Month: April 2016

The Donald’s Top Lobbyist Assures the RNC That Trump’s ‘Dirtbag Don’ Persona Is All an Act

Jon Ponder

Paul Manafort
Paul Manafort
After railing against Washington lobbyists for months, Donald Trump recently hired one of the worst of the breed to run his campaign. Paul Manafort, a former partner in the D.C. powerhouse lobbying firm, Black, Manafort, Stone and Kelly and now a principal at Davis, Manafort, has a client list that, according to right-leaning Politico, has been described as “the torturers’ lobby.” Manafort’s clients have included Philippines dictator Ferdinand Marcos; Mobutu Sese Seko, the longtime military dictator of Zaire; Angolan guerrilla Jonas Savimbi; the I.S.I., an alleged front group for Pakistani intelligence; and Ukrainian strongman and Putin ally Viktor Yanukovych.

But in his first major outing representing the Donald, uber-lobbyist Manafort committed the ultimate D.C. insider gaffe — he got caught on tape revealing that his client’s Dirtbag Don persona is all an act intended to fool rubes in the GOP base into supporting him.

[…]

Trump Leading in California

Buck Banks

41%

Donald Trump’s lead in the GOP presidential race in California, followed by Ted Cruz at 23% and John Kasich at 21%, according to a new Capitol Weekly/Sextant Strategies poll. “California is worth 172 delegates when it votes on June 7 — with the winner of each of the state’s 53 congressional districts receiving three delegates. The statewide winner receives 13 delegates. The Capitol Weekly/Sextant Strategies poll shows Trump winning in almost every corner of the state.”

What Does Sanders Want?

Buck Banks

Hillary Clinton’s victory in the New York primary Tuesday has brought Sen. Bernie Sanders one step closer to a series of difficult decisions that can be summed up in one simple question: What does Bernie want? How he answers that question will have a direct bearing on how united Democrats will be heading into the fall campaign — and whether Sanders will be able to leverage his success this year into lasting power and influence.

— Washington Post

World Leaders Unsettled by Notion of a Trump Presidency

Buck Banks

According to more than two dozen U.S. and foreign-government officials, Trump has become the starting point for what feels like every government-to-government interaction. In meetings, private dinners and phone calls, world leaders are urgently seeking explanations from Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State John Kerry, Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Trade Representative Michael Froman on down. American ambassadors are asking for guidance from Washington about what they’re supposed to say.

— Politico

Harriet Tubman to Grace $20 Bill

Buck Banks

$20

The denomination bill that will have Harriet Tubman’s, not Andrew Jackson’s likeness soon, Politico reports. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew “will announce plans to both keep Alexander Hamilton on the front of the $10 bill and to knock Andrew Jackson off the front of the $20 in favor of Harriet Tubman.” … “Lew is expected to roll out a set of changes that also include putting leaders of the women’s suffrage movement on the back of the $10 bill, and incorporating civil rights era leaders and other important moments in American history into the $5 bill.”

Trump Predicts Turmoil If He Doesn’t Get Nomination on First Ballot

Buck Banks

I think if the millions of people that came out to vote for me are disenfranchised, I think there’s gonna be unbelievable turmoil.

— Donald Trump, saying that he’s confident he’ll secure the GOP nomination on the first ballot, but cautioning about the consequences if someone else left the convention as the nominee, Politico reports.