House Dem Admits They Block Legislation Because ‘We Don’t Want to Give the President a Win’

Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D., N.J.) expressed frustration with her Democratic colleagues at a recent town hall, admitting they block legislation because they "don't want to give the president a win." Speaking at a Livingston, New Jersey, town hall on Thursday, Sherrill revealed the "shockingly different mindset" of congressional Democrats who prioritize resisting President Donald Trump over passing legislation that could help their constituents. "When I go, you know, I've gone up to people and said, ‘I need to get this piece of legislation passed,' and they say ‘Oh yeah, we just passed it,'" Sherrill said. "I said, ‘Yeah, we just passed it. I need the Senate to pass it and I need the president to sign it,' and they said ‘Well, we don't want to give the president a win.'" Sherrill's comments contrast with Democrats' longstanding criticism of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) for blocking Democratic initiatives in the Senate. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) unveiled a visual representation of McConnell's "legislative graveyard" in June, accusing the Kentucky Republican of blocking legislation for political gain.

"Leader McConnell seems to take great pride in calling himself ‘The Grim Reaper.' It's part of his political campaign, it's part of the pride he takes as leader of the Senate," Pelosi said. "The Senate will certainly be hearing from the public on issues, values really, that have bipartisan support across America." According to National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Michael McAdams, Sherrill's admission contradicts Democrats' push for bipartisanship in the Republican-held Senate. "Mikie Sherrill’s comments confirm that House Democrats would rather block President Trump from getting a win than deliver solutions for their constituents," McAdams said. "Voters deserve better than this partisan hackery." Sherrill in 2018 became the first Democrat elected to her suburban New Jersey district, which Trump won narrowly in 2016, in more than 30 years. She will likely face Republican challenger and tax policy attorney Rosemary Becchi in November.

https://freebeacon.com/politics/house-dem-admits-they-block-legislation-because-we-dont-want-to-give-the-president-a-win/

Nice to know she stands on the side of getting the work of the people done.

Bloomberg Used Box to Boost Height as NYC Mayor, Documents Show (1 of 2)

The Bloomberg campaign was quick to shoot down President Donald Trump's claim that the Democratic presidential candidate plans to use a box to boost his height at Friday's Democratic debate. While Bloomberg may not mount a box later this week, the former New York City mayor used height-boosting boxes and modified podiums to boost his height throughout his mayoralty. In a 2002 report on Bloomberg's first mayoral press conference, the New York Daily News reported that Bloomberg used a box at his mayoral inauguration. "The box, however, ended up causing trouble; Bloomberg nearly fell while stepping off it as he returned to his seat," the newspaper reported. The same report indicated that the lectern at the front of the room was also shorter than the one used by Bloomberg's predecessor, Rudy Giuliani, and while Bloomberg "alleges he’s in the ballpark of 5 feet 10," he "is actually several inches shorter."'' The city's new mayor, the report said, is ''"somewhat sensitive about his height."'

Archival footage of Bloomberg's inauguration is consistent with the Daily News‘s report. It does appear that the newly minted mayor stepped onto something behind the podium… The New York Post also remarked upon Bloomberg's early use of a box in a 2013 piece about Bloomberg's Democratic successor, Bill de Blasio. The Post reported that the city had to bring in a mayoral podium that could accommodate de Blasio's six-foot-five frame. In 2015, Bloomberg needed to use "a step platform" when speaking at the same podium as de Blasio. The Post estimated that Bloomberg was "nearly a foot shorter." That would place Bloomberg closer to 5-foot-5 than his purported height of 5-foot-10. The Bloomberg campaign refused to allow a fellow candidate to use Bloomberg's podium during the 2001 mayoral race, according to a Daily News report. '"This is our podium,"' a Bloomberg spokesman told the six-foot-one Herman Badillo when he tried to use it during the Dominican Day Parade. A Bloomberg staffer picked up the podium and exited the scene.

Both New York City billionaires who ran in the same circles, Bloomberg and Trump, who now exchange insults, had a decades-long friendship, with Trump publicly backing Bloomberg's mayoralty, and Bloomberg appearing on The Apprentice and giving Trump a lucrative city contract to build a luxury golf course. So close were the two men, when Bloomberg weighed entering the 2016 presidential election, Trump actually welcomed Bloomberg and declined the opportunity to criticize him when prompted by reporters. "I would love to see Michael run," said the same man who labeled his other opponents "Lyin' Ted," "Crooked Hillary," and "Low Energy Jeb." "I would say that if he ran, I’d be very happy about it." The relationship broke down a few weeks later when Bloomberg took a public shot at Trump and said the electorate "deserves a lot better" than the Republican frontrunner. "He was a friend of mine, as far as I'm concerned. He's not a friend of mine anymore," Trump told Fox Business afterward. And when Bloomberg endorsed Hillary Clinton months later and it was time to finally come up with a trademarked insult, Trump, working with years of observation of Bloomberg's tics and idiosyncrasies, landed on "Little Michael." Trump appears to have struck upon an insecurity of Bloomberg's, long-documented by the New York City press. A 2003 Getty photograph of Trump and Bloomberg attending a Yankees game together highlights the substantial height difference between the two men.

Bloomberg's actual height has long been a source of speculation and conflicting news reports, including from the man himself. His driver's license lists him as 5-foot-10. In 2001, the billionaire told a Newsday reporter that he was "in the ballpark" of six-foot-one. A few days later, he told the press, "When you're 5-[foot]-10 like me, you want to make sure the podium isn't too low." His account of his height has changed over time. In 2006, he said, "What chance does a five-foot-seven billionaire Jew who’s divorced really have of becoming president?" A 2003 Daily News article placed him at five-foot-six, as did a 2013 Post piece.

https://freebeacon.com/politics/busted-bloomberg-used-box-to-boost-height-as-nyc-mayor-investigation-finds/