ve got against the entrenched establishment with everything I’ve got. Senators Rand Paul, Mike Lee and Ted Cruz need one true conservative to have the votes to END Mitch McConnell’s rein over the U.S. Senate. I am that candidate. And I’ve got a 15-year track record to back it up. So can I count on you to chip in a donation to help me TRUMP THE SENATE on August 15? My campaign team just finished putting the finishing touches on an aggressive mail, Internet, TV and radio ad 3-week battle plan designed to reach as many conservative voters across Alabama as possible with our winning message. But in order to execute this aggressive battle plan to defeat the establishment, I must be able to raise $100,000 by 11:59 PM on Monday, July 31, 2017. That’s why I’m counting on you to chip in a generous contribution of $2,700, $2,000, $1,500, $1,000, $500, $250, $100, $75, $50 or $35 right away. Your contribution will help me pay for advertisements, mailings, yard signs, flyers and other costs associated with executing our battle plan to defeat the establishment. Not only that, but it will help keep our hard-hitting TV ad up and running through Election Day. Of course, I understand only a few people are able to afford $2,700 ($5,400 per couple) — the maximum legal amount under federal law. If you are such a person, I believe this race is an investment worth making. But I also understand that $250 or $100 may be all many folks can give. In fact, I know for some, $25 or $35 is a stretch. And for others — $5 or $10 can be a major sacrifice. Whatever amount you can afford to donate at this time, please know your contribution is greatly appreciated and will be put to immediate use for my campaign. And I pledge to be a careful steward of your trust. I’m confident you and I are on the verge of defeating the establishment and taking our country back. But we must not let up now. So please stand with me in this historic fight against Washington by chipping in a generous contribution to my Defeat the Establishment Money Bomb. Thank you in advance for
For Jeff Sessions, being attorney general is chance to make mark
America’s top law enforcement officer wandered through a Salvadoran jail, sizing up the tattooed gang members who sat with their backs to him on the concrete floors of their cells. His soft voice was barely audible over the downpour pelting the tin roof as he spoke to the local police. In the midst of a week when his role – and future – in President Donald Trump‘s Cabinet was in serious doubt, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions could be found thousands of miles away from Washington, surrounded by concertina wire and soldiers with rifles. Belittled by his boss back home, he vowed not to loosen his grip on the job that he loves. For Sessions, leading the Justice Department is an opportunity to make tangible progress on issues he long championed, sometimes in isolation among fellow Republicans, during two decades in the U.S. Senate: hard-line immigration policies and aggressive prosecutions of gangs, drugs and gun crime. His priorities mark a departure for a department that, during the Obama administration, increasingly focused on preventing high-tech attacks from abroad, white-collar crime and the threat of homegrown violent extremism. Yet Sessions’ policy focus is often overshadowed by the expanding investigation into Trump campaign ties to Russia. Sessions, whose own campaign contacts with Russia’s ambassador to the U.S. have been questioned, has stepped aside from the investigation. That unnerved Trump, who subjected his attorney general to almost daily public humiliation this past week. Sessions was trying to weather the storm in San Salvador, where on a balmy afternoon his attention turned to the notoriously brutal street gang MS-13, whose violence in the U.S. has become a focal point in the immigration debate. Here was the former Alabama senator, traveling El Salvador’s streets in a motorcade alongside leaders of the Justice Department’s criminal division, buoyed by reassurances from congressional Republicans in Washington after Trump’s tirade. The trip was planned before the firestorm, but Sessions hoped his work on MS-13 would help mend his tattered relationship with Trump. “It hasn’t been my best week for my relationship with the president,” Sessions told The Associated Press. “But I believe with great confidence that I understand what’s needed in the Department of Justice and what President Trump wants. I share his agenda.” Sessions cut his teeth as a federal prosecutor in Mobile, Alabama, at the height of the drug war, an experience that has shaped his approach to running the Justice Department. Allegations of racially charged remarks cost him a federal judgeship, but he went on to become the state’s attorney general. He was elected to the Senate in 1996 and developed a willingness to break with fellow Republicans in ways that sometimes left him on the sidelines. He fought against efforts to overhaul the criminal justice system last year, a rare area where conservatives and liberals had found unity. He also was a leading opponent of the 2013 bipartisan bill that sought to ease immigration restrictions. That issue drew him to Trump. Sessions was the first senator to endorse the businessman-turned-politician. Trump rewarded that support by naming Sessions as attorney general. It was, Sessions has said, a job that “goes beyond anything that I would have ever imagined for myself.” “In the Senate, you get paid for your words. But in the Department of Justice, every now and then you can actually take action and set priorities and see it actually take effect,” Sessions told AP in an interview from inside the headquarters of Policia Nacional Civil, El Salvador’s police force, where he had gone to build rapport with the commissioner. “It’s kind of a real adjustment. I was a federal prosecutor for 12, 14 years, really. This is coming home to the Department of Justice I so much loved and still do. You can make things happen in the Department of Justice.” In moving quickly to put his own stamp on the Justice Department, Sessions continues to find himself at odds with both Democrats and members of his own party. His decision this month to revive a program that lets local American police seize cash and property with federal help prompted rebuke from conservative groups such as the Koch-backed Freedom Partners, which called it “unjust and unconstitutional.” Sessions told federal prosecutors to pursue the toughest charges against most suspects, a move that critics assailed as a revival of costly drug-fighting policies. He wants a crackdown on marijuana as a growing number of states work to legalize it. His escalating threats to withhold money from cities that refuse to cooperate with immigration authorities have made city leaders only more defiant. Timothy Heaphy, a former U.S. attorney for the Western District of Virginia who served under President Barack Obama, said the fast pace of Sessions’ changes is disturbing. “He came in clearly with an agenda to go back in time to a tough-on-crime and law-and-order approach,” Heaphy said. “He’s ignoring all the progress we made.” During his final years in the Senate, Sessions began to gain greater notice from the far-right. He was a favorite of Breitbart, the website previously run by Steve Bannon, who now serves as Trump’s senior adviser. Other Sessions’ aides also serve in top administration posts, including Stephen Miller, the architect of several of Trump’s immigration proposals. Jenny Beth Martin, co-founder of Tea Party Patriots, said Sessions has a “warrior spirit” and is working on behalf of people whose voices haven’t always been heard in Congress. “He has had to take on battles before within his own party and against the opposition party, and he takes those on and he fights them,” she said. Sessions believes he is making progress. “A number of things we’ve done are just beginning to ripen,” he told the AP. “I’m pretty happy with the speed with which a lot of it is happening. Sometimes the American people may not know how effective that’s been.” Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
