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Hillary Rodham Clinton endorses Davis, Van de Putte

Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton campaigns for Maryland Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, during a rally Thursday at the University of Maryland. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Thursday endorsed the Democratic women running for Texas’ top two offices, gubernatorial aspirant Wendy Davis and lieutenant governor candidate Leticia Van de Putte.

Clinton, who is weighing a bid for the Democrats’ presidential nomination in 2016, applauded Davis for running a “tough, strong campaign” against Republican Greg Abbott.

“That’s no surprise, because Wendy has shown us time and time again that she never backs down, whether she’s fighting for Texas school children or working to create an economy that works for all Texans,” Clinton is quoted as saying in a Davis campaign graphic.

Clinton said Van de Putte, who is locked in a tough race with fellow state Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, advocates for society’s most vulnerable.

“Leticia Van de Putte always demonstrates the courage to speak up for those who do not have a voice,” Clinton is quoted as saying in a Van de Putte campaign graphic. “She has bold ideas and initiatives that honor veterans, respect women, and value education. She leads with a sense of family and community.”

Rep. Gohmert calls out Obama on anniversary of Benghazi attack

WASHINGTON – Rep. Louie Gohmert continued to beat the drum on Benghazi on Wednesday, berating the Obama administration for concealing details about the attack that killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans two years ago.

Rep. Louie Gohmert demanded greater transparency on the Benghazi attack today. (Darren McCollester/Getty Images)

The Tyler Republican called the White House’s response to the emergency “despicable.” He accused Democrats of being more concerned with “saving this election that’s coming up” than with saving lives.

“This administration needs to be held accountable, and we still need answers,” he said.

Gohmert made the remarks at an event staged outside the Capitol by the Benghazi Accountability Coalition, a group formed to stoke the controversy.

Republicans have blasted the Obama administration and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over how they handled the attack. Some have questioned why additional security wasn’t sent to Libya, especially after U.S. intelligence confirmed that an attack was possible.

“Watergate happened, and for decades people learned the lesson: you don’t try to cover up,” Gohmert said. “This administration is following the example that was learned during the Clinton years. Keep refusing to provide documents, keep refusing to give answers.”

Five separate congressional committees have conducted investigations into Benghazi. One of them, the House Intelligence Committee, confirmed in August that there was no “deliberate wrongdoing” by the Obama administration. A sixth will hold its first hearing next week.

The House Select Committee on Benghazi – a special panel formed in May to investigate the attack, will hold a public hearing on Sept. 17.

The committee, seven Republicans and five Democrats, has been dismissed by the left as political theater. Conservatives call this an opportunity to finally hold the Obama administration accountable for its actions.

George W. Bush and Bill Clinton launch leadership training effort

Former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush laugh during the launch of the Presidential Leadership Scholars Program at the Newseum in Washington on Monday. The program allows individuals an opportunity to study leadership and decision marking and learn from administration officials, practitioners and academics. (AFP photo/Saul Loeb)

WASHINGTON — The 43d and 42d presidents teamed up on Monday to launch a program aimed at fostering 21st Century leadership.

George W. Bush and Bill Clinton announced the initiative at the Newseum to an auditorium filled with ex-cabinet members, former aides and benefactors.

The Presidential Leadership Scholars program is a partnership between three Texas-based presidential centers and one from next door, in Arkansas: the George W. Bush center in Dallas, George H.W. Bush’s center in College Station, the Lyndon B. Johnson center in Austin, and the William J. Clinton center in Little Rock.

Josh Bolten, a chief of staff to George W. Bush, led the two ex-presidents in a conversation about the collaboration – a first between the centers of four former presidents.

“He wants his library to be relevant into the future, as do I,” Bush said, explaining his interest in the partnership. “It’s a fantastic use of our ability to bring people together.”

Clinton called leadership critical, and teachable.

“You may have some innate abilities,” he said, but as the military shows, leaders also can be trained and nurtured. “Some things can be taught. But some things have to be observed and practiced, as well.”

Bush echoed the point, noting that he learned from observing his dad, the 41s president, whose quest for a second term Clinton cut short.

“I don’t think you can teach humility. I don’t think you can teach being secure. I don’t think you can teach courage,” Bush said, adding that he sees the training program as a way to give a confidence boost to people with demonstrated leadership skills.

“We’re just normal people who got caught up through ambition and drive and became president,” he said. “You absolutely can teach leadership skills. I don’t think you can teach leadership qualities.”

The two leaders joked easily and often.

Clinton, describing life as an ex-president, said that, “We were talking about going to restaurants and having to spend our time taking selfies.”

Bush interjected. “At least they’re still asking,” he said.

Participants in the new program will spend six months studying leadership with former administration officials and others.

“Two Democrats and two Republicans all within close proximity,” said Margaret Spellings, president of the Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, and Education Secretary under Bush the younger.

She described a “program to train highly motivated people” from business, politics, philanthropy, the military and other backgrounds. The program will include studies of communication, decision-making, coalition-building, crisis management, and other skills in six multiday sessions from February to July next year.

Most of the sessions will meet at the four presidential centers involved in the effort.

Spellings thanked especially the Moody Foundation, along with other key supporters, the W.W. Caruth Jr. Foundation at Communities Foundation of Texas, and the Miles Foundation.

Stephanie Streett, executive director of the Clinton Foundation, described the Bush team as “our new best friends.”

Scholars will study critical moments of presidential leadership.

“We are looking for leaders in every sector,” she said – people with significant experience and records of impacting their communities.

Applications are open through Oct. 27.

Bush and Clinton entered together and greeted friends. A seat was saved in the front row for Hillary Clinton but it was empty at first. She entered to the clacking of cameras 20 minutes late.

The warmth between the ex-presidents was striking.

Clinton noted that Bush would call him twice a year during his second term. They would chat for 30 or 45 minutes. “It meant a lot to me. We talked about everything in the right world. He asked my opinion. Half the time he disagreed with it,” Clinton said.

Ross Moody, an Austin executive and a trustee of the family’s foundation, gave high marks to the conversation.

“Any time you get two former presidents in one room, collaborating on a program, it’s a fantastic thing. It’s too bad it doesn’t work while one’s in the office and one’s not in office,” he said. But better late then never, he added. “They’re on the same page. They can be on the same page because they’re no longer in office.”

Blockbuster $1.5m book deal for Ted Cruz memoir

In this March 18, photo, Sen. Ted Cruz speaks at the Network of Iowa Christian Home Educators in Des Moines. (AP/Charlie Neibergall)

WASHINGTON – Sen. Ted Cruz has inked a blockbuster $1.5 million book deal, agreeing to write a memoir about his brief tenure so far in Washington.

HarperCollins agreed to provide the advance after a four-day book auction last week, according to today’s Washington Examiner, a conservative news outlet. That puts Cruz, the tea party darling and Texas freshman, at the top of the list of potential GOP candidates penning books ahead of the 2016 presidential race.

And it’s the biggest book advance in years for a conservative, topping even the $1.25 million that former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin secured after her 2008 run for vice president.

“The book, still untitled and unwritten, will be part memoir and part Cruz’s view of how to get Washington to work again as well as his vision of the future for the country. The 43-year-old has quite a story to tell, being the first Hispanic to serve as Texas solicitor general and as Texas’ senator,” Examiner columnist Paul Bedard reports today.

Back in December, Cruz acknowledged to us that he planned to be an author, sooner than later.

Q. Let me ask a few political questions. First, are you writing a book?

A. I hope to. I hope to write a book at some point.

Q. What would it be about? Because, you know, everybody who runs for president writes a book.

A. In time there are a number of books that I’d like to write. There are enormous challenges facing this country and I hope to use every tool possible, including writing books, to have a positive influence bringing this country back to the free market principles and constitutional liberties that have made us stronger.

The Examiner reports that “several publishing giants fought over the weekend to grab the Cruz book before HarperCollins emerged the winner. A final deal has not been signed but is expected in the coming weeks. The other publishers included St. Martin’s, Simon & Schuster and Newsmax.”

Federal lawmakers face severe restrictions on outside income, and Cruz, a top tier appellate lawyer, took a huge pay cut when he left private practice, where his annual income easily surpassed $1 million even in 2012, the year he won the Senate seat. Book deals are one of the few ways for senators and U.S. House members to make serious money – though of course, for an ambitious politician, exposure is probably a far higher priority.

Cruz has been spending lots of time in the states that vote first in the 2016 president race. He was in Iowa two weeks ago. He’ll be in New Hampshire April 12 and two weeks later. For good measure, this morning he is addressing young evangelical Christians at Liberty University, the school founded by the late Rev. Jerry Falwell – and an important stop for any candidate courting conservatives.

For now, Cruz lags in early presidential polls. But when it comes to the book advance he has smoked the competition from this and previous years.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio got a reported $800,000, as did Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor.  Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul got no more than $400,000, about as much as former House Speaker Newt Gingrich got, according to the Examiner. Rep. Paul Ryan, the party’s nominee for vice president in 2012 and another potential 2016 contender, has a book due out in August assessing the state of the conservative movement.

In 2003, former first lady Hillary Clinton — then a freshman senator, like Cruz, and the current Democratic front-runner for 2016 — got a reported $8 million advance from Simon & Schuster for her memoir, “Living History.” A new memoir for the same publisher is due out on June 1. Financial details haven’t been disclosed.

Cruz’s literary agent, Keith Urbahn, declined to discuss the pending deal. He told the Associated Press that the $1.5 million figure is “close” to accurate.

Cruz at CPAC: Obama is hammering youth, Clinton would kill the economy

Sen. Ted Cruz speaks Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference at National Harbor, Md. (AP/Susan Walsh)

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Sen. Ted Cruz, leaving little doubt that he’s eyeing the White House in 2016, delivered a scathing critique Thursday of both the president and of tepid Republicans who shrink from fights and compromise on principle.

For 20 minutes, he tossed red meat to cheering activists at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, a traditional showcase for rising stars on the right.

“Of course all of us remember President Dole and President McCain and President Romney,” Cruz said, ticking off a series of failed GOP nominees and intimating that the next one — himself perhaps — should be a harder-edged conservative.

He mocked unnamed naysayers who have criticized him for stirring up the Senate: “Don’t stand against Obamacare, don’t stand against the debt ceiling, Don’t stand against nothing…. That is a false dichotomy. You want to lose elections, stand for nothing.”

(Watch it here.)

Speaking with reporters, after being mobbed by convention-goers, he asserted that President Obama’s weak foreign policy has emboldened Russia to invade Ukraine. And he took a shot at the leading Democratic contender for president in 2016.

“We can’t afford 8 more years of this. Hillary Clinton would continue the failed Obama economic agenda. There comes a point where you can’t turn this country around,” Cruz said. “… It is now or never to get back to the free market economic principles, get back to the constitutional liberties and to bring back morning in America.”

In his speech, Cruz struck a populist note, calling for a lifetime ban on lobbying for anyone who serves in Congress and for adding term limits to the Constitution.

“We need to end the corruption. We need to end corporate welfare and crony capitalism,” he said in a huge ballroom at Gaylord National, a resort overlooking the Potomac River.

He called President Obama “utterly lawless,” citing executive orders delaying certain requirements under the Affordable Care Act. “If you have a president who is picking which laws to follow and which laws to ignore, you no longer have a president.”

He called for dismantling the IRS and replacing the current tax code with a simplified flat tax. He lamented rampant corruption in Washington and “mendacity in the White House.”

He described the Obama era as “5 years of the great stagnation. No economic growth.”

He criticized Obama’s push to raise the minimum wage, arguing that the real minimum wage is zero — the salary for anyone who can’t find a job. Obama’s agenda almost seems designed to “hammer” the youth of America, he said, describing Obamacare as “a massive wealth transfer from young healthy people to everybody else.”

He embraced key elements of the Ron Paul agenda, calling for an audit of the Federal Reserve, for instance, and accusing the central bank of “debasing the currency.”

That, he said, “is hurting American” and “it’s fueling the abuse of power by petro-tyrants like Putin.”

This line of appeal seemed designed both to court the party’s libertarian constituency and make inroads with supporters of Paul’s son, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul – a tea party ally of Cruz, but also a potential rival in the 2016 presidential hunt.

Marji Ross, a conservative publisher, introduced Cruz by calling him “fearless” and “relentless,” and noting that he’d been described as the most hated man in Washington.

“And that’s a pretty competitive list to be at the top of.” Either way, she said, “Business as usual ended when Ted Cruz came to Washington. And that gives us hope for the future.”

Cruz revved up the crowd in a way that made him a hard act to follow.

Rep. Paul Ryan, the GOP nominee for vice president in 2012, had the misfortune of being the next potential 2016 hopeful to speak. His delivery felt flat by contrast with the fiery Texan’s.

“The left isn’t just out of ideas. They’re out of touch,” Ryan said.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry will speak at CPAC on Friday morning.

New Jersey’s embattled Gov. Chris Christie spoke a few hours after Cruz, followed by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and later, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. Birther billionaire Donald Trump was on the schedule later.

Christie — whose 2016 ambitions took a huge blow amid allegations that aides ordered politically motivated traffic jams at the George Washington Bridge — got a generous reception.

One of his main messages: Governors get things done. He’s head of the Republican Governors Association and like Perry and other members, he’s been making the case that the party’s next presidential nominee should be someone who’s run a state.

Christie also urged conservatives to stand on principle but warned, “We don’t get to govern when we don’t win.”

Both he and Rubio steered away from immigration, a cautious choice with this crowd, given that both support reforms that would allow legal status for millions in the country illegally.

Rubio focused mostly on foreign policy, painting Obama as a failure who mistakenly thought he could shape world events through force of personality.

“The good news is that we have everything we need to succeed economically except the leadership in the White House,” he said.

If Hillary runs in 2016, some tough choices await the world’s news editors

Hillary Clinton may be smiling now, but what about 2016?

My in-box hints at what awaits us if Hillary Clinton runs for President in 2016. Her opponents are already flooding the media with press releases and story pitches that rehash ancient events from the tumultuous Bill Clinton presidency.

The Whitewater Scandal: What did Hillary Know?

Monica Lewinsky: Where is she now?

The Death of Vince Foster: Murder or Suicide?

Hillary’s role in the Siege at Waco

People of a certain age (40 and older) will remember snippets from those days, but the old stories will be brand new to younger people; thus more marketable.

Undoubtedly, efforts to recycle 20-year-old Clinton stories will enjoy wide popularity in the Wild West-like digital world. But the ultimate success of a smear campaign will depend on the extent to which major daily newspapers and television networks feel pressure to take the bait and revisit the 1990s.

I can hear the debates among editors and reporters in newsrooms from New York to Los Angeles to Washington D.C.

“The stuff about Hillary and Vince Foster is all over the Web. It’s out there already and trending big time.”

“Yeah, but it’s a sleazefest. I didn’t get into journalism for this. Who cares where Gennifer Flowers is now? I don’t care how good the 60 Minutes video is.”

“It’s not our fault. Hillary decided to run. She has to be vetted. It’s time for a reputable journalistic voice to write fair and balanced stories about things such as Vince Foster’s death.”

“But isn’t that just a rationalization for getting down in the mud  with Drudge, Rush and Breitbart to sell newspapers, generate clicks and hype the ratings?”

Hillary’s opponents will see the media’s reluctance to retread old Clinton stories as evidence of mainstream journalism’s liberal slant. Conversely, a mainstream newspaper that jumps on a story about Hillary’s role in the Monica-Bill affair risks getting kicked off her campaign plane and frozen out of tasty leaks from her people.

My current favorite, totally devoid of truth, is the one about Chelsea Clinton really being the child of Web Hubbell, an old Clinton crony from Arkansas. You can tell Web and Chelsea are related because they both have thick lips, according to the right-wing propaganda machine. Just look at their side-by-side photos.

Hillary’s run will drive book sales in 2016. The 50th anniversary of the JFK assassination spawned an avalanche of books last year. Most of them were pretty bad, especially those that portrayed LBJ as the mastermind of JFK’s murder. The difference is that Hillary and the Clinton machine are alive and able to defend themselves.

If there is a God in heaven, she will strike down any writer who resurrects Paula Jones’ testimony about the “distinguishing characteristics” of Bill Clinton’s private parts and the circumstances under which she saw them in that Little Rock hotel room.

And isn’t it about time to order up that Kenneth Starr profile and find out what he has to say about Hillary?  Can you fly into Waco?

Photo of the day: George W. Bush, the painter, shows off his work on Air Force One

Aboard Air Force One, former President Bush shows photos of his paintings to, from left, First Lady Michelle Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Valerie Jarrett, National Security Advisor Susan E. Rice, Attorney General Eric Holder and former First Lady Laura Bush, Dec. 9, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

The fan club of painter — nee former president — George W. Bush now extends to the highest levels of the U.S. government.

Bush accompanied President Barack Obama on Air Force One Monday to attend a memorial service in South Africa for Nelson Mandela. During some down time, Bush used an iPad to show off his much-discussed artwork to Attorney General Eric Holder, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and others.

Bush, who signs his paintings “43,” has joked that there’s a “Rembrandt trapped in this body.” And as you can see in the above photo — released by the White House — Obama’s National Security Adviser Susan Rice certainly seems impressed by Bush’s skills.

Please click here to see a slide show of other photos from the Mandela trip — including a couple of Obama and Bush.

Hillary Clinton makes paid appearance in Irving

The National Multi Housing Council last night released an account of former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s speech in Irving.

The event was closed to the media.

Clinton was just one of numerous public officials and celebrities in Dallas last night.

They are in town for today’s dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Center.

In today’s edition of The Dallas Morning News, I have a story about Clinton and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, two of the top presidential contenders for 2016.

Bush was the keynote speaker Wednesday at a World Affairs Council luncheon.

Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton to have dueling speeches in Dallas, day before George W. Bush Presidential Center’s dedication

Former Fla. Gov. Jeb Bush speaks with reporters during a visit to Mississippi College in Clinton, Miss., on Tuesday, March 26, 2013. (AP Photo/The Clarion-Ledger, Joe Ellis)

North Texas will host what could be the first showdown of the 2016 presidential campaign.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are scheduled to speak at separate events in the Dallas area on April 24, the day before the potential presidential contenders are expected to attend the dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Center.

The high-profile pair, considered among the top White House candidates in their respective parties, are just two of the many dignitaries slated to attend the Bush Center’s dedication on April 25 at Southern Methodist University.

Jeb Bush — brother of the 43rd president and father of George P. Bush, a Fort Worth resident who’s running for state land commissioner — was a no-brainer to make the trip to Dallas. And Clinton’s husband, former president Bill Clinton, is expected to speak at the Bush Center ceremony.

In this Jan. 31, 2013 file photo, then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

While neither Hillary Clinton nor Jeb Bush have announced their intentions for the next White House campaign, the dueling speeches will do little to tamp down speculation about a potentially epic clash between two of America’s most prominent political families.

The World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth announced Monday that Jeb Bush will speak at a noon luncheon at the Rosewood Crescent. The event, held in conjunction with SMU’s Tower Center for Political Studies, is titled, “Restoring America’s Promise: The Leadership Required and the Policy Changes That Are Needed.”

And as the DMN’s Eric Sheffield reported this morning, Clinton is scheduled to speak that evening to the National Multi Housing Council, an association that represents apartment firms, at the Four Seasons Resort and Club. The speech’s content hasn’t been disclosed.

Follow Tom Benning on Twitter at @tombenning.

Perry trails (badly) in 2016 presidential poll

Gov. Rick Perry has among the least support right now among possible Republicans seeking the presidency in a new poll just released by Public Policy Polling.

The PPP polls shows a wide open field with Florida Sen. Marco Rubio as a favorite among GOP voters with 21 percent support. But Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan is close behind with 16 percent, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee with 15 percent and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are tied at 14 percent.

The far away leader among Democratic voters is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, with 57 percent support in a nine-person field. In a head-to-head match-up, the poll shows she would clobber Jeb Bush and Paul Ryan by double-digit margins. Christie trails her by only 2 points, mostly because he is strong among independents.

As for Perry, he is in the lower tier among possible GOP candidates. He has a favorable rating among Republicans of 19 percent, compared to a negative impression among a whopping 52 percent.

The other candidates in single-digits are Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul with five percent, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal at three percent and New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, who ties Perry with two percent.

PPP surveyed 1,100 American voters Jan. 3-6 through automated telephone calls, including 400 usual Democratic primary voters and 563 Republican primary voters. The margin of error for the
overall sample is plus or minus 3.0 percent, plus or minus 4.9 percent for the Democratic portion, and plus or minus 4.1 percent for the GOP portion.