October 5, 2016
President Barack Obama is directing America’s national security agencies to promote more diversity in their ranks, arguing that inclusiveness is an “imperative” in a still-dangerous but increasingly interconnected world. Obama lays out his instructions in a Presidential Memorandum released Wednesday. The memo, whose details were shared first with POLITICO, directs government departments and agencies to […]
October 5, 2016
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence was “smooth” and “sort of likable” at Tuesday night’s vice presidential debate, Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta admitted Wednesday morning. But when it came to doing his job on the debate stage, Podesta said Pence failed with flying colors. “He didn’t get the job done. The vice president’s job is […]
October 5, 2016
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence won Tuesday night’s vice presidential debate, Sen. Jeff Sessions said Wednesday, because “he refused to be distracted.” Just as his running mate did, Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine spent much of his time on the debate stage baiting his opponent by laying out for viewers the array of controversial remarks […]
October 5, 2016
Former Arkansas governor and Donald Trump supporter Mike Huckabee weighed in on Tuesday’s vice presidential debate, hitting both Tim Kaine’s overeager performance and Hillary Clinton’s wealth. “Tim Kaine seems to think a VP serves the same function for a President as a yappy Chihuahua does for a socialite’s purse,” Huckabee tweeted early Wednesday morning. His […]
October 5, 2016
Good Wednesday morning. The general consensus: Mike Pence won the debate. The CNN/ORC poll post-debate poll — which tends to track pretty closely with public surveys taken days later — has Pence beating Tim Kaine last night, 48% to 42% (http://cnn.it/2dIQihu) Pence turned in a far better performance than Donald Trump. Even the Trump haters […]
October 5, 2016
Hillary Clinton leads Donald Trump by 24 points among likely Hispanic voters in Florida, according to a new poll that shows a significant number of Republican Latinos are unsure of their nominee for the White House. Clinton’s 54-30 percent lead over Trump with Hispanic voters stands in marked contrast to the U.S. Senate race, where […]
October 5, 2016
For the past two weeks, leaders from around the world have gathered in South Africa for a global wildlife summit to debate regulations on the trade of endangered plants and animals. This triennial event, which concludes Wednesday, led to new protections for such species as the pangolin and sharks. But some countries are disappointed that […]
October 5, 2016
The National Rifle Association is out with its biggest ad buy to date, pushing a sympathetic, young voice for gun rights and Donald Trump’s candidacy. Starting Wednesday, the NRA is spending $6.5 million on a spot featuring a 26-year-old lawyer named Kristi McMains, who said the pistol in her purse saved her life when a […]
October 5, 2016
Mike Pence didn’t just defeat Tim Kaine in their only debate — he also outshined Donald Trump. A majority of the battleground-state insiders who comprise The POLITICO Caucus gave Pence the edge over Kaine in their vice presidential debate at Virginia’s Longwood University on Tuesday night: 60 percent of all insiders, including 96 percent of […]
October 5, 2016
House Republicans spent all summer sweating that Donald Trump’s chaotic campaign would cost them dearly in November, and maybe even open a path for Democrats to seize control of the chamber. But five weeks before Election Day, those fears have largely subsided: Republicans are still pegged to lose seats, but top party strategists are increasingly […]