Campaigns & Elections

In a refreshing change of pace, CNN's John King skeptically wondered on Tuesday's New Day about the White House touting the five million "enrollments" in ObamaCare: "They wanted to get the seven million by March 31 – unlikely they'll get there....How important are the next couple of weeks, and...if they get to six, can they spin that as a success, or is this baked in as a failure?" King…

"Wendy Davis Will Turn Texas Purple" insists the teaser headline on the Daily Beast front page today. No, this is NOT satire, but the honest-to-goodness belief of community organizer turned Daily Beast contributor Sally Kohn. The headline for the story itself -- "Wendy Davis Is One Step Closer To Turning Texas Purple" -- dials down the hype a tiny bit, but the argument of her piece is pretty…

Former Louisiana Governor and convicted felon Edwin Edwards now wants to be the Bayou State's Sixth District congressman — as a Democrat. In his coverage of Edwards' improbable but obviously not impossible candidacy, Associated Press reporter Kevin McGill simply took it for granted that Edwards can appear on the November ballot as a Democrat. That shouldn't be automatic, as a recent example…

Conservative actor Kevin Sorbo had some harsh words about the state of politics in America today. Sorbo appeared on “The Steve Malzberg Show” on March 17 to discuss his newest project “God’s Not Dead” and to share is thoughts on being a conservative actor. Appearing on Maltzberg’s show Monday, Sorbo laughed at the idea that “In the last two elections if you didn’t vote for Obama you’re…

The line between liberal political punditry and outright, unapologetic, liberal political activism at MSNBC has faded to the very vanishing point. In the latest promo for his All In show, Chris Hayes boasts "I'm not just a passive witness. I am not there to just tell you a story. I'm there to act out: to do it in real time—to do politics, not talk about it."  There's something comic about…

The New York Times is allowing anonymous sources in politics to slime a political leader. But this time it’s Barack Obama. In a Saturday story by Jonathan Martin and Ashley Parker on “new urgency about the need to address” Democratic prospects, an anonymous “Democratic lawmaker” said Obama was becoming “poisonous” to the party’s candidates.

One of the more humorous attempts at furious spin this weekend occurred over at the New York Times. Jonathan Martin and Ashley Parker somehow managed to cover how association with President Barack Obama is becoming “poisonous” to Democratic Party candidates in this fall's elections without identifying or even acknowledging the existence of the primary reason for his toxicity — namely his…

MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough visited the battleground state of New Hampshire over the weekend and spoke at two Republican Party events to promote his new book “The Right Path.” Despite Scarborough’s reputation as being an MSNBC Republican, the folks at “Morning Joe” oozed over Scarborough’s visit, with co-host Mika Brzezinski narrating a campaign-style piece for her colleague. The segment began…

Comedian Bill Maher is no stranger to making outrageous and offensive comments, usually directed at conservatives. His weekly HBO program “Real Time with Bill Maher” is an opportunity for the devout atheist and liberal to spew his anti-conservative hate, yet when a major television network profiles his comedy routine, his controversial style is ignored. NBC’s Harry Smith sat down with Maher…

On Friday's Hardball, Chris Matthews continued his tirade targeted at Democrats from the previous day, in the wake of the party's loss in the special election in Florida on Tuesday. The MSNBC host bemoaned how supposedly, "Republicans say, we've got to cut entitlements....And yet, they don't pay a price for it politically. I'm determined that they pay a price for their words." Matthews added…

Washington Post "Fact Checker" blogger Glenn Kessler has given "Four Pinocchios" ("a whopper") to a pro-Democratic group's political ad opposing the U.S. Senate candidacy of Louisiana Republican Bill Cassidy. The claim: The Koch Brothers, who are prominent financial supporters of the pro-GOP group Americans for Prosperity, want to protect, in the ad's words, “tax cuts for companies that ship…

A clearly worried Chris Matthews attempted to rally the Democratic Party to avoid a midterm massacre, openly suggesting that the party's goals should be "angering" voters with "scary" Republicans. On Thursday morning, the MSNBC anchor conceded that the U.S. Senate will go Republican in November. By Thursday night, he pivoted, lecturing Democrats: "...You can give the angry voter out there…

The co-hosts of The View brought on Republican strategist Nicolle Wallace, Thursday, to give the Republican view on politics. But instead of offering the loyal opposition, the former top aide to John McCain gushed over the Clintons.  Asked by Jenny McCarthy if Bill Clinton's personal problems will be an issue in 2016, Wallace blurted, "No. That's baked in the cake. I mean, to know Bill is to…

We've heard it all before. Here we go again. More of the same. Can't we just move on? Those are the sort of classic liberal pundit one-liners that Clinton apologists used in the former president's tenure in office to respond to fresh scandalous revelations, seeking to guide public opinion to scandal fatigue. Daily Beast's Eleanor Clift is singing from that song sheet now as she seeks to…