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update: GOP wins Senate as Sen. John Cornyn cruises to 3d term

Sen. John Cornyn speaks with Steve Munisteri, Texas GOP chairman, during an Election Day visit to party headquarters in Austin. (AP/Tamir Kalifa)

update 10:30

North Carolina has put Republicans over the top. They will control the Senate, thanks to victory by state House Speaker Thom Tillis. He has ousted Sen. Kay Hagan in the costliest Senate race of the year.

Moments later, AP has called Iowa for tea partier Joni Ernst. The GOP majority stands at 52 and potentially climbing.

update 10:08pm

Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts, a Republican, has survived. With that, Republicans now stand at 50 seats. They need one more to claim the majority in the 114th Congress.

update 9:40pm

Republican David Perdue has won the open Senate seat in Georgia — one of the few potential bright spots and firewalls tonight for Democrats. He beat Michelle Nunn, daughter of former Sen. Sam Nunn. That keeps the Georgia seat in GOP hands after the retirement of Sen. Saxby Chambliss, quashing Democrats’ best hope of flipping a seat.

“We couldn’t be happier with what’s been happening around the country,” RNC chairman Reince Priebus told reporters moments ago.

 

update 8:55pm

Louisiana’s Senate race is headed to a Dec. 6 runoff between three-term Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu and GOP Rep. Bill Cassidy. Neither topped the 50 percent needed to win.

In Colorado, GOP Rep. Cory Gardner is leading Sen. Mark Udall by a wide margin and Fox News has already called him the winner.

That puts Republicans two seats away from a majority.

update 8pm

Just in from the White House: the president has invited the House and Senate leaders from both parties to the White House for a meeting on Friday. Presumably that would be to clear the air and try to set a tone going forward.

Also, no surprise, Cornyn has been declared the winner in Texas.

And in New Hampshire, Democrats have claimed victory for Sen. Jeanne Shaheen over Scott Brown, a former senator from Massachusetts. That won’t be enough, by itself, to stave off a Republican takeover. But GOP victory there would have signaled near-certainty of that.

update 7:40pm

Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas is the first night’s first Democratic casualty. Rep. Tom Cotton has defeated him. No surprises so far as Republicans close in on their magic 51. McConnell’s victory in Kentucky looked iffy a few months ago but he’d been pulling ahead.

original post

WASHINGTON — Sen. John Cornyn is heavily favored to win a third term tonight. The suspense for him is whether he’ll remain deputy leader of the Senate minority — or whether he’ll get a promotion to deputy leader of the majority.

That depends on whether Republicans can pick up enough seats around the country to tip control of the Senate. Control hinges on the 10 tightest contests, in North Carolina, Iowa, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Colorado, Kentucky, New Hampshire, Alaska and Arkansas.

Kentucky is especially relevant to Cornyn. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. — projected to win his race the moment polls closed — would replace Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., as majority leader if Republicans wrest control of the Senate.

Control of the Senate has far-reaching implications — for Cornyn, his fellow Republicans, and for President Obama and his agenda.

Democratic challenger David Alameel on Oct. 21. (LM Otero/AP)

In his own race in Texas, Cornyn never broke a sweat this fall. That left him plenty of time and money to help with the Texas Republicans’ voter targeting efforts, and trying to elect more Senate Republicans around the country.

His own challenger David Alameel, a Dallas investor, had never run statewide before. He collected hardly any donations for the effort to topple Cornyn, and didn’t spend nearly as lavishly as some Democrats had hoped, from a personal fortune estimated at $50 million. At last count Alameel pumped about $5.5 million into the campaign — only $1 million more than he spent on a failed congressional primary bid two years ago, his only previous bid for office.

Cornyn, eager for change in the new Senate, raised more than $14 million — a bargain compared to more hard-fought races elsewhere.

Spending this fall has hit staggering levels, commensurate with the high stakes.

The five most contested Senate races – North Carolina, Colorado, Iowa, Kentucky and Georgia — each commanded upwards of $65 million in totally outlays by candidates, parties and outside groups.

In North Carolina, where Republican Thom Tillis was trying to oust Sen. Kay Hagan, spending hit $108 million.

Nationwide, outside groups have poured more than $771 million into Senate races, according to the Sunlight Foundation, a watchdog group. Nearly half of that has come in the last three weeks, fueling a deluge of attack ads from Alaska to Georgia.

The spigots may stay open in Louisiana and Georgia, where the winner needs to top 50 percent and runoffs were viewed as likely. Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu, a Democrat, would face a runoff Dec. 6. In Georgia, Republican businessman David Perdue would face Democrat Michelle Nunn in a runoff Jan. 6 – three days after the new Congress is sworn in.

Texas Republicans raise concerns about federal Ebola response

Senate Minority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, center, and GOP lawmakers speak to reporters after a Republican caucus meeting, at the Capitol in Washington on May 6, 2014. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

updated at 3:51 p.m. with comment from HHS.

WASHINGTON — Texas Republicans are demanding answers from the Health and Human Services Administration about how existing public resources were used to combat the Ebola outbreak.

In a letter sent Friday, Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz — joined by all 24 Texas Republicans in the U.S. House — raise concerns that new Ebola cases emerged on U.S. soil despite the department’s funding for public health crises.

According to the letter, a 2013 law gave nearly $1.4 billion to “public health preparedness and response activities,” part of it to support efforts in Dallas and other metropolitan cities.

“[I]t is especially troubling to witness the federal government’s communications missteps and confusion about protocols knowing that a wide range of federal resources have already been in place for years,” the lawmakers write.

In a statement Friday afternoon, HHS said it looks forward to responding to the letter.

“HHS values working with members of Congress on this important public health matter,” spokesman Bill Hall said.

National Ebola protocols came under scrutiny after two Dallas health care workers contracted the disease while treating an Ebola patient. The patient, Thomas Eric Duncan, died but the two nurses, Nina Pham and Amber Vinson, have been declared Ebola-free.

Labeling Dallas “ground zero” for the first Ebola case, the Texas lawmakers say it’s necessary to understand how the U.S. government has applied its resources before charting a path forward.

In their letter, they tick through a number of requests to HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell, including an explanation of how policies under a 2006 law are helping to contain and treat the disease.

That law created the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, a position whose responsibilities Texas lawmakers also want detailed.

Ted Cruz on Apple’s Tim Cook coming out: “I love my iPhone”; gay rights groups unamused

Sen. Ted Cruz speaks at a news conference on immigration at the US Capitol on Sept. 9, 2014. (AFP photo/Mandel Ngan )

WASHINGTON — Sen. Ted Cruz on Thursday called Apple CEO Tim Cook’s coming out as gay a “personal decision.”

“Those are his personal choices,” Cruz said on CNBC. “I’ll tell you, I love my iPhone.”

The Texas Republican, a vocal opponent of gay marriage, then pivoted to his stance on the broader issue. Cruz said marriage is a question best left to the states because of the country’s federalist system.

“My focus is on the constitutional question of who has the authority to make decisions,” Cruz said.

Last month, Cruz vowed to introduce a constitutional amendment that would ensure states can ban gay marriage. His announcement came after the Supreme Court let stand a series of lower court rulings that legalized the practice, a move Cruz called “tragic and indefensible.”

Cook came out in a Bloomberg Businessweek opinion piece on Thursday, revealing publicly for the first time that he is gay.

“Let me be clear: I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me,” Cook wrote.

The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest gay-rights organization, had harsh words for Cruz’s remarks.

“Coming out is the most courageous and important thing that an LGBT person will do in their lifetime,” spokesman Fred Sainz said. “Tim Cook showed great courage and leadership in doing so. He no doubt will save lives by inspiring those struggling with their sexual orientation or gender identity. All we get from Senator Cruz is either backhanded compliments or his backhand.”

Texas judicial nominees could get Senate committee vote in November

Robert L. Pitman, the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Texas, speaks at a news conference June 4 in Midland. (AP Photo/Odessa American, Courtney Sacco)

WASHINGTON — A Senate committee could vote as early as Nov. 13 on three nominees for lifetime appointments as federal judges in Texas.

That’s the final step before the full Senate decides whether to confirm U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman of San Antonio, Texarkana lawyer Robert Schroeder III, and Sherman Magistrate Judge Amos Mazzant III.

Unless Republicans object, the Judiciary Committee plans to hold the vote when it meets for the first time after the November elections. Under Senate rules, any committee member can postpone the vote by one week.

The Senate vote could come by the end of the year, depending on the timing of committee action.

To be confirmed, a majority of senators must approve of the picks.

At a Judiciary Committee hearing last month, Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz praised the nominees and their qualifications. Both Texas Republicans sit on the committee.

“Each of these three nominees are lawyers of the highest caliber and the kinds of individuals who should serve on the federal bench,” Cornyn said.

President Barack Obama announced the nominations in June, after Cornyn and Cruz recommended them to the White House.

The seat Pitman would hold in San Antonio has been vacant the longest, since the end of 2008. He Pitman would become the state’s first openly gay judge in Texas.

Mazzant would fill a seat in Marshall. Schroeder, a partner at the law firm Patton, Tidwell, Schroeder & Culbertson, is up for a post in Texarkana.

Dim views from Texas on Obama’s Ebola czar

WASHINGTON — President Obama’s decision today to name a so-called “Ebola czar” to oversee the federal response is drawing scathing reviews from many Texas Republicans — and some praise.

House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Austin, called it “an important and necessary step to name an Ebola coordinator.” But he said, Ron Klain — a former chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden, a job he also held under Vice President Al Gore — isn’t the right person.

McCaul noted that previous administrations had special advisers on biodefense policy with solid scientific and medical backgrounds. “While the president’s pick may have the ear of the White House and experience from the campaign trail, I am concerned he doesn’t have significant relationships in the medical community that are imperative during this current biological emergency,” McCaul said.

Sen. Ted Cruz blasted the choice entirely.

“We don’t need another so-called ‘czar,’ ” he said in statement. “We need presidential leadership. This is a public health crisis, and the answer isn’t another White House political operative. The answer is a commander in chief who stands up and leads, banning flights from Ebola-afflicted nations and acting decisively to secure our southern border.”

There is no evidence that Ebola has entered the United States through Mexico.

Cruz called for an emergency session of Congress to enact a flight ban.

House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., echoed McCaul’s view. He wasn’t impressed by a czar without a medical background.

“What has been missing from this administration’s response to Ebola is not a new figurehead; what we need is a strategy to get ahead of this, and restore the public’s faith that they are safe,” he said.

 

 

Ebola: calls for travel ban rejected, debated

WASHINGTON – As more politicians clamored for a travel ban they hope will halt the spread of Ebola, public health experts and the administration remained adamant Wednesday that it’s a bad idea.

White House press secretary Josh Earnest said a ban is still “not on the table at this point.”

On Tuesday, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz demanded that travelers from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea – the countries grappling with Ebola outbreaks — be denied entry into the United States. The Liberian man who died a week ago in Dallas spread the virus to two nurses.

He flew from the capital, Monrovia, without a fever or any symptom that would have let screeners flag him as a potential carrier.

Cruz called the outbreak in West Africa a “public health and national security threat.” And, in an interview conducted before the third case was confirmed early this morning, he noted the disruption and worry caused by just two cases in Dallas.

“Our capacity to handle a widespread Ebola outbreak is limited,” Cruz said. “The best approach is to prevent an outbreak, because if we were to see anything, God forbid, like the numbers that are being seen in West Africa, that has the potential to overwhelm the capability of our system.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with the World Health Organization, argue that a travel ban would isolate poor countries badly in need of outside help and economic activity. In their judgment, a ban would let Ebola fester and explode in a pandemic far worse than it otherwise might.

Few federal lawmakers have defended that viewpoint. This afternoon, Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis., chimed in.

She painted demands for a travel ban as alarmist.

“Many of my congressional colleagues have let their anxiety about this crisis dictate a panicked and perilous tone during a time when we need a cautious yet vigilant discussion,” she said. “This idea may seem like a quick fix but in reality, isolating West Africa will only exacerbate the epidemic in the region.”

Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Lewisville, a physician, was on CNN for a second day in a row arguing for a “pause” in travel from the afflicted countries.

Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., a member of the GOP leadership and the senior Republican on the Senate committee overseeing transportation, joined with House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Bill Shuster, R-Pa., also called for a travel ban today.

“We believe a temporary travel ban for such individuals who live in or have traveled from certain Western African countries is reasonable and timely,” they said in a joint statement.

Alameel eyeing Cruz in 2018 as he fights to unseat Cornyn

David Alameel hasn't given up in his Senate campaign.

David Alameel (Michael Ainsworth/Staff)

WASHINGTON – Even against long odds, David Alameel hasn’t thrown in the towel in his bid to unseat Sen. John Cornyn.

“I’m in it for the long run,” the Dallas investor and dentist told The Dallas Morning News editorial board on Monday.

Cornyn leads by about 20 percentage points in most polls. Alameel says it hasn’t dampened his optimism.

“My aim is not just to win. I want to change the way people think,” he said.

He also sees this year’s effort as a way to position himself to try again in 2018, when freshman Sen. Ted Cruz’s term expires.

“The next one is in four years, and you have to build a base. I’m building a base right now,” Alameel said.

To do that, Alameel has dug deep into his own pocket.

Through the end of June, he’d poured more than $5 million in personal funds into the campaign, accounting for over 99 percent of his expenditures. He’s spent another $2 million in the last three months, he said, but isn’t “keeping up exactly on how much.”

The next batch of campaign finance reports are due Wednesday.

Alameel said he sees the spending, and his campaign, as a form of public service.

“Different people have different values. My value is about doing something that makes a difference to my country, to my community,” he said. “Life’s too short, what are you going to do with your money?”

Cruz calls Supreme Court move on gay marriage legally “indefensible”

updated with Democrats’ comments

WASHINGTON – Sen. Ted Cruz blasted the U.S. Supreme Court for today’s refusal to review laws in five states allowing same-sex marriage.

The Texas Republican called that decision “tragic and indefensible,” “judicial activism at its worst” and “astonishing.”

He vowed to introduce a constitutional amendment when Congress returns to work in mid-November to block federal interference – from the executive or the courts – with state laws defining marriage as a union only between a man and a woman only.

“Marriage is a question for the States,” Cruz said in a statement. “Traditional marriage is an institution whose integrity and vitality are critical to the health of any society. We should remain faithful to our moral heritage and never hesitate to defend it.”

Cruz, who served as a law clerk to then Chief Justice William Rehnquist, accused the high court under Chief Justice John Roberts of abdicating its duty to uphold the Constitution. He took the court to task to tacitly embracing lower court rulings that applied the 14th Amendment to same-sex marriage.

“When the 14th Amendment was adopted 146 years ago, as a necessary post-Civil War era reform, it was not imagined to also mandate same-sex marriage, but that is what the Supreme Court is implying today,” Cruz asserted. “The Court is making the preposterous assumption that the People of the United States somehow silently redefined marriage in 1868 when they ratified the 14th Amendment.”

The Democratic National Committee emailed reporters the full text of Cruz’s statement, taunting him with photos of same-sex couples celebrating.

Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa didn’t think much of Cruz’s stance.

“Senator Ted Cruz is woefully out of touch with Texas and America. His pledge to introduce a constitutional amendment is simply cheap political tricks and pandering,” he said.

Ted Cruz prods FAA for travel restrictions to keep Ebola out of US, though authority unclear

WASHINGTON — Sen. Ted Cruz is pressuring the government to clamp down on air travel from West Africa.

Citing the Liberian patient being treated in Dallas for Ebola, Cruz, R-Texas, wrote the Federal Aviation Administration demanding assurance that the FAA is “doing everything within its authority to prevent the spread of this infectious disease.”

Public health authorities have insisted that a travel ban is unnecessary and potentially counterproductive. CDC director Tom Frieden reiterated the point this afternoon. But he and others also concede that screening in Liberia and other nations where Ebola is raging cannot detect or deter every infected traveler — especially those without symptoms.

FAA issued temporary flight restrictions on Israel when rockets were falling near Ben Gurion Airport. But it’s unclear whether this or some other agency — such as CDC or Customs — would have authority to block flights and travelers from West Africa.

“Given the severity of this virus and the fact that its spread to Texas has been associated with travel, it is imperative that the FAA take every available precaution in preventing additional cases from arriving in the United States,” Cruz wrote FAA administrator Michael Huerta in a letter the senator’s office shared with the news media. “As you may be aware, several African nations have already restricted or banned air travel to countries with confirmed cases of the Ebola virus. British Airways, Emirates Airlines and Kenya Airways have also suspended flights due to the rising death toll and deteriorating public health situation in Ebola-stricken countries.”

Cruz’s letter asks for details of any steps FAA intends to take “to limit or suspend air travel to countries that have experienced a significant Ebola outbreak.”

He also asks whether passengers will be notified that they flew on a flight with anyone later confirmed to have Ebola. United Airlines voluntarily disclosed the flights Thomas Eric Duncan flew from Liberia to Brussels and then to the United States; health authorities have issued repeated assurances that since he had no symptoms during his journey, there is no chance he spread the infection to fellow travelers.

Duncan apparently lied to airport screeners in Liberia by denying recent exposure to Ebola.

The FAA had no direct response to Cruz’s letter.

“The health and welfare of flight crews, airline workers and the traveling public is a priority of the FAA,” the agency said in a statement. “We work closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as other federal government partners on issues of public health and on disease awareness, when appropriate.”

Cruz’s letter:

Sen. Ted Cruz letter to FAA re Ebola

On immigration, Cornyn sees focus on border security in GOP-run Senate

Sen. John Cornyn at a Senate hearing Nov. 6, 2013. (AP/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON –Republicans will remain focused on a security-first approach to immigration if they win control of the Senate, Sen. John Cornyn said Monday.

“Our Democrat friends want to eat dessert before they eat their vegetables on immigration. I just don’t think that’s going to work,” he said.

Cornyn spent an hour with The Dallas Morning News editorial board earlier today. Video clips posted here.

He warned that President Barack Obama would be unwise to issue any sweeping immigration policies using executive authority.

“I just can’t think of anything that would poison the well more,” said Cornyn, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, who is seeking a third 6-year term against Democratic nominee David Alameel, a Dallas investor and dentist.

Immigration advocates have accused Cornyn for years, and Republicans generally, of using security demands as a trump card to deflect demands for broader reforms.

Cornyn acknowledged that advocates might see a security-first approach as yet another stalling tactic.

“I guess we could say trust me. But there’s not a lot of trust,” he said. “But anything comprehensive is going to be viewed as another exercise like the Affordable Care Act” – that is, a huge, complex package with too many moving parts and too many objectionable elements.

A piecemeal approach suits Republicans better, Cornyn said.

“Is a Republican-controlled Congress going to pass a quick pathway to citizenship? No,” he said. “But would there be an opportunity to vote on — once border security was addressed, once the visa overstay was addressed and an e-verify system put in place, is there way then to look at how do we provide some way for people to earn a legal status so that they can stay and be productive? I think there is.”

Cornyn was pleased at last week’s resignation of Attorney General Eric Holder. He’d called for years for Holder to resign, and Monday repeated assertions that Holder turned his office into an arm of the White House political operation.

“Eric Holder took this to an extreme,” Cornyn said, citing the Justice Department’s legal fight with Texas over the state’s voter ID law, and Holder’s role in the Fast and Furious gun-running operation.

He declined to pick a favorite for a replacement.

“I’m sure he’s not waiting for my recommendation. That might be the kiss of death,” he said, referring to Obama.

But he named one potential nominee he might find acceptable: Kathryn Ruemmler, a former White House counsel to Obama who previously held a top post at the Justice Department. He cautioned Obama not to name a replacement before the new Congress begins in January.

When it comes to the looming 2016 presidential race, Cornyn sounded tepid when it comes to the state’s junior senator, Ted Cruz, or fellow tea partier Rand Paul, who represents Kentucky in the Senate but who also has deep Texas roots, born and raised in the Houston area and educated at Baylor.

Asked about them and Gov. Rick Perry, who also is eyeing a run, Cornyn said, “I’m not going to pick among my friends. I do think that we have a number of governors that I think have had good experience running things which I think will make them attractive.”

Cornyn took a small swipe at Democratic challenger David Alameel, a Dallas dentist and investor.

“I’ve not seen him on the campaign trail,” he said, though he did recall meeting Alameel years ago. “He used to be a supporter of mine and he used to be an active Republican donor.” (Earlier this year Alameel requested a refund of his donations to Cornyn, which the senator refused.)

On the Islamic State, Cornyn reiterated his view that Obama should have come to Congress and sought a full debate over U.S. military involvement. That, he said, would promote buy-in both from lawmakers and the public.

And he called it remarkable that Tony Blinken, a top White House national security adviser, said Sunday that Obama still wants Congress to repeal a 2002 authorization to use military force in Iraq, even as he invokes it for the U.S. involvement against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.

“My head may explode trying to figure that one out,” Cornyn said.

He added that Obama seems to be ignoring military advice by refusing to commit U.S. combat troops to the fight.

He called it a grievous mistake to work with Iran against ISIL.

“That’s very dangerous,” Cornyn said. “You can already see them try to leverage their participation… into not giving up their nuclear weapons-building capability…. The single biggest threat to the Middle East is an Iranian nuclear weapon.”