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Then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump railed against “so-called Christians” and “pieces of s—” evangelicals who supported Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the 2016 Iowa caucuses, according to a forthcoming book. At the time, allies of Cruz had been making hay of Trump’s flub before an audience at Virginia’s Liberty University, a conservative evangelical college, in which he botched a question about his favorite Bible verse and replied that it came from the book of “Two Corinthians,” rather than “Second Corinthians.” “The laughter and ridicule were embarrassing enough for Trump,” Tim Alberta writes in his new book, “The Kingdom, the Power,...

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis met with New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu in the first primary state Friday afternoon in Concord, Sununu's office confirmed.“Governor Sununu is ready and willing to meet with all potential candidates who come to New Hampshire, and was happy to meet with Governor DeSantis for an hour today at his office in the State House, where they discussed a wide range of issues, including how to do well in the New Hampshire primary," Sununu spokesman Ben Vihstadt told NBC News in a statement.It wasn't Sununu's only 2024-related meeting of the day: According to a person familiar with...

Senate Democrats are bracing for the possibility for life under a divided government, with President Biden in office and a strong possibility of a Republican-controlled House. Democrats hope they can retain their majority in the Senate, where a number of political handicappers say the party is favored. That would give Democrats more leverage and congressional support for Biden over the next two years. But if the House does fall as expected, lawmakers expect partisan gridlock. Some Democrats are predicting government shutdowns and standoffs over raising the federal debt limit will take center stage. “If Republicans win control of the House,...

Like Pompeo, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has lined up behind McCormick in the May 17 Pennsylvania primary, which recent polling has suggested is close. Cruz is looking to bounce back after his preferred candidate in the Ohio primary, Josh Mandel, lost. Cruz joined Mandel on the campaign trail in the final stretch of the race, even mocking Republican candidates for talking too much about Trump. Meanwhile, former UN Ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley appeared in a new TV ad this week for Rep. Nancy Mace, who is facing a challenge from the Trump-backed Katie Arrington in the June...

The race for the Republican nomination for Senate in Pennsylvania is Sean Parnell’s to lose after snagging an endorsement from former President Donald Trump. Trump chose the Army combat veteran of the war in Afghanistan over loyalist Carla Sands, a former ambassador in his administration and generous campaign contributor. The former president also chose Parnell over one of his leading grassroots supporters, Kathy Barnette...

The effect of President Trump’s address to the Conservative Political Action Committee on Sunday has become clearer this week. The key sentence was, “A Republican president will be returning to the White House.” Since the only other living Republican president, George W. Bush, is term-limited, Trump was speaking of himself. The speech was not only the best and most interesting political speech delivered in the United States since President Reagan’s successful reelection campaign in 1984, it also broke new ground in three important respects. First, by expressing once again in reasonable and credible terms the basis of his complaint about...

Influential Iowa conservative leader Bob Vander Plaats has endorsed Ted Cruz for president. Cruz is already surging in Iowa and of its first-in-the-nation presidential contest, and the key endorsement will add to perceptions that Cruz is in a strong position to win the state's presidential caucuses. The news comes just days after a Monmouth University poll showed Cruz edging out Donald Trump at the top of the Hawkeye State. A second poll from CNN showed Cruz in second place and trailing Trump. Vande Plaats announced his pick during a press conference Wednesday morning in Iowa. The evangelical leader has endorsed...

Bob Vander Plaats, the CEO of the social conservative group the Family Leader, endorsed Ted Cruz's presidential candidacy. A "kingmaker" of sorts in Iowa, Vander Plaats endorsed Mike Huckabee in 2008 and backed Rick Santorum in 2012. When the Washington Examiner spoke with Vander Plaats earlier this year, he said it would be easy for conservatives to divide their support among several quality candidates and he would wait until the Thanksgiving holiday to make a decision. On Thursday, Vander Plaats made clear he believes the best candidate is Cruz. Cruz has racked up endorsements from several influential conservatives in the...

Some people seem to be just discovering the odd position Valerie Jarrett has held in this administration. They also seem to be struggling to find a metaphor for her role. I have seen her compared to Rasputin, but that doesn't fit the dynamics of the relationship. Barack Obama may be as detached from the threats of his day as Tsar Nicholas II was 100 years ago, but Rasputin was very much his and the Tsarina's social inferior. I suspect Jarrett considers herself at least the Obamas’ equal if not their superior. When I consider Valerie Jarrett's role in things, I...

Just in case you missed the not-so-subtle message of Sarah Palin’s new video–”Loaded for Bear“–it appears onscreen fifteen seconds after the beginning and takes the form of a Politico headline proclaiming the one-time vice-presidential candidate a “kingmaker.” (Strangely, “kingmaker” is also one of the titles that pops up about fifteen seconds into the opening of the Colbert Report.) For such a persistent critic of the “lamestream media,” Palin has to rely on a wide variety of sources in the press to bolster her status as a power player in conservative politics. In addition to the headline in Politico, her video...

Despite a hard-charging speech over the weekend that suggested dissatisfaction with the Republican presidential primary frontrunner, Sarah Palin said Sunday that Mitt Romney "is a great candidate." But the 2008 vice presidential candidate and Tea Party darling isn't yet convinced Romney is "instinctively" a constitutional conservative. "I am not convinced and I don't think that the majority of GOP and independent voters are convinced," Palin told "Fox News Sunday." "And that is why you don't see Romney get over the hump. He's still in the 30-percentile mark when it comes to approval and primary wins and caucus wins. He still...

The president of the influential Christian organisation Family Leader has said Republican candidate Mitt Romney "will not be the eventual nominee" despite leading the polls for the nomination. Bob Vander Plaats told the International Business Times UK that 75-80 percent of Republicans across the US do not want Romney. "The only reason why he is ahead is because there hasn't been a real alternative," said Plaats. "But now it looks like Gingrich is going to be that person." Plaats, who initially endorsed former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum, carries significant political clout within the Republican Party. He said: "When I endorsed...

Governor Sarah Palin endorsed 67 winning candidates in last year’s historic midterm election, a nearly 70% winning ratio. So, yeah, she knows how to pick candidates. And now the Anyone But Palin crowd would like her to keep on picking candidates, including endorsing someone other than herself for president in next year’s primaries. That’s why they use the following bizarre political terms to describe her: “Kingmaker” “Coronator” (Is that even a word?) “Cheerleader” But this isn’t really out of any deep respect for her endorsement power. (Believe us, if she didn’t run, they would completely diminish her attempt to endorse...

Here is your chance to play political strategist.....do you want either to run...

For a loosely organized coalition, the tea party has displayed remarkable unity since it emerged in early 2010. But that discipline is being tested in the run-up to the 2012 GOP presidential primary as three top Republicans aggressively court the conservative movement. Those Republicans – former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, Rep. Michele Bachmann and billionaire developer Donald Trump – are motivated by distinct agendas that may or may not include a presidential campaign. But all three would-be candidates are forcing tea party activists to make some important decisions as they try to grow into a more enduring force in American...

Link only due to copyright issues; http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-07/palin-s-bold-attacks-on-obama-quiet-strategy-puzzle-republicans-for-2012.html

TIME Magazine Reporter Jay Newton-Small told CBS News Correspondent Bill Plante on Wednesday's "Washington Unplugged" that Sarah Palin may be the favorite for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination. "If she wanted to, she is the front runner for the nomination, if she isn't, she is the kingmaker," he said. "Either way, she is definitely a force to be reckoned with and not someone to underestimate."

'I'd rather lose with Pat Toomey than win with Arlen Specter any day." That's South Carolina Republican Jim DeMint defending his Senate Conservatives Fund, a new PAC that has taken Washington by storm. The fund-raising group has already helped eight underdog Reaganite candidates win Republican Senate primaries this year. In two years, the fund has raised and spent nearly $2 million from nearly 50,000 individual contributors. Mr. DeMint's mission is to bring more Jim DeMints to the Senate—that is, people with an unfailing antagonism to big government. But his string of victories, often against establishment candidates, has many of his...

Incumbent GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski's stunning setback in Alaska sends a powerful message to political insiders in both parties: Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is now the GOP's clear No. 1 kingmaker. Upstart candidate Joe Miller, who made a lightning-fast rise in the polls following Palin's endorsement and robo calls, credited Palin for his primary shocker. "I'm absolutely certain that was pivotal," he told The Anchorage Daily News. With an estimated 98 percent of the vote tallied — and with thousands of absentee ballots yet to be counted — Miller leads Murkowski by 1,960 votes. Political pundits suggest the outcome...

President Obama is suddenly seizing on the role of Democratic kingmaker, stepping in to protect or promote colleagues in Congress. Early after his election victory, Obama did not expend political capital on congressional races, but in recent weeks he has sought to lengthen his coattails by protecting vulnerable Democratic lawmakers facing tough election races in 2010. From sharing credit on key legislation to fundraising pitches, the new president has bolstered his party members not just in coming general election campaigns but also helping them avoid rough primary battles as well. And with Obama’s popularity still high throughout the country, many...