Florida Republicans are starting to worry that a ballot initiative this fall to ban gerrymandering could hurt their candidates -- and topple their majority -- in subsequent elections.
"If the two constitutional amendments pass, congressional and legislative voting districts could not be designed to favor any political party or incumbent. Districts would be neatly shaped and take city and county boundaries into account, rather than the current system where state lawmakers use computer programs to map districts based on voter demographics and partisan leanings."
The newspaper adds that local GOP organizers have yet to mount a campaign against the two-part initiative, which would ban gerrymandering in both state and Congressional voting districts. But the absence of a formal movement hasn't stopped some Republicans, including state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner (R), from voicing their concerns. Again, from the Times:
"It is a stealth agenda funded by the left to do in the courts what they can't do at the ballot box," Hasner thundered. "This is the top priority of Democrats in 2010 and it must be stopped.
A healthcare activist on Wednesday registered the domain name doitforted.com, saying he claimed the rights to the website to help pass healthcare reform in honor the late Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.).
Alex Lawson, who founded DC Fights Back -- a grassroots advocacy group that focuses on the HIV epidemic in Washington, DC -- stated in an e-mail, "I mainly wanted to ensure that the sites were available to be used by people who want to honor Sen. Kennedy's legacy by passing comprehensive health reform."
Some Democrats on Capitol, including Sen. Robert Byrd (W.Va.), have said the healthcare reform bill should be passed in Kennedy's name.
Lawson said he has no immediate plans to put content on doitforted.com.
Ed Schultz's invocation of religion on healthcare would have been bludgeoned by the left if he were conservative, Allahpundit writes at Hot Air. Also, and while it may seem like President Obama would back a mandatory national service program, it's unlikely he'd have the votes in Congress for such a program, Allahpundit adds.
President Barack Obama said on Friday that he was pleased with the swift efforts of Republicans and Democrats in the House to find additional funding for the bankrupt "Cash for Clunkers" program.
"I am encouraged that Republicans and Democrats in the House are working to pass legislation today," Obama said referring to a stand alone House bill designed to provide money for the service.
The House actually approved the bill right before Obama took to the podium in the White House Diplomatic Room today.
The program, which is designed to provide vouchers to encourage consumers to trade in low mileage cars for fuel efficient ones, exhausted the $1 billion allocated to it in its first six days of existence.
The president took this as a sign that "it has succeed well beyond our expectations."
Obama also commented on second quarter Gross Domestic Product figures that were released this morning that showed the measure contracting at a slower than expected 1% annual rate.
"The GDP also revealed that in the last few months the economy has done measurably better than we had thought, than we'd expected," said the president. "That part of the progress is directly attributable to the recovery act," Obama said crediting the stimulus package for slowed decline.
But Obama stressed that the economic slump would not truly end until jobs growth began, saying "I won't rest until every American who wants a job can find one."
Rep. Rush Holt (D-N.J.), a senior member of the House Intelligence Committee, said that his committee's chairman does not yet support a sweeping investigation into CIA activities.
"He certainly has authorized and is supportive of the limited investigation so far," Holt said of Rep. Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas). "I'm busy talking about broader investigations," he told MSNBC's Ed Schultz on Thursday night.
Holt indicated that he was pushing hard for a broader investigation of the intelligence agency, saying that he doesn't "have, you know, the Congress behind this yet."
The New Jersey Democrat said that a probe into many facets of the CIA over the past three decades was necessary to remedying the problems plaguing the agency. "I don't care what your line of work is. If you're unexamined you slip into bad habits, you don't do as good a job," he said.
A broader investigation into CIA practices may steal some of the focus from the Obama administration's domestic agenda, which includes healthcare and climate change legislation.
The House Intelligence Committee has taken preliminary steps in their investigation of CIA interrogation tactics used during the Bush administration as well as a secret program to kill Al Qaeda leaders administered by former Vice President Dick Cheney.
But Holt wants to dig deeper and over a longer period of time. He suggested the committee should investigate wiretapping, spying, assassination attempts, and actions "disruptive" to foreign governments.
"We need something on the scale of what was known as the Church Committee back in the 1970s," Holt said in reference to the committee that investigated a broad swath of illegal CIA and FBI activities in the wake of the Watergate scandal.
Bob McDonnell (R-Va.) has opened up a big lead in the Virginia governor's race, beating his Democratic opponent Creigh Deeds by 15 in the latest poll tracking the campaign.
The poll taken by southwestern Virginia's WDBJ News7 and SurveyUSA showed McDonnell carrying 55% of all voters while Deeds only garnered 40%. Five percent of voters remained undecided.
Several previous polls by SurveyUSA showed McDonnell leading by between one and six points, so Wednesday's poll shows some real movement.
McDonnell eclipsed the 50 percent mark for the first time in the race. The poll was the first one taken in two weeks. The last two were taken by Rasmussen in mid-July and Public Policy Polling earlier that month.
McDonnell also gained in Rasmussen's poll two weeks ago, turning a six-point deficit from right after the primary into a three-point lead.
Deeds was expected to get a bit of a post-primary bump after easily winning a tough primary and emerging considerably unscathed. But even though he appeared to get a momentary bump, it hasn't translated into anything long-term, and now he looks to be in a bit of trouble with just more than three months to go.
McDonnell recently captured the endorsement of businesswoman Sheila Crump Johnson, one of Gov. Tim Kaine's (D) biggest donors.
Democrats have held the Virginia Governor's Mansion since 2002.
Virginia is one of two states holding their gubernatorial election this year, the other being New Jersey.
Arizona Republican Rep. Jeff Flake is set to propose a record 553 amendments to the defense appropriations bill that hits the House floor today.
The amendments represent Flake's attempt to slow passage of the bill, albeit on an unprecedented scale.
Congress Matters' David Waldman reported that Republicans and Democrats have been sparring on amendment limitations. Democrats have argued for stricter limits saying that Republicans have offered too many while Republicans have said they have presented a plethora of amendments because Democrats want to limit them.
Flake can either present the amendments in several five minute blocs or all at once, which would take up less time that splitting up his presentation.
A member of Gov. Jon Corzine's (D) cabinet left office today as a result of a series of corruption arrests made Thursday morning that included two mayors, a state assemblyman, and clergy members.
The AP reported this afternoon that Corzine asked Community Affairs Commissioner Joseph Doria to resign and that Doria complied with the request.
Doria's involvement in the scandal was not immediately clear.
Officials were arrested on charges that they participated in an international money laundering organization that trafficked human organs, among other items.
Corzine is currently locked in a tough battle for reelection with former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie (R).If anything, this news cannot help the Corzine campaign.
The Democratic National Committee turned to an unorthodox website (for politicians at least) to take a jab at Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R).
A release noted that "Pullin' a Palin" is now a term on the website Urban Dictionary. The term is defined as:
1. Quitting when the going gets tough; abandoning the responsibility entrusted to you by your neighbors for book advances and to make money on the lecture circuit.
2. Bizarre move that will damn ambitions for higher office
The site allows users to coin and define their own slang terms.
The release, sent by DNC Deputy Press Secretary Brandi Hoffine, quoted a Huffington Post piece that surmised:
This type of small-bore snark is good fodder for the partisans. For sober-minded Palin supporters, the worry has to be that the soon-to-be-former governor will be permanently defined as the butt of the political joke.
Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-S.D.) will stay put for now, declining to run for governor or Senate in 2010 and deciding to instead seek reelection.
Herseth Sandlin appeared a good prospect to run for governor and reportedly has been contacted by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) as well. She seemed a more natural fit for the governor's mansion, as her grandfather is a former governor and her father ran for the office.
Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) dodged a bullet with Herseth Sandlin's decision. Regardless of how unlikely her candidacy was, she was probably the only candidate that could have moved the race into the realm of possibility for Democrats. He is now a strong favorite for reelection to a second term.
Thune entered the Senate by the slimmest of margins, having defeated former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) in 2004. Like Herseth Sandlin someday will, Thune used the statewide House seat as a launching pad.
House Minority Leader John Boehner did his best impression of a senator Friday evening, invoking his privilege to unlimited debate to stall a final vote on the Democratic climate change bill.
Boehner had been speaking at length about the amendment he said was "filed at 3:09am," which spans 300 pages. Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee Henry Waxman interrupted Boehner, asking the acting speaker Ellen Tauscher (D-Calif.) to stop Boehner's mock filibuster.
But under the rules, Tauscher let Boehner continue his speech. The official Twitter of the GOP Conference reported that Boehner will read all 300 pages of the amendment.
Republican lawmakers packed the Republican National Committee's (RNC) headquarters Wednesday as part of a day of interviews with TV affiliates to counter President Obama's healthcare special last night on ABC.
Lawmakers made their way over to the RNC's studio between 8:00 a.m. and 11:15 p.m. to do interviews with affiliates in their districts, according to a partial listing obtained by The Hill.
Of those on the list, Rep. Brian Bilbray (R-Calif.) led the other Republicans in airtime, sitting for 50 minutes of interviews Wednesday morning, and another 10 minutes in the afternoon.
Most other lawmakers sat for 10 to 15 minute interviews, though Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (R-Neb.) did 30 minutes of interviews, and Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.) did 20 minutes.
The RNC had offered their studio and free satellite costs to counter ABC's special last night, broadcast live from the White House, on the president's plans to reform healthcare.
The GOP had derided the special as an "infomercial" for Obama, and had previously demanded time to rebut claims made during the special on ABC.
View the list of Republicans who are known to have participated after the jump:
Read more...
Rep. Carolyn Maloney, who looks all but certain to run for the Senate in New York next year, slightly leads Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in the hypothetical Democratic primary, according to a poll released Wednesday.
The Quinnipiac poll found Maloney leading Gillibrand 27 percent to 24 percent, right at the poll's plus or minus three percent margin of error. Forty-four percent were undecided.
Both Gillibrand and Maloney lead Rep. Peter King, a possible Republican contender, by more than 10 points.
So far, it appears that voters don't know enough about the contenders to form an opinion. Sixty-three percent said they didn't have an opinion of Gillibrand, 67 percent said the same of Maloney and 66 said that of King.
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Lawmakers from Missouri are actively courting other auto manufacturers to take over their closed Chrysler plant, a member of that delegation said Thursday.
Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-Mo.) said that the members were looking to attract different auto companies as a backstop to idled or closing plants, raising the specter of foreign companies buying lapsed U.S. assets at fire sale prices.
"We are really going on several tracks," Carnahan told The Hill. "One, to try to continue to try to talk to Chrysler officials about the ability to use that for building a new generation vehicle."
"If they don't, we're looking for other auto manufacturers that could utilize that," he said was the other option.
Chrysler will reopen the "St. Louis North" assembly plant, but shutter the "St. Louis South" plant.
And as GM and Chrysler go through bankruptcy and downsize and Ford pares down its own production, it could easily mean a foreign automaker could swoop in and take advantage of the shut-down facility.
"Our first line of attack is working with Chrysler, the second is looking at other manufacturers, and hopefully we'll have some news on that," Carnahan said before adding Missouri lawmakers are "very seriously" looking at bringing in a new company.
GM decided to keep its plant Wentzville, Mo. open.
Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) made a guest appearance at the comedy group Second City's production of "Rod Blagojevich Superstar" on Saturday night in Chicago, the Associated Press reported.
According to the AP, the impeached governor was loudly cheered, prompting him to ask: "Where were you when I was impeached?"
Blagojevich said the play, which apparently features an actor impersonating Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.), is "fictitious."
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will launch an educational and advocacy program called the "Campaign for Free Enterprise" seeking to promote free market values.
The campaign comes after a 2008 campaign cycle saw Democrats accused the business group of becoming an arm of the Republican Party.
The new campaign will include "aggressive issue advocacy" ahead of the 2010 elections, and will include paid advertising campaigns, new media blitzes, and grassroots organizing.
The business group's leader said no less was at stake than the preservation of capitalism.
"Supporters and critics alike agree that capitalism is at a crossroads," Chamber President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue said in a statement announcing the campaign. "It's time to remind all Americans that it was a free enterprise system based on the values of individual initiative, hard work, risk, innovation, and profit that built our great country."
The emphasis on supporting "free enterprise," a policy position typically embraced by conservative Republicans, comes after last fall's accusation from then-Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) Chairman Charles Schumer's (D-N.Y.) accusation that the Chamber had become a "wing" of the GOP.
Schumer said the Chamber is "supposed to be nonpartisan, and they've turned themselves into a wing of the NRSC [National Republican Senatorial Committee]. They're running attack ads on issues unrelated to the issues the Chamber stands for, they're taking partisan stands, and their ads almost dovetail with the campaign ads of the NRSC -- in some cases, they use the exact same slogan."
A new round of Quinnipiac polls shows not too much movement in Florida's 2010 Senate race and New Jersey's 2009 governor's race.
In Florida, Gov. Charlie Crist (R) maintains a 54-23 lead over former state House Speaker Marco Rubio in the GOP primary.
Rubio is actually down five points from the last poll, but is still almost completely unknown. It's still very early, but his attacks aren't sticking yet.
The Democratic primary in that race, for which Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Fla.) recently formed an exploratory committee, shows Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.) leading her 18-12. Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.), who is not in the race, pulls up the rear at 8 percent. More than half of voters remain undecided.
In a separate Q poll conducted in New Jersey, former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie, who won the Republican primary last week, has upped his lead over Gov. Jon Corzine (D) to 10 points, 50-40. Christie led the race by seven points last month, but this is the first month that Quinnipiac has polled likely voters instead of registered voters.
Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine, the only Republican on the Senate Finance Committee to not sign a letter to President Barack Obama on Monday that opposes a public option healthcare plan, on Tuesday explained why.
"I had a number of issues with the letter, and I also wanted to say that everybody has their own descriptions of what a public-option plan is and whether it's going to include a fall-back or not," Snowe said. "So I just chose not to sign it. I'm open to making sure we get a quality, affordable plan. And I've talked to the White House on a number of issues including that, and I just want to make sure we get this right."
All nine other GOP senators on the FInance Committe sent Obama a letter Monday blasting a "government-run" plan. Signed by ranking Finance Committee member Chuck Grassley (Iowa), GOP Whip Jon Kyl (Ariz.), ranking HELP Committee member Mike Enzi and members Orrin Hatch (Utah), Jim Bunning (Ky.), Mike Crapo (Idaho), Pat Roberts (Kan.), John Ensign (Nev.) and John Cornyn (Texas), the letter said a
public-option plan would result in
A local radio station is reporting Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) will not vote for the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), but Feinstein's office says the report mischaracterizes her statements.
A member of a local chamber of commerce told the station in no uncertain terms that Feinstein made clear, in a meeting with his group, that she wouldn't support the current bill or any compromise that doesn't include a secret ballot.
"She will not vote for the bill, and she will not support any modification allowing the process to bypass secret ballots, and she believes that now is not the right time for this type of legislation given the downturn in the economy," said John Shaffery, vice president for the Santa Clarita Valley Chamber Board of Directors, according to KHTS-AM.
Feinstein said in a statement that the second-hand account isn't accurate.
"A statement has been put out mischaracterizing my position on this bill," she said. "The truth is that I am working to find common ground between the needs of both business and labor in order to reach a bipartisan solution.
"I believe we must find a way to protect the privacy of individual workers so that they may elect whether to form a union free of intimidation."
Feinstein has previously expressed reservations about the current form of the bill, but hasn't said definitively that she opposes the legislation.
Several Democrats have balked at supporting the bill, but most are leaving themselves wiggle room and come from swing or red states. Feinstein's departure would be crippling.
Updated at 3:23 p.m.
Update at 3:38 p.m. The station's report appears to have been taken down.
Senate Democrats won rare praise from Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who hailed their "flexibility" on closing Guantanamo Bay and other national security issues.
McConnell said Americans "ought to be pleased that our friends on the other side of the aisle are showing some flexibility on this issue and heading in our direction," adding that he hoped President Obama would show similar flexibility, as with his reversed decision on releasing photos of detainee abuse.
"The president has shown some flexibility on national security issues," McConnell said. "I hope he will have some flexibility on the detainee facility at Guantanamo, because it really has worked very, very well."
Now that Specter's a Democrat, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has the right to claim the Ranking Member position on Judiciary. But Grassley is already RM on the Finance Committee, and GOP rules prevent him from holding the top spots on both panels.
The Hill reported on Wednesday that Grassley hoped to strike a deal with Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) in which Sessions would claim the Judiciary post until 2010. By that time, Grassley would be term-limited out of his Finance position and would assume the top spot at Judiciary. Sessions would move to the Budget Committee.
But the prospect of an immediate Supreme Court nomination changes the calculus. First, Grassley may be more eager to move to Judiciary to have a hand in the historic process. On the other hand, conservatives may prefer Sessions, who has been rock solid on right-leaning judicial nominations. (Sessions was once nominated to a federal judgeship by President Reagan and lost a bitter confirmation fight.)
The conservative blogosphere is already abuzz with anticipation of the Judiciary battle. Hogan at RedState reacted to the news of Souter's decision thusly: "[L]et's start with this...Jeff Sessions should be Republican Ranking Member on the Judiciary Committee."
Grassley, Hogan continued is one "of the old guard Republicans in the Senate who have given us the train wreck that the Party has become...Jeff Sessions, on the other hand, would field a talented [staff] team who could educate America on just who America is getting in the next Supreme Court justice."
Keep an eye on the blogosphere in the next few days to see how the deabte over the nomination fight shapes up. On the right, check out the three lawyers over at Power Line. For an academic's take, bookmark Eugene Volokh, et al. On the left, keep up with Daphne Eviatar, Glenn Greenwald, and Dahlia Lithwick at Slate.
Time's Jay Newton Small tweeted that Democrats had also approached Maine's Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) about switching parties:
Snowe says she was also asked to switch but declined.
A spokesman for Snowe says the Maine centrist had "been approached in the past and she has declined," adding that he was unaware of any increased pressure in the last few weeks.
Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman (R) will be the guest of honor at the Kent County GOP dinner in Grand Rapids, Michigan next week.
A possible 2012 Presidential contender, Huntsman will appear next Saturday at the Centennial Country Club to address the swing state audience.
Though Obama won Michigan by 16% last November, the auto industry is in far worse shape now, along with the rest of the state's economy. Such discontent may present opportunities to a GOP challenger. Besides, why else would Huntsman be going there?
The United States is likely to experience more cases of swine flu, the head of the Centers of Disease Control said today. And the disease is likely go become more dangerous.
"We are seeing more cases of swine flu, and we expect to see more cases of swine flu," said Richard Besser, Director of the CDC, at a White House briefing. "I would expect that over time we are going to see more severe disease in this country."
Basser said the CDC is aware of 20 confirmed cases of swine flu in five U.S. states: eight in New York, one in Ohio, two in Kansas, two in Texas, and seven in California. Only one case was severe enough for hospitalization, Basser said.
Basser said the virus in the United States appears to be same strain as the one that has caused over 60 deaths in Mexico.
A Washington Post/ABC News poll released today shows strong support for President Obama as his first 100 days come to a close. But the public is evenly split on Obama's release of interrogation memos and whether to investigate potential abuses.
69% of respondents approve of the job Obama is doing so far. 58% approve of his handling of the economy, and 71% approve of his Iraq policy
Americans are becoming more optimistic as well. 50% of respondents believe the country is on the right direction, compared to 48% who believe it's going in the wrong track. This is the first time since April 2003 that the WaPo/ABC poll has found more Americans optimistic than pessimistic.
But on issues of interrogation policy, Americans are split and show a partisan divide.
55% of Americans approve of Obama's decision to release Bush-era interrogation memos, with 44% disapproving. But the parties are diametrically opposed to each other on this issue: three-quarters of Democrats approve of the release, while 74% of Republicans oppose it. (Independents support the decisions 50%-46%).
Half of Americans (49%) believe America should never engage in torture, with a statistically identical 48% answering we should consider it in some instances.
51% believe there should be an investigation into past interrogation policy, with 47% dissenting. This question again reveals a partisan divide: about 70% of Democrats favor investigating, and about 70% of Republicans oppose it.
When it comes to the political climate in Washington, just 37% believe Obama has reduced partisanship. A similar portion of Americans (34%) said the same thing about President Bush at this point in his first term.
Finally, Congressional Democrats fare better than their Republican counterparts. 45% of Americans approve of the job Democrats are doing, while just 30% say the same of Republicans.
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) has just announced that Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano will testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, her first appearance before Congress since the firestorm errupted over a recent DHS report.
Napolitano will testify at a Homeland Security oversight hearing on May 6.
Republicans have been calling for Napolitano's resignation over an assessment the DHS issued warning of "rightwing extremism."
Among other findings, the report concluded that returning veterans might become radicalized and violent.
Rep. John Carter took to the floor of the House yesterday to call for Napolitano's resignation.
The mother of a Somali pirate detained by the United States is asking President Obama to release her son.
"I appeal to President Obama to pardon my teenager," said Adar Abdirahman Hassan, according to the Associated Press. "I request him to release my son or at least allow me to see him and be with him during the trial."
The suspected pirate, Abdi Wali Abdulqadir Muse, is allegedly one of the four pirates who seized the Maersk Alabama and held Capt. Richard Phillips hostage for several days in a lifeboat. Muse was apprehended by the U.S. Navy just before the other pirates were shot by snipers.
A leader of Hassan's clan said the teenager was not acting under his own free will.
"As a clan elder, I urge the president of America to release this teenager who was tricked into joining pirates," said Abdiwahab Mahmud Gurey, who, like Hassan, lives in Galka'yo, Somalia.
Hassan expressed confidence that the U.S. will treat her son well.
"I was delighted when I heard that my son is in the hands of the Americans because I know America has huge respect for human rights," she told the AP.
Yet Hassan told the AP the potential loss of her son is devestating.
"I sometimes find myself weeping," she said. "The absence of my eldest son brings tears to my eyes...You know the feelings of a mother, it is even stronger than that of a father. When I sleep I wake up shocked and start praying until I cool down. I hope President Obama will hear my plea and let my dear son go."
She added that "gangsters with money" must have coerced her son into piracy.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said that the four pirates were between the age of 17 and 19, contrary to Hassan's claims.
Muse, also identified in press reports as Abduhl Wali-i-Musi, arrived in New York today to face possible federal charges that could carry a life sentence.
There's a meeting Thursday to discuss how to approach the pirate crisis, but that's all you're supposed to know. From Friday's State Department press briefing:
QUESTION: This meeting, this interagency meeting that's taking place today on piracy, could you please enlarge on that, you know? Are you looking at specific proposals? Are you hoping to come up with one thing specific?
MR. WOOD: Sue, for one thing, I don't want to make a habit of talking about internal U.S. Government meetings. But there's a working-level meeting going on today that is going to deal with next steps with regard to the announcement the Secretary made with regard to our anti-piracy efforts. So let me just leave it at that. There's a meeting going on, working level, to start to begin implementation of the initiative the Secretary announced.
QUESTION: Well, if you don't want to make a habit of talking about it, then --
MR. WOOD: Not going to start here.
QUESTION: Well, but the Secretary announced that this meeting was happening two days ago, and last evening --
QUESTION: There was a number of --
QUESTION: -- there was an email, an on-the-record email comment, about the meeting coming out from your office.
MR. WOOD: Mm-hmm. And I think I gave you some of the details --
QUESTION: Actually it was one sentence that gave no details.
MR. WOOD: Well, I think I did better than one sentence, so --
QUESTION: And so, you've already made a habit of talking about this meeting, so why can't you --
MR. WOOD: No, but in getting into the particulars from the podium about --
QUESTION: Can you tell us who's going to be there?
MR. WOOD: I --
QUESTION: Not names, but what agencies are represented?
MR. WOOD: Well, for one thing, I don't have that with me right here. But I don't really want to make -- get into the habit -- I don't even want to begin to talk about internal U.S. Government meetings. We just --
QUESTION: Okay, well, if you don't want us to ask about them, then you shouldn't announce them.
MR. WOOD: Look --
QUESTION: The Secretary said that it --
QUESTION: Is that fair enough?
QUESTION: -- was an interagency meet! ing.
MR. WOOD: Okay.
QUESTION: So can you say what agencies are there?
MR. WOOD: I'm just saying an interagency meeting. I don't want to get into the specifics. I've just said that.
QUESTION: Well, what are the options for next steps then? You said you're looking at next steps. I mean, what do you see as being, you know, possible?
MR. WOOD: Well, I think I outlined those the other day for -- for all of you. I mean, we are looking to see what we can do in terms of coordinating our communication efforts, for trying to see how we can deal with tracking and seizing assets of pirates, looking to see how we can best prosecute these criminals. But I don't have anything beyond what I said the other day.
Again, we're starting -- the process underway right now, we're beginning the implementation of the Secretary's initiative. As you know, there's a meeting on the 23rd in Brussels that Acting Assistant Secretary Phillip Carter will be attending, so there is a lot of movement and activity going on. So when we have more to say, we certainly will. But these are our initial efforts to start to implement that initiative.
QUESTION: Is there some timetable associated with the work of the committee? In other words --
MR. WOOD: I don't think there's any timetable on this yet, James. But we clearly want to move forward as quickly as possible. We're trying, as you know, to set up a contact group meeting very soon. So there's a lot going on, and we'll certainly provide you with updates as we have them.
QUESTION: A new subject?
MR. WOOD: Mm-hmm.
Former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) and John Podesta, former chief of staff to President Clinton, have both turned down offers to be U.S. Ambassador to China, ForeignPolicy.com is reporting.
The two top remaining candidates are retired admiral Bill Owens and former Rep. Jim Leach, a Iowa Republican who endorsed Obama in the election.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the confirmation process is said to be a deterrent for some possible nominees.
"Some people think ambassador jobs are beneath them," an unnamed source told FP. "Others think the process to get confirmed is too big a pain in the ass. Some people don't want to move to China."
Other names apparently under consideration are: Laura D'Andrea Tyson, chairwoman of the Council of Economic Advisers under Clinton; Susan Shirk, a professor at University of California-San Diego; and Ken Lieberthal, former NSC director for Asia and one-time adviser to Hillary Clinton.
As BBR relayed yesterday, the Obamas have chosen a 6-month old, male Portuguese Water Dog from a breeder in Texas--with a little facilitation by the Kennedy family.
Named Charlie by his original owners, the dog was given back to the breeder and "re-homed" with the Obamas. The Washington Post has the back story on the new name:
The girls named it Bo -- and let it be noted that you learned that here first. Malia and Sasha chose the name, because their cousins have a cat named Bo and because first lady Michelle Obama's father was nicknamed Diddley, a source said. (Get it? Bo . . . Diddley?)
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) blasted President Obama on Thursday, arguing that Obama's conduct on his trip to Europe and the Middle East was "shameful."
In an interview with KSFO-AM, Bachmann said Obama had "apologiz[ed] for American activity" to foreign audiences. "I thought it was a very sad reflection and perhaps a true reflection on what our President feels about these issues," Bachmann added.
The Minnesota conservative also accused the president of lying about whether he had bowed to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. Bachmann said it was "highly symbolic" that Obama bowed, adding that he has been "denying it and then lying about it."
Bachmann also lashed out at the President for proposing nuclear disarmament and possibly scaling back on missile defense. Obama is "putting the safety of the American citizens at risk," the congresswoman said.
You can listen to Bachmann's full interview below. Her comments regarding Obama's trip begin at the 2 minute mark.
Somali pirate sources said on Friday that the Norwegian-owned, 23,000-tonne MT Bow Asir tanker captured at the end of March would be released shortly after a $2.4 million ransom was agreed with its owners.
"After much bargaining, my friends reached a $2.4 million ransom deal with the Norwegian ship held near Hobyo," a pirate in nearby Haradheere port told Reuters. [emphasis added]
Pirates in the Gulf of Aden have seized another boat. This one is U.S. owned, but flying an Italian flag. From Reuters:
Pirates seized a U.S.-owned and Italian-flagged tugboat with 16 crew on Saturday in the latest hijacking in the busy Gulf of Aden waterway, a regional maritime group said.
Andrew Mwangura, of the Mombasa-based East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme, said the crew were believed to be unharmed on the tugboat, which he added was operated from the United Arab Emirates.
He said the tugboat was towing two barges at the time of capture but there were no details on their cargo.
"This incident shows the pirates are becoming more daring and violent," Mwangura told Reuters by phone.
PVI allows you to compare the partisan makeup of a congressional district in Maine to a vastly different district in Alaska and get a pretty good idea how good a chance each party has in federal races in each of them.
The formula takes the results of the last two presidential elections (2004 and 2008) and finds out how the district performed relative to the rest of the country. Democrats averaged 51.3 percent of the vote in those two elections, so if Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) got 53 percent and President Obama got 55 percent, Democrats would average 54 percent for that district. Subtract the Democratic performance average for the nation (51.3), round it off, and you get a PVI of D+3.
A few interesting notes:
-The country, as a whole, is voting more and more Democratic, but Cook
Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway (D) announced Thursday that he'll run in the Democratic primary to challenge Sen. Jim Bunning (D-Ky.) The decision pits Conway against Lt Gov. Dan Mongiardo, who lost to Bunning in 2004 and has been endorsed by Gov. Steve Beshear (D).
"This is not a decision I reached easily," Conway said in a video on his website. "I've spoken with my family, community, and national leaders and many others I respect over the last several months. And I've been humbled by their encouragement and support."
Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) and Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) pledged support for the F-22 fighter jet program today despite Defense Secretary Robert Gates calling to cut the program after the construction of 187 jets.
The two lawmakers appeared together at a rally in East Hartford, Conn., the home of a Pratt and Whitney factory that works on the F-22.
"In 1999, the first speech I had to give on the floor of Congress was in defense of the F-22," Larson said, according to WTIC. "It has been a battle ever since then."
"But this is the number one program of the Air Force," Larson added. "This is not a cold war program."
Said Dodd: "We have looked at this carefully, and this technology is needed."
Gates's recent budget involves several changes in military spending that might upend factories in influential lawmakers' districts. The budget will have to make its way through the Armed Services Committee, which is chaulk full of members whose districts depend on defense industry jobs.
Former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) penned on op-ed today blasting President Obama for his "antipathy" towards America.
Santorum cuts right to the chase in his opening sentence: "Watching President Obama apologize last week for America's arrogance - before a French audience that owes its freedom to the sacrifices of Americans - helped convince me that he has a deep-seated antipathy toward American values and traditions."
The selection of Yale Law School Dean Harold Koh to be State Department legal counsel, Santorum continues, confirms Obama's "disdain for American values."
Koh's "transnationalism" stands in contrast to good, old-fashioned notions of national sovereignty, in which our Constitution is the highest law of the land. In the traditional view, controversial matters, whatever they may be, are subject to democratic debate here. They should be resolved by the American people and their representatives, not "internationalized." What Holland or Belgium or Kenya or any other nation or coalition of nations thinks has no bearing on our exercise of executive, legislative, or judicial power.
Santorum lost re-election in 2006 to Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.)
Only 53% of Americans prefer capitalism to socialism, a new Rasmussen poll finds. 20% prefer socialism, and 27% aren't sure.
Respondents under thirty are more friendly to socialism, favoring capitalism by a slim 37%-33%.
The poll also found a striking partisan divide. Republicans prefer free markets by an 11-1 margin, while Democrats are more closely split, with 39% favoring capitalism and 33% preferring socialism.
Despite the surprisingly strong support for socialism, only 14% believe the federal government could run auto companies better than private employees.
In December, 70% of all respondents chose capitalism.
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) penned an op-ed today that cites an influential MIT study on cap-and-trade legislation, despite the author of the study complaining that Republicans have misrepresented the findings.
Bachmann wrote: "According to an analysis by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the average American household could expect its yearly energy bill to increase by $3,128 per year" if cap-and-trade were implemented. The study had been cited by Republicans before, including Minority Leader John Boehner.
The author of the study, MIT's John Reilly, told the St. Petersburg TImes that the $3,128 figure was not in his original study, adding that Republicans had arrived at that number themselves. Reilly estimated the actual cost to taxpayers to be around $30.
"It's just wrong," Reilly said of the GOP number. "It's wrong in so many ways it's hard to begin."
Rep. Pete Visclosky (D-IN) has retained a prominent campaign finance law firm days after it was reported that federal law enforcement officials have been inquiring into his relationship with the now-defunct PMA Group.
A spokesman told The Northwest Indiana and Illinois Times that Visclosky has hired Perkins Cole law firm to assist the FEC compliance.
PMA was raided in November by the FBI under suspicion that the firm's chief, Paul Magliocchetti, may have been funneling money to members of Congress through friends and family members. PMA has given more money to Visclosky than any other member of Congress, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Visclosky chairs the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water and is also a member of the defense subcommitee.
On Friday, the New York Times reported that prosecutors had been inquiring about the relationship between PMA and Visclosky.
Vislosky is one of only a few Democrats to support Rep. Jeff Flake's (R-AZ) call for an ethics investigation into the relationship between PMA and lawmakers.
A spokesman for Visclosky was not immediately available for comment.
The DSCC inducted Norm Coleman into their "Hall of Shame" today.
How many more recounts does Norm Coleman want? How many more delays? How much longer will the Republican Party hold Minnesota's Senate seat hostage?
Coleman can end it today and give Minnesota the two Senators it's entitled to. But he's not going to give up unless we convince him to act. So let's speak with one voice and tell Norm Coleman it's time to go.
Tell Norm Coleman to pack it in, give up the endless court battles, and concede the race so Minnesota has its full representation in Congress.
[snip]
Enough is enough. The people of Minnesota need their fair share of representation in Congress now, and President Obama needs Al Franken working with him in the Senate. We're debating the very survival of our economy, and Minnesotans deserve a voice!
So let's tell him nicely. Let's remind him that all the legal experts say he's done. Let's ask him not to drag this out just for the sake of dragging it out.
Let's speak with one voice and tell Norm Coleman to drop the legal challenges and concede this race!
*UPDATE--A Republican strategist sends over this response:
A poll showing President Obama as polarizing turns Bush critics' asssumptions about the former president on their head, Jonah Goldberg insinuates at The Corner. Also, partisan disagreements aside, Keith Olbermann's tribute to his late mother was a touching tribute, Mike Potemra writes.
House Minority Leader John Boehner has a thing or two to say about hairstyles. During his weekly session with reporters Thursday, the Republican Leader took shots at unsuspecting reporters
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