Huffington Post: Obama's 2012 Campaign Cavalry Takes Shape
On November 16, 2011, the Huffington Post reported:
In a bare-bones room on the second floor of an office building blocks away from the Capitol lies one of the more influential political operations in Washington D.C. Roughly forty staffers sit along white tables in the room, only a handful of whom even the biggest political junkies would know by name. They work in relative silence, staring into one of the two computer monitors in front of them, headphones covering their ears. On the walls are mounted a dozen 42-inch televisions turned to one of the three major cable news networks. Pipes are exposed in the ceiling above and the cement floor below has no carpeting, revealing painted instructions for future movers. Off to the side, a server gives off a heated, humming sound. It is in that server that the one of the largest collections of campaign-related video footage will soon to be stored. American Bridge 21st Century is a relatively new Democratic operation -- conceived by David Brock, the founder of the highly successful progressive media tracking organization Media Matters, and run by former high-ranking Hill and campaign staffers -- but its ambitions, as exemplified by plans for that server, are far-reaching: The group aims to redefine the art of opposition politics.
POLITICO: Questions arise about Rick Perry's business deals back home in Texas Tribune report
On November 16, 2011, POLITICO reported:
The Tribune piece looks at the deals in detail, but they include reports on buying and then flipping a Horseshoe Bay property from a friend, and a probe the Huffington Post revealed that was done on a land deal with Dr. James Leininger, a major Perry donor. The left-leaning group American Bridge hit Perry hard on the issue after his government-overhaul speech Monday, in a line of attack that will become a refrain if the governor starts to rise again.
Texas Tribune: Perry Decries Insider Trading But Critics Call Foul
On November 16, 2011, the Texas Tribune reported:
Newly — and fiercely — critical of using public office for personal financial gain, Gov. Rick Perry this week unveiled a campaign addemanding that lawmakers who use “insider knowledge to profit in the stock market” be jailed, and he rolled out an overhaul plan of the federal government that would make that possible by criminalizing insider trading by members of Congress. Some longtime observers of the Texas governor say his effort to portray himself as a reform-minded government “outsider” is inconsistent with his record, which they argue is peppered with instances in which his personal and political relationships became entangled in ways that helped him profit financially.
Houston Chronicle: Rick Perry’s ‘wrecking ball’ plan, explained
On November 15, 2011, the Houston Chronicle reported:
Perry also said he would jail lawmakers profiting from insider information, a reference to a CBS “60 Minutes” program that showed some congressional members bought stock in companies with an interest in pending legislation. A Democratic political action committee, American Bridge 21st Century, said Perry’s proposal smacked of hypocrisy and said the governor made tidy profits in stock holdings in Kinetic Concepts through his association with San Antonio-based James Leininger.
POLITICO: Mitt Romney Says Americans Avoiding 'The Hard Work' In Book, American Bridge Reports
On November 16, 2011, POLITCO reported:
The folks at the Democratic-backing group American Bridge flagged a quote from Mitt Romney's book "No Apology" amid the flap over the Republican hitting President Obama for describing Americans as having become "lazy" in terms of preserving exceptionalism.(emphasis added)The passage in the book reads this way:
“We have been accustomed to being the world’s leading nation for so long, enjoying the freedom, security, and prosperity that comes with that leadership, that we have tended to avoid the hard work that overcoming challenges requires. When I was about ten, I asked my dad how he thought his company’s Rambler automobile could ever successfully compete with General Motors; they were so far ahead that catching up appeared impossible. He said something that has since been widely attributed to him: “There is nothing as vulnerable as entrenched success.” I believe that our many years of success may, in fact, be the greatest obstacle we face. In election after election, candidates have told us that simple measures will solve our challenges, and that their election alone will guarantee a bright future. We have joined in the cheering for this heady prospect. But much more than cheering is going to be required in the years ahead.”
POLITICO: Heller's 'March Madness' foul
On November 15, 2011, POLITICO reported:
Nevada Sen. Dean Heller's campaign has changed the name of a spring fundraiser to avoid a trademark breach of the NCAA's "March Madness" slogan. The Democratic research and opposition group American Bridge first noticed that Heller had dubbed a mid-March fundraiser at the glitzy Palazzo hotel on the Las Vegas strip "March Madness weekend."
TPM: Navy Vet Says She Was Kicked Out Of Romney Rally Because She Was Silently Protesting
On November 15, 2011, Talking Points Memo reported:
There are ways to deal with protesters gracefully at a campaign event, and then there’s kicking a Navy veteran out of your rally because she’s wearing a t-shirt you don’t like.
TPM: Rick Perry’s Good Government Plan: Throw The Bums In Jail!
On November 15, 2011, Talking Points Memo reported:
Democratic group American Bridge is already accusing him of hypocrisy, citing one incident in which Perry purchased stock in a hospital equipment company run by a top donor, James Leininger, the same day he met with him. Perry turned a profit after a new wave of investors drove its price up immediately afterwards. He has denied any wrongdoing. “If Perry thinks members of Congress belong in jail, what would he think about an elected official who purchased 2,800 shares of stock after speaking with that company’s CEO on the same day a giant investment group purchased 2.2 million of its shares?” communications director Chris Harris said in a statement.
NY Times: Cain Stumbles in Assessing Foreign Policy
On November 14, 2011, the New York Times reported:
Herman Cain became badly flustered on Monday when asked to assess President Obama’s policy toward Libya, raising new questions about his command of foreign policy as he lurched over five minutes from awkward pauses to halting efforts to address the issue. Video of Mr. Cain’s appearance on Monday before editors and reporters at The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel went viral almost immediately after it was posted online, and drew immediate comparisons to Rick Perry’s recent stumble in a debate when he froze in discussing which federal agencies he would eliminate...
Austin American Statesman: Project with ties to Perry OK'd despite objections
On November 14, 2011, the Austin American Statesman reported:
State environmental regulators appointed by Gov. Rick Perry issued a permit in January for a Houston-area industrial waste injection well to a company whose top investors include some of Perry's close friends and campaign contributors. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved the permit over the objections of the Texas Railroad Commission and every state and local official representing Montgomery County, and in spite of an administrative law judge's recommendation to deny the permit because the well might pollute groundwater.