Politics

Rep. Alan Grayson has filed a House ethics complaint against Republicans Kevin McCarthy and Trey Gowdy over the never-ending Benghazi investigation. Via The Hill: “The Benghazi Committee has been a political dog-and-pony show for its entire 17-month history,” Grayson said in a statement. “It has been clear even to casual observers that the purpose of the committee was never to …

After Donald Trump launched yet another serious of tweets against Politico, they trolled him right back today with a link to their story titled, “The 199 Most Donald Trump Things Donald Trump Has Ever Said.” As the title indicates, their story is a recounting of verbatim Donald Trump quotes over the last few years. A sample: “I have black guys …

Tomorrow House Republicans will meet behind closed doors to select their nominee to succeed Speaker John Boehner. The full House will vote on October 29th, but observers note that none of the declared candidates, at the moment, likely have the 218 votes needed to win. If no candidate reaches that threshold, Boehner would remain Speaker despite his plan to resign. …

A new TV ad urging Joe Biden to join the 2016 race debuted this morning on The Today Show. The New York Times reports: The group trying to persuade Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. to enter the presidential race is set to broadcast an unusual commercial on national television in which Mr. Biden recounts how his life was shaped …

Bill Clinton appeared on the The Late Show last night where Stephen Colbert asked him about Donald Trump. CNN recaps: Regarding Trump, Clinton offered some backhanded praise, complimenting him as a “master brander.” He suggested that the GOP frontrunner’s success has come because “he’s the most interesting character out there.” The former president highlighted the appeal of Trump’s brusque, politically …

According to Washington Blade reporter Chris Johnson, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest today said that President Obama isn’t prepared to endorse the Equality Act, which would essentially grant LGBT Americans the same federal protections enjoyed by Christians since the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. How very disappointing. Nobody really expects the Equality Act to get any …

Democrats will have an opportunity to flip a battleground Senate seat in 2016 as New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan today announced her bid to unseat GOP Sen. Kelly Ayotte. The Hill reports: Democrats have been pushing Hassan to run, as polling shows she’s the only Democrat in the state who is competitive in a head-to-head match-up against Ayotte. Recent polling …

Mediaite recaps last night’s show: “Perhaps the clearest sign of how little we want to talk about mental health is that one of the only times it’s brought up is, as we’ve seen yet again this week, in the aftermath of a mass shooting, as a means of steering the conversation away from gun control,” Oliver said. After playing clips …

Teabagistan is flipping out over a column published yesterday in the New York Daily News. An excerpt: One terrorist group is responsible for more civilian deaths since December 2012 (the Sandy Hook massacre) than Al Qaeda, Boko Haram, Hamas and the Taliban. Yet it is the only nearly-state sponsored terrorist group that is not listed by the U.S. State Department …

People Magazine recaps last night’s opening skit: Miley Cyrus kicked off the season premiere of Saturday Night Live by looking back at the biggest names of summer of 2015 – including everyone from Arianna Grande to Kim Davis. Wearing a floral plastic minidress and matching bathing cap, the “Wrecking Ball” singer took aim at herself before beginning her act. “I …

Hillary Clinton’s appearance on Saturday Night Live is getting good reviews. Via Salon: The segment did exactly what those close to Clinton have been encouraging her to do to appear more personable: use her self-deprecating sense of humor she’s famous for to help boost sagging poll numbers. The two even mocked some of Clinton’s slow-to-act positions such as her opposition …

Chris Johnson reports at the Washington Blade: Although he’s previously articulated support for comprehensive legislation prohibiting anti-LGBT legislation, Biden took the opportunity of his speech to explicitly endorse the Equality Act, which would amend the Civil Rights Act and the Fair Housing Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity. “I strongly support the Equality Act, and it will pass, …

One of the first things Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) did after being elected was to introduce a House bill that would have overturned same-sex marriage in Washington DC. Now he wants John Boehner’s job. The Hill reports: The Utah Republican’s late entry into the race to replace outgoing Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has changed the dynamic of the contest. Before Chaffetz …

After today’s big reveal about the Pope’s private audience with his former student Yayo Grassi, reporters are deluging Grassi’s DC home with interview requests. The Washington Post got some fascinating quotes from Grassi, who says that he had to speak out in the wake of the Kim Davis story. “Although I didn’t know any details, I knew immediately that he …

“There’s so much to love about this, it’s difficult to know where to start. First of all, Hillary Clinton, the great tolerant one with rainbow Twitter avatars granting open-mindedness to any family formation under the sun, seems a bit more traditional in private than she does in public. One might call it hypocritical if it didn’t come across as so …

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu punctuated his denouncement of the “utter silence” over the Iran deal today by glaring wordlessly at members of the United Nation General Assembly for nearly a full minute. Reaction to the ploy has ranged from “chilling” to “creepy” to “intimidating.” Watch below.

Vice President Joe Biden has put off making his decision about jumping into the 2016 presidential race and will not take part in next week’s first Democratic debate.  CNN reports: He is not preparing for the first Democratic debate on October 13 in Las Vegas and is not expected to participate, people close to him say, because he feels no …

Nothing seems to ruffle the polling numbers for the Teflon Don. USA Today reports: Billionaire businessman Donald Trump has strengthened his lead at the top of the USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll while two other outsider candidates, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina, have gained ground over rivals with electoral experience. Jeb Bush, who two months ago was second to Trump in …

GOP Indiana House Majority Leader Jud McMillin abruptly resigned yesterday after a sex video was sent from his phone to unknown persons. McMillin, one of his state’s most ardent opponents of same-sex marriage, claims that his phone was “stolen in Canada.” Via the Indianapolis Star: The Star has learned that the surprise resignation came after a sexually explicit video was …

The Washington Post sets up the clip: Rep. Jim Jordan, one of the most conservative members of the House, used his time shouting at Richards because she admitted at one point that she had originally “apologized for the tone and statements” in the “sting” videos that started this controversy. Apparently Jordan imagined that in making this admission, she had fallen …