Other races

TOP STORY: Post-election sit-down

President Obama and Mitt Romney will have lunch on Thursday — their first sit-down since the election.

No word on what they’re eating — peanut butter and honey sandwiches were a Romney fav on the campaign trail — but there will be no press there to record it. The White House emphasized the meeting, which is taking place in the private dining room right off the Oval Office, will be closed to the media.

Read more...

TOP STORY: DSCC woes

Senate Democrats are struggling to find a leader for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee even as Republicans are laying the groundwork to win back the upper chamber in 2014.

Party leaders say they are unconcerned that Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), who was offered the position by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) earlier this month, has not yet made his decision, insisting that it was too early to think about 2014.

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who successfully led the DSCC in the 2012 cycle, said she was "not at all" concerned that Bennet hadn't made his decision, but offered no explanation to why he's taken three weeks to decide.

"We haven't even finished this year," she said.

And Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), third-ranking Democrat and a former DSCC chairman, insisted "we have a chairman!" — Murray.

Bennet's office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Read more...

TOP STORY: Tough start for Capito

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito’s (R-W.Va.) candidacy for West Virginia’s Senate seat is showing signs that Republicans could face the same intra-party split that plagued them in primaries over the past two cycles.

On Day One of her candidacy, Capito received criticism from two conservative groups known for mounting primary challenges against establishment-backed Republicans: the Club for Growth and the Senate Conservatives Fund, a group founded by Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.).

Chris Chocola, president of the Club, slammed her as an “establishment candidate,” and Senate Conservatives Fund executive director Matt Hoskins said the group wouldn’t endorse her.

“If the grassroots in West Virginia recruit a strong, viable challenger, SCF will seriously consider supporting them,” Hoskins said.

The early criticism indicates Capito, who is supports abortion rights and supported the auto and financial bailouts, could face a primary challenge from the right, though few prospects exist.

Democrats, too, could see a primary race. Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), who will be 77 on Election Day, could retire, jeopardizing what some Democrats say is their best chance at retaining the seat. He’s given no indication of his plans yet, saying only in an email that “everyone I talk to in West Virginia is tired of the non-stop campaigning.”

Read more...

TOP STORY: Presidential politics return

Presidential politics — from both the 2012 and 2008 campaigns — returned to the news cycle this week.

Mitt Romney's comment that President Obama won the election because of "gifts" given by the administration to black, Hispanic and young voters prompted a sharp rebuke from White House press secretary Jay Carney Thursday.

Carney said that conclusion was "at odds with the truth of what happened last week."

"Making it easier for Americans to go to college — that’s good for America," Carney continued. "It’s good for all Americans. It’s good for the economy. Making healthcare available to young people who can stay on their parents’ plans — that’s good for those families, it’s good for those young people so they aren’t bankrupted in their 20s by an illness. And it’s good for the economy and it’s good for all of us."

And Obama was at odds with his 2008 rival John McCain, hitting the Arizona senator for criticizing his U.N. Ambassador, Susan Rice, over her comments about the attacks in Benghazi, Libya.

Read more...

TOP STORY: Setting the stage for 2014

The four campaign committees responsible for congressional races are getting their leadership set for the 2014 cycle.

The only committee that remains in flux is the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) has no hard deadline to decide whether he will take on the chairmanship of the DSCC, a position he was offered but turned down in 2010.

Bennet spoke with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Monday about the job, a Senate Democratic aide confirmed to The Hill, but has not yet made his decision.

"It's a whole long and involved process, and we haven't put a deadline on it," the aide said.

Read more...

TOP STORY: Sen.-elect King to announce party allegiance on Wednesday

Independent Sen.-elect Angus King (Maine) said he will tell reporters on Wednesday whether he will caucus with Democrats or Republicans in the 113th Congress.

"I'll be discussing that with the press tomorrow," he said on Tuesday.
Read more...

TOP STORY: Five House races have yet to be called

Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) is refusing to concede to Democrat Patrick Murphy, but that hasn't kept Murphy from Washington.

He arrived in the Capitol on Monday to attend orientation events with his fellow newly elected lawmakers, even as the results of the race await final certification.

But with only a handful of military and overseas ballots still outstanding, Democrats believe little will change after Friday, when the final ballots are due.
Read more...

George P. Bush has filed the paperwork necessary for a bid for office in Texas, the latest sign the rising GOP star will run for something next year.

The Hispanic son of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) is a Texas-based GOP consultant and heads the Hispanic Republicans of Texas. He's been viewed as a rising star in Texas Republican politics, and on top of his family connections is known as a compelling speaker and savvy campaign strategist.

It's unclear what office he's considering. In September he said he had his eye on a number of statewide offices.

Texas is now a majority-minority state, and Texas Republicans have made efforts to find Hispanic candidates to run statewide — newly elected Sen. Ted Cruz (R) is the most recent example.

The report found the NRA's Political Victory Fund got less than a 1 percent return on its $11 million investment.

Washington became the first state to legalize the recreational use of marijuana.

Possession of one ounce of marijuana will be legal for those over the age of 21 in the state as of Dec. 6. The Evergreen State will regulate and tax recreational marijuana sales at state-licensed retail shops, similar to state-run liquor stores.