Nov 18, 2015 5 min read

Wake Up To Politics - November 18, 2015

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Wednesday, November 18, 2015
356 Days until Election Day 2016
75 Days until the Iowa Caucuses I'm Gabe Fleisher for Wake Up To Politics, and reporting from WUTP world HQ in my bedroom - Good morning: THIS IS YOUR WAKE UP CALL!!!
To send me questions, comments, tips, new subscribers, and more: email me at wakeuptopolitics@gmail.com. To learn more about WUTP and subscribe, visit the site: wakeuptopolitics.com, or like me on Twitter and Facebook. More ways to engage with WUTP at the bottom. 2016 Central

Bye, Bye Bobby: Jindal Exits Presidential Race Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal announced Monday that he is suspending his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination.
“It’s been an honor, but this is not my time,” Jindal said on Fox News, where he announced his campaign’s end. The Louisianan, once seen as a rising star within the GOP, has been plagued by poor fundraising and low poll numbers, resulting in relegation to the undercard debates.
Piyush “Bobby” Jindal is a graduate of both Oxford and Brown University, and a Rhodes Scholar. At age 24, Jindal was appointed Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, where he brought the state’s Medicaid program out of bankruptcy. At age 28, Jindal was appointed the youngest-ever president of the University of Louisiana System. One year later, he entered federal bureaucracy when George W. Bush nominated him Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services, to unanimous Senate confirmation.
Jindal was later elected to two terms in the U.S. House; his second term as Governor of Louisiana ends in January. Despite an impressive résumé, Jindal’s policy acumen did not seem to appeal to voters in a year when they are turning to outsiders (see Trump, Donald and Carson, Ben).
“We spent a lot of time developing detailed policy papers,” Jindal said on Fox News. “Given this crazy, unpredictable election season, clearly there wasn’t an interest in those policy papers.”
Jindal is the third Republican drop-out of the 2016 cycle, following Rick Perry and Scott Walker. While Jindal’s 146-day campaign outlasted Perry’s 100 days and Walker’s 71, it was not nearly enough to get him to the finish line, with the Republican National Convention opening in Cleveland still 243 days away.
What’s next for Jindal? In the immediate future, perhaps a presidential endorsement – a signal for where his supporters (who make up ~1% of the Republican electorate) should gravitate. He will certainly not back Trump or Carson, although an endorsement of Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz is possible.
Beyond presidential politics, Jindal is just 44 years old and might not be done with government service. He is reportedly not interested in Louisiana’s Senate race next year, which will become an open race if incumbent David Vitter wins the governorship Saturday.
Jindal’s exit from state politics is probably a smart move: a poll conducted by The Advocate, Louisiana’s largest daily newspaper, in September had Jindal’s favorability at just 34% in the state. For comparison, the poll found Barack Obama to have 40% favorability.
If a Republican wins the White House next year, Jindal would make sense in a GOP Administration. He would make a smart pick for a Cabinet position, such as Secretary of Health and Human Services, or even a more administrative job such as White House Chief of Staff.
We may not have seen the end of Bobby Jindal yet, but as he deftly noted Monday night, this is not his time. Bye, bye Bobby.

White House Watch

The President’s Schedule President Barack Obama spends his second day in the Philippines:
At 8:30am, he will meet with Filipino President Benigno Aquino.
At 10:15am, President Obama will address a summit of 800 CEOs from U.S. and Asia-Pacific companies.
At 12:10pm, the President will attend the first meeting of Trans-Pacific Partnership leaders since the negotiations of the deal were completed.
Obama will spend the rest of his day at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit (APEC), with a 4:15 meeting of the Pacific Alliance, a 7:35 photo with APEC leaders, and a 7:45 APEC welcome dinner.

Capitol Hill News

Senate Votes Against Obama Climate Regulations The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to pass two resolutions striking down key planks of President Obama’s climate agenda.
Both resolutions are Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules for coal-fired power plants. One ends all future construction of such plants, while the other sets carbon emission standards for existing power plants.
Both measures passed 52-46, almost by party lines. Just three Republicans voted against the resolutions (New Hampshire’s Kelly Ayotte, Maine’s Susan Collins, and Illinois’ Mark Kirk) and just three Democrats voted for them (Indiana’s Joe Donnelly, North Dakota’s Heidi Heitkamp, and West Virginia’s Joe Manchin).
Congress has authority to reject the EPA rules due to the Congressional Review Act, which gives the legislative branch review power over regulations.
To strike down the two regulations, the Senate resolution must first pass the House, before it will reach the desk of President Obama, who has already promised a veto.