INSIDE D.C. WITH JOHN GIZZI NEWSMAX WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT
Democrat Money Floods Texas • Democrats from Washington, D.C., to Austin, Texas, privately concede they’re unlikely to depose Lone Star Gov. Greg Abbott — even if Hollywood superstar Matthew McConaughey challenges the Republican incumbent. So watch for money to fl ow into races for other statewide offi ces which Democrats do feel they can win. Much of President Biden’s political team has already signed on with accountant Mike Collier, who in 2018 lost a close race against Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and is now seeking a rematch. In addition, national Democrats are bankrolling the race for state attorney general by former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski, grandson of Watergate prosecutor Leon Jaworski. With Republicans experiencing a blistering primary for attorney general with three contenders (including State Land Commissioner George P. Bush), Democrats feel they can win next fall with Jaworski.
Ambassador Vindman? • Given the sales of his recent memoir, Here, Right Matters, and the crowds at book-signing events, retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman has been in the news lately. Talk is now rising that the former European Aff airs director for the National
42 NEWSMAX | OCTOBER 2021
Security Council — who gave critical testimony to Congress, leading to an abuse of power article in the impeachment of President Trump — may be hired by the Biden administration. One prospect is for the Ukraine-born Vindman to be U.S. ambassador to Kiev. Currently, Biden has not nominated a successor to former ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, who was abruptly recalled by the Trump administration in 2019.
RNC Chair Up for Grabs • No one on the Republican National Committee is saying who will succeed Ronna McDaniel as national chair when she steps down after the November 2022 midterm elections. About the only certainty is, as one former RNC offi cial told me at the RNC’s August meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, “The next chairman will be elected only with President Trump’s approval.” California’s Jessica Millan Patterson, the fi rst Latina chair of the Golden State GOP, is well-liked but many are put off by her past association with less- conservative politicians like former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Two state chairs with conservative credentials and a convivial relationship with Trump are Drew McKissick of South Carolina and Michael Whatley of
North Carolina. There have also been recent rumors of a comeback by Reince Priebus, the longest-serving (2011-17) national chair in RNC history. Priebus, who was Trump’s fi rst White House chief of staff , is highly regarded by members for guiding the party to a triumphant showing in the 2014 midterm elections and playing a role in Trump’s election two years later.
AFL-CIO Backs Filibuster Challenge • Newly minted AFL- CIO President Liz Shuler raised eyebrows by not ruling out supporting primary challenges from the left to Sens. Kyrsten
QUITTING? Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Mark Milley was stung by harsh criticism of the Afghanistan withdrawal.
Sinema, D-Ariz., and Joe Manchin,
D-W.Va., over their opposition to scuttling the fi libuster. Shuler, who succeeded the late Rich Trumka as head of the labor colossus, listed an end to the fi libuster as a top priority — even though President Biden wants to maintain it. Asked whether unions should back primary opponents to Sinema and Manchin over the fi libuster, Shuler said: “I think those discussions will be happening in states like Arizona . . . There’s a lot of live conversations happening there, and we’ll keep on doing it.” Both Sinema and Manchin next face voters in 2024.
Milley Eyes Early Exit
• Following the controversy over his phone call to a Chinese Communist military chief during the fi nal days of the Trump administration, there is speculation that Gen. Mark Milley may step down as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . Milley, 63, whose term ends in December next year, is liked by President Joe Biden, and his public criticism of President Donald Trump earned him high marks among many Democrats. The general was also stung by harsh criticism over his handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal. Should he retire, a likely successor would be Supreme Commander of Allied Command Transformation and U.S. Air Force Gen. Tod Wolters.
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