New Video — Joni Ernst: Trajectory
Newly released audio recordings from the Koch brothers' summit of billionaires and bought candidates this week reveals the extent to which candidates like Joni Ernst are inextricably tied to the oil lords and their anti-working families agenda. Ernst did not parse words in crediting the Kochs and their extensive network for getting her to where she is today. Now, the billionaire brothers are reaping the benefits of their investment, as Joni Ernst, the Republican nominee in a key senate race, sings the Koch gospel on issue after issue.
American Bridge Welcomes Scandal-Scarred, Self Interest-Serving Scott to the General Election
With primary season now in the rear view, Floridians have 10 weeks left to examine Rick Scott's record. That's bad news for Rick Scott, who you may recall isn't a big fan of being scrutinized. But then again, you wouldn't be either if you had his record. Scott was elected four years ago amidst a Tea Party wave, promising to carry out a Tea Party agenda, and delivering on that promise. But these days, Scott's trying to sell a different version of himself -- a version that is clearly undermined by his record -- and nobody is buying it.
Doug Ducey's Rocky Road To Defeat
Primary season has come to an end in Arizona, and former Cold Stone Creamery CEO Doug Ducey managed to hole up down the stretch and emerge as the Republican nominee for governor. The Tea Party favorite poured nearly $3 million into his own campaign and skipped a slew of debates en route to his unceremonious victory tonight. But the shady businessman can hide no longer -- and when the spotlight shines on his record, his political ambitions are bound to melt away. Ducey has touted endorsements from the likes of Sarah Palin and Ted Cruz, but was spurned by conservative Governor Jan Brewer, who opted to support a less extreme candidate to be her successor. Perhaps health care is at the root of their chasm -- Brewer worked to expand Medicaid in Arizona, calling it a "moral issue," while Ducey has decried the expansion as a "middle class entitlement." But Ducey's extremism is hardly limited to ensuring access to health care for his constituents. Ducey has close ties to the billionaire Koch brothers and their operatives, and unsurprisingly, he toes the Koch agenda line on nearly every issue. Ducey has opposed raising the minimum wage, expressed outrage that the poorest Americans aren't paying enough taxes, supported the claim that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, and the list goes on.
BREAKING: Devastating Revelations From New John Doe Docs For Scott Walker
A new batch of John Doe docs was released today in the ongoing investigation of Scott Walker's role in a…
Nobody Arraigning On Rick Perry's Koch-Parade
Rick Perry was due to appear in court in Texas today for the formal reading of his two felony charges after being…
FOX and Friend (Scott Brown)
This was Scott Brown just last week. Brown was utterly incredulous when it was suggested that FOX News would be any more favorable to his campaign just because he worked there. He pointed out that he was nothing more than a (very well paid) part-time employee. Coincidentally, FOX decided to do an apocalyptic special titled "Live Free Or Die: The Affordable Care Act in New Hampshire." This is the only special FOX has done focused on a single state all cycle. It offers a doomsday view of the new healthcare law in the Granite State, before entering savior Scott Brown in the final minutes to chronicle his heroic campaign to defeat Jeanne Shaheen and repeal the law. And FOX isn't the only outside help Scott Brown is getting in Mission: Tell Everyone ACA Will Destroy Their Lives -- the Koch Brothers' AFP has run false ads to attack Brown's opponent over health care too. But forget the skewed picture painted by FOX and AFP, and the nuanced politics of the Affordable Care Act for Scott Brown (only about one-third of voters support his repeal stance). This special, on the heels of Scott Brown's categorical dismissal of the notion that FOX would do anything to help his floundering campaign, is one more piece of evidence that you can't trust a word that comes out of this guy's mouth. Shocking, from a Massachusetts guy trying to convince the whole state of New Hampshire that he's one of them, right?
Rick Scott Pretends To Listen To Scientists (NEW VIDEO)
Ever since Rick Scott's buffoonery on climate change was thrust into the national spotlight -- and promptly ridiculed -- he's been desperately trying to rehabilitate his image on the subject. The other week, he even strung together an environmental tour in which he purported to be an environmentalist. Well the charade has continued. Yesterday, Rick Scott finally met with climate scientist and he listened with all the focus and alacrity of an eighth grader on the last day of school. His faux interest in climate change (paired with his steadfast rejection of its causes) didn't fool the scientists that met with him and it isn't fooling the voters.
Things Mitt Romney Could Talk To Bruce Rauner About While In Illinois
Mitt Romney will be in Chicago this afternoon as part of Paul Ryan's book tour, where the two can reminisce about that time they lost Illinois by 17 points en route to a landslide defeat two years ago. Perhaps while Mitt is in town, he should take some time to talk to his political doppleganger, Bruce Rauner. After all, the two would have SO much to talk about, like:
- The joys of shipping jobs overseas
- The age-old debate: Car elevators vs. $100,000 extra parking spots
- How annoying it is when the public demands to see your tax returns
- What a lovely place the Cayman Islands is for stashing millions to avoid paying US taxes
American Bridge Submits FOIA Request For Gov. Corbett's Phone Records
It isn't every day that the chief executive of a state admits that he expressly operates in a manner to skirt transparency laws. But that's exactly what Governor Corbett has done. As the Pittsburgh Post Gazette reported last week, Corbett has gone to incredible lengths to conduct business outside of the public eye:
"The governor said he rarely uses email because he knows reporters would file Right-To-Know requests to get them. Instead, he said, he uses the telephone. He said he needs the freedom to be able to express opinions that he may later want to change. Mr. Corbett said he deletes his emails about once a week."That's a stunning concession and one that demonstrates contempt for the spirit of open democracy. As such, American Bridge is issuing a FOIA request for Governor Corbett's official phone records. The people of Pennsylvania deserve to know exactly what their governor has made such a concerted effort to conceal.
Click here to view FOIA request.
Jack Hunter, Rand Paul's Race Relations Defender
Jack Hunter, Rand Paul's former new media director, has authored a piece in Politico espousing that Senator Paul is the Republican Party's new "Jack Kemp," calling him a "revolutionary" when it comes to outreach to African Americans. Hunter, who has strong ties to Paul and co-authored his 2011 book, is an interesting one to talk about race relations, given his ties to neo-secessionist and confederate groups. In fact, Hunter has a long history of preaching extreme positions on racially charged issues, including comparing Abraham Lincoln to Hitler and saying of Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth, that his "heart was in the right place." In his writings, Hunter has gone so far as to decry that "it's a shame that" white Americans "are always denied fair treatment" because of the color of their skin. This is Rand Paul's defender on race relations, ladies and gentlemen.