OVERNIGHT MONEY: House tees up farm bill in committee

By Vicki Needham, Erik Wasson, Bernie Becker and Peter Schroeder - 07/10/12 06:20 PM ET

WEDNESDAY'S BIG STORY:

Plowing ahead, in the House: The House Agriculture Committee starts work Wednesday on a $900 billion farm bill that faces plenty of hurdles in the lower chamber.

Agriculture Chairman Frank Lucas (R-Okla.) said Tuesday afternoon that fewer amendments than expected had been filed to the bill that represents a compromise between himself and ranking member Collin Peterson (D-Minn.).

"I have a lot of new underclassmen so they may have a hard time getting their work done ahead of time," he said.

Lucas predicted that he and committee experts "may have a long night ahead of us" evaluating what's being offered.

The markup could wrap up Wednesday but will probably leak into Thursday.

Major amendments blocking the bill's $16 billion for food stamps and ending the sugar quota system are expected.

Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) called the bill an "abomination" because of the food stamps provision.

"We should not set ourselves up as protectors of the wealthy, which seems to be what we are doing in this farm bill," he said.

There is no sign yet that the bill is coming to the floor.

WHAT ELSE TO WATCH FOR

And, we didn't forget: The House will take up another repeal of the healthcare reform law following the Supreme Court decision nearly two weeks ago.

Democrats strongly oppose the bill, and reiterated their arguments that the House is wasting its time because the bill can't get through the Senate.

But Republicans insist the repeal is needed because people are losing insurance access and that the cost of that law is double what Democrats advertised two years ago.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday he wants the Senate to vote again "in the near future" on a repeal.

Got a minute: The Federal Reserve's policy-setting committee on Tuesday will release the minutes of its latest meeting. The result of the June meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee was that the central bank decided to extend by six months its "Operation Twist" — the portfolio rejiggering that has the Fed loading up on long-term debt while selling shorter bonds in an effort to bring down borrowing costs and boost the economy.

Following a few less than stellar jobs reports, markets are on high alert for any indications the central bank might do more to nudge the economy in the right direction, and tomorrow's minutes will be no exception.

Pow-wow: Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is scheduled to meet with the new president of the World Bank, Jim Yong Kim, on Wednesday morning.

Make it in America: Rep. Steny Hoyer (Md.), the No. 2 Democrat in the House, will be joined by fellow House Democrats to roll out new planks in their signature “Make it in America” push. Democrats have been saying that Republicans are fixated on repealing the healthcare law instead of working on boosting the economy.

How hard? Pretty hard: A new Tax Policy Center paper underscores what you might have already guessed: as Washington considers tax reform, it will be a challenge for policymakers to squeeze enough money from rolling back tax breaks to pay for lower rates.

As Bloomberg notes, Mitt Romney's plan — which would include a 20 percent across-the-board cut in individual rates — would require him to scrap an estimated $320 billion related to tax preferences in 2015.

The paper maintains that, in general, the task of tax reform would be made more difficult if officials want to maintain the progressivity in the tax code, as expensive provisions like the home mortgage deduction and incentives for charitable contributions are popular across income levels.

"In conclusion, it is possible to maintain revenues in the face of large marginal tax rate cuts by paring back tax expenditures, but it would be very difficult," the Tax Policy Center wrote.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

MBA Mortgage Index: The Mortgage Bankers Association releases its weekly report on mortgage application volume.

Wholesale Inventories: The Commerce Department will release its wholesale trade report for May that includes sales and inventory statistics from the second stage of the manufacturing process. The sales figures reflect little about personal consumption and do not move the market.

Trade Balance: The Department of Commerce releases its May data on exports and imports of U.S. goods and services.

WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED

— Obama team on Capitol Hill to give Dems tips on attacking Romney
— Fitch: US still AAA nation, but dangers loom
— Online tax to be offered as amendment to small-business bill
— Job openings increased in May
— Administration supports Senate small-business tax cut
— GOP: Supreme Court ruling opens door for new tax powers
— White House informs Congress that Canada will join Asia-Pacific trade talks
— UN arms trade treaty shouldn't regulate ammunition
— Top US trade official urges congressional action on Russia
— Report shows Senate tax-relief bill would create nearly 1 million jobs
— Small-business optimism takes a tumble
— Interest rate scandal attracts Hill scrutiny
— Hatch introduces amendment extending all Bush-era tax cuts
— Senate moves on small-business bill
— Hoyer: GOP ‘dead, flat wrong’ on tax hike for small businesses