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[Long Run]

Rare San Francisco Republicans Become Objects of Primary Desire

Alan Burradell walks his rat terrier, Django, around San Francisco in a red, white and blue Donald Trump dog sweater. Across town, Tom Canady sports a Ted Cruz button as he calls neighbors from a rent-controlled apartment urging them to support the conservative Texas senator.

Both men, outliers in one of the most liberal U.S. cities, have become crucial lieutenants in this year’s presidential election as GOP candidates descend on the state that has more delegates than any other. That’s because each of California’s 53 congressional districts, no matter how few Republicans live there, will award three delegates after voting concludes June 7.

With Trump and Cruz locked in a delegate-by-delegate battle for primacy at the Cleveland convention in July, and Ohio Governor John Kasich still a spoiler, California figures to have a consequential Republican primary role for the first time in 40 years.

* * *

The strategy of picking off Republicans in liberal areas echoes the campaign in New York, where Democrat-dominated congressional districts in New York City yielded as many Republican delegates as more conservative areas upstate.

* * *

In California, Trump is leading Cruz by 17 percentage points, with Kasich trailing the front-runner by 28, according to the Real Clear Politics average of polls. Cruz’s campaign is countering Trump’s broader appeal by breaking California into 53 separate district-level contests, aided by a trio of strategists with decades of experience in California.

"It’s going to be hand-to-hand combat," said Republican operative Tim Clark, whom Trump hired recently to run his California campaign.

* * *

Republican consultant Dave Gilliard, who ran the recall campaign that brought Schwarzenegger to power, said this primary is another once-in-a-lifetime experience for California Republicans.

"Candidates who are smart are going to be spending time in districts that have never seen any Republican activity," said Gilliard, who is not involved in the presidential campaigns. "This is a new experience for California Republican voters."

http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/artic ... ary-desire

[Lord Jim]

"This is a new experience for California Republican voters."

Yes, for the first time, I'm starting to feel loved...

I've already gotten calls and emails from the Kasich and Cruz people...

Not surprised that I've heard from the Kasich campaign since I'm on their contributor list; I get emails from them all the time...

Team Cruz must be calling the local GOP registered voter list...(those folks are so well organized when it comes to targeted campaigning, that when the primary gets closer I fully expect a Cruzite to show up at my door... )

Nothing so far from Trumpty...

Of course all this wooing could come to an abrupt end if Cruz gets blown out in Indiana next week...

[TPFKA@W]

Of course all this wooing could come to an abrupt end if Cruz gets blown out in Indiana next week.

Well the polls say it's a tight race with Cruz and Trump, yard signs dispute this heavily in Trump's favor.

[Crackpot]

Tho Trump supporters have no shame I don't think the same could be said for ol Ted

[Crackpot]

Clarification:

It could be said for Ted but not for Ted supporters

[Gob]

Chicken Steve must be wanking himself blind over the republican race this year.

[Lord Jim]

Steve can't be all that happy...

He's got to be a Sanders guy, and that ain't workin' out so well...

Sanders laying off hundreds of campaign staffers

(CNN)Bernie Sanders' campaign is laying off more than 200 workers, campaign manager Jeff Weaver said Wednesday.
The campaign is downsizing from its current 550-member team to between 325 to 350 workers, said Weaver, who added that at one point the Sanders' staff numbered more than 1,000.

The decision follows a bad night for Sanders, in which he lost four out of five East Coast states that voted on Tuesday.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/27/politics/ ... ownsizing/

[ex-khobar Andy]

I loved the fact that John Boehner (now there's a name to have some fun with) called Cruz 'Lucifer in the flesh.' Once again, you can't make this stuff up.

[Lord Jim]

(now there's a name to have some fun with)

As he well knows:

“You can call me boner, beaner, jackass, happy to answer to almost anything,” said former Speaker of the House John Boehner as he took the stage at CEMEX Auditorium on Wednesday evening. Boehner joined David M. Kennedy, faculty director and history professor emeritus, in a talk hosted by Stanford in Government (SIG) and the Stanford Speakers Bureau.



This joking yet blunt attitude set the tone for the night as Kennedy and the former Speaker discussed topics ranging from Boehner’s upbringing in Ohio to the future of the Republican Party. For the second half of the program, Kennedy opened up the floor to student questions.

Much of the discussion — and laughs — focused on Boehner’s views on the current presidential candidates. Segueing into the topic, Kennedy asked Boehner to be frank given that the event was not being broadcasted, and the former Speaker responded in kind. When specifically asked his opinions on Ted Cruz, Boehner made a face, drawing laughter from the crowd.

“Lucifer in the flesh,” the former Speaker said. “I have Democrat friends and Republican friends. I get along with almost everyone, but I have never worked with a more miserable son of a bitch in my life.”

Boehner described other Republican candidates as friends. In particular, he said he has played golf with Donald Trump for years and that they were “texting buddies.”

His friendship with Ohio Governor John Kasich, however, was a little more ambiguous.

“[Kasich] requires more effort on my behalf than all my other friends … but he’s still my friend, and I love him,” Boehner said.

Boehner for the most part accepted Trump as the presumptive Republican nominee, though he did express his surprise at the candidate’s success. While he did not praise Trump’s policies, the former Speaker did say he would vote for Trump in the general election if he becomes the Republican nominee. He said he would not, however, vote for Cruz.

When it came to the Democrat primaries, Boehner asserted his belief that although Bernie Sanders has put up a significant fight, Hillary Clinton will win the nomination. While stating that he disagreed with Sanders on all the issues, he also called Sanders a nice guy and the most honest politician in the race.

On Clinton, Boehner’s reviews were more mixed. Early in the talk, he impersonated Clinton, saying “Oh, I’m a woman, vote for me,” to a negative crowd reaction. Later, he added that he had known Clinton for 25 years and finds her to be very accomplished and smart.

Boehner also speculated about surprises that could come closer to the Democratic National Convention if Hillary Clinton’s emails became a larger scandal.

“Don’t be shocked … if two weeks before the convention, here comes Joe Biden parachuting in and Barack Obama fanning the flames to make it all happen,” Boehner said.

Kennedy also spent a large portion of the talk asking the former Speaker about his time in office and his relationship with President Obama. Having been elected to office 13 times — a number which he was quick to clarify with Kennedy — Boehner said he had learned a lot from previous Speakers, including Newt Gingrich and Nancy Pelosi.

Throughout the talk, Boehner frequently referenced the Freedom Caucus as the “knuckleheads” and “goofballs” in Congress. When Kennedy asked about the Democrats in Congress, Boehner asserted that both parties have their own inner divisions.

“The thing that’s different about Republicans and Democrats is that [Democrats] do their fights behind closed doors,” he said. “Republicans are way too independent for that.”

Although he talked about the challenges of working with a partisan, gridlocked Congress, Boehner reflected positively on his relationship with Obama. Although he acknowledged that the two disagree, Boehner said the two get along well.

Boehner described his days in office as fairly repetitive and very busy. He would wake up around 5:30 a.m., walk to Starbucks for coffee, then return home to do some morning reading. He would go into the office around 8 a.m., and “then it was like a sprint all day long.” According to Boehner, however, he always made sure to go home by 10 p.m.

“I think my proudest accomplishment is walking out of there the same jackass I was 25 years before,” Boehner said.

In speaking of his retirement, the former Speaker said he didn’t regret a thing. As a Catholic, Boehner said it was particularly moving to meet Pope Francis when he spoke to Congress. Boehner resigned the following day.'/quote]

http://www.stanforddaily.com/2016/04/28 ... in-office/

How liberating it must be, to be out of the political arena and feel free to speak ones mind....

I'd vote for this guy for President in a heartbeat...

[rubato]

If you like the most ineffective, partisan, obstructive congress of all time, with the weakest leader, he's a peach.


Yes,
Rubato

[rubato]

DP, I blame the foreign wifi.

[Lord Jim]

If you like the most blah blah blah he's a peach.


Yes,
Rubato

And rube doesn't like him either...

Another big point in his favor

That settles it for me:

BOEHNER 2016!

[Burning Petard]

Andy, you did not repeat my favorite quote from the appearance: "This is not being recorded or broadcast, so you can say or ask anything."

But of course it was recorded, and then broadcast to all the world.

snailgate