Hotline Sort: Republican Renegades

By Julie Sobel  //  July 31, 2012 | 8:26 a.m.

Welcome back to Hotline Sort. Julián Castro will keynote the Democratic Convention, The Hotline releases new Senate Race Rankings, Shelley Berkley goes country, and Rick Gorka loses it with reporters.

11) Romney aide Rick Gorka told reporters to "shove it" and "kiss my ass" as they tried to question the former governor near Warsaw's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

CNN:

Gorka: "Kiss my ass. This is a Holy site for the Polish people. Show some respect."

Moments later, Gorka told Jonathan Martin, a reporter for Politico, to "shove it." About a half-hour later, the aide called reporters to apologize.

10) Secretary of State Hillary Clinton struck back against the accusations Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., made about her aide Huma Abedin having ties to Muslim extremists.

CBS:

After a speech on international religious freedom at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C., Clinton was asked about "Islamophobia" in the United States and whether she had "any comments about this recent activity in Congress targeting one of your own aides."

"Leaders have to be active in stepping in and sending messages about protecting the diversity within their countries," Clinton said. "And frankly, I don't see enough of that, and I want to see more of it. I want to see more of it, and we did see some of that in our own country. We saw Republicans stepping up and standing up against the kind of assaults that really have no place in our politics."

9) Last week, Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., released a web ad that went viral. The patriotic ad was called "Let America Be America Again" -- but the Boston Globe reports that it featured some scenes shot in Ireland and Barcelona.

8) New York freshman GOP Rep. Richard Hanna, R-N.Y., isn't going to be making many of his Republican colleagues happy today, after telling the Syracuse Post-Standard that certain Republicans have gotten too far to the right.

Hanna: "I have to say that I'm frustrated by how much we -- I mean the Republican Party -- are willing to give deferential treatment to our extremes in this moment in history.. I would say that the friends I have in the Democratic Party I find ... much more congenial -- a little less anger."

7) Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., goes on offense in a new country song-style radio ad, "Twice," highlighting Sen. Dean Heller's two votes for the Rep. Paul Ryan plan.

"Oh Dean Heller, that wasn't very nice, I wish they'd let me vote against you twice," goes the song.

6) Control of the Senate is a coin toss in The Hotline's latest Senate Race Rankings.

5) Rep. Steven LaTourette, R-Ohio, won't run for reelection. LaTourette was one of the leading moderates in the Republican caucus, and reportedly decided to step down over a committee assignment dispute. LaTourette has scheduled a 10 a.m. press conference for this morning, where he may explain his decision. Roll Call reports that if LaTourette submits his resignation after August 8, his GOP replacement on the ballot would be chosen by party officials within the district. With an also-ran Democratic candidate on the ballot, the GOP replacement will be favored to hold the seat for Republicans. 4) It's runoff day in Texas! Check out our preview of the GOP Senate showdown between David Dewhurst and Ted Cruz, and don't miss our preview of key House races. Stay tuned to Hotline on Call tonight for full results. 3) A late get for former Rep. Ciro Rodriguez, who's facing state Rep. Pete Gallego in the Texas-23 Democratic runoff: Bill Clinton threw his support to the former congressman on the eve of the runoff. 2) Massachusetts Democratic Senate nominee Elizabeth Warren is scheduled to be the prime-time lead-in for Bill Clinton's speech at the Democratic National Convention on Sept. 5, the DNC announced on Monday. Sen. Scott Brown's campaign spun the time slot as Warren "getting bumped" from delivering the keynote (it was rumored she was under consideration to make that speech). In a release, they connected it to comments Warren made last year that they have been tying to President Obama's "you didn't build that" comment. The Boston Globe headline: "Elizabeth Warren to speak before Bill Clinton at Democratic convention, but will not deliver keynote." 1) Democratic National Convention officials will announce this morning that San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro, a rising star in American politics, will become the first person of Hispanic descent to serve as the keynote speaker at the party's quadrennial convention.

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Reid Wilson, Editor-in-Chief
Steve Shepard, Executive Editor
Julie Sobel, Editor
Kevin Brennan, Deputy Editor


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