Icky Leaks

I apologize, Raisinettes, but there’s been some trouble at Raisin Headquarters (or should I say Headquwaters?). You see, I went into the kitchen last night, and there was water all over the floor.

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Orange

From POLITICO:

So maybe it wasn’t the best timing in the world: Even as House Republicans face tough questions at their town hall meetings about Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget plan, Speaker John Boehner has given an interview in which he said Ryan’s plan was an idea “worthy of consideration” and that he wasn’t “wedded to it.”

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Barbour Chop

From npr:

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour has decided against running for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.

Barbour, long a member of the national GOP Party establishment as a one-time chair of the Republican National Committee chair, said he couldn’t guarantee his supporters that he had the all-consuming “fire in the belly” it takes to wage the kind of campaign it takes to get the nomination, let alone to try and beat an incumbent president.

And whatever fire he did have might have been dampened by polls that gave him very little encouragement.

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The Hot Seat

From TALKING POINTS MEMO:

The resignation of scandal-plagued Sen. John Ensign (R-NV), and the expected appointment of current Republican candidate Rep. Dean Heller to the seat, could portend a political mess of a wholly different sort: A special election for Heller’s House seat — and the conundrum for Republicans posed by the potential candidacy of their losing U.S. Senate nominee from 2010, Sharron Angle.

Angle, who lost the 2010 Senate race despite the national Republican wave — due to controversy over extreme statements about “Second Amendment remedies” to Democratic policies, and her statements in favor of phasing out Social Security and Medicare — has already been running for the House seat, along with retired Navy Commander Kirk Lippold, who was chief officer of the U.S.S. Cole when it was attacked by al Qaeda in 2000. In addition, Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki and state GOP chair Mark Amodei are reportedly considering the race.

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The Gang’s All Somewhere

From the Los Angeles Times:

For months, as a group of senators known as the “Gang of Six” secretively holed up in the Capitol, their unusual bipartisan meetings frequently included some version of the doomsday speech.

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El Pandering

From POLITICO:

Newt Gingrich has come a long way since criticizing Latinos a few years ago for continuing to speak “the language of living in a ghetto.” He’s taking Spanish lessons, reaching out to Hispanic community leaders, and supports “finding a way for residency” for some illegal immigrants.

But mounting a successful presidential bid means winning over GOP primary activists — many of whom favor a hard-line immigration crackdown — and that means Gingrich’s moderate positions could spell big trouble for him in the early-voting states, strategists say.

…snip…

He recently attended a Texas conference on strengthening Latino and Jewish dialogue, and regularly publishes op-eds in Spanish.

Pander much?

Cindy Hampton Isn’t the Only One John Ensign Screwed!

From 8NEWSNOW:

LAS VEGAS — The pieces continue to fall into place for a political shake up like Nevada has never seen.

Senator John Ensign is stepping down, Congressman Dean Heller may take his place and the chain reaction is now uncharted territory that could cost the state hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Governor Brian Sandoval said Friday he will name a replacement for Ensign before May 3rd. If Heller is the selection, as has been expected, state leaders actually have no idea of what exactly to do next.

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1500!!

Believe it or not, my dearest Raisinettes, this is the 1500th post at the Raisin.  I wanted to do something special to mark the occasion, and it occurred to me that, after all this time and all these posts, there’s never been a declared Raisin mission statement.  Well, let’s correct that right now:

We’re watching you every moment, John Boehner! Be afraid, be very afraid!