Manchin Stays 'Independent'

As the political wheels rapidly turn in the state of West Virginia, Senator Joe Manchin appears to be staying independent and above the fray.

At a Trump rally last week, Governor Jim Justice announced he was switching his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican. And this week, the state’s GOP Senate candidate used tough talk to muddy the campaign waters against Manchin, who is up for re-election next year.

GOP senatorial candidate Patrick Morrisey asked Manchin to resign from Democratic leadership and accused him of not representing his constituents’ interests.

In an interview with the Gazette-Mail, Morrisey said: “The bottom line is, if it doesn’t help West Virginia, it doesn’t make sense to me, and just because there’s an election doesn’t mean I sign on or don’t sign on.”

Manchin responded with this beauty:

"I don’t give a s**t, you understand? I just don’t give a s**t.  I don’t care if I get elected, don’t care if I get defeated, how about that. If they think because I’m up for election, that I can be wrangled into voting for s**t that I don’t like and can’t explain, they’re all crazy. I’m not scared of an election, let’s put it that way. Elections do not bother me or scare me, I’m going to continue to do the same thing I’ve always done, extremely independent.”

20 FACTS About The Wasserman Schultz Scandal

In a piece written by W. E. Messamore, we learn more and more why the Debbie Wasserman Schultz scandal is the biggest story in Washington.

Messamore writes:

"The story, which more journalists should have alerted voters to, was that five House staffers — all members of the same family — were under a criminal investigation by Capitol Police for procurement violations and potentially compromising sensitive congressional data.

Now that mainstream outlets would lose significant credibility to continue ignoring this after Imran Awan’s arrest, many — such as The New York Times, Buzzfeed, and Snopes — are covering the story only begrudgingly. Their coverage downplays the seriousness of what’s been going on in Washington by highlighting the most ridiculous speculations and misinformation about the story to make the entire thing seem like fake news."

To see the 20 facts, click here.

Some Colorado Republicans Don't Want Independents Voting in Primaries

"The Colorado Republican Party is considering nominating its candidates through caucus rather than an open primary that would allow unaffiliated voters (independents) to participate.

"Voters approved two ballot initiatives in November that a) require Colorado to use primaries in presidential elections and b) open all statewide primary elections to independent voters.

"Proposition 108 — the initiative that opens the state’s primary elections — included a provision that allows parties to op-out of a primary election if they want. However, 75 percent of of the party’s central committee must approve of using a caucus instead of a primary.

"The Denver Post reported over the weekend that the party’s chair, Jeff Hays, will bring the question to a vote, but opposes the move. One of those committee members is Ben Nicholas, who said the open primary will be 'destructive to the party.'"

Read the full article here.