Americans: Economy Good; State of the Nation, Baad

75%

A new CBS News poll finds 75% of U.S. adults say the economy is in good shape, the highest in almost 20 years. “Still, when asked about the state of the union today, views are mostly negative. Fifty-six percent of Americans say things are fair or bad, while 44% say great or good. Opinions divide starkly along partisan lines. Most Republicans say the state of the country is great or good, while most Democrats say it’s fair or bad.”

Bennet: White House’s Stonewalling Is ‘Pathetic’

“It’s more than frustrating—it’s pathetic. If you had any regard at all for the prerogatives of the legislative branch, to allow the White House to stonewall the House of Representatives in a completely unprecedented way, and then accept a set of rules … that are just a cover up for what the President has done, I think demonstrates a complete lack of regard for what this institution is supposed to be about.”

— Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO), quoted by the Daily Beast, on the GOP’s refusal to budge on impeachment.

Christie Predicts Trump Would Retaliate on Senators Who Vote for Witnesses

“You could very well see the president encouraging or creating primaries against senators that are up this year if they went and voted the other way I could definitely see him at least attempting to do that.”

— Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) told ABC News that President Trump might target Republican senators who vote for additional witnesses in the Senate impeachment trial.

Warren’s Impeachment Trial Zinger to Roberts

“At a time when large majorities of Americans have lost faith in government, does the fact that the Chief Justice is presiding over an impeachment trial in which Republican senators have thus far refused to allow witnesses or evidence contribute to the loss of legitimacy of the Chief Justice, the Supreme Court, and the Constitution?”

– Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s zingeraimed at Chief Justice John Roberts, who was required to read it aloud during Trump’s impeachment trial

Dershowitz Wants to Take Back His Illogical, Immoral Argument

“They characterized my argument as if I had said that if a president believes that his re-election was in the national interest, he can do anything. I said nothing like that, as anyone who actually heard what I said can attest.”

— Alan Dershowitz, who is part of President Trump’s impeachment team, is trying to backtrack on an argument he made yesterday that anything a president does to win re-election can be seen “in the public interest.” Dershowitz specifically claimed that CNN and MSNBC “distorted” his argument, however, the video shows that Dershowitz said exactly that.

It’s No Wonder Jared Kushner Brought Peace to the Middle East

“I’ve been studying this now for three years. I’ve read 25 books on it, I’ve spoken to every leader in the region, I’ve spoken to everyone who’s been involved in this.”

— Jared Kushner, who developed President Trump’s new Middle East peace plan, told Sky News Arabia that he’s read 25 books about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.