Senator Joe Manchin is eyeing the presidency… of West Virginia University, multiple Mountain State sources tell Cockburn.
While Manchin hasn’t publicly expressed interest in the job, the stars may be aligning perfectly for him. Charleston political circles have been abuzz with the rumors of his interest for weeks now.
Seventy-five-year-old Manchin will be weighing all options that don’t entail a near-certain defeat at the ballot box in West Virginia next year, meaning a near-certain defeat at the national ballot box with a quixotic third party presidential campaign is unlikely.
The presidency of WVU, which Manchin attended on a football scholarship before an injury derailed his career, makes a lot of sense for both parties. Current WVU president Gordon Gee is almost eighty — and he has already been the president of more universities than anyone else in America.
Manchin would inject immediate star power (and presumably, millions of dollars) into the school, which can desperately use it.
Importantly, Republican governor Jim Justice, who is currently running against Manchin for Senate, can’t appoint himself to a vacancy. West Virginia Democrats would give him a list of candidates to pick from, in the event that Manchin does call it quits early.
Christie knows best
Cockburn’s sources confirmed reports that, along with Governor Ron DeSantis and Senator Tim Scott, former New Jersey governor Chris Christie will announce his run for president this coming week — and tell him that Christie is currently hiring vendors for his campaign.
Golfing with Trump
What’s it like to take on America’s best president-golfer? Kevin Cook offers a glimpse in the June edition of the magazine.
“I often played with him in the early 2000s, when I worked at Golf magazine and he wanted positive reviews for his growing portfolio of courses,” Kevin writes. “He was never less than great company. He takes a lusty swing at the ball and plays fast, barreling up fairways in his electric cart, driving onto the green and waving at players who salute as he plays through.
“He has often been called a cheater, but Trump doesn’t cheat any more than most weekend golfers, and not only for his benefit. ‘You tried so hard there,’ he’ll say. ‘I’m giving us both pars.’
“He is quick with the needle. I was in mid-swing when he said, ‘Don’t worry about the lake on the right.’ At one hole he dared ‘anyone anywhere” to beat his drive. When my ball got a lucky bounce and rolled a yard past his, he called it ‘a miracle. And I don’t want to see your underwear after that swing!’”
‘Let the teachers teach, and shut up’: NH state rep to parent
New Hampshire state representative Tom Hoyt took a page out of the Terry McAuliffe playbook, sending a nasty email to a parent who was concerned about learning loss as a result of schools being closed during the pandemic.
“Do you know why children’s results tanked during Covid? Their parents were incompetent teachers. Do your children a favor, let the teachers teach, and shut up. You’re clearly no professional,” Hoyt said in the email.
Hoyt, not so coincidentally, was endorsed by the state’s teachers’ union. In a statement about the incident, he admitted that he could have used “better words” in the email, but did not concede that the “Zoom school” many teachers’ unions pushed for during the pandemic was a more likely cause of dropping test scores than “incompetent” parents.
FreedomWoke claims COO scalp?
Last week, Cockburn scooped that Berman and Company had the conservative group FreedomWorks in its sights, launching a campaign to rebrand the organization as “FreedomWoke.”
The group appears to have already accomplished its goal of taking out a new top hire, whom it tarred as a “radical animal rights activist who worked for liberal advocacy groups that worked to elect Democrats.”
In recent weeks, FreedomWorks laid off almost half its staff — but FreedomWoke’s campaign took issue with its new hire, Marty Irby, as chief operating officer. In recent days, FreedomWorks’s website has been updated — without Irby on it. As recently as last week, Internet Archived versions of the FreedomWorks site list Irby as COO.
For its part, FreedomWoke is spiking the football. While Irby’s departure is still only rumored, Will Coggin, FreedomWoke’s spokesperson tells Cockburn that Irby “should go pursue his animal rights agenda elsewhere.”
