Right now, the base has a plan for winning 46 percent of the vote in 2016, and the establishment has a plan for winning ... 48 percent.
— @DouthatNYT
Here's a
NY Times profile on Jerry Brown of CA:
But these days, Mr. Brown — who at 75 is the oldest governor in the nation and about to become the longest-serving governor in the history of California — is enjoying a degree of success and authority he and his opponents could scarcely have imagined when he returned to Sacramento to begin a second tour as governor in 2010.
Republicans usually tout their governors, but that's mostly because they can't tout their Congressional people. How can they, when their entire schtick is "send me to hated Washington where I swear to do nothing (and less than my predecessor)"?
Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei on how much it sucks to be a Republican these days:
It is almost impossible to find an establishment Republican in town who’s not downright morose about the 2013 that has been and is about to be. Most dance around it in public, but they see this year as a disaster in the making, even if most elected Republicans don’t know it or admit it.
Several influential Republicans told us the party is actually in a worse place than it was Nov. 7, the day after the disastrous election. This is their case:
• The party is hurting itself even more with the very voters they need to start winning back: Hispanics, blacks, gays, women and swing voters of all stripes.
• The few Republicans who stood up and tried to move the party ahead were swatted into submission: Speaker John Boehner on fiscal matters and Sen. Marco Rubio on immigration are the poster boys for this.
• Republicans are all flirting with a fall that could see influential party voices threatening to default on the debt or shut down the government — and therefore ending all hopes of proving they are not insane when it comes to governance.
More politics and policy below the fold.
Alex Seitz-Wald:
The left and right are not similar: Another reality check
As uncompromising Tea Partyers like Rand Paul run the GOP, real lefties like Bernie Sanders are often marginalizedBut, y'know, both sides do it . And he said and she said.
Speaking of Republican governors,
this from WaPo:
Maureen McDonnell, the first lady of Virginia, twice purchased thousands of shares of stock in Star Scientific, a spokesman for McDonnell’s legal team confirmed Friday night. The stock was bought and held in the same time frame that she and Gov. Robert F. McDonnell were taking steps to promote the dietary supplement company.
Spokesman Rich Galen said the first lady did not inform the governor either time she purchased stock, which Galen said she bought for herself and her children.
Juan Cole:
It’s not about Democracy: Top Ten Reasons Washington is Reluctant to cut off Egypt Aid
Charles A. Kupchan:
Rather than cajoling Cairo to hold elections and threatening to suspend aid if it does not, Washington should press the current leadership to adhere to clear standards of responsible governance, including ending the violence and political repression, restoring the basic functions of the state, facilitating economic recovery, countering militant extremists and keeping the peace with Israel. At this fragile moment in Egypt’s political awakening, the performance of its government will be a more important determinant of its legitimacy and durability than whether it won an election.
More generally, Washington should back off from its zealous promotion of democracy in Egypt and the broader Middle East for three main reasons.
Shibley Telhami:
From millions in Cairo’s Tahrir Square two years ago, revolting against Hosni Mubarak’s repressive rule and chanting “Silmiyya, silmiyya” (peaceful, peaceful), to a bloody Wednesday, with hundreds dead and many more wounded as security forces stormed sit-ins by supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi. From a mostly peaceful transition to a violent crackdown. From calls for democracy to a state of emergency.
How did Egypt turn so dark?