FatherGarage.com

When Scott Brown was surging toward victory in the United States Senate race in Massachusetts in 2009, he earned the support — and money — of the National Republican Trust.

But perhaps no more.

The National Journal reports that the group, which spent $95,000 to help elect Mr. Brown in a special election last year, will work to defeat him in the state’s Republican primary next year.

“We believe the Democrats’ policies are destroying the country. Why let them take a Republican vote with them?” Scott Wheeler, the group’s leader, told National Journal last week.

Mr. Brown is likely to face a tough re-election battle in a liberal state. And some of his votes with Democrats last year, including approval of the New Start treaty with Russia, have angered conservatives.

Fund-raising, however, has not been a challenge for Mr. Brown, who has already stockpiled millions of dollars for his re-election campaign.

The freshman senator is also starting a book tour for his memoir, “Against All Odds: My Life of Hardship, Fast Breaks, and Second Chances.” The book will be published in February.

View the original article here

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who was easily elected to a second term last month, has been chosen to head the Democratic Governors Association, a platform that could thrust him into the national limelight O’Malley, taking over from Delaware Gov. Jack Markell, told the Baltimore Sun the DGA would not “run away” from liberal values, but [...]

The White House and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are continuing their rapprochement by considering a speech by President Obama to the business group.

Mr. Obama had clashed repeatedly with the national Chamber, which vigorously opposed his highest-profile priorities – health care and banking reform – and then raised millions of dollars during the 2010 campaign for Republicans.

But since the election, the rhetoric has been noticeably more gentle. Tom Donohue, the president and CEO of the Chamber, said in a speech last week that his group will not campaign against Mr. Obama’s reelection.

“This is not personal with us,” Mr. Donohue said.

Now, White House officials have confirmed a report by CNN’s Ed Henry that the business group is interested in hearing directly from Mr. Obama. Officials said the group had previously invited the president to speak on December 2 for an event that was later canceled. Now, the group has expressed interest in a January speech, White House officials said.

“Economic recovery is the most important goal for the president and working with all of the stakeholders, including the Chamber of Commerce, on export promotion, free and fair trade to grow the economy and create jobs is an important part of achieving that goal,” said Jen Psaki, a spokeswoman for the president.

Tom Collamore, the senior vice president for communications at the Chamber, said in an email this weekend that the December 2 event was designed to focus on jobs, but was deleayed for “internal logistical reasons unrelated to Obama.”

Mr. Collamore said the president “would always be welcome at the chamber to talk about jobs, economy, etc.” White House officials said the request for a January speech by the president is being considered to see if it will work into Mr. Obama’s schedule.

For Mr. Obama, better relations with the business group could help him with business leaders, some of whom have concluded that his administration is pursuing policies that are not friendly to businesses.

But it could also prompt objections from Mr. Obama’s liberal supporters, who see the influential group as a proxy for the corporate interests who have resisted the main tenents of the president’s agenda.

Liberals became enraged during the election cycle at the Chamber’s participation in raising money for candidates without having to disclose its donors. The president helped drive that anger by accusing the Chamber, among other groups, of illegally raising money from foreign countries.

The organization heatedly denied that allegation and responded that Mr. Obama and his administration were trying to take away the group’s First Amendment rights.

View the original article here

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

A group of Seventh-Day Adventists will pray for bipartisanship Wednesday on Capitol Hill, the latest call for prayer to become a bigger part of politics. The group is appealing to President Obama and Congress to use prayer in any strategy for battling unemployment rates among homeless and disenfranchised veterans. The group believes that the power [...]

American’s for Tax Reform, the conservative group run by Grover Norquist, will host a debate for candidates seeking to head the Republican National Committee on Jan. 3, 2010 at the National Press Club. “The actual vote for RNC chairman will be made by the 168 members of the committee, but the impact will be felt [...]

Virginia Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, is reported to be stepping down from the conservative organization she founded last year.

The Washington Post reports that Ms. Thomas will step down as chief executive and take a “back seat” at Liberty Central, a group designed to be a clearinghouse for conservative activists and Tea Party groups.

“She’ll take a back seat so that Liberty Central can continue with its mission without any of the distractions,” Caitlin Carroll, a spokeswoman for Liberty Central, told the Post. “After discussing it with the board, Mrs. Thomas determined that it was best for the organization.”

Ms. Thomas’s activism became an issue last month after The New York Times’s Jackie Calmes reported on her outspoken role at the head of the organization. The article noted that Ms. Thomas had spoken at a Virginia Tea Party event in October.

She also made headlines last month after telephoning Anita Hill and asking for an apology for accusing her husband of sexual harassment at Justice Thomas’s confirmation hearings in 1991. Ms. Hill declined.

As of this morning, a welcome video by Ms. Thomas remains on the main fund-raising page for the Web site of Liberty Central, which describes itself as focusing on “protecting America’s founding principles through education, civil discourse and citizen activism. Our goal is to equip citizen leaders to lobby for liberty in as little as 3 – 5 minutes a day.”

But the Post reports that the group will be merging with the Patrick Henry Center, another conservative organization based in Manassas, Va.

View the original article here

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.