GOP Sure Is Acting Like The Dog That Caught The Car

Posted on by David Kurtz

On Their Heels?

No one really knows how the politics of abortion will play out in the brave new world of Dobbs. Not in the midterms. Certainly not long term. But early signs point to some GOP squeamishness about the impact of the Supreme Court decision on their midterm prospects.

The GOP defensiveness manifests itself in three ways:

1. Downplaying the impact of Dobbs

TPM: GOP Guvs Brush Off Dobbs

2. Not making Dobbs the centerpiece of their midterm campaigns

WaPo: Republicans tread carefully

3. Loser vibes

Federalist: How To Win The Debate On Abortion In 12 Clear Counterpoints

Go Deeper

Linda Greenhouse: Requiem for the Supreme Court

Heather Cox Richardson: Dobbs defenders insist it does not outlaw abortion

Some Historical Perspective

About Those Exceptions

Politico: In states that allow abortion for rape and incest, finding a doctor may prove impossible

Protests All Weekend

CNN: Tear gas used to disperse protesters outside Arizona Capitol

The Cut: Truck driver ran into pro-choice protesters in Iowa

The Latest Polling

CBS has the first major poll since Dobbs:

Providence Punch

TPM: GOP Candidate Drops Out After Alleged Assault On Dem Rival At Abortion Rights Rally

Oops

TPM: GOP Rep Draws Backlash After Praising Overturn Of Roe As ‘Victory Of White Life’

Must Reads

Jeff Sharlet for Vanity Fair: January 6 Was Only The Beginning

Ron Brownstein for The Atlantic: America Is Growing Apart, Possibly for Good

Rick Hasen for NYT: No One Is Above the Law, and That Starts With Donald Trump

Paying The Price For Stepping Out Of Line

House GOPers who showed a glimmer of anti-Trump spine face serious blowback in their re-election campaigns. But it’s probably not the defining vote you’re thinking about! The WaPo with a good little story on the GOP members who voted for a Jan. 6 commission and are now paying the price. Remember: The Jan. 6 commission never came to be and instead Nancy Pelosi created the select committee that Kevin McCarthy boycotted.

Welcome To The Party, NYT!

The paper of record discovers the The Strange Tale of Tina Peters

If You’ve Lost Kilmeade …

The Fox and Friends host says Trump was “unhinged” and angry between Election Day and Jan. 6:  “So I think how you lose in life defines who you are, and even if there are things that bother you, welcome to the world.”

Rudy Assaulted?

The NYT headline captures the absurdist quality to this weekend’s kerfuffle: Rudy Giuliani Smacked on Back While Campaigning on Staten Island

The NYPost goes all Zapruder with the surveillance video.

McConnell’s Calculation

President Biden signed the most significant gun control in a generation Saturday. How did Mitch McConnell get on board with such a thing? Partially by defining the bill as a solution not for gun violence but for mental health and school safety. But it’s a bit more complicated:

Making The Rounds

From Sarah Huckabee Sanders victory speech last month:

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Another

Posted on by Josh Marshall

From TPM Reader MG …

I live in NH, and like RP on the front page, I asked Senator Shaheen the filibuster and codifying Roe question after the leak. I got a vanilla answer about supporting a woman’s right to choose.

Anybody Home?

Posted on by Josh Marshall

TPM Reader RP is still at it …

Just to keep you up-to-date, I’ve yet to hear from Senator Jeanne Shaheen if, in addition to confirming she’ll vote to enact a federal law making abortion accessible and available to all women, she’ll also answer my other question as to whether she’ll vote to change the filibuster, if not eliminate it entirely, so the Senate can proceed with a bill for such a law.

I’ve called her office in Manchester, NH twice (once last week and once the week before) to remind her office that Senator Shaheen still has to answered this question.  Each time, the person with whom I spoke immediately found a record of my question(s) and assured me she would bring to Senator Shaheen’s attention that I’ve asked again for an answer to my question regarding the filibuster issue.

Continue reading “Anybody Home?” →

GOP Guvs Brush Off Overturn Of Roe By Refusing To Engage With Its Dire Consequences

Posted on by Summer Concepcion

In the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) on Sunday shrugged off the dire consequences by repeatedly claiming that this will simply mean states get to decide on their residents’ access to abortion.

Continue reading “GOP Guvs Brush Off Overturn Of Roe By Refusing To Engage With Its Dire Consequences” →

Warren: Voters Must Elect Dems In Midterms Who Would Nix Filibuster To Codify Roe

Posted on by Summer Concepcion

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) on Sunday said she views the midterm elections in November as the crucial opportunity for Democrats to gain the senators they need — senators who support eliminating or changing the filibuster — in order to codify Roe v. Wade following the Supreme Court’s ruling ending the right to abortion.

Continue reading “Warren: Voters Must Elect Dems In Midterms Who Would Nix Filibuster To Codify Roe” →

Vague Promises on Roe Won’t Cut It

Posted on by Josh Marshall

In bleak times amid onslaughts from the right there’s a tendency for many Americans on the liberal or leftward side of the political spectrum to attack the Democratic Party. Certainly the Democratic Party merits lots of criticism. But we should be clear on the particular roots of this reflex. When you feel angry and outraged you want to attack someone. The right doesn’t care about your attacks or your rage or your fears. Indeed, in our trolling era they relish them, laugh at the them, taunt you with them. The party that at least broadly lines up with your views, on the other hand, cares a lot. So it’s a much more appealing target.

I say this because it is a toxic tendency that we are all vulnerable to but should try to overcome. And I raise it here as preface to what I hope will be viewed as constructive criticism. Hopefully it is constructive because time is of the essence.

Continue reading “Vague Promises on Roe Won’t Cut It” →

One Poll

Posted on by Josh Marshall

A new CBS News poll shows Americans see the Court decision overturning Roe as a “step backward” rather than a “step forward” by a 21 point margin. 59% of Americans disapprove of the decision. 67% of women disapprove of the decision. Almost exactly the proportion of Americans who disapprove of the decision support overruling it with a new federal law. That’s 58%. This is a YouGov poll and these results are if anything more favorable for the anti-Roe side than most. But it still shows a decision that is overwhelmingly unpopular. 50% of Democrats say they are more likely to vote because of the decision, 28% for indies and 20% for GOPs.

There’s little question that this lopsided reaction can turn a lot of close races. But there’s no way to do that without putting a clear post-election action on the table for voters to support.

GOP Rep Draws Backlash After Praising Overturn Of Roe As ‘Victory Of White Life’

Posted on by Summer Concepcion

Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) has come under fire after she thanked former President Trump for appointing conservative judges who cast crucial votes to overturn Roe v. Wade, a ruling that she praised as a “historic victory for white life” during a Trump rally in Illinois on Saturday night.

Continue reading “GOP Rep Draws Backlash After Praising Overturn Of Roe As ‘Victory Of White Life’” →

GOP Candidate Drops Out After Alleged Assault On Dem Rival At Abortion Rights Rally

Posted on by Summer Concepcion

A Republican candidate for Rhode Island state Senate dropped out of the race on Saturday after a video that went viral allegedly showed him punching his Democratic challenger in the face during an abortion rights rally in the wake of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Continue reading “GOP Candidate Drops Out After Alleged Assault On Dem Rival At Abortion Rights Rally” →