Chuck Grassley

Snowe, Hatch Poised To Take Top GOP Slots On Major Committees In January

Brian Beutler | November 10, 2010, 12:14PM

Republicans didn't pick up the Senate last week. But they did pick up six seats and will have several new members coming to town next year, which means the committees will be rejiggered -- and the leaders of those committees will play the biennial game of musical chairs.

According to top aides, the reshuffling won't be too dramatic this time around. On any particular committee, Democrats adhere to a seniority system to determine who moves up the ladder. Republicans let the members choose who gets the top spot.

With that in mind, here's one likely reshuffling scenario.

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Government Shutdown

DeMint Calls On Republicans To Force Fall Spending Showdown With Democrats

Brian Beutler | October 5, 2010, 10:24AM

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) is sending out a warning to his fellow Republicans: Stand tall against government spending this fall, and be prepared for a showdown.

"[B]efore they're replaced in January, all of the Democrats who are put out of a job in November will be able to come back and rob the nation blind," DeMint writes in the conservative National Review.

At a glance it appears DeMint is lashing out at Democrats. But his real concern is that members of his own party -- who he described last week as "retiring Republican appropriators" -- will join Democrats during the lame-duck session of Congress and pass large spending legislation to keep the government running (what's known on the Hill as an omnibus spending bill).

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Kirsten Gillibrand

Republican Senators Chase World Cup, Praise America's Immigrant History

Megan Carpentier | July 2, 2010, 2:30PM

USA and Slovenia play in the World Cup, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) wants to bring the tournament to the States.

After the failure of Team USA to beat Ghana and advance in the World Cup tournament, most thought that Americans would wait until 2014 until they started paying attention to soccer again. But Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and a number of Republican colleagues aren't wiling to let soccer fade into obscurity!

She and a few colleagues from both sides of the aisle sent a letter to FIFA President Sepp Blatter today to try to convince him to allow America to host the World Cup in 2018 or 2022. Part of their sales pitch is America's vast immigrant population, and their dedication to watching their home country teams battle it out on U.S. soil.

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Stanley McChrystal

GOP Praise Petraeus, Continue Hammering Obama Afghanistan Policy

Brian Beutler | June 23, 2010, 4:11PM

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Senator John McCain (R-AZ)

You won't likely hear broad opposition from the GOP to President Obama's decision to replace General McChrystal with General Petraeus in Afghanistan. But they will continue to hammer the administration for having set a 2011 troop withdrawal date in that war, and criticize the civilian leadership in Afghanistan, particularly Ambassador Karl Eikenberry. In other words, McChrystal's expected firing, and all the coy warnings that came with it, will ultimately change little about the politics of the Afghanistan war on the Hill.

"We are confident that General Petraeus' leadership will have a very positive effect on the situation in the region," Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said at a press conference this afternoon. "The hearing for General Petraeus' confirmation will probably be the fastest in the history of the Armed Services Committee."

McCain serves as ranking member of that committee. He appeared alongside Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Joe Lieberman (I-CT) to weigh in on Obama's decision, and to highlight continuing differences, including over the withdrawal date, and the civilian leadership in Afghanistan.

The senators even tiptoed toward suggesting that Eikenberry should go as well.

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Intelligence community

Bond: Blair Was Squeezed Out (VIDEO)

Ben Frumin | May 21, 2010, 11:02AM

Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO)

Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO) suggested on CNN last night that resigning Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair was "frustrated," "put on the sidelines" and "squeezed out."

"He had to be very frustrated that he was put on the sidelines by the Attorney General who's now running much of the intelligence collection effort, and he got the blame for it," Bond said.

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Stimulus

Dems To Celebrate Stimulus Anniversary By Slamming GOP Hypocrisy On Bragging About The Cash They Opposed

Christina Bellantoni | February 10, 2010, 12:39PM

President Obama signed the $787 billion stimulus plan into law Feb. 17, 2009

Next week when President Obama marks the one-year anniversary of signing the stimulus bill into law, Democrats will showcase the Republicans who were against the Recovery Act funds, before they were for them being funneled to their home states.

TPMDC has learned the party will mount an orchestrated effort from the Democratic National Committee, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to go after Republicans who voted against the$787 billion economic stimulus plan but take credit for its spending back home.

Obama signed the measure Feb. 17, 2009 with votes from just three Republicans (one of those GOPers, Sen. Arlen Specter, became a Democrat) but members of the opposing party have campaigned on stimulus projects.

A Democratic source told me the party will force both incumbents up for reelection in the fall and Republican challengers to say on the record if they support the stimulus plan, which the White House in tandem will showcase as having created jobs.

"Look for us to be all over this story," the source said.

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Bill Clinton

The Sunday Show Line-Ups

Eric Kleefeld | September 25, 2009, 2:14PM

Former President Bill Clinton

Here are the line-ups for the Sunday talk shows this weekend:

• ABC, This Week: Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ).

• CBS, Face The Nation: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC).

• CNN, State Of The Union: Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.

• Fox News Sunday: Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO); Virginia gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell (R); Anti-ACORN activist James O'Keefe.

• NBC, Meet The Press: Former President Bill Clinton; Gov. David Paterson (D-NY); Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA).

Eric Holder

GOP Senators To Holder: Your Plans To Investigate Torture Will Endanger The Country

Brian Beutler | August 20, 2009, 1:05PM

Attorney General Eric Holder

Where have we heard this before...

Republican members of the Senate Judiciary and Senate Intelligence Committee are warning Attorney General Eric Holder that by appointing a special prosecutor to investigate allegations of torture by the CIA during the Bush era, he'll be endangering national security.

Such an investigation could have a number of serious consequences, not just for the honorable members of the intelligence community, but also for the security of all Americans," reads a letter the senators sent yesterday.

It goes on, obliquely recalling the September 11 attacks.

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