TPMDC Morning Roundup

Patrick To Announce Senate Pick, Kirk The Favorite
Gov. Deval Patrick (D-MA) will announce today his appointment for interim Senator, at an 11 a.m. press conference. The widespread expectation is that Kennedy family friend Paul Kirk will be appointed to Ted Kennedy's Senate seat, to serve as a caretaker until the January special election.

Obama's Day Ahead
President Obama will chair a 9:15 a.m. ET meeting of the U.N. Security Council. At 12 p.m. ET, he will co-chair, with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, a meeting of the leaders of the Friends of Pakistan. He will depart from New York at 2:20 p.m. ET, arriving at 3:30 p.m. ET in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At 6 p.m. ET, the President and First Lady will greet leaders of the G-20 and their spouses. At 7:30 p.m. ET, Obama will attend a G-20 leaders working dinner.

Biden's Day Ahead
Vice President Biden will spend the day in Washington. In the morning, he will receive the Presidential Daily Briefing, and an economic briefing from National Economic Council Director Larry Summers. In the afternoon, he will receive an update on the Recovery Act, and will hold a call with governors to discuss stimulus implementation. At 4:35 p.m. ET, he will swear in Jeff Zients as Chief Performance Officer and Deputy Director of Management at the Office of Management and Budget. In the evening, he will be in Northern Virginia, at an event for freshman Virginia Reps. Gerry Connolly, Glenn Nye, and Tom Perriello.

U.S. Rejoins Nuke-Test Treaty Session, After Ten-Year Absence
The United States has rejoined a bi-annual conference working for a treaty to ban all nuclear bomb tests -- the first time that America has participated since 1999. The conference includes foreign ministers and envoys from over 100 countries. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will speak later today.

Medvedev Open To Cooperation With U.S. Against Iran
During a joint appearance with President Obama yesterday, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev hinted that the two countries could cooperate on negotiations and sanctions against Iran. Medvedev denied that this was a quid pro quo in the wake of the Obama administration's decision to back away from a missile defense plan -- but he did say that the White House's action "deserves a positive response."

TARP Inspector-General: Government Won't See Full Return On Bailout
Neil Barofsky, the special inspector-general for the TARP program, will tell the Senate Banking Committee today that the government will not see a full return on the bailout investments, despite some banks having repaid at a government profit: "While several TARP recipients have repaid funds for what has widely been reported as a 17 percent profit, it is extremely unlikely that the taxpayer will see a full return on its TARP investment."

Blue Dogs Complain: Pelosi Not Giving Us Cover
The Hill reports that Blue Dog Democrats are complaining that Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders are not providing them the kind of political cover they had in the 2007-2008 Congress, and are instead pushing ahead on bills like health care and energy. "They're seriously endangering their majority," said one anonymous Blue Dog. "With the increased margin and a [Democratic] president, there seems to be a different feeling."