Last Call: Declare War, Mr. President
Liberal Dems want the president on the record vs. ISIS, Christie is cleared of Bridgegate, and Mitt's still a Hitt.
President Obama met for the first time with the group of newly elected governors on Friday at the White House.
Today in Obama:
Say Please: A pair of liberal House members wants President Barack Obama to ask Congress for a war declaration to fight the Islamic State group – preferably after they come back from the Christmas break.
[READ: War Against ISIS in Syria, Iraq and Now Libya Appears Rudderless]
If You Can’t Lick ‘Em: The president gave some bipartisan face time to the nation’s governors, hosting them in a White House confab Friday. It was Obama’s first meeting with the new batch of Republicans who seized statehouse power during the 2014 midterms – and since some govs sued him over his immigration plan.
HRH, POTUS, VPOTUS to Meet: The White House announced Prince William will swing down from New York on his North American tour and chat up Obama and Vice President Joe Biden on Monday. It’s the first get-together Obama – whom some Republicans have compared to a royal – has had with an actual one since the president and his wife traveled to London in 2011.
Today in 2016:
Bridge Too Far: An investigative panel reported “no conclusive evidence” that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a presumed Republican presidential contender, engineered or knew about the George Washington Bridge lane closures that happened last year. Salon.com thinks Christie’s ambitions are dead in the water, anyway.
Third Time’s the Charm: Perhaps owing to his strong showing in the latest polls – but in spite of his repeated denials – those close to failed 2012 GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney say he hasn’t ruled out a third try for the White House. Romney met this week with some financial backers in New York who were key to his last campaign.
Today in Hillary:
Test the Mettle: Despite her commanding lead in the polls, liberal Democrats want Hillary Clinton to face some kind of challenge to test her progressive bonafides. She may get one in former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, who’s staffing up his exploratory committee. But Yahoo! News doesn’t think it will make any difference.
[ALSO: Elizabeth Warren Liberals Eye Jim Webb to Pressure Hillary Clinton]
Stock Slide: Warren Buffett’s investment in her super PAC notwithstanding, some political futures analysts are advising hitting the “sell” button on shares of Hillary for President. RealClearPolitics notes Clinton's poll ratings are down, and FiveThirtyEight says the juggernaut might be out of gas. But Buffett’s track record is pretty strong, so “hold” may be the watchword.
Today in Everything Else:
Flex Time: With a simmering revolt from angry conservatives about to wreck his no-shutdown plan, House Speaker John Boehner needs some Democratic votes to pass his plan and – reaching out in the spirit of bipartisanship – asked House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi for some. But Pelosi, showing a little muscle, let Boehner know Friday, very publicly, that those votes won’t come cheap.
Not Covered Under Obamacare: The Boehner-Pelosi dialogue had more than the GOP’s tea party backbenchers grumbling. Influential RedState.com blogger Erick Erickson said Boehner’s outreach to Pelosi suggests the man of the House could use a pair of new ones – brass, perhaps – and asked his Twitter audience to kick in for the replacements.
No More Candy: CNN President Jeff Zucker has announced network mainstay Candy Crowley, host of the Sunday political chat show "State of the Union," will be leaving the network “so she can embark on the next chapter of her already prolific career.” Her show stays, though there’s no word on who will succeed her.
Class Act Closes: West Virginia Sen. Jay Rockefeller, among the last of the southern Democrats, gave his final floor speech in the Senate this week, reminding his colleagues that they’re in the business of public service.
