President Obama is expected to announce today his selection of GOP Sen. Judd Greg to be the country's next Commerce Secretary. The Wall Street Journal reports "the deal was set after Sen. Gregg made clear that he would not take the post unless he was replaced in the Senate by another Republican." According to the AP New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch "confirmed the 'understanding,' stopping just short of promising to appoint a Republican." Gregg told The Politico "he believed Lynch would nominate a Republican." DSCC chairman Sen. Robert Menendez said Gregg's replacement "would be a caretaker and that Democrats would have a good chance at picking up the seat next cycle." USA Today also notes Gregg's expected nomination.
Media accounts suggest Gregg's pick could boost GOP support for the President's stimulus plan. The Politico reports that "for Gregg to cross over now and join the administration will make it harder for his fellow Republicans to demonize Obama." Gregg "has been critical himself of major elements in the president's stimulus bill." Bloomberg News says the selection "would add...more credibility to his efforts to promote bipartisanship."
The New York Times reports, "In Mr. Obama's brief time on Capitol Hill, they barely knew each other, aside from occasional chats in the Senate gym." The Times also notes that during the presidential campaign, Gregg "spoke sharply against Mr. Obama's candidacy." According to the Times, "The idea of offering the job to Mr. Gregg came, at least in part, from" Senate majority leader Harry Reid.
Gregg's Selection Praised CNBC's John Harwood said, "I think this is a brilliant move by the White House. ... Judd Gregg is a real fiscal conservative." CNBC's Larry Kudlow added, "I agree with everything you just said." The Washington Post's E. J. Dionne, on MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show argued that President Obama "is trying to build a new majority. ... I think putting Republicans in your government, as FDR did, is a way of making people comfortable saying 'whatever you were in the past this is about what we're going to do now.'"
Maddow: Gregg Is "A Big Poke In The Eye" MSNBC's Rachel Maddow blasted the selection, asking "Why on earth would president Obama want Judd Gregg as commerce secretary? ... He earned a lifetime rating of 4% from the AFL-CEO. He voted with his party 83% of the time in the last congress. ... The American Conservative Union gives him a life time rating of 78.4. ... It is a big poke in the eye to the Democratic base and the labor movement."
Health and Human Services Secretary-designate Tom Daschle's apology for failing to pay taxes garnered significant coverage in major media outlets, with virtually all sources prominently highlighting President Barack Obama's remark that he "absolutely" continued to support the nomination. Democratic lawmakers, meanwhile, are described as remaining unified in support of Daschle's nomination. Providing the most extensive national TV coverage ABC World News noted "the White House admitted today Daschle made a serious mistake, but the President is still firmly behind him." On ABC World News, host George Stephanopoulos dismissed speculation that Daschle's confirmation was "in peril" saying, "Not on today's facts. ... I don't think so." On NBC Nightly News, NBC chief White House correspondent Chuck Todd reported Obama "has been forced to expend political capital he would rather use to sell his economic plan instead protecting."
The Wall Street Journal notes Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus' "strong support" for Daschle, and that he "said he expected to hold a confirmation hearing for him as early as next week." The New York Times notes White House aides said Sen. Edward Kennedy "was making phone calls on Mr. Daschle's behalf" and "Obama had not been calling senators to lobby on Mr. Daschle's behalf" because "the sense inside the White House is that the president does not need to do so."
Highlighting Democratic efforts to show support for Daschle, the Los Angeles Times reports the questions about Daschle's finances "has delayed his confirmation at a time when the new administration is launching an ambitious push to overhaul the nation's healthcare system" but Obama "seemed to be in little jeopardy of losing his choice to lead his reform campaign." The Los Angeles Times also covered Daschle's apology and Obama's support. In an article published on the web sites of over 200 media outlets the AP reports, "Nobody was predicting defeat for Daschle's nomination as secretary of health and human services, but it was proving an unsavory pill to swallow for senators who only last week confirmed Timothy Geithner as treasury secretary despite his separate tax-payment problems." The Washington Post, The Hill, and the Washington Times also report the story.
Dana Milbank in his "Washington Sketch" column in the Washington Post writes that while Daschle is expected to be confirmed, Democrats "risk leaving the impression that they operate under the Leona Helmsley rule: Only the little people pay taxes."
NYTimes, Chicago Tribune Oppose Nomination The New York Times, in an editorial says, "We believe that Mr. Daschle ought to step aside and let the president choose a less-blemished successor."
The Chicago Tribune in an editorial writes, "If he really thinks Daschle is right for the job, that suggests ethics is an overrated concern. But if an ethical upgrade really is crucial to changing the operations of government and the public's perception of it, then the president should turn HHS over to someone capable of handling its responsibilities while fostering trust instead of cynicism."
WPost Supports Daschle The Washington Post in an editorial calls Daschle's tax problems "troubling" but echoing the remarks of many Democratic lawmakers recently says, "Daschle deserves to be judged also on the basis of his long career in public service and his knowledge of and interest in health-care reform."
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President Obama yesterday continued to urge both parties to come together and pass an economic stimulus package. ABC World News noted that the White House "highlighted the Republican governors who are breaking from their colleagues on Capitol Hill in supporting the President's stimulus package. But Republicans at the Senate where the bill is currently being debated seem firmly opposed to it." On the CBS Evening News, Obama was shown saying, "What we can't do is let very modest differences get in the way of the overall package moving forward swiftly." The Washington Post, under the headline "Obama Is Upbeat On Stimulus Plan," notes Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid "said yesterday that he still hopes to complete debate by the end of the week."
The Financial Times reports that "Republican leaders on Monday complained that so far very little of what they had proposed notably a much larger element of tax cuts and more help for struggling homeowners had been included in the stimulus package." They also "rejected Mr Obama's characterisation of their differences as modest." On NBC Nightly News, Chuck Todd said that "Administration officials privately admit Republicans have done a better job at selling their position that the Obama plan is more about spending for government programs than creating jobs." Los Angeles Times also reports Senate Republicans "will propose a panoply of amendments to make the bill more palatable -- including moves to strip out spending they consider inappropriate in an economic stimulus bill." However, according to the Wall Street Journal, "Lobbyists for industry and labor are gearing up to add costly proposals Tuesday to the Senate's nearly $890 billion economic stimulus plan."
The Hill reports McConnell "invoked the words of...Obama...to pressure Democratic leaders into accepting an alterative version" of the stimulus. AFP notes Sen. John McCain "insisted the US president 'seriously negotiate' with Republicans." AFP reports Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison "warned...that Democrats would 'own' the package if they pushed it through Congress without Republican support and it didn't work."
Gallup Poll: Only 17% Oppose Stimulus According to USA Today, "Americans overwhelmingly want Congress to pass an economic stimulus bill, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds. ... Just 17% of those surveyed say Congress should reject a stimulus bill altogether."
Obama: Reelection Rests On Stimulus' Success According to The Politico, President Obama "acknowledged Monday that the fate of his re-election...likely rests on the success of the proposed $825 billion stimulus package." Obama said, "If I don't have this done in three years, then there's going to be a one-term proposition." McClatchy reports, "In an e-mail sent by the Democratic National Committee," Obama yesterday "urged voters to host or attend a neighbor's 'Economic Recovery House Meeting' this coming weekend."
The Senate confirmed Eric Holder as Attorney General last night by a 75-21 vote. Holder overcame initial opposition from some influential Republicans to eventually secure an easy confirmation. The Washington Post reports that the vote opens "a new chapter for a Justice Department that had suffered under allegations of improper political influence and policy disputes over wiretapping and harsh interrogation practices." Bloomberg News reports, "Supporters lauded Holder's law enforcement career that spans three decades. Democrats said he would restore morale at the Justice Department frayed by allegations of political interference that led Alberto Gonzales to resign as attorney general in 2007."
Typical of the coverage was the AP, which reported that Holder "won Senate confirmation Monday as the nation's first African-American attorney general, after supporters from both parties touted his dream resume and easily overcame Republican concerns over his commitment to fight terrorism and his unwillingness to back the right to keep and bear arms." The AP says that "all the opposition" to Holder came from Republicans. The New York Times also reports that "at one time, Republicans indicated that they wanted to give Mr. Holder a rough confirmation ride to signal their political viability." The Hill says Holder's "diplomatic performance during his confirmation hearing and private meetings won over Republican critics." Sen. Kit Bond "had seriously considered voting against Holder but eventually supported him. ... 'I found Mr. Holder to be a good listener, which is an important prerequisite for any good leader,' said Bond, the ranking Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee." According to The Politico, Holder's nomination "was never in danger." Sen. Arlen Specter, the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee "and one of Holder's biggest critics, announced last week he was backing the nomination, and that sealed the deal."
The Los Angeles Times says, "Holder's confirmation will trigger reviews of a variety of Bush administration policies, including harsh interrogations of terrorism suspects, the military tribunal at Guantanamo Bay and warrantless surveillance."
ABC World News reported that at the State Department yesterday, "there was a symbolic swearing in for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who took the official oath last month. The Secretary made her husband, the former President, blush when she thanked him for a lifetime of all kinds of experiences." The AP notes the "gathering of Washington's power elite" at yesterday's ceremony, which included Henry Kissinger and three other former secretaries of state, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark. Also, Senators Carl Levin and John Kerry were in attendance. NBC Nightly News noted that the Secretary "was sworn in...by Vice President Biden, who despite taking a friendly jab at the Chief Justice a couple of weeks ago for flubbing the Oath of Office, did the very same thing today, even though he read it from a card."
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The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that yesterday in the Minnesota Senate recount trial, Al Franken's (D) "legal team elicited testimony seeking to reinforce its themes that elections can't be perfect and that anti-fraud rules need to be enforced. The message aims to counter the" argument by Norm Coleman's (R) camp "that the court should give the benefit of the doubt to well-intentioned voters and count many flawed ballots that were rejected." In a story headlined "Franken Stuck in Holding Pattern," Roll Call reports, "Despite suggestions to the contrary, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is unlikely to seat" Franken ahead "of the 2008 Senate challenger's victory being fully certified - both because of how the Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) affair unfolded and the promised threat of a Republican filibuster."
The Dallas Morning News reports Sarah Palin has endorsed Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) for re-election, "calling him the 'true conservative' in a primary election showdown" with Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R).
The Miami Herald reports that yesterday Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R) refused to rule out a run for the seat of retiring Sen. Mel Martinez (R), though "He's likely to keep everybody guessing until the annual legislative session ends May 1." Roll Call adds that Crist, "according to sources, has had multiple serious conversations about running for Senate with both Martinez and" National Republican Senatorial Committee Chief Sen. John Cornyn.
The New York Times profiles newly-minted New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D), who was tapped by New York Gov. David Paterson (D) to fill the seat formerly held by Hillary Clinton, saying her positions on guns and immigration are "evolving" as she seeks to avoid a primary challenge in 2010.
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The Christian Science Monitor says that GOP "suddenly" has "a little momentum" with the election of Michael Steele as its first African-American chairman, adding the Party "is feeling unified after House Republicans unanimously rejected the Democrats' economic stimulus plan last week."
CNN reported on its 'Political Ticker' blog that Newt Gingrich said Sarah Palin's (R) "continued popularity among the GOP's base would give" her "an instant boost in Iowa - the state whose caucuses, dominated by rank-and-file conservatives, kick off the primary season."
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Jay Leno: "And the half brother of Barack Obama, a man named George Obama, has been arrested in Kenya for allegedly having drugs. See, here we go again with the dumb presidential brothers. Remember Billy Carter?" Then "there was Roger Clinton, Bill Clinton's brother. See, we never had that problem with President Bush. He was already the dumb brother."
Jay Leno: "There was a huge scientific breakthrough today. Researchers say they are very close to finding someone from Obama's Cabinet who's actually paid their taxes."
Jay Leno: "Tom Daschle," whom "President Obama wants...as secretary of health and human services, apparently did not pay $128,000 in taxes that he owes the government. Did you realize President Obama hasn't had a cabinet member with an embarrassing tax problem like this since the last guy they appointed?"
David Letterman: "Today is Groundhog Day," and "I don't know why this stuff always goes haywire in Alaska. ... Here is what happened. A little bit of trouble. Groundhog comes out of its hole. Sarah Palin shoots it."
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