step

Reviving an idea they floated last year with an op-ed urging President Obama not to seek a second term, pollsters Patrick H. Caddell and Douglas E. Schoen are out Monday with a new op-ed drafting Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to be the Democrats’ 2012 nominee.

Obama should “abandon his candidacy for reelection in favor of a clear alternative,” Caddell and Schoen wrote in Monday’s Wall Street Journal, because “the kind of campaign required for the president’s political survival would make it almost impossible for him to govern — not only during the campaign, but throughout a second term.”

“Never before has there been such an obvious potential successor — one who has been a loyal and effective member of the president’s administration, who has the stature to take on the office, and who is the only leader capable of uniting the country around a bipartisan economic and foreign policy,” they wrote of Clinton.

The two pollsters have worked for a number of high-profile Democrats — Caddell for George McGovern, Jimmy Carter and Joe Biden, and Schoen for President Bill Clinton and for Hillary Clinton in 2008. But they are also known for taking positions that are at odds with the Democratic Party.

Most recently, Schoen has worked with a group called Americans Elect to put a third candidate on the ballot in all 50 states.

The group plans to hold a nominating convention next summer to select a candidate to challenge Obama and the Republican nominee. Participants will draft candidates by putting their names to a Web-based vote. Hillary Clinton and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg — another former client of Schoen’s — are often mentioned as potential nominees.

Like they did last year in an op-ed for the Washington Post, Caddell and Schoen argue that running for reelection will prevent Obama from governing.

“By going down the reelection road and into partisan mode, the president has effectively guaranteed that the remainder of his term will be marred by the resentment and division that have eroded our national identity, common purpose, and most of all, our economic strength,” they wrote.

The pollster duo believes that: “If President Obama were to withdraw he would put great pressure on the Republicans to come to the table and negotiate — especially if the president singularly focused in the way we have suggested on the economy, job creation, and debt and deficit reduction. “

They argue that Clinton would stand a better chance at winning in 2012 because she enjoys her best-ever approval rating and is favored over Republican candidates Mitt Romney and Rick Perry in a Time magazine poll. And they call on Sen. Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to urge Obama to step aside “for the good of the party and most of all for the good of the country.”

Hillary Clinton has repeatedly said that she has no ambitions to run again for president. She has brushed aside talk of replacing Joe Biden as the vice presidential nominee on the Democrats’ ticket.

“I’m out of politics, happy to be out of politics,” she said last week when asked by NBC’s Chuck Todd to weigh in on the field of Republican hopefuls.

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Joe Hawkins has gone from being an international exile in Exeter to helping Wales try to cope without their England-based contingent.

Steve Tandy’s men finish their autumn campaign with a daunting fixture against world champions South Africa in Cardiff on Saturday.

A game against the Springboks would be hard enough with a full squad but Wales will be forced into huge changes to the 23 that put in a spirited performance in the 52-26 defeat by New Zealand.

Tandy is without Montpellier’s Adam Beard plus 12 players who have gone back to English clubs because the money-raising encounter has been arranged outside World Rugby’s official Test window.

Hawkins, who won his first cap in two years against the All Blacks after a move to Scarlets allowed him to resume his international career, is confident that the deputies can step up.

“You’ve always got to be ready and a chance can always come earlier sometimes due to injuries,” said the centre or fly-half.

“The boys have been training hard and I’m pretty confident anyone who does come in can do a good job next weekend.”

ZARA McDermott has taken the next major step in her relationship with Louis Tomlinson.

The Love Island alum went Instagram-official with the One Direction hitmaker, 33, back in May and since then, their relationship has been going from strength to strength.

The Sun first revealed in March that the Strictly star, 28, and boyband singer, 33, were an item after being spotted on dates and holidaying together.

The pair have kept a relatively low profile, though last month Louis couldn’t help but gush about his stunning girl on Steven Bartlett‘s The Diary of a CEO podcast, hinting at how much she’s inspired his new music.

This week, Zara, 28, captured her “date night” look on Instagram for her social media followers as the pair spend time in Los Angeles.

Now the BBC documentary-maker has been confirmed as a firm member of the family after it was revealed she’d met Louis’ niece.

SIMPLY STUNNING

Zara McDermott stuns in outfit for ‘date night’ with Louis Tomlinson in LA

GAGA FOR ZARA

Louis Tomlinson breaks silence on Zara romance saying he’s ‘so in love’

One fan asked blogger and actress Phoebe Tomlinson, 21: “Has Zara met Olive yet?” referring to her little girl, Olive Varley, aged one.

She swiftly replied with a previously unseen image and the words: “She has! Girlies!”

Louis’ other sister, make-up artist Lottie, 27, has also revealed her bond with the TV star.

Alongside a recent Instagram post showing Zara in a red dress, she wrote: “Beauty in red.”

SIBLING APPROVAL

Lottie has previously broken her silence on her sibling’s romance – and the potential for baby-sitting.

Speaking to The Mirror at the launch of her beauty line, Lottie said: “Yeah, she is amazing and they are really happy. I’m really happy for him.”

Lottie was also said to have laughed when it was suggested Louis and Zara could babysit for her children Lucky, two, and five-month-old Flossie.

“Hopefully, yeah,” she told the publication.

LOUIS’ LOVE

Back in August, Louis told Zara “I love you” in a rare public comment.

He then told how she was inspiring his new music.

The X Factor star said: “

“I’m a deeply, deeply romantic person.

“It’s also easy to be romantic when you are a creative… I really struggle to write in a fictional sense, I really struggle.

“For me, I have to have been living it, it has to be real to me. So, if I wasn’t feeling so good, like right now, I wasn’t feeling so in love… the record probably would have a slightly different feel to it.”

He added: “One thing I was thinking about with this record, my intention is just to maybe feel good.

“I know that’s a really cliché and obvious thing to say, but I’m not sure some of my other music did that. It made you feel, it was honest, it was painful at times, but it didn’t feel good.

“So, I think now I’ve got this almost new sense of life, a new sense of happiness, and purpose, and fulfilment, all those things.”

END GAME

Before sparking up romance with Louis, Zara dated Made in Chelsea star, Sam Thompson.

ZAYN’S RETURN

Zayn Malik ‘rejoins’ One Direction 10 years after quitting the band

bad boy

Real reason Becki Jones vanished for months – as we reveal new man’s criminal past

The former flames were an item for five tumultuous years before calling it quits in 2024.

Whereas Louis last girlfriend was Danish model Sofie Nyvang who he dated for a couple of months at the beginning of 2023.

WASHINGTON — Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York is facing mounting pressure to step aside as leader of the Senate Democratic caucus after eight members voted against his wishes Sunday, joining Republicans in a bid to end the longest government shutdown in history.

The vote was just the latest development in a troubling week for the 74-year-old Schumer, who, after eight years as the top Senate Democrat, has faced growing calls from within the party to make way for a new generation of leadership.

Elections last week revealed the emergence of a growing progressive movement in Schumer’s hometown, where the longtime senator declined to endorse Zohran Mamdani in his successful bid for New York City mayor.

National progressive organizations on Monday urged him to step down and have encouraged a popular congresswoman in the state, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, to run for his Senate seat in 2029. Polls show Schumer faces the lowest approval numbers of any national leader in Washington.

His leadership troubles come on the heels of Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), the first female speaker of the House, announcing her retirement, a decision that generated praise across the political aisle last week reflecting on her shrewd ability to control a sprawling House Democratic caucus during high-stakes votes.

“Schumer is no longer effective and should be replaced,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Fremont) wrote on X after the Sunday night vote. “If you can’t lead the fight to stop healthcare premiums from skyrocketing for Americans, what will you fight for?”

Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the top Democrat in the House, told reporters Monday that he strongly disapproved of the emerging deal in the Senate, where seven Democrats and one independent who caucuses with the party voted to proceed with government funding.

For seven weeks, House and Senate Democrats said they would not vote for legislation to reopen the government unless they were able to secure an extension of health insurance subsidies. But the deal reached in the Senate indicated how some Democrats gave in on that bottom-line negotiation.

Schumer reiterated his disapproval of the spending deal in a speech from the floor Monday. He criticized the compromise as a “Republican bill” even though members of his party helped broker the deal.

“Republicans now own this healthcare crisis,” Schumer said. “They knew it was coming. We wanted to fix it and they said no, and now it is on them.”

As Schumer delivered his speech, Jeffries spoke to reporters at a news conference on the other side of the Capitol.

Asked whether he thought Schumer remained an effective leader and should remain in his position, Jeffries replied, “yes and yes.”

When pressed to elaborate, Jeffries said “the overwhelming majority of Senate Democrats led by Chuck Schumer waged a valiant fight,” and turned his disapproval to the Democrats who voted with Republicans on the bill.

“I am not going to explain what a handful of Senate Democrats have decided to do,” Jeffries said. “That’s their explanation to offer to the American people.”

Now that the effort turns to the House, Jeffries said Democrats in the chamber will try to block a deal that does not address healthcare costs.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom offered harsh criticism of Senate Democrats on Monday, who he said had “rolled over.”

After speaking at the Milken Institute’s Global Investors’ Symposium in São Paulo, Newsom told The Times that the move blunted the momentum his party was experiencing following a string of victories last week.

“You don’t start something unless you’re going to finish,” said Newsom, who next heads to the climate summit known as COP30 in Belém, Brazil. “Why the hell did we do this in the first place? We could have gotten this deal in 20 minutes. … Honestly, I don’t know what’s going on with my party.”

Zach Wahls, a Democratic candidate for Senate in Iowa, said Schumer had “failed to lead this party in one of its most critical moments,” calling for him to step down. And Rep. Seth Moulton, a Democrat from Massachusetts, wrote that an effective leader would have been able to keep party members in line.

“Tonight is another example of why we need new leadership,” Moulton wrote on X.

The eight members who voted to reopen the government — 15% of the Senate Democratic caucus — voted directly against Schumer, who voted against the measure.

Wahls speculated that the moderate members who voted with Republicans were privately given Schumer’s blessing to do so.

“The fact that he voted against this deal, while he clearly gave it his blessing in private, is a perfect illustration of why people no longer trust the Democratic Party,” Wahls said, “and as long as he stays in a leadership role, it is going to be impossible for anybody — whether it’s in Iowa or any other swing state — to win a majority.”

Times staff writers Wilner and Ceballos reported from Washington, and Gutierrez contributed from São Paulo.