TPMDC Morning Roundup

CBO: Budget Deficit Reaches Record $1.4 Trillion
The federal budget deficit for the just-completed fiscal year 2009 reached $1.4 trillion, according to the Congressional Budget Office. This record number was due to multiple factors, including falling tax revenues due to the recession, corporate bailouts and stimulus spending. This was triple the previous record of $459 billion, which was reached last year.

Obama's Day Ahead
President Obama will have lunch at 12 p.m. ET with business leaders. At 2:30 p.m. ET, he will visit the National Naval Medical Center Marine Wounded Warrior basketball game. At 3:15 p.m. ET, Obama and Vice President Biden will meet with Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner, and they will meet at 3:30 p.m. ET with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. At 5 p.m. ET, Obama will play basketball with cabinet secretaries and members of Congress.

Biden's Day Ahead
Vice President Biden will attend President Obama's morning briefings, which will include an update from Biden on stimulus implementation. He will campaign this afternoon in Alexandria, Virginia, for Democratic gubernatorial nominee Creigh Deeds. Later, he will return to the White House for meetings with Obama, Tim Geithner and Hillary Clinton.

AP: Biden A Political Workhorse For Obama
The Associated Press reports that Vide President Biden has emerged as a key political figure for the Obama administration, traveling the country to raise money and campaign for Democratic candidates in the 2009 and 2010 elections. "He has a little more freedom and flexibility to do things than the president does," said Ron Klain, Biden's chief of staff. "There are places where you probably can't employ the president, things that are harder for the president to do and easier for the vice president to do."

Obama Appointing Openly Gay Ambassador
President Obama will be appointing David Huebner, a corporate attorney and gay rights activist, as his ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa. Huebner will be only the third openly gay ambassador in the country's history, and the first appointed by Obama.

Rove: GOP Winning The Health Care Debate
In his latest Wall Street Journal column, Karl Rove says that the polls show the Republicans winning the health-care debate, and Democrats face greater perils ahead: "The numbers may get worse for Democrats if they pass a health-care bill. Why? Because Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D., Mont.) wants to frontload the reforms with distasteful things. Under his plan, tax hikes and Medicare and Medicaid cuts kick in immediately, while new benefits are delayed for two-and-a-half years. Voters likely won't warm to reforms that slam them next year while promising benefits down the road."

Levi Johnston Posing For Playgirl
Levi Johnston, the 19-year old father of Sarah Palin's grandson, will be posing nude for Playgirl. A formal agreement has not yet been reached, but Johnston's attorney said it is a "foregone conclusion." Johnston has been training for the photo shoot.