By Jonathan Miller, on Wed Apr 3, 2013 at 1:30 PM ET
While we are admitted Nate Silver fan-boys here at The Recovering Politician, our favorite pollsters have to be Public Policy Polling’s Tom Jensen and Jim Williams. First came their poll that showed Congressional approval below that of Brussles sprouts and barely above root canals. Now comes their national survey about popular conspiracy theories (h/t Jim Higdon):
– 37% of voters believe global warming is a hoax, 51% do not. Republicans say global warming is a hoax by a 58-25 margin, Democrats disagree 11-77, and Independents are more split at 41-51. 61% of Romney voters believe global warming is a hoax
– 6% of voters believe Osama bin Laden is still alive
– 21% of voters say a UFO crashed in Roswell, NM in 1947 and the US government covered it up. More Romney voters (27%) than Obama voters (16%) believe in a UFO coverup
– 28% of voters believe secretive power elite with a globalist agenda is conspiring to eventually rule the world through an authoritarian world government, or New World Order. A plurality of Romney voters (38%) believe in the New World Order compared to 35% who don’t
– 28% of voters believe Saddam Hussein was involved in the 9/11 attacks. 36% of Romney voters believe Saddam Hussein was involved in 9/11, 41% do not
– 20% of voters believe there is a link between childhood vaccines and autism, 51% do not
– 7% of voters think the moon landing was faked
– 13% of voters think Barack Obama is the anti-Christ, including 22% of Romney voters
– Voters are split 44%-45% on whether Bush intentionally misled about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. 72% of Democrats think Bush lied about WMDs, Independents agree 48-45, just 13% of Republicans think so
– 29% of voters believe aliens exist
– 14% of voters say the CIA was instrumental in creating the crack cocaine epidemic in America’s inner cities in the 1980’s
– 9% of voters think the government adds fluoride to our water supply for sinister reasons (not just dental health)
– 4% of voters say they believe “lizard people” control our societies by gaining political power
– 51% of voters say a larger conspiracy was at work in the JFK assassination, just 25% say Oswald acted alone
– 14% of voters believe in Bigfoot
– 15% of voters say the government or the media adds mind-controlling technology to TV broadcast signals (the so-called Tinfoil Hat crowd)
– 5% believe exhaust seen in the sky behind airplanes is actually chemicals sprayed by the government for sinister reasons
– 15% of voters think the medical industry and the pharmaceutical industry “invent” new diseases to make money
– Just 5% of voters believe that Paul McCartney actually died in 1966
– 11% of voters believe the US government allowed 9/11 to happen, 78% do not agree
Frankly, I do believe that Oswald did not act alone, although I find Oliver Ston-ian “the government did it” theorists to be way off.
And of course, I know that Paul is dead. Cuckoo-catchoo!
There are occasional moments when I feel so confused by an aspect of our culture, it’s like being an anthropologist studying an obscure tribe, or Jane Goodall observing chimps. Usually those moments have to do with my teenagers – a joke they think is hysterical which goes completely over my head, or my 16-year-old trying to explain what makes a video go viral. (He discovered Gangnam Style before it had a million hits, which gives him some authority as being ahead of the pop culture curve.) When one of my videos topped 8,000 hits, his reaction was, “Well, mom, that’s viral for old people.”
But my most recent “I feel like Jane Goodall” moment was in a supermarket check-out line, behind someone who definitely had more than 15 items; to keep from glaring at her, I started reading the magazine and tabloid covers. I pride myself on being fairly well-informed about both politics and entertainment, so it was rather dismaying to realize I hadn’t heard of a single name in those headlines. Every single one of them was from some reality TV show, although I couldn’t tell you which ones were from The Bachelor, which from Survivor, etc. I felt like Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard, bemoaning the end of true celebrity as a result of some artistic accomplishment. (“I’m still big, it’s the reality shows that have gotten bigger . . . “)
I used to say I wanted the kind of fame that was celebrated by those American Express ads, where talented-but-not-totally-famous people would say, “You know my name, but you probably wouldn’t recognize me.” You know, I’d be acknowledged for my artistry but not hounded or bothered in private. But apparently that type of fame has been eradicated by a stream of Snookis and octomoms, and the worse the behavior, the bigger the celebrity. So this week’s song is a musical musing on life, fame, and what makes someone truly noteworthy.
By Jonathan Miller, on Tue Apr 2, 2013 at 11:52 AM ET
Magic Johnson’s Son Goes Public with BF — Parents So Proud
Magic Johnson‘s 20-year-old son hit the Sunset Strip, hand in hand with his boyfriend … and his parents couldn’t be happier for their kid.
Earvin Johnson III — aka EJ — is one of Magic’s 3 kids. The Lakers legend tells TMZ, “Cookie and I love EJ and support him in every way.” Magic goes on, “We’re very proud of him.”
The feeling is mutual … ’cause EJ told us he’s been “hoping and praying” for his dad’s team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, ever since Magic and his business partners took over the franchise.
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Looks like The RP’s 15 minutes are going into overtime. Here is video of his apperance on CNN’s OutFront with Erin Burnett, talking about his piece for Newsweek/The Daily Beast about Ashley Judd’s aborted campaign for the U.S. Senate:
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon Apr 1, 2013 at 8:00 AM ET
LEXINGTON, KY: The Recovering Politician is EXCLUSIVELY reporting this morning that actress/humanitarian Ashley Judd — who just last week announced that she would not be challenging U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in his 2014 re-election bid –has reversed course, and will file her official Senate campaign papers on Tuesday with the office of Kentucky’s Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes.
“Watching Mitch in that ridiculous University of Louisville sweater vest, cheering on those loser Cardinals in the Big Dance, made me want to barf,” Judd, the University of Kentucky Wildcats’ #1 fan, told The Recovering Politician in an exclusive interview. “The next thing you’ll tell me is that we’ll have a Dukie as Kentucky Senator. Oh, wait we do — that curly-headed wing-nut. To quote another Duke alum, Richard Nixon: “[Expletive deleted] that [expletive deleted] sheep-[expletive deleted] [expletive deleted].”
Reaction among Kentucky Democrats was fast and furious, just like the name of the only late 90s’s movie in which Ashley Judd did not appear:
“That’s horse-hockey. No way can we let that out-of-touch Hollywood celebrity run,” shouted political consultant Dale Emmons, the most outspoken advocate of an Alison Lundergan Grimes candidacy. “Those DC elites are not going to get in the way of me running yet another campaign against Mitch!”
“Barack and Steve ain’t gonna be happy,” former Obama and Beshear campaign operative Jimmy Cauley charged, “And I’m headed to Vatican City for a pow-wow with Francis. He’s gonna be pissed.”
“We are opposed to Ashley Judd because we think that Alison Lundergan Grimes will be an outstanding U.S. Senator,” said every person who is thinking of running for Kentucky Governor in 2015. “Of course, if Alison runs against us for Governor, we reserve the right to change our minds about her qualifications.”
The Frankfort political press could not be reached: They were tripping over themselves to be the first to quote Danny Briscoe, Larry Forgy, and a handful of other old white men who haven’t been involved in high-level Kentucky politics for decades.
Read the rest of… EXCLUSIVE: Ashley Judd Reverses Course, Announcing Senate Bid on Tuesday
By Jonathan Miller, on Thu Mar 28, 2013 at 10:00 AM ET
Be sure to subscribe to The Recovering Politician‘s KY Political Brief: click here RIGHT NOW to do so — It’s delivered daily to your inbox FOR FREE!
It’s been an exciting 24 hours at The Recovering Politician and its hot new email venture, the KY Political Brief. We were almost first to break the news of Ashley Judd’s decision not to seek the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Mitch McConnell. (Ashley Judd’s Twitter, of course, beat us by a few minutes.) And Bradford Queen has yet again done an extraordinary job of sifting through the digital morass to identify the latest news on the 2014 U.S. Senate race, Rand Paul’s presidential ambitions, and the flurry of new laws passed by the Kentucky General Assembly in its waning minutes.
Here’s an excerpt from today’s KY Political Brief:
JUDD OUT : “I have decided,” she wrote in a tweet around 5 p.m. yesterday. Those were the words that tipped the political world to Ashley Judd’s announcement that she would not seek a McConnell challenge next year.
—Actress Ashley Judd won’t run for US Senate – AP’s Roger Alford – “Actress Ashley Judd announced Wednesday she won’t run for U.S. Senate in Kentucky against Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, saying she had given serious thought to a campaign but decided her responsibilities and energy need to be focused on her family. … The 44-year-old Judd had hinted last week that she was nearing a decision about the race. Now living in suburban Nashville, Tenn., Judd has said little publicly about her intentions. However, she has been meeting with several Democratic leaders, including Gov. Steve Beshear, to discuss a possible run.” [AP]
—ASHLEY WRITES, “Thank you”: “… It would be the greatest honor of my life to be entrusted as a public servant to our beloved Kentucky. Perhaps someday I will be. However, with the help of my pastors and mentors, I have thoughtfully and prayerfully concluded that I won’t run for the United States Senate at this time. I have never been intimidated by the prospect of serving Kentucky – and I remain unafraid of the Washington insider political machine that has controlled this Senate seat for three decades.” [AshleyJudd.com]
—Will Ashley Judd Run in 2016? – ABC News – “Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul is up for re-election in 2016 and per Kentucky law (unlike other states) a candidate cannot run for both Senate and president of the United States simultaneously. Paul is widely believed to be considering a 2016 presidential bid, but even if he does not, this same source says Judd has been counseled by both Washington, D.C., and Kentucky advisers that this is the better race for her to enter “in order to give her time to establish residency, secure the grassroots, and that is impossible with the current timetable.”” [ABC News]
—The BACKSTORY: Jonathan Miller gives context to Ashley Judd’s decision on The Terry Meiners Show [WHAS]
AL MAYO, writing for KY Political Brief: “Not to say I told you so, but Judd is OUT. I applaud her action, and her promptness in making the announcement right away. She originally set Derby Day as the deadline. But I -along with many others-urged her not to drag things out that long. … Judd has made a good call in remaining sidelined as a candidate. … If Judd is truly serious about being considered for public office, she needs to get involved in local politics. It matters not where she gets involved, she should just do it! Ashley Judd has a powerful pulpit with her celebrity recognition, to inform, and enforce change no matter if it’s in Kentucky or Tennessee. To sit back and fire potshots randomly is a waste of that power and forum.” [KPB column]
FOCUS TURNS TO GRIMES : Ashley Judd will not run for Senate, Grimes to explore race – WHAS-TV’s Joe Arnold – “… Judd’s exit leaves the Democratic field open for Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, who had already spoken with the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, according to sources familiar with the conversations. Grimes plans to file the paperwork for a exploratory campaign committee as early as next week, the sources said.” [WHAS-TV]
—Grimes hasn’t made decision about Senate yet but needs to be ‘deliberative,’ consultant says – CN|2’s Ryan Alessi – “Grimes hasn’t ruled out running in 2014 for the chance to challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell. But she has repeatedly deflected questions about the race saying she was focused on working on her priorities in the 2013 state legislative session. The General Assembly ended Tuesday night. Dale Emmons, a political consultant who worked on Grimes’ 2011 campaign and is a close family friend of the Lundergans, said Judd’s announcement isn’t an indication that Grimes has made up her mind. “I don’t think there’s any connection between the two,” Emmons told Pure Politics after Judd’s announcement went public. “The good news is that this allows Alison to make any decision she’s going to make out of the fog” of having to be concerned about Judd’s plans.” [CN|2 Politics]
MORE SENATE DERBY : Mitch McConnell’s scorched-earth strategy – POLITICO – “Kentucky is the Bluegrass State, but by the time Mitch McConnell is done with his reelection campaign, it may be better known for scorched earth. The top Senate Republican is preparing to wage a ruthless campaign to hang on to his job. He’s already on the air with nearly $200,000 in TV and radio ads, is assembling streams of data to target voters with tailor-made messages, and has quietly moved to lock down support from virtually every state GOP legislator. He says he’ll use “every penny” of a war chest certain to exceed the $21 million he spent in 2008. … McConnell’s strategy is similar to recent efforts by Senate stalwarts Majority Leader Harry Reid and John McCain, who each won reelection with big fundraising numbers to discourage possible opponents and constant attack ads to discredit those who do run. … “My view is if you’re going to be a bigger target, you’re going to adopt different tactics,” McConnell told POLITICO in a wide-ranging interview this week before Judd dropped out. “I think we’ve made it pretty clear … that we intend to be very aggressive from Day One. And we are. And that involves not ignoring any potential opponent.”” [POLITICO]
—Rand Paul endorses Mitch McConnell in 2014 Senate race, won’t back tea party challenge – The Daily Caller – “The Daily Caller has learned that Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul is endorsing Sen. Mitch McConnell for re-election in 2014, ending speculation that Paul would back a tea party challenge to the Senate minority leader. “Rand Paul has endorsed McConnell,” Jesse Benton, McConnell’s 2014 campaign manager, told The Daily Caller. Benton, who has worked for both Rand Paul and his father, former Texas Rep. Ron Paul, is credited by insiders with brokering Paul’s support for McConnell.” [Daily Caller]
—McConnell campaign launches new radio ad using pieces of his CPAC speech [CN|2 Politics]
‘RAND PAUL 2016’ WATCH : Paul says he won’t make decision on presidential bid this year – C-J’s Mike Wynn – “Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul said Wednesday that he will not decide on a potential bid for the U.S. presidency until at least 2014 and described his recent high-profile appearances as only an attempt to steer the national debate on important issues. … Paul is also scheduled as the headline speaker at the Republican Party of Iowa’s Lincoln Day Dinner in May — an appearance that previous GOP candidates have used before launching a campaign. He told reporters he can’t deny that politicians like to speak in Iowa because it garners attention, but argued that “if you want to have an impact on how the Republican Party grows, and what the country does and where we go, going to Iowa is a very important place.” Paul has indicated that he is considering a run for president in 2016.” [C-J]
MEANWHILE, BACK IN FRANKFORT it appears a special session has been avoided.
Legislature dropped tax reform, killed telephone, scholarship bills – H-L’s Jack Brammer and Beth Musgrave – “Legislative leaders on Wednesday praised the work of the General Assembly and said that a special legislative session was not needed this year. … Senate President Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, described the session as “fairly successful” in that it “handled several large pieces of legislation.” … Both House and Senate leaders said Wednesday that there was little will to tackle tax reform this year. Beshear established a task force last summer that came up with dozens of recommendations to tweak the tax code that would generate upwards of $700 million. … House Bill 160, a proposal to use coal severance money to finance scholarships for college juniors and seniors from coal-producing counties, had appeared to be on track to pass late Tuesday but time ran out before the bill was acted upon by the House. … Senate Bill 88, a telephone deregulation bill that was pushed by AT&T, died in a House committee after being approved in the Senate.” [H-L]
Hemp lobby waiting on Beshear to sign bill, ready for Washington – H-L’s Janet Patton – “Supporters of growing hemp on Wednesday cheered the General Assembly’s last-hour passage of a bill to license Kentucky farmers. And they made plans to take to Washington their case that industrial hemp should be legal. After a speech in Lexington, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Bowling Green, said he’s “very excited” about the hemp bill and Kentucky’s chances for a waiver to grow it. … Paul said he would ask the governor to join him in requesting the waiver. Beshear “is going to review the bill and talk with law enforcement before making any decision,” Beshear spokeswoman Kerri Richardson said Wednesday. Paul will lobby in Washington with U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Louisville, and Agriculture Commissioner James Comer. … Former Kentucky Treasurer Jonathan Miller will act as liaison to the White House for the Kentucky Industrial Hemp Commission, of which Comer and Miller are members. Comer is currently the chairman but will step down to vice chairman with the new legislation.” [H-L]
Good stuff? Be sure to subscribe to The Recovering Politician‘s KY Political Brief: click here RIGHT NOW to do so — It’s delivered daily to your inbox FOR FREE!
And speaking of good stuff, here’s the clip of my appearance today on CBS This Morning:
By Jonathan Miller, on Wed Mar 27, 2013 at 5:10 PM ET
In a message to her followers on Twitter and at her Web site, actress and humanitarian Ashley Judd announced today that she will not be running in 2014 for Kentucky’s U.S. Senate seat currently held by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Here is her statement:
After serious and thorough contemplation, I realize that my responsibilities & energy at this time need to be focused on my family. Regretfully, I am currently unable to consider a campaign for the Senate. I have spoken to so many Kentuckians over these last few months who expressed their desire for a fighter for the people & new leader. While that won’t be me at this time, I will continue to work as hard as I can to ensure the needs of Kentucky families are met by returning this Senate seat to whom it rightfully belongs: the people & their needs, dreams, and great potential. Thanks for even considering me as that person & know how much I love our Commonwealth. Thank you!
As someone who had encouraged Ashley to consider the race, this obviously wasn’t the announcement I was hoping for. Her celebrity platform would have enabled a desperately-needed debate on critical matters of public policy such as poverty remediation, women’s health, environmental protection and economic growth. Her compassionate and incorruptable worldview would have made her an extraordinary U.S. Senator.
But as her friend, and as someone who has joyfully left the political arena — in part because of the brutal way modern politics treats candidates and their families — I can completely understand and commiserate with her decision.
I am also quite confident that we haven’t seen the last of Ashley as a potential candidate, particularly after she has had a chance to throughly put to rest questions about her residency and her commitment to public service in her home state of Kentucky.
I’m also very optimistic that Kentucky Democrats can identify a strong, serious candidate to challenge McConnell. So I encourage all Judd fans to join me in supporting the Democratic nominee, whoever she or he turns out to be.
UPDATED 7:30 PM 3/27
This is going to sound like typical politician horse-hockey, but I’ve been both blown away and amused at the dozens of emails and Facebook messages I have received encouraging me to run against Senator McConnell now that Ashley Judd has withdrawn from the race.
With sincere gratitude to all that have contacted me, I hereby issue the following statement:
STATEMENT OF JONATHAN MILLER ON THE PROSPECTS OF HIS RUNNING FOR THE U.S. SENATE IN KENTUCKY AGAINST MITCH MCCONNELL IN 2014
Hells No!
UPDATED 8:00 PM 3/27
Tune in to CBS This Morning tomorrow at 7:00 AM to catch me talking about Ashley’s decision not to run for the U.S. Senate. Check out the picture of our taping at right.
We will post the full video of the appearance below as soon as it is available.
UPDATED 10:30 AM 3/28
Here’s the clip of my appearance on CBS This Morning:
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon Mar 25, 2013 at 3:00 PM ET
Time for some shameless promotion for some close friends of mine: Nancy and Phil Hoffman’s creative parenting skills have now resulted in a second son achieving national artistic fame. Son #1, Scott, is “Babydaddy,” the multi-instrumentalist and bacup vocalist for the internationally-acclaimed glam-rock band Scissor Sisters.
Now, Son #2, Ben Hoffman, has launched a new program on Comedy Central, “The Ben Show,” previewed here by Rich Copley of the Lexington Herald-Leader.
Here’s a sort-0f-NSFW video that shows off Ben’s humor, as well as some truths about growing up Jewish in Lexington, Kentucky:
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon Mar 25, 2013 at 1:30 PM ET
Two weeks ago, GOP U.S. Senator Rob Portman emerged as one of the first leaders of his party to openly embrace marriage equality, citing his own son Will’s recent declaration that he was gay.
Will Portman wrote a beautiful piece for the Yale Daily News about his struggle and triumph. Here’s an excerpt:
I came to Yale as a freshman in the fall of 2010 with two big uncertainties hanging over my head: whether my dad would get elected to the Senate in November, and whether I’d ever work up the courage to come out of the closet.
I made some good friends that first semester, took a couple of interesting classes and got involved in a few rewarding activities. My dad won his election. On the surface, things looked like they were going well. But the truth was, I wasn’t happy.
I’d make stuff up when my suitemates and I would talk about our personal lives. I remember going to a dance in the Trumbull dining hall with a girl in my class and feeling guilty about pretending to be somebody I wasn’t. One night, I snuck up to the stacks in Sterling Library and did some research on coming out. The thought of telling people I was gay was pretty terrifying, but I was beginning to realize that coming out, however difficult it seemed, was a lot better than the alternative: staying in, all alone.
I worried about how my friends back home would react when I told them I was gay. Would they stop hanging out with me? Would they tell me they were supportive, but then slowly distance themselves? And what about my friends at Yale, the “Gay Ivy”? Would they criticize me for not having come out earlier? Would they be able to understand my anxiety about all of this? I felt like I didn’t quite fit in with Yale or Cincinnati, or with gay or straight culture.
In February of freshman year, I decided to write a letter to my parents. I’d tried to come out to them in person over winter break but hadn’t been able to. So I found a cubicle in Bass Library one day and went to work. Once I had something I was satisfied with, I overnighted it to my parents and awaited a response.
They called as soon as they got the letter. They were surprised to learn I was gay, and full of questions, but absolutely rock-solid supportive. That was the beginning of the end of feeling ashamed about who I was.
I still had a ways to go, though. By the end of freshman year, I’d only come out to my parents, my brother and sister, and two friends. One day that summer, my best friend from high school and I were hanging out.
“There’s something I need to tell you,” I finally said. “I’m gay.” He paused for a second, looked down at the ground, looked back up, and said, “Me too.”
I was surprised. At first it was funny, and we made jokes about our lack of gaydar. Then it was kind of sad to realize that we’d been going through the same thing all along but hadn’t felt safe enough to confide in each other. But then, it was pretty cool — we probably understood each other’s situation at that moment better than anybody else could.
In the weeks that followed, I got serious about coming out. I made a list of my family and friends and went through the names, checking them off one by one as I systematically filled people in on who I really was. A phone call here, a Skype call there, a couple of meals at Skyline Chili, my favorite Cincinnati restaurant. I was fortunate that virtually everyone, both from Yale and from home, was supportive and encouraging, calming my fears about how they’d react to my news. If anything, coming out seemed to strengthen my friendships and family relationships.
I started talking to my dad more about being gay. Through the process of my coming out, we’d had a tacit understanding that he was my dad first and my senator a distant second. Eventually, though, we began talking about the policy issues surrounding marriage for same-sex couples.
The following summer, the summer of 2012, my dad was under consideration to be Gov. Romney’s running mate. The rest of my family and I had given him the go-ahead to enter the vetting process. My dad told the Romney campaign that I was gay, that he and my mom were supportive and proud of their son, and that we’d be open about it on the campaign trail.
When he ultimately wasn’t chosen for the ticket, I was pretty relieved to have avoided the spotlight of a presidential campaign. Some people have criticized my dad for waiting for two years after I came out to him before he endorsed marriage for gay couples. Part of the reason for that is that it took time for him to think through the issue more deeply after the impetus of my coming out. But another factor was my reluctance to make my personal life public.
We had decided that my dad would talk about having a gay son if he were to change his position on marriage equality. It would be the only honest way to explain his change of heart. Besides, the fact that I was gay would probably become public anyway. I had encouraged my dad all along to change his position, but it gave me pause to think that the one thing that nobody had known about me for so many years would suddenly become the one thing that everybody knew about me.
It has been strange to have my personal life in the headlines. I could certainly do without having my sexual orientation announced on the evening news, or commentators weighing in to tell me things like living my life honestly and fully is “harmful to [me] and society as a whole.” But in many ways it’s been a privilege to come out so publicly. Now, my friends at Yale and the folks in my dad’s political orbit in Ohio are all on the same page. They know two things about me that I’m very proud of, not just one or the other: that I’m gay, and that I’m Rob and Jane Portman’s son.
Be sure to subscribe to The Recovering Politician‘s KY Political Brief (click here RIGHT NOW to do so — It’s delivered daily to your inbox FOR FREE!), for all the news on the potential epic 2014 U.S. Senate battle between Ashley Judd and Mitch McConnell.
