Republicans

From a poll released today by YouGov: Shortly after his election in 2016, President Donald Trump suggested that people who burn the American flag should lose their citizenship or spend a year in jail. More than one-third of adults agree: 36% would support stripping US citizenship from Americans that burn or desecrate the flag. Roughly two-thirds (67%) of Republicans support …

The Washington Post reports: Now out of office and trading in his power suits for a blue vest, Paul Ryan is back to critiquing Trump in unflattering terms in conversations with Alberta, who writes the former speaker could not stand the idea of another two years with the president and saw retirement as the “escape hatch.” “We’ve gotten so numbed …

Yahoo News reports: Former NFL star Colin Kaepernick did not look like himself in a fundraising email that was sent by the National Republican Congressional Committee on Wednesday. The message included a picture of Kaepernick that appeared noticeably altered to make his skin darker, an attack ad tactic that has been used before and is considered by many as racist. …

The Hill reports: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Wednesday blamed the news media after British ambassador to the U.S. Kim Darroch was forced to step down, arguing the diplomat who infuriated the Trump administration had “got a raw deal” from the press. Trump said earlier this week his administration would cease working with Darroch while referring to him as “wacky,” …

Larrison Campbell writes for Mississippi Today: Bill Waller, a former state supreme court chief justice, and Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves agreed to ride alongs with Mississippi Today reporter Adam Ganucheau. The other candidate — state Rep. Robert Foster, R-Hernando — declined, however, because I am a woman. In two phone calls this week, Colton Robison, Foster’s campaign director, said a …

Earlier this year Miriam Adelson, the wife of billionaire casino mogul and GOP megadonor Sheldon Adelson, was awarded the President Medal of Freedom by Trump. Miriam received the nation’s highest civilian honor after she and her husband donated $500,000 to a legal defense fund for Trump associates. From her column in the Las Vegas Review-Journal: By rights, Trump should enjoy …

The Associated Press reports: Former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach is launching a campaign to run for the U.S. Senate next year. Kobach filed paperwork Monday with the Federal Election Commission forming a campaign committee. He scheduled a speech Monday afternoon in Leavenworth. He is seeking the Republican nomination for four-term GOP Sen. Pat Roberts’ seat. Roberts is not …

CBS News reports: A federal grand jury in New York is investigating top Republican fundraiser Elliott Broidy, examining whether he used his position as vice chair of President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee to drum up business deals with foreign leaders. A wide-ranging subpoena the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn recently sent to Trump’s inaugural committee seeks records relating to 20 …

The Hill reports: Rep. Justin Amash (Mich.), who announced last week that he was leaving the GOP to become an independent, said Sunday that “high-level” Republican officials have thanked him for his support of impeachment against President Trump. “When I was discussing impeachment I had fellow colleagues and other Republicans, high-level officials, contacting me and saying thank you for what …

Raw Story reports: Tea Party icon Joe Walsh is openly mulling challenging President Donald Trump for the 2020 Republican National Committee presidential nomination. The former Republican congressman blasted Trump on the same subject on Friday. “His entire life is a lie. He lies on purpose. He lies all the time, every day,” Walsh charged. “Lying is how he’s survived. Without …

The New York Times reports: Chris Cline, a billionaire entrepreneur, philanthropist and political donor once called the “King of Coal,” died Thursday in what local authorities said was a helicopter crash in the Bahamas that killed seven people. Mr. Cline was a major supporter of President Trump and many other Republicans. He donated $1 million to the president’s 2017 inauguration …

Glorious Leader is reacting in predictable fashion: Rep. Justin Amash, the only congressional Republican who publicly argues that President Donald Trump has engaged in impeachable conduct, announced Thursday he is quitting the GOP. Amash didn’t mention the President by name, but his decision to abandon the party comes after months of escalating criticism not just of the President but of …

Rep. Justin Amash writes for the Washington Post: Most Americans are not rigidly partisan and do not feel well represented by either of the two major parties. In fact, the parties have become more partisan in part because they are catering to fewer people, as Americans are rejecting party affiliation in record numbers. Today, I am declaring my independence and …

The Lexington Courtier-Journal reports: Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin hit the studio this week and came out with some new heat, just in time for Independence Day weekend – a new rap … from Kentucky’s governor … titled “Tim Kaine? Are you serious?” Just so we’re clear, this article is not a joke. Here’s the video. It’s an actual thing. Bevin …

The Lexington Courier-Journal reports: Sen. Mitch McConnell will be rocking Nikes in 2019 if the company reverses course and releases its Betsy Ross flag-themed shoes. McConnell rejected the idea that the flag, which is generally not viewed as a symbol for hate groups but has been used at times by groups like the Ku Klux Klan and was also prominent …

The New York Times reports: Within the Trump administration, Vice President Mike Pence is known as a port of calm and stability amid the churn of chaos. So on Tuesday, when he abruptly abandoned a planned trip to New Hampshire after he had already boarded Air Force Two at Joint Base Andrews in suburban Maryland, it raised immediate questions. It …

ABC News reports: In a series of tweets early Tuesday, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey announced that he has ordered the Arizona Commerce Authority to withdraw all financial incentive dollars to encourage Nike to add a manufacturing plant in the Valley. Ducey’s decision stems from a Wall Street Journal report that said former NFL quarterback-turned-social justice activist Colin Kaepernick convinced Nike …

Talking Points Memo reports: Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s impending congressional testimony has some House Republicans speaking their mind about the square-jawed lawyer. “He’s done some irreparable damage to some things and he’s got to answer for them,” Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) told Politico. “It reinforced the anal opening that I believe Mueller to be.” Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) added that …

Roll Call reports: A federal judge in California is allowing evidence of Rep. Duncan Hunter’s alleged extramarital affairs to be used in a criminal trial against the Republican congressman, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. The ruling on Monday in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California relates to a case in which Hunter is alleged to have illegally …

Politico reports: Defense lawyers for Rep. Duncan Hunter appeared to concede Friday that he carried on extramarital affairs with several women, but alleged that much of his related spending of campaign funds was legitimate because he was “mixing business with pleasure.” With Hunter (R-Calif.) facing a federal criminal trial on 60 felony charges that he repeatedly spent campaign money on …