Chuck Schumer

Spokesman: Schumer Open To Public Option Negotiations, But They Haven't Started

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 9:56PM

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

In light of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's statement tonight--that he welcomes negotiations on a public option compromise--Sen. Chuck Schumer's spokesman Brian Fallon emails a statement to TPMDC. He says discussions with centrists, such as they are, are in the earliest stages.

"Leading up to tonight's vote, some senators expressed a desire to discuss the public option currently in the Senate bill. Of course, Senator Schumer did not rule that out. But no such talks have yet taken place, and there is not any compromise at hand beyond what Leader Reid has already inserted into the bill. Senator Schumer remains a strong proponent of the opt-out, level playing field public option."

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) told TPMDC earlier today that Schumer had been tasked as the point man in negotiations between senators who support a public option, and those who prefer a "trigger" compromise.

This statement seems to suggests that those discussions are in their infancy, whatever Schumer's role in them is.

Barack Obama

Lieberman Repeats Claim That Public Option Not Part Of 2008 Presidential Campaign

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 9:15PM

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT)

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) raised hackles among liberals earlier this week when he claimed that the public option wasn't a part of the 2008 presidential campaign. He repeated that claim to reporters tonight, though acknowledged, when pressed, that then-candidate Barack Obama did in fact include a public option in his campaign health care proposal.

"This is a kindof 11th hour addition to a debate that's gone on for decades," Lieberman told reporters tonight. "Nobody's ever talked about a public option before. Not even in the presidential campaign last year."

I asked in response, "How do you reconcile your contention that the public option wasn't part of the presidential campaign given that all three of the [leading Democratic] candidates had something along the lines of the public option in their white papers?'

Read more »

Harry Reid

Reid: 'I Welcome Schumer, Landrieu, And Carper, As They Work On Public Option Compromise'

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 8:51PM

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

After a successful vote to begin debate on a landmark health care bill. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid addressed the news, first reported by TPMDC, that conservative Democrats are working with public option supporter Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on a compromise.

"I welcome Sen. Schumer, Landrieu and Carper--Landrieu said that they're working together on a public option that's acceptable to [all parties]."

Asked by TPMDC about Schumer's role in the negotiations, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) applauded his colleague. "Senator Schumer, when he's not hunting, works with a lot of different individuals on a lot of different points," Nelson said. "He was the one that came up with the idea of opting out--I don't think it sold very well, but he has the ability to be very pragmatic about a lot of these issues, and that makes him very important in the process."

Public option stalwart Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) said he hopes that triggers aren't ultimately affixed to the public option, but isn't alarmed that Reid isn't tamping down on the negotiations.

"That's been Harry from the very beginning. He's always said that, and he's always meant it," Rockefeller said.

Late update: Schumer spokesman Brian Fallon emails a statement to TPMDC. He says discussions with centrists, such as they are, are in their earliest stages. "Leading up to tonight's vote, some senators expressed a desire to discuss the public option currently in the Senate bill. Of course, Senator Schumer did not rule that out. But no such talks have yet taken place, and there is not any compromise at hand beyond what Leader Reid has already inserted into the bill. Senator Schumer remains a strong proponent of the opt-out, level playing field public option."

Health Care

Senate Agrees To Debate Health Care Bill

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 8:08PM

Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL)

On a perfectly partisan, 60-39 vote, the Senate agreed tonight to debate and amend a far-reaching health care bill. That debate will get started in earnest after Congress returns from next week's Thanksgiving recess. Democrats and Republicans expect to offer hundreds of amendments (each of which will be held to a 60 vote threshold) and debate for several weeks before holding yet another procedural supermajority vote--to end debate. If that gets 60 votes, then there will be an up-or-down vote on passage of the bill.

If the bill passes it will likely undergo yet more changes in conference with House negotiators. The "conference report" that emerges from that process can't be amended, but can be filibustered in the Senate, so will likely require 60 votes for passage. Only after both chambers have passed the conference report can the bill be sent to President Obama for a signature.

Health Care

Spokesman: Schumer's Not Initiating Any Trigger Negotiations

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 4:34PM

Sen. Chuck Schumer's spokesman Brian Fallon says his boss stands foursquare behind the opt out public option, and any suggestion that he's been involved in negotiations regarding a triggered public option are false:

"Since Leader Reid announced the opt-out public option would be included in the Senate bill, Senator Schumer has not approached anyone about compromises," Fallon said in a statement to TPMDC. "He is fully behind the level playing field opt-out, which he himself helped advance."

That's a direct contradiction to the assertion in this post, by a Democratic aide, that Schumer recently approached Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) about a public option compromise. But it doesn't address Landrieu's contention, that Schumer is a point man in behind the scenes negotiations regarding a potential trigger compromise.

We'll try to get more clarification on that last point.

Chuck Schumer

Dem Aide: Schumer Dealmaking On Public Option "Inappropriate"

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 3:28PM

Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY)

The plot thickens!

A Senate Democratic aide tells me that folks aren't too happy with the news that Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is negotiating a public option "trigger compromise with members of the caucus.

"He went on his own to talk to Landrieu about the trigger option," the aide says. "That's rather unseemly, especially for Schumer to have reached out to Landrieu before we had the vote. It's very inappropriate."

Obviously there are plenty of reasons for plenty of people to say they're upset about this. But the fact that Schumer began these discussions before today's vote does seem notable, given that Harry Reid was supposed to be negotiating for the votes.

Landrieu and her fellow conservative Democrats have been very adamant today that the public option as it is will earn this health care bill a filibuster. Schumer is apparently involved in discussions with them, and other members, to reach a compromise.

AARP

AARP To Reid: Congrats On Your Bill, But We're Still Thinking

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 3:12PM

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

The good folks at AARP endorsed the House health care bill, and it seems likely that they'll do the same with the Senate bill. But they're not ready just yet. In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid obtained by TPMDC, AARP CEO Addison Barry Rand says the senior citizens association wants tonight's vote to succeed, but is still evaluating the proposal.

"This comprehensive, health reform legislation moves us one important step closer to enacting historic legislation to control skyrocketing costs, improve quality and expand access to affordable care," the letter reads. "We strongly urge the Senate to vote for cloture this Saturday to begin debate on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.... After further analysis, we will send you a more detailed letter of our views of the legislation."

You can read the entire thing here.

Blanche Lincoln

Lincoln: "I'll Filibuster A Public Option Bill"

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 3:00PM

Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)

Conservative Democrats are making it very clear that they'll switch their vote and kill the bill down the line if the public option doesn't get stripped out of it.

"Let me be perfectly clear," Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) said on the floor of the Senate. "I am opposed to a new government administered health care plan as a part of comprehensive health insurance reform, and I will not vote in favor of the proposal that has been introduced by Leader Reid as it is written.... I've already alerted the Leader and I'm promising my colleagues that I'm prepared to vote against moving to the next stage of consideration as long as a government-run public option is included."

That's pretty compatible with what Mary Landrieu told reporters earlier this afternoon.

"I believe it's going to be very clear at some point very soon that there are not 60 votes for the current provision in the bill, and that the leader and the leadership are going to have to make a decision and I trust that they will figure out how to do that," Landrieu said.

Blanche Lincoln

60! Blanche Lincoln Says She'll Support Health Care Debate

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 2:22PM

Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)

Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) says she's in for a health care debate, where she'll try to make the bill more like the Finance Committee package.

"Although I do not agree with everything in this bill, I have concluded that it is more important that we begin this debate," she said. "I will vote in support of cloture to debate this bill."

Her decision comes as Republicans gear up to attack the vote--on the question of whether to debate the bill--as a vote for the health care bill itself.

Now all the hold outs are on the record. Nelson, Lincoln and Landrieu will all vote yes. At this point, Democrats just need to make it to 8 pm without any surprises, and then they can call it a day.

Health Care

Landrieu To Reid: No Triggers, No Bill--Negotiating Compromise With Schumer

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 1:41PM

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE)

After announcing her intent to support a health care debate this afternoon, Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) told reporters she thinks Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will soon have to choose between a triggered public option and no health care bill. She also says Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY)--the third-ranking Democrat in the Senate one of its most fierce and vocal public option advocates--has been tasked as a point man on the issue.

"I believe it's going to be very clear at some point very soon that there are not 60 votes for the current provision in the bill, and that the leader and the leadership are going to have to make a decision and I trust that they will figure out how to do that," Landrieu told reporters.

Landrieu has been in negotiations with a number of centrist senators about a compromise that would eliminate the public option, except in states where insurance remains unaffordable. Interestingly, though, Schumer is playing a big role in that process.

Read more »

Mary Landrieu

Landrieu To Vote For Health Care Debate

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 12:30PM

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA)

The suspense has lifted. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) will announce on the Senate floor this afternoon that she will vote to debate health care legislation.

When she does, she will join her colleague Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), another conservative Democrat, in the "yes" column. The lone holdout at this point is Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), who has yet to publicly announce her intentions.

Health Care

White House Keeping Close Watch Over Health Care Debate

Christina Bellantoni | November 21, 2009, 12:15PM

President Barack Obama

A White House source tells TPMDC they are "monitoring" today's Senate debate, but wouldn't tip off whether President Obama is making last minute phone calls to the holdout Democrats.

Volunteers with the DNC's Organizing for America are flooding Senate switchboards, and as we noted earlier, Sarah Palin is asking her fans to make calls and help "KILL THE BILL tonite."

The White House also is pushing back on critics who blast the health care bill as too long.

Communications director Dan Pfeiffer wrote on the White House blog late last night: "Since some opponents of reform seem too obsessed with the length of the Senate health insurance reform bill to even bother looking at what's in it for American families, we thought we'd make it a little easier for them to find some key of provisions they're working so hard to kill."

He highlights eight elements of the bill the White House likes the most.

Read Obama's statement of administration policy on the Senate bill here.

Late Update: The president can't be watching too closely - Obama is golfing this afternoon.

Abortion

Stupak Fires Back At GWU Study, Says Abortion Amendment No Big Thang

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 11:16AM

Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI)

Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI) takes issue with a George Washington University study, which found that his anti-abortion amendment to House health care legislation would ultimately cause insurance companies to stop covering abortions altogether.

"The idea that insurers will stop providing abortion services because of the Stupak-Ellsworth-Pitts amendment is nothing more than speculation," Stupak says, in a statement to TPMDC. "There is no language in this amendment that in any way prohibits private health insurance companies from offering these services."

To the contrary, the amendment clearly states, "nothing in this section shall restrict any nonfederal QHBP offering entity from offering separate supplemental coverage for abortions for which funding is prohibited under this section." The language in Stupak-Ellsworth-Pitts is completely consistent with Hyde language, which in its 30 years of existence has not inhibited private health insurers from offering abortion services. There is no reason to believe a continuation of this policy would suddenly change that.

It should also be pointed out that the Federal Employee Health Benefit plan, with more than 8 million members, does not allow abortion coverage. Yet the companies that offer abortion free plans to federal employees also offer plans with abortion coverage to private individuals. Given insurance companies are already offering separate plans with and without abortion coverage it seems unlikely it will be a significant hardship to continue to do so on the Exchange.

The GWU study concluded that insurance companies would respond to the abortion restrictions in the Stupak amendment by whittling down abortion coverage over time until they stop offering it altogether--a business decision not strictly mandated by the legislation itself, but the impact would be the same. .

David Broder

Reid Slams Broder As A Retiree Who 'Writes A Column Once In A While'

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 10:47AM

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid may have just endeared himself to liberal bloggers across the land. This morning, he took some heat from Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who cited a Washington Post column to attack health care reform:

"In tomorrow's Washington Post, David Broder, their distinguished senior columnist, certainly not a political conservative, expresses his reservation as a citizen about the steps that we could be about to take," McConnell said.

Reid couldn't have been less impressed. "To focus on a man who has been retired for many years and writes a column once in a while is not where we should be."

No doubt the most hilarious moment of the day. But...sour grapes?

Late update: You want video? I got video!

Health Care

Senate Debates Historic Health Care Bill

Brian Beutler | November 21, 2009, 10:14AM

Sen. McConnell (R-KY) Sen. Reid (D-NV)

We'll be following today's proceedings live from the U.S. Capitol, gavel-to-gavel. Check in all day for breaking updates.

Read more »

Tea Party

Tea Partiers Admit Defeat In Health Care Fight?

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 21, 2009, 12:29AM

TPMDC just obtained an extraordinary email from inside the Tea Party Patriots movement. As the Senate prepares to open debate on a health care reform bill tomorrow, tea partiers appear to be admitting defeat in their push to stop reform and are promising a "change in tactics" movement leaders say will appease the "outrage and frustration" among tea partiers over the movement's failure to stop a Democratic health care bill from moving forward on a path to final passage.

Read more »

Health Care

Senate Switchboards On Fire As Health Care Calls Flood Zone

Christina Bellantoni | November 20, 2009, 6:48PM

Women at a switchboard

We've heard all day about senate offices getting flooded with phone calls about the upcoming vote on the health care bill tomorrow.

As we reported earlier, Organizing for America is doing a call blast urging supporters to ask their senators to back the first procedural vote to start debate. Republicans also have been working the phones to ask senators to block the bill.

An aide to a Senate Democrat tells TPMDC their boss' phone rang so frequently today, the lines were busy for hours.

The calls "continued to fill our voicemail box over and over again," the aide said.

The overflow prompted another flood of calls to state offices. The majority of calls to this senator, who already supports the legislation, were in favor of the bill.

Health Care

Obama Administration: We (Heart) Senate Health Care Bill

Christina Bellantoni | November 20, 2009, 5:59PM

Pres. Barack Obama and Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV)

The White House has released a statement of administration policy about the Senate health care bill that will receive its first test vote tomorrow.

If the headline above sounds familiar, so does the statement. They released a very similar one before the House health care vote earlier this month.

"They have forged a strong consensus that represents an historic step forward," the administration said of both the House and Senate bills.

Each statement talks about the bill being "the product of unprecedented cooperation and countless hours of hard work by Members of the Senate who share the President's conviction that the Nation cannot wait another year for health insurance reform."

The biggest difference - the statement on the House talked about its strong public option.

The Senate statement lauds that the bill "includes important health care delivery system and insurance reforms and cost-containment initiatives, and it would extend the solvency of Medicare's hospital insurance trust fund."

Statement in full after the jump.

Read more »

Ben Nelson

Tomorrow's Health Care Vote: A Cheat Sheet

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 5:40PM

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), Senator Max Baucus (D-MT)

With Ben Nelson now in the "yes" column, there are now two known Democratic hold outs on tomorrow's health care vote: Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR).

Landrieu told reporters today that she'll likely make an announcement tomorrow morning. Lincoln, on the other hand, has been unreachable, and it's unclear if, or when, she'll announce her intent publicly before the vote, which will come at 8 p.m. tomorrow night.

It's probably a safe guess that, if at the end of the day, there's something standing between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and 60 votes on the motion to debate to his bill, he won't hold the vote. As unlikely as that is, here are the potential hangups.

Read more »

FL-SEN

Rubio Has No Plans To Meet With Palin Next Week, Camp Says

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 20, 2009, 5:17PM

Fmr. St. Rep. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Fmr. Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist

Though he had nothing but praise for Sarah Palin, a spokesperson for Marco Rubio told TPMDC this afternoon that Rubio has no plans to to meet up with Palin when she's in Florida hawking her bestselling book next week.

"It's unlikely," Rubio spokesperson Alex Burgos said when asked about a Rubio-Palin joint appearance during the three days Palin will spend crisscrossing Florida starting Monday. "The plan is for Marco to be in Miami with his family for Thanksgiving next week."

Burgos said that Rubio and Palin haven't spoken so far during Senate primary, but hastened to add that Rubio has nothing but good things to say about the former Alaska governor. "Marco has a positive opinion of her and what she's done in Alaska," Burgos said of Palin. "She is definitely someone who's support he'd very much appreciate."

Read more »

Chuck Schumer

Is Chuck Schumer Taking Temperature On Carper's Public Option Compromise?

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 5:15PM

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

I'd missed this before, but check out what Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) told reporters last night about conservative Democrats' push for something like a public option trigger mechanism.

"Senator Carper has been trying to help forge a compromise and I'm very proud of his efforts, and he's still at work, I understand, on that, so is Senator Schumer. They've been trying to negotiate this compromise among the various factions for a while and I think actually we're getting closer. We're not there yet. But we're a lot closer than we were two months ago, where it was just a logjam."

Schumer's name, in this context, is interesting. It's possible that she simply means Schumer is talking to all parties, trying to get everybody on the same public option page as he has been for months. But it certainly sounds like she's saying he's taking the caucus' temperature on this Carper compromise, which I outlined here.

Read more »

Capitol Hill Tea Party

Busting Rhymes In The Name Of Tea Parties

Christina Bellantoni | November 20, 2009, 5:07PM

Rapper Hi Caliber

Don't call Hi Caliber a Republican rapper.

He prefers conservative hip hop artist, and has lent his rhyme to the tea party movement.

Cal, who wouldn't give his full name because he says he's been threatened by "liberals," starred in a FreedomWorks-produced video called "Patriotic People."

He rhymes: "Politicians need the truth, it will set you free, and I hope you paid attention to the march on D.C. ...Liberalism is like a cancerous tumor, just look at Harry Reid, Pelosi and Chuck Schumer."

TPMDC caught up with Cal, 34, a resident of the Jersey Shore.

"I am not a fan of Bush, and I'm not a rank and file Republican. I'm a conservative," he said.

Cal said he meets Democrats and Libertarians at the tea parties, and said it's unfair for liberals to call the group racist or redneck.

"I support the tea party movement because I feel they are the only people in the America who are not following lock-step, rank-and-file one of the political parties," he said.

Read more »

Bill Owens

Owens Winning The Absentee Ballots In NY-23

Eric Kleefeld | November 20, 2009, 5:03PM

Conservative Party Candidate Doug Hoffman, Rep. Bill Owens (D-NY)

The absentee ballot count is nearly completed in the NY-23 special election, with the new Democratic Rep. Bill Owens on track to gain votes in the process.

With only 813 ballots left to be counted, the Watertown Daily Times has Owens ahead by 3,398 votes over Conservative Party nominee Doug Hoffman, with an Owens lead of 253 votes within the absentees themselves.

The early absentee figures had given a mistaken impression of Hoffman gaining, because they had come mainly from counties that Hoffman carried on election day. The remaining ballots are more than not from pro-Owens counties, so he could potentially expand his lead a little bit further.

Owens was sworn in two weeks ago, after Hoffman had conceded the election. The correction of routine clerical errors, however, narrowed Owens' margin from 5,000 votes to about 3,000, leading Hoffman to take back his concession. Wednesday night, Hoffman charged that the election was stolen: "ACORN, the unions and Democratic Party were scared, and that's why they tampered with the ballots of voters in NY-23."

Tea Party

Tea Partiers Plan Anti-Cloture Vote Rally In D.C. Tomorrow

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 20, 2009, 4:09PM

The Tea Party Patriots just issued an urgent plea to followers across the country in advance of tomorrow's procedural vote on a health care reform package in the Senate. The group is calling on Tea Partiers across the country to "Converge on the Capitol" tomorrow at 1 p.m. for yet another protest rally opposing reform.

"It's not too late to kill the bill," the Tea Party Patriots "National Coordinator Team" wrote in an email sent to supporters this afternoon.

Read more »

Health Care

Sen. Landrieu Remains Undecided On Eve Of Test Health Care Vote

Christina Bellantoni | November 20, 2009, 4:04PM

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA)

Several conservative Democrats have signaled they will vote with the party to bring the health care bill to the Senate floor for debate, but Sen. Mary Landrieu is still on the fence.

TPMDC's Brian Beutler is on the scene at the Department of Health and Human Services, where Landrieu (D-LA) joined an Adoption Day event.

"I haven't made a final decision, because I literally have been...reading the bill, and that's going to continue 'til about 6 or 7 tonight, and then after I have all the information in front of me I'm gonna make a final decision."

Landrieu said she had been leaning against voting "yes" on the motion to proceed until a meeting with Majority Leader Harry Reid yesterday, which tilted her into "neutral" territory.

She said she will likely release a statement regarding her final decision in the morning.

Tim Pawlenty

Pawlenty Scraps State Campaign Finance Program -- Which Was Helping Republicans!

Eric Kleefeld | November 20, 2009, 3:53PM

Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN)

Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN) made an interesting move in a series of unilaterally-imposed budget cuts, the Star-Tribune reports, by suspending a tax-refund program that partially reimbursed small political donations -- and, it turns out, was benefitting the state Republicans much more than the Democrats.

The program gave taxpayers a $50 refund if they made a political donation of at least that amount. State records show that donors to Republicans were claiming $2.9 million in these refunds, compared to only $1.1 million in refunds claimed by Democratic donors.

Give Pawlenty some points for consistency. It appears that he isn't just against public financing of campaigns when it helps the Democrats. He's against it when it helps Republicans, too.

House '10

DCCC Beating NRCC In Money Game

Eric Kleefeld | November 20, 2009, 3:00PM

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH)

Republicans may have high hopes for picking up House seats in 2010. But for now, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is easily outpacing the National Republican Congressional Committee in fundraising and cash on hand, for the filing period that ended October 31.

The DCCC raised $3.76 million, spent $3.98 million, and has $14.25 million cash on hand, with $3.3 million in debts.

The NRCC raised $3.44 million, spent $3.59 million, and has $4.17 million on hand, with $2 million in debts.

Subtracting each group's debt from its cash on hand, the DCCC has an effective net worth of $10.95 million, to only $2.17 million for the NRCC.

Both parties spent more than they took in for October, due to the NY-23 special election -- in which the Democrats picked up a Republican-held seat, and activists conservatives forced the moderate Republican nominee out of the race, in favor of a conservative third-party candidate.

Health Care

With Reid's Support Wyden And Baucus To Cosponsor 'Free Choice' Amendment

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 2:33PM

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT)

If this amendment passes, it could significantly change--and most experts would say improve--the Senate health care reform bill.

As part of an agreement hashed out at the end of the Finance Committee mark up process, Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) will join forces to amend the Senate health care bill with Wyden's "Free Choice Act." If it can attract 60 votes, it would give low- and middle-class Americans with employer-provided insurance the option of purchasing subsidized insurance in the exchanges.

Baucus and Wyden have the support of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV).

"Senator Wyden has worked tirelessly to reform our health system, and I am pleased to have his support for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act," Senator Reid said. "I will support the inclusion of his proposal for workers whose employer coverage is unaffordable but are not able to access the exchange."

Sixty is a tough climb. It would have likely been impossible under the original terms of the Wyden amendment, which would have opened the exchanges up to everybody. This is a scaled down version of that, and it will be a hard amendment for Democrats to vote against.

Health Care

Tag Team: Obama, Biden, Interest Groups Push On Health Care

Christina Bellantoni | November 20, 2009, 2:24PM

OFA Organizers Mitch Stewart and Jeremy Bird

The White House, Democratic National Committee and pro-health care groups are going full force to build support in advance of tomorrow test vote on the Senate health care bill.

President Obama had nothing on his public schedule following a return from his 8-day trip to Asia, and administration sources said they believe he and the White House team are pushing senators to at least vote to bring the bill to the floor. So far, they've had good news today as conservative Democrats agree to that first step.

Vice President Joe Biden, who is celebrating his 67th birthday home in Delaware today, has been on the phone with lawmakers to bend their ears and ask for their support on the health care bill.

The DNC used the Obama Twitter feed today to urge: "The senate has unveiled an excellent health reform bill. Call your senators and ask them to move forward."

Organizing for America is asking supporters to phone Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and OFA volunteers showed up yesterday on Capitol Hill when Reid released the bill.

Read more »

Sarah Palin

Who's Palin Backing In FL-Sen? Dems Want To Know

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 20, 2009, 1:41PM

Fmr. St. Rep. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Fmr. Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist

The Sarah Palin roadshow rolls into Florida next week, and Democrats want to know if Palin will take any time off from Going Rogue to wade into the state's contentious GOP senate primary.

The DSCC sent Palin and open letter this afternoon calling on the former Alaska governor to take a stand in the race between Gov. Charlie Crist and Marco Rubio. The primary is swiftly becoming the next NY-23, with Rubio taking the role of insurgent Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman and Crist increasingly worried he'll be Scozzafavaed. In the New York race, Palin endorsed Hoffman, helping to lead what eventually became a sprint away from the GOP nominee by most national Republicans.

Now the DSCC wants to know -- will Palin do it again?

Read more »

Blanche Lincoln

OOPS! Durbin Walks Back Statement Suggesting Lincoln's Health Care Vote Is In The Bag

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 12:28PM

Earlier today, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) told reporters that Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)--a vulnerable incumbent, and a key health care swing vote--had confided in Majority Leader Harry Reid that she'd made up her mind about tomorrow's test vote on health care reform.

That must've touched off some nerves, because he's now issued a statement walking back that contention.

"In a conversation with reporters earlier today, some of my remarks regarding Senator Lincoln were unclear and have been incorrectly interpreted," Durbin's statement reads. "Let me be clear: Senator Lincoln has had a number of conversations with Sen. Reid about the health care reform legislation. She has asked important questions and there has been a positive and healthy give and take. But Sen. Lincoln has not yet signaled her intention as to how she will vote on tomorrow's cloture motion."

Back on the fence, I guess? You can read the entire statement below the fold.

Read more »

Ben Nelson

Nelson: Let's Debate This Health Care Bill

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 12:13PM

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE)

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) just announced that he will vote yes tomorrow on a motion to proceed to debate on Senate health care legislation, though he says he will filibuster the bill if parts of it are not tailored to his liking during the amendment process.

"This weekend, I will vote for the motion to proceed to bring that debate onto the Senate floor," Nelson says. "The Senate should start trying to fix a health care system that costs too much and delivers too little for Nebraskans."

"In my first reading," Nelson said, "I support parts of the bill and oppose others I will work to fix. If that's not possible, I will oppose the second cloture motion--needing 60 votes--to end debate, and oppose the final bill.

Read more »

Barack Obama

Poll: Obama Still Beats Palin And Other GOPers, But Palin Improves A Little

Eric Kleefeld | November 20, 2009, 11:54AM

President Barack Obama and Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin

The new national survey from Public Policy Polling (D) finds that President Obama continues to hold a national lead over Sarah Palin and other potential Republican challengers -- but interestingly enough, Palin has closed the gap just a little.

The numbers: Obama leads Palin by 51%-43%, is ahead of Mike Huckabee by 49%-44%, leads Mitt Romney by 48%-43%. The margin of error is ±3%. As a frame of reference, in 2008 the Obama-Biden ticket beat the McCain-Palin ticket by 53%-46%.

A month ago, Obama was ahead of Palin by 52%-40%, ahead of Huckabee by 47%-43%, and ahead of Romney by 48%-40%. Paul was not tested.

Obama's approval rating in the poll is 49%, with 46% disapproving, down from 51%-43% last month.

"Barack Obama is now in a slightly weaker position than he was a year ago at this time," said PPP president Dean Debnam, in the press release. "His leads against Huckabee and Romney are smaller than his margin of victory against John McCain and his approval's dropped below 50%. It's not a dire situation but he needs to reverse the current trend."

Barack Obama

Fear Factor: The Four Ways Republicans Say Obama Will Kill You Now

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 20, 2009, 11:45AM

Nidal Hasan, Pres. Obama, Khalid Sheik Mohammed

It's been a week since Attorney General Eric Holder announced that five terror suspects will be transferred from Guantanamo Bay to New York City to face trial. There are still a lot of questions to be answered about logistics, and it will likely be months before the first suspect sets foot in a federal courtroom.

Republicans have already told us what's going to happen, though: If you let President Obama have his way, you will die.

The GOP has returned to a familiar line on Obama and national security in the days since Holder's announcement. It's time to be afraid again, they say, hearkening back to the days of duct tape and Orange alerts even some Republicans thought they left behind on Election Day 2008.

So grab an assault rifle and keep the phone number for Operation TIPS close -- here are the four ways Republicans say Obama is putting your life at risk.

Read more »

Barack Obama

Obama's Approval Goes Below 50% In Gallup Poll

Eric Kleefeld | November 20, 2009, 11:40AM

President Barack Obama

President Obama's approval rating has fallen below 50% in the Gallup poll for the first time, the organization has announced.

The full number will be released at 1 p.m. ET. (Late Update: The number has been posted, with 49% approval to 44% disapproval.)

As Gallup has previously noted, every president since World War II, except for John F. Kennedy, eventually went below 50%. The shortest time for such a fall belongs to Gerald Ford at three months, while the longest (except for Kennedy, and his tragically shortened administration) was Dwight Eisenhower at 63 months, the only president to last through a full first term above 50%.

Falling below 50% doesn't necessarily spell defeat for re-election. Obama's ten months will match the ten months for Ronald Reagan, who was of course re-elected in a landslide, and Bill Clinton only stayed above 50% for four months.

Blanche Lincoln

Reid Knows How Lincoln Will Vote On Early Health Care Test Vote

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 11:30AM

Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)

What will Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) do tomorrow? Perhaps Harry Reid knows.

"She's told Senator Reid," Sen. Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) told reporters after a Friday press conference. "You will have to ask Senator Reid."

Reid has zero margin for error tomorrow, and it's difficult to imagine he would move forward if he knew Lincoln planned to vote "no." A very telling sign in.

Of all the health care reform fence-sitters in the Democratic party, Lincoln is the only one that faces re-election next year, and her prospects don't look particularly good. As a result, pinning down her intentions has been particularly difficult. But in a coup, Congress Daily caught up with Lincoln yesterday, and she hinted that she may be on board herself.

"Without a doubt [Reid] has always stressed ... that you gotta believe in a little bit of the process," Lincoln said. "That's what we're here for. I mean, certainly knowing that not all 100 of us are going to agree on anything, you gotta be able to depend a little bit on the process. It gives you an opportunity to make the case and move things forward."

Lincoln stressed, of course, that she has to finish reading the bill before making up her mind, but said she'd announce her intentions publicly before the vote.

Immigration

It's The Time Of The Season For Illegal Aliens

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 20, 2009, 10:33AM

Rep. Steve King (R-IA)

In this unpredictable world we live in, it's nice to know there are some things you can still rely on -- the sun will rise in the east, winter will follow the fall and conservatives will start talking about immigration as an election year approaches.

To a nearly-empty room in the Rayburn building yesterday afternoon, the Republican members of the House Judiciary committee dusted off their well-worn rhetoric about the hordes of illegal aliens destroying the American way of life and partied like it was 2005, despite an economic downturn that has turned the immigration debate on its head.

"Americans are conditioned to believe that illegal workers are necessary," Rep. Steve King (R-IA) said.

Read more »

Organizing for America

Like An '08 Flashback: OFA Targets Sarah Palin As 'Dangerous'

Christina Bellantoni | November 20, 2009, 10:30AM

Fmr. Gov. Sarah Palin, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)

Organizing for America, the DNC's campaign arm set up to support President Obama's agenda, has a familiar target today: Sarah Palin.

Mitch Stewart, OFA's director, told supporters in an email just now they need help to raise "$500,000 in the next week to push back against Sarah Palin and her special interest allies."

His argument is that Palin's "lies" about health care are "widely covered by the media, then constantly echoed by right-wing attack groups and others who are trying to defeat reform." He uses her death panels meme as an example.

In his book "The Audacity to Win," Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said he was shocked that Palin was such a good fundraising driver for the team.

He writes that he looked at the online fundraising numbers a few hours after Palin made her big debut at the Republican National Convention going after Obama as his only experience being a community organizer.

"I couldn't believe what I saw," Plouffe wrote.

More from the book:

"We had taken in millions of dollars in the three hours since Palin had started speaking. We hadn't even asked for most of it; we had sent out just a single unplanned fund-raising email highlighting her attacks on community organizers, but it was just starting to hit people's in-boxes as I checked the numbers. So the big response from the last three hours meant people were merely venting via contribution. Her speech might have ginned up their base, but apparently it had sent ours into orbit."

He said he thought, "I hope she keeps this up. Sarah Palin has now become our best fund-raiser."

Sounds like that hasn't changed much.

Stewart's email from today after the jump.

Read more »

Health Care

Though Still Undecided, Landrieu Looks Ahead To Health Care Debate

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 9:53AM

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA)

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) spoke to reporters last night about her intentions going forward on health care reform. I wasn't present, but a colleague passes along the audio. The short version is, Landrieu is still uncommitted on tomorrow's test vote on the motion to proceed, but she's looking forward to changing the bill (particularly the public option) on the floor, indicating she doesn't imagine the bill will falter at this stage.

"I have leverage now, I'm using it to the best of my ability, I'm going to use it on the Senate floor," Landrieu said. "I have people voting for me who are liberal Democrats, independents, conservative Democrats, and some moderate Republicans. I understand what my base is. My base is very broad."

And in that spirit, Landrieu says that even if her vote is there tomorrow, it won't necessarily be there down the line.

"The other thing that remains a concern to me is the shape of this public option," she says. "We have made a lot of progress taking it from a robust, government run [plan] to now something that is more mainstream, more narrow, more private sector oriented, I'd like to take it a step or two even further. So that will be debated on the floor. And if it's not done that way, maybe my vote's not there at the end."

Ben Nelson

Landrieu, Nelson Win Goodies As Reid Seeks Their Vote On Reform

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 9:27AM

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE)

Sen. Mary Landrieu's state of Louisiana is still ailing years after Hurricane Katrina devastated its largest city. So Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid could be killing two birds with one stone by including in his health care bill $100 million in federal Medicaid aid for any states (aka, Louisiana) that have suffered a natural disaster in the last seven years. That's much needed help for the poor in Louisiana, and also a sweetener for Landrieu, whose support for health care reform has never been terribly certain.

That appears to be a more justifiable offer from Reid than a separate concession to Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), another health-care fence sitter. In a move that appears designed to win Nelson's initial procedural votes, Reid decided not to include a measure ending anti-trust exemptions for the insurance industry.

Reid originally fought hard to lift the exemption, even testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the need to end insurance companies' monopolistic practices. But his decision may be paying political dividends, as Nelson inches toward supporting a key health care test vote on Saturday.

The only remaining question: What's in it for Arkansas?

AR-SEN

HCAN: Health Care Swing States Want An Up-Or-Down Vote On Reform

Brian Beutler | November 20, 2009, 9:13AM

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE)

Congressional procedure can be confusing even for politicos, but the reform campaign Health Care for America Now has boiled it down. The group has distributed polling data to its largest member organizations indicating that voters in key swing states believe health care shouldn't be stymied by procedural supermajority requirements in the Senate.

The polls were taken in Nebraska, Louisiana, and Arkansas, home of reform skeptics Ben Nelson, Mary Landrieu, and Blanche Lincoln, don't believe their senators should kill reform by voting with Republicans to block either a debate or a vote on the bill.

"In the Senate, before a bill can be voted on, there must be a vote to allow it to be debated," reads the first survey question. "Regardless of whether you support or oppose the health insurance reform plan itself, do you believe that it should be debated on the floor of the Senate?"

In all states, voters overwhelmingly said the Senate health care reform bill should be debated on the floor. Nebraska: 88-9, Louisiana: 82-9, Arkansas: 84-11.

Read more »

Barack Obama

Trouble Ahead For Obama? Congress In Chaos Over Economy

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 20, 2009, 9:11AM

President Barack Obama

President Obama is facing an uprising from some of his allies in Congress over the economy. The Washington Post reports on "a wave of criticism and outright anger directed" at the White House as unemployment numbers continue to rise.

Many of the strongest critics are among Obama's strongest allies on the Hill, and the growing furor threatens to derail Obama's plan to reform the financial sector.

Read more »

John McCain

Poll: McCain In Dead Heat In Potential 2010 GOP Primary For Re-Election

Eric Kleefeld | November 20, 2009, 9:07AM

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)

A new Rasmussen poll finds that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) could potentially be in trouble with Republican voters back home in Arizona, where he's often faced criticism from the right for his views on immigration.

In a potential Republican primary for his 2010 re-election, the 2008 GOP nominee for President is in a dead heat with former Rep. J.D. Hayworth, a hard-line conservative who lost his seat in the 2006 Democratic wave.

The numbers: McCain 45%, Hayworth 43%, with a ±4% margin of error. A third candidate who is already in the race, former Minuteman leader Chris Simcox, gets 4%.

From the pollster's analysis: "For McCain, the GOP Primary appears to be his biggest challenge since no major Democrats in the state have stepped forward yet to run against him."

Health Care

Coburn Drops Demand For Health Care Bill To Be Read Aloud, In Exchange For Day-Long Debate Saturday

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 6:02PM

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)

The headline pretty much says everything you need to know. Senate Republicans, led by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) had been threatening to require that the entire 2000-plus page health care bill be read aloud on the Senate floor once it overcomes its first major procedural hurdle. Now, I've confirmed that the Republicans have agreed to back off this plan in exchange for Democrats allowing a full-day's debate on Saturday, before the scheduled evening vote.

Also, and importantly, as part of a unanimous consent agreement, the Saturday vote will serve as the motion to proceed itself. If there are 60 votes on Saturday, the bill will be on the floor, and debate can begin.

Happy Saturday!

Going Rogue

Internal AP Memo Thanks Writers For Successful 'Literary Treasure Hunt' In Finding Sarah Palin's Book

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 5:59PM

Before Sarah Palin's book, "Going Rogue," was released to the public, the Associated Press published a much-heralded fact check that detailed where her claims didn't line up with reality. It was possible in part because the AP snagged a copy of Palin's book early.

There's a lot to how the AP found the books - and beat their competitors - detailed in a weekly internal newsletter to the company's 4,000 employees and obtained by Talking Points Memo.

Mike Oreskes, a senior managing editor, offers staffers a description of the AP's own work tracking down and fact checking the book and it reads like a spy thriller:

"The AP was determined to get the first copy," Oreskes wrote, detailing how the writers learned a store had "inadvertently placed the book on sale five days before its official Nov. 17 release date."

"They bought a copy, ripped it from its spine and scanned it into the system so it could be read and electronically searched," he wrote. "A NewsNow moved within 40 minutes, followed quickly by multiple leads as details were gleaned from the 413-page manuscript."

Paul Colford, director of media relations for the AP, said the latest edition of "Beat of the Week" newsletter lauding the reporters who tracked down "Going Rogue" showcased the wire service was "dogged enough" to find the book and "be able to echo what was in it before it was in wider circulation."

"There's no greater fox hunt in newsgathering around the publication of a big book than the rush to be the first to get it and say what it says," Colford told TPMDC.

In the newsletter, the AP congratulates the two reporters who found the book for their work, and jabs a bit at the competition. The reporters will share a $500 cash prize awarded to the best beats at the AP each week.

Read the "Going Rogue" portion of the weekly newsletter - which also lauds other reporters' unrelated works - after the jump.

Read more »

Fundraising

DNC Outraises RNC, $11.5M In October

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 5:40PM

DNC Chair Tim Kaine

The Democratic National Committee raised $11.5 million in October, breaking the fundraising record for an off-year election.

A party source tells TPMDC the DNC will report that it has $12.3 million cash on hand and owes $4.4 million.

The Republican National Committee, as we reported earlier, has zero debt and $11.2 million in the bank. They raised $8.7 million.

Year to date and including transfers and in-kind contributions, the DNC has raised $73.3 million. The RNC has raised $76.9 million.

Late Update: The actual filing has the DNC with $12.9 million cash on hand.

NY-23

Owens Leads Hoffman By Insurmountable Margin -- A Greater Lead Than Outstanding Ballots

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 5:38PM

Conservative Party Candidate Doug Hoffman, Rep. Bill Owens (D-NY)

The latest absentee ballot totals from the NY-23 special election show Democratic Rep. Bill Owens leading his Conservative Party opponent Doug Hoffman -- with a greater margin than there are absentee ballots left to be counted.

The Watertown Daily Times reports that Owens leads by 3,105 votes, with 3,072 ballots left to count. It is mathematically impossible for Hoffman to win.

Owens was sworn in two weeks ago, after Hoffman had conceded the election. The correction of routine clerical errors, however, narrowed Owens' margin from 5,000 votes to about 3,000, leading Hoffman to take back his concession.

Last night, Hoffman charged that the election was stolen: "ACORN, the unions and Democratic Party were scared, and that's why they tampered with the ballots of voters in NY-23."

Late Update: Hoffman spokesman Rob Ryan declined to comment specifically on these numbers, as he had not yet seen them in the figures that he gets from the county boards of elections. "We have found certain irregularities," said Ryan. "And when the count is completed, and we take a look -- and we have until Monday to decide whether to file those objections -- we are going to make a decision between now and then on whether and how to proceed."

Blanche Lincoln

Poll: Blanche Lincoln Could Lose In 2010 If She Supports Health Care Bill

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 5:11PM

Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)

A new Zogby poll suggests that Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) could seriously endanger her 2010 re-election by supporting the health care bill.

In initial match-ups, Lincoln leads state Sen. Gilbert Baker by 41%-39%, within the ±4.5% margin of error, and has a healthier lead of 45%-29% over state Sen. Kim Hendren.

In a series of follow-up questions, respondents were then asked how they would feel if Lincoln supported the bill. In a new match-up with Baker, Lincoln's previous edge of 41%-39% turns into a Baker lead of 49%-37%.

Abortion

Flip Flop? Republicans Attack Reid's Abortion Language Even Though Gang Of Six Endorsed It

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 5:08PM

Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME)

Earlier today, I had an interesting exchange with Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) about the abortion language in the Senate health care bill. She seemed to think Harry Reid made the right call--that the provision is similar in many ways to the provision passed by the Senate Finance Committee, which she supported. Interestingly, though, she also said the notorious Group of Six health care negotiators--including staunch conservatives Chuck Grassley and Mike Enzi--also thought that language was acceptable.

"We discussed that for an extensive period of time within the Group of Six and what approach to take that would work, and be consistent, with codifying current law, and we thought that the approach that was embraced in the Senate Finance Committee did that."

Now, of course, Republicans are all up in arms. I asked Snowe whether Grassley and Enzi believed at the time that Reid's approach--segregating federal and private funds to prevent tax payer dollars from financing abortion--was sufficient.

Read more »

Health Care

Dems Push Back On GOP Claims: Abortions Not Covered

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 4:56PM

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

Democrats are jumping all over House Minority Leader John Boehner's claim the Senate health care bill includes an abortion "fee."

The DNC added the remark to its rapid response blast, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's office sends word (again) that nothing in the bill mandates abortion coverage.

Reid's office says "no one will be forced to enroll in a plan that covers abortion services," and the bill requires each state's public plan make available at least one plan that won't cover abortion, a guarantee that pro-life customers can buy a policy that does not offer abortion coverage. (That guarantee doesn't currently exist.)

Read more »

Health Care

Snowe, Carper In Discussions About Trigger-Like Amendment

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 4:48PM

Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME)

This afternoon, I asked Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) whether she'd been looped in on an idea, floated recently by Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE), to tweak her proposal to affix a public option to a trigger mechanism. Indeed she and Carper have discussed his plan, but she remains pessimistic that it'll ever be adopted.

"Tom and I have been working on it, we've had discussions and so on, but, you know, we haven't got down in concrete terms, and he'd like to have my affordability language and so on," Snowe said. "But nevertheless it's still going to require 60 votes so I don't know when that would happen, and frankly I would have preferred that to happen at the outset of this process, rather than going through this convoluted procedural gymnastics."

Read more »

John Boehner

DNC Responds To Boehner 'Monthly Abortion Premium' Claim, Would Like To Believe He Won't Say It Again...

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 4:29PM

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH)

The Democratic National Committee released a rapid response to House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH), who claimed that the Senate Democratic health care bill would result in Americans paying a "monthly abortion premium."

The response cites various media outlets that have fact-checked and/or debunked the claim that the Democratic bill would pay for abortions: "With such clear evidence to the contrary, we'd like to believe that this is the last time we'll hear this scare-tactic from Boehner and the Party of NO... but since all Republicans have to offer are more lies, we're not counting on it."

Filibuster

UPDATE: Reid Files Cloture, First Floor Vote On Senate Health Care Bill Saturday, 8 PM

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 4:23PM

Sen. McConnell (R-KY) Sen. Reid (D-NV)

UPDATE: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid just filed for cloture on the motion to proceed to debate on his health care bill. That pretty much seals it. Unless conservative Democrats take a very public stand by voting "no," the bill unveiled yesterday will be the bill the Senate hashes out on the floor.

The Senate will be in session this Saturday evening, ahead of a scheduled 8 pm cloture vote on the motion to proceed to debate historic health care legislation, TPMDC has learned. Assuming Majority Leader Harry Reid has the 60 votes he needs to leap that hurdle, Democrats will likely have to eat up 30 hours before they can hold the actual vote--at a 51-vote threshold--on the motion to proceed itself. Still with me?

Doing some math, that means the bill won't be cleared for debate and amendments and so forth until, at the earliest, 2 am Monday morning. Even if that happens, the bill will likely have to be read aloud (another two day process) so we're still looking at debate in earnest after Thanksgiving recess.

And since nothing says Saturday night like Senate cloture votes on procedural motions, we'll bring you all the action live.

Barack Obama

Americans Overwhelmingly Say Obama Bowing To Japanese Emperor Was Appropriate -- Even In A Fox Poll

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 3:09PM

President Barack Obama, the Emperor of Japan, the Empress of Japan

Despite a lot of complaining by conservatives, the American people don't actually have any problem with President Obama bowing to the Emperor of Japan -- and that's according to the new Fox News poll.

Respondents were asked: "When the president of the United States is traveling overseas, do you think it is appropriate for him to bow to a foreign leader if that is the country's custom or is it never appropriate for the president to bow to another leader?"

The numbers: Appropriate 67%, Never appropriate 26%. Even a majority of Republican respondents were okay with the bow, by a 53%-40% margin. Democrats weigh in at 84%-9%, and independents 62%-30%.

It's very interesting that Fox actually gave the full context of the bow, telling respondents that it would be the country's custom. There's still no verdict, however, on Joe Biden bowing to Jon Stewart.

Rudy Giuliani

Report: Rudy Will Run For Senate Against Gillibrand -- And Then For President Again

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 2:50PM

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R)

On the heels of a New York Times report that Rudy Giuliani won't be running for Governor of New York, the New York Daily News now reports that Rudy will instead run for Senate against appointed Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand -- and that if elected, he'll use it as a stepping stone to make another run for President!

The Daily News cites a source close to Rudy:

If elected, the source said, he would use that as a stepping stone to run for President in 2012 - and would not run for re-election to the Senate. A Giuliani spokeswoman downplayed the reports.

The New York Senate seat is up for a special election in 2010, due to the appointments of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State and Kirsten Gillibrand as Senator, but would then be up again for its regularly-scheduled election in 2012. Recent polls have actually given Rudy a lead over the lesser-known Gillibrand, though this would quickly be put to test in an actual campaign in a heavily Democratic state. For one thing, Rudy would face a lot of questioning about whether he's just using the Senate seat as a temporary stepping stone to the presidency.

Rudy's spokesperson downplayed the report: "When Mayor Giuliani makes a decision about serving in public office, he will inform New Yorkers on his own."

Late Update: Giuliani's spokeswoman is denying the story.

Abortion

Nebraska Republican: A Vote To Proceed Is A Vote For Abortion

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 2:42PM

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE).

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) better have a chat with his friends on the other side of the aisle.

At a press event this afternoon, Republicans lambasted the Senate health care bill for not adopting the language in the House's Stupak amendment, and reiterated their point that a vote to proceed to debate may as well be a vote for abortion.

"This first vote is the key vote," Nelson's Nebraska colleague, Sen. Mike Johanns, told reporters today.

That statehood camaraderie isn't likely to be lost on Nelson, who will soon have to decide whether to vote to allow the bill to proceed to debate. Nelson has gone to great lengths to distinguish this early procedural votes for more consequential votes down the line. But he says he still hasn't decided what his next move is, and isn't too pleased with the abortion provision in the Senate health care package.

Health Care

GOP Claims Senate Bill Forces Taxpayers To Pay 'Abortion Fee'

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 2:39PM

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH)

House Minority Leader John Boehner's office has posted a long statement blasting the Senate health care plan, specifically targeting the abortion provisions with an accusation it levies an "abortion premium fee."

As we have been reporting, abortion has been a major negotiating point, though the Senate version of the health care bill seems to be winning approval from pro-choice lawmakers today.

Boehner (R-OH) claims on his blog that "a monthly abortion premium will be charged of all enrollees in the government-run health plan" under Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's plan.

The GOP office says:

"It's right there beginning on line 11, page 122, section 1303, under 'Actuarial Value of Optional Service Coverage.' The premium will be paid into a U.S. Treasury account - and these federal funds will be used to pay for the abortion services. ... The Commissioner must charge at a minimum $1 per enrollee per month.

We've asked senate officials for a response and will update when we hear back.

After the jump, the language from page 122 (and more) of the bill related to abortion. Read the bill in full here.

Read more »

FL-SEN

Poll: Rubio Trails Crist In Primary By Only 10 Points, Keeps Crist Under 50

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 1:55PM

Gov. Charlie Crist (R-FL) and former state House Speaker Marco Rubio (R)

The new Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll of the Florida Republican Senate primary finds conservative former state House Speaker Marco Rubio catching up on moderate Gov. Charlie Crist.

The numbers: Crist 47%, Rubio 37%. Way back in January, Crist was ahead by 57%-11%.

Crist became vulnerable to a conservative primary challenge when he endorsed the stimulus package, and even hugged President Obama. He has since denied that he endorsed it, despite all evidence to the contrary.

Kos thinks Rubio will easily win the race: "Crist's only chance for political survival is a party switch, to either (I) or (D)." The poll also finds that the likely Democratic nominee, Rep. Kendrick Meek, is currently a non-player against either Crist and Rubio, and only becomes relevant in a three-way race with an independent Crist, which is roughly tied (full numbers not yet released).

(Via Dave Weigel)

Abortion

Senate Abortion Provision Wins Support Of Key Pro-Choice Democrats

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 1:54PM

Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO)

We now have much more clarity on how the abortion provision in the Senate health care bill will work, and it's won the support of both senior administration officials, pro-choice Senators, and the co-chair of the House pro-choice caucus.

"I am pleased that the U.S. Senate has maintained current law when addressing the abortion issue," says Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) in a statement to reporters. "By adopting a common-sense abortion provision, the U.S. Senate ensures that no federal funds will be spent on abortion coverage while not further restricting a woman's right to choose. The health care bill is about providing access to quality health care to over 36 million Americans. I encourage the U.S. Senate to work towards producing a bill that works for everyone."

DeGette included a breakdown of the Senate's abortion provision, which I've included below the fold. One of the key sections reads, "Issuers of health insurance plans that offer coverage for abortion beyond those permitted by the Hyde amendment must segregate from any premium and cost-sharing credits an amount of each enrollee's private premium dollars that is determined by the Secretary to be sufficient to cover the provision of those services."

Which is a fancy way of saying insurers will have to set up an accounting system to keep private money separate from federal money, and only draw upon the private money when paying providers for abortion. Compare that to the Stupak amendment to the House bill, which both requires separation of funds, but also prevents women who receive federal premium assistance from purchasing policies that cover abortion, and it's no wonder Harry Reid's compromise is being met with praise by pro-choice members.

Read more »

Rudy Giuliani

Report: Rudy Won't Run For Governor Of New York

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 1:38PM

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R)

The New York Times reports that Rudy Giuliani will not run for Governor of New York, a serious blow to Republican hopes of winning this big governorship in 2010:

It was not clear what prompted the decision, but the prospect of potentially facing Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, who is quietly planning his own run for governor, may not have appealed to Mr. Giuliani, who suffered a bruising defeat in the 2008 Republican presidential primary. While many political analysts believe Mr. Giuliani would have comfortably beaten Gov. David A. Paterson, he would likely have faced an uphill battle against Mr. Cuomo, one of the most popular politicians in the state.

It remains unclear if the former mayor is considering any other political race in 2010. Some have urged him to take on the newly-installed Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand, who has never run statewide and is still introducing herself to voters in parts of the state.

Filibuster

Reid On Passing Health Care: 'I'm Not Using Reconciliation'

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 1:30PM

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

Yesterday, I asked Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) what he and other moderates had heard from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid at an impromptu afternoon meeting about health care reform. Nelson said Reid "talked about process, procedure, discussion about reconciliation and a whole host of issues of that sort."

Reconciliation is a complicated legislative process that would allow Reid to pass some version of reform without having to contend with a filibuster. "Nobody's really jumping up and down to push for reconciliation," Nelson added, "he's not threatening that, but anybody can conclude that if you don't move something on to the floor, that is one of the possibilities."

Today, at an event celebrating the unveiling of his health care bill, I asked Reid what specifically he'd said to Nelson--along with Sens. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and Mary Landrieu (D-LA)--about reconciliation. His answer left no wiggle room: "I'm not using reconciliation," he said.

Health Care

DeParle: Reid's Abortion Provisions Are 'In The Middle,' 'Status Quo'

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 1:29PM

Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

White House health care "czar" Nancy-Ann DeParle spoke with reporters this afternoon lauding the historic steps Congress has taken toward passing health care and to outline the next steps.

As we just reported, DeParle lauded Sen. Blanche Lincoln, a possible Democratic holdout on the procedural vote.

Reporters also asked about the provisions related to abortion, and both aides dodged the question by saying the issue was working its way through Congress and noting members are talking amongst themselves.

President Obama last week said he doesn't support the Stupak amendment, saying it was a health care, not an abortion bill, and DeParle took that a step further today.

DeParle signaled she prefers the Reid approach, saying the majority leader "carefully" worked on the issue and not mentioning the Stupak amendment.

Read more »

Linda McMahon

Former Pro Wrestler Slams Linda McMahon's Senate Campaign

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 1:13PM

Wrestler "Superstar Billy Graham", CT-Sen candidate Linda McMahon (R)

Former Worldwide Wrestling Entertainment CEO Linda McMahon, a candidate for the Republican nomination to run against Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT), is now facing some strong attacks from a Mr. Eldridge Wayne Coleman -- a.k.a. "Superstar Billy Graham," a former pro-wrestler who worked for McMahon.

"She may look like a Sunday school teacher," said Graham, who described himself a conservative, and who supports one of McMahon's GOP rivals, former Rep. Rob Simmons. "Linda McMahon's hands are as bloody as her husband's [Vince McMahon] because she is aware of every move in the ring."

Graham said that the McMahons condoned steroid use that damaged wrestlers' health (including himself), didn't provide health care or pensions to those same wrestlers, and have quickly shifted from all manner of inappropriate TV programming -- ranging from wrestlers being told to cut themselves with razors in order to bleed on stage, to "bra and panty" wrestling matches between scantily-clad female performers -- to cleaner content in the run-up to her campaign.

Read more »

Health Care

White House Heaps Praise On Sen. Lincoln's Contributions To Health Care

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 12:56PM

Director of the Office of Health Care Reform Nancy-Ann DeParle, Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)

The White House is going for the attract 'em with honey strategy, heaping praise on some of the holdouts in the battle to get a health care reform bill passed.

Sen. Blanche Lincoln has been "and important and constructive player in this process and has made this a much better bill in this process," White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer said when asked on a conference call about where the conservative senator is leaning.

"She was a stalwart in working to protect seniors and taxpayers," White House health care czar Nancy-Ann DeParle chimed in.

They each said Lincoln (D-AR) was instrumental in improving the early version of the bill when it was clearing the Senate Finance Committee.

DeParle said Lincoln "was up there fighting" to get the Elder Justice Act included in the bill and said she saved taxpayers $600 million by capping tax deductions for CEO pay.

"That is huge that she got it in the bill," DeParle said.

Read more »

Republicans

Poll: Majority Of Republicans Think Obama Didn't Actually Win 2008 Election -- ACORN Stole It!

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 12:28PM

Tea Partiers, ACORN logo, President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama

The new national poll from Public Policy Polling (D) has an astonishing number about paranoia among the GOP base: Republicans do not think President Obama actually won the 2008 election -- instead, ACORN stole it.

This number goes a long way towards explaining the anger of the Tea Party crowd. They not only think Obama's agenda is against America, but they don't think he was actually the choice of the American people at all! Interestingly, NY-23 Conservative candidate Doug Hoffman is now accusing ACORN of stealing his race, and Fox News personalities have often speculated about ACORN stealing the 2008 Minnesota Senate race for Al Franken.

The poll asked this question: "Do you think that Barack Obama legitimately won the Presidential election last year, or do you think that ACORN stole it for him?" The overall top-line is legitimately won 62%, ACORN stole it 26%.

Among Republicans, however, only 27% say Obama actually won the race, with 52% -- an outright majority -- saying that ACORN stole it, and 21% are undecided. Among McCain voters, the breakdown is 31%-49%-20%. By comparison, independents weigh in at 72%-18%-10%, and Democrats are 86%-9%-4%.

Read more »

Nancy Pelosi

Pelosi Says Stupak 'Goes Beyond Status Quo', 'Optimistic' It Won't Stop Reform

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 19, 2009, 11:50AM

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she's feeling positive that a controversial abortion amendment found in the House-passed health care bill won't derail reform if and when a bill leaves the Senate.

"I'm optimistic we'll find common ground," she told reporters this morning. "This is not a bill about abortion, this is a bill about health care."

The Senate reform package which made its debut last night doesn't contain the Stupak Amendment language found in the House bill. In her first public comments on the controversy the amendment has created among members of her caucus on both sides of the abortion debate, Pelosi said she sides with pro-choice advocates who say the language in Stupak goes too far.

"Stupak goes beyond maintaining the status quo" on abortion funding, Pelosi said.

Read more »

Ben Nelson

Will Concessions, And A Trim CBO Score, Appease Conservative Democrats On Health Care?

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 11:37AM

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE)

Conservative Democrats couldn't have asked for better top-line numbers from the CBO on Senate health care legislation. Low total cost, big long-term deficit reductions, millions insured, and a public option that insures perhaps one percent of the population. But is that enough to actually cool their heartburn?

Well, yes and no.

"Listen, anytime you add more to deficit reduction, you have to say that it's a move in the right direction," Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) told reporters yesterday. "So there's no doubt...that clearly would be one [area of improvement]--but again you have to have a lot of faith and trust in the scoring system."

Nelson cautioned that the CBO numbers released yesterday are preliminary, and subject to some uncertainty, but basically applauded the bill for being fiscally responsible.

But is that what's really driving the moderates' skepticism?

Read more »

NY-23

Republican Election Official, GOP County Chairman Dismiss Hoffman's Accusations Of ACORN Conspiracy

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 11:24AM

Conservative Party Candidate Doug Hoffman, Rep. Bill Owens (D-NY)

The accusations by NY-23 Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman that ACORN stole the election for Democrat Bill Owens, by allegedly tampering with the ballots and with the reported results, is now getting some push-back -- from a local Republican election official, and even a local GOP chairman, who aren't buying into the ACORN conspiracy talk.

The Watertown Daily Times reports:

Jerry O. Eaton, Jefferson County Republican elections commissioner, called Mr. Hoffman's assertion "absolutely false."

"No one has touched those ballots or has access to those ballots except Board of Elections staff -- and in a bipartisan manner," he said.

Read more »

Health Care

Clearing The Way: Sen. Bayh Says He'll Bring Health Care Bill To Floor

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 10:37AM

Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN)

Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) has pledged to vote to bring the health care bill to the floor, a procedural hurdle that would allow the Senate to start debating the $849 billion plan.

Without promising he'd back the final plan, Bayh told the Hill newspaper he would support the first cloture motion that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid files. Several conservative Democrats had suggested they might vote against that, and Republicans have threatened to use those procedural votes as political fodder.

Bayh said:

"At the end of the process, I'll avoid the Washington two-step of voting to go forward but then voting against the final bill. But this is just a starting point, so at this point I do think there's a difference."

He joins Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), who suggested yesterday he would do the same.

NY-23

Doug Hoffman: ACORN Has Stolen NY-23 Election!

Eric Kleefeld | November 19, 2009, 10:34AM

Conservative Party Candidate Doug Hoffman, Rep. Bill Owens (D-NY)

Doug Hoffman, the Conservative Party candidate in the NY-23 election, is going further in revoking his election-night concession to Democrat Bill Owens -- who was sworn into office a few days later -- and alleging that ACORN has attempted to steal the election!

In a new letter to his supporters, Hoffman boasts of how the margin in the race has narrowed as the counties have corrected clerical errors in the totals -- which happen routinely in every election, as local officials have said -- and absentee ballots are counted. Hoffman says the situation is an obvious ACORN conspiracy:

I'm sure you are as dismayed as I am to learn of the mischief that took place in Oswego and neighboring counties. We know this would not be the first time for the ACORN faithful to tamper with democracy.

...

Oswego County elections officials blame the mistakes on "chaos" in their call-in center that included a phone system foul-up, and on inspectors who read numbers incorrectly when phoning in results. This sounds like a tactic right from the ACORN playbook.

As of yesterday evening's totals, Hoffman trailed by 2,832 votes, with 4,262 absentees left to be counted. It looks like no matter what the final result is, Hoffman and his allies will charge that this election was stolen by the ACORN bogeyman.

The full letter is available after the jump. It makes for interesting reading.

Read more »

Barack Obama

Chinese Weekly Asks Obama About His Love Of Hoops

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 10:12AM

President Barack Obama

President Obama granted an interview to Chinese weekly Xiang Xi while traveling in Asia and detailed his view of economic and trade relations with the country.

It's not clear if the interview ran in full or if reports it was censored are accurate, but Obama told the weekly he viewed his trip as a success.

You can read the whole transcript at the White House Web site, but here's an amusing exchange:

Q I know you love basketball. So do you think you have time to play basketball while you're being President?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: You know, I do play, not as often as I used to, but I still play maybe once every week or two. And I enjoy going to games, as well. I wish I could have gone to see the Shanghai Sharks, but it wasn't in my schedule. And I'm looking forward to meeting Yao Ming, who is one of my favorite players.

Asia trip

WH's Axelrod Says Obama Wasn't Expecting 'Immediate Gratification' From Asia Trip

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 9:57AM

President Barack Obama, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak

President Obama left Seoul this morning to head home, concluding an 8-day, 4-country trip through Asia. Air Force One just landed in Alaska for refueling and he's expected back at the White House tonight.

Reporters traveling bombarded White House aides with questions about the lack of tangible results came from the trip, especially from China.

White House senior adviser David Axelrod said Obama "advanced our goals" over the week by having frank discussions with Asian leaders and presenting a new face to the world.

"This is not an immediate gratification business," Axelrod said. "All of these things require solid diplomacy, relationship building, discussions, and that was the purpose of this trip."

Read more »

Health Care

Can States Opt Out Of The Public Option Immediately?

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 9:22AM

Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV)

When Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid first announced that he'd chosen to include a public option with an opt-out provision in his health care bill, he suggested that states would be required to offer the government insurance plan for a year before opting out. Well, it appears as if he's dropped that requirement.

In general, the bill reads, "A State may elect to prohibit Exchanges in such State from offering a community health insurance option if such State enacts a law to provide for such prohibition." Separately, if a state opts out, they can also opt back in, if they repeal the law they used to opt out. But one of the key selling points of the opt out provision to liberals is that states wouldn't be able to opt out until after the public option became somewhat entrenched. We're looking for more guidance on this, but it seems as if that entrenchment period is gone.

Health Care

No Public Option Or Mandates Until 2014 Under Senate Bill, But There Are Some Early Goodies

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 9:07AM

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

For liberals, one of the most frustrating aspects of health care reform is that the most tangible goodies (the exchanges, and, within the exchanges, the public option) won't be available to the public for years. In the House bill, the main structural changes to the health care system--including the exchanges/public option, mandates, taxes, and the Medicaid expansion--go into effect in 2013. Under the Senate bill, they take until 2014.

But there are some aspects of the bill that would take effect right away if the bill became law as is. For instance, the Senate bill would immediately ban insurance companies from imposing annual and lifetime caps on benefits, and would make it illegal for them to cancel people's policies (a practice called rescission) except in cases of fraud.

There's more, too, and we'll bring you a fuller set of details later today.

Fundraising

RNC Touts Grassroots Cash: Raised $8.7M, Spent $7.9M In October

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 8:58AM

RNC Chair Michael Steele

The Republican National Committee announced this morning they raised $8.79 million in October, an off-election year record.

The haul comes after the party captured two governorships and as they are attempting to make gains in 2010.

The RNC said they had $11.2 million cash on hand and no debt. Last month they reported $18.9 million cash on hand, so doing the math, they spent $7.9 million in October.

The party says they "averaged 2,543 new donors per day in October and had an average contribution of $32," with more than 1 million active donors by the end of the month.

"As of November 11th, the RNC has already broken its own record of new donors in an off year, with 305,000 new donors so far in 2009," the party said in a release.

Read more »

Health Care

Harkin On Senate Bill: 'We've Rounded Third Base And We're Heading To Home'

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 19, 2009, 8:40AM

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA)

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) says that the health care reform bill Democrats presented in the Senate last night has what it takes to turn the months-long legislative fight into a home run for reform advocates.

"To put it in baseball terms, we've rounded third base and we're heading to home," Harkin told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow last night. "No member of our caucus is going to want to be the one person that stops us from getting to home plate."

"I believe now that the team is together," he added. "And our team is going to hold together and we'll have those 60 votes to move ahead."

Harkin said that the Senate bill is a "reasonable compromise" for health care progressives like him and he called on Democrats to remain unified through the rest of the legislative process.

Read more »

Health Care

Health Care Reactions Expected To Dominate Capitol Hill Today

Christina Bellantoni | November 19, 2009, 7:45AM

United States Capitol

It's a big day for health care and the reactions will be flooding the zone today.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid revealed his health care bill last night, with a $849 billion price tag. He's holding a big event at 12:15 at the Capitol Visitors Center (and the White House is reacting via a noon conference call).

Speaker Nancy Pelosi is holding her weekly press conference at 11 on Capitol Hill, Minority Leader John Boehner will talk about health care at 11:45.

Republican Sens. Judd Gregg and Lamar Alexander are briefing reporters this afternoon.

Volunteers from Organizing for America and pro-reform groups plan to attend Reid's event and show their health care spirit.

Sen. Chuck Schumer was on MSNBC this morning and predicted the bill will get the needed votes to pass.

He added, "When we get this done, poll numbers will go up."

Read more »

Abortion

National Right to Life Committee: Shame On Reid

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 1:09AM

Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

The National Right to Life Committee blasts the Senate health care bill for allowing people who receive federal premium assistance to purchase insurance that covers abortion.

"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nv.) has rejected the bipartisan Stupak-Pitts Amendment and has substituted completely unacceptable language that would result in coverage of abortion on demand in two big new federal government programs," reads a statement from NRLC director Douglas Johnson. "Reid seeks to cover elective abortions in two big new federal health programs, but tries to conceal that unpopular reality with layers of contrived definitions and hollow bookkeeping requirements."

The key: "the bill creates new tax-supported subsidies to purchase private health plans that will cover abortion on demand."

The Stupak amendment to the House bill would prevent anybody who receives such subsidies from buying insurance that covers abortion, except in rare instances.

You can read the entire statement below the fold.

Read more »

CBO

CBO Says Higher Premiums Under Senate Public Option, 'Opt-Out' Clause Would Impact One-Third Of Consumers

Brian Beutler | November 19, 2009, 12:37AM

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

The CBO has posted its first analysis of the Senate's health care bill, which you can access
here.

As advertised, the bill reduces the deficit considerably in both the near- and long-term, while expanding coverage to 94 percent of Americans. By 2019, 25 million people would be buying insurance through a health insurance exchange.

However, it's not all roses. For instance, based on an assessment of the political popularity of the public option, the CBO has concluded that enough states will "opt out" to prevent a full third of consumers from purchasing government insurance.

Read more »

Health Care

Reid Outlines Bill For Caucus, Warns Conservative Dems That Reconciliation Is Still An Option

Brian Beutler | November 18, 2009, 6:45PM

Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY)

At a special evening meeting of the Democratic caucus tonight, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid outlined, in broad strokes, the details of his health care bill, which the CBO has found, in a preliminary analysis, will expand coverage to 94 percent of Americans while reducing the deficit. And earlier in the day, during a separate meeting about floor procedure, Reid let three of his party's key skeptics know that if they join Republicans at any stage of the process to block the bill, he still retains the option of passing major parts of it through the filibuster proof budget reconciliation process.

In response to a question from TPMDC Nelson told reporters that, at a meeting this afternoon with Sens. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Reid "talked about process, procedure, discussion about reconciliation and a whole host of issues of that sort."

"Nobody's really jumping up and down to push for reconciliation," Nelson said, "he's not threatening that, but anybody can conclude that if you don't move something on to the floor, that is one of the possibilities."

Nelson said he has still not committed to vote for even the first procedural vote, but in a sign that he's leaning toward bringing a bill to the floor, he emphasized his view that the floor debate is a chance to improve the legislation. "I wanted to make it clear that that is, unlike some are suggesting, is not the vote...it's a motion to enter into the debate and possible amendments and improvements of the legislation" Nelson said. "The vote is the second cloture vote, and that is the cloture on a motion to cease debate, and I wanted that clear, because I've already begun to see people out there say, 'oh no, no, if you vote [to take it up] you've voted for health care."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has explicitly stated that the Republican party will treat Democrats who vote for any procedural motion as if they've voted for the entire health care bill.

Read more »

Health Care

Obama's Campaign Arm Plans Rally For Senate Bill

Christina Bellantoni | November 18, 2009, 5:53PM

President Barack Obama

As the Senate Democrats dropped their health care bill tonight, the DNC's Organizing for America is arranging asking supporters to attend an "impromptu" rally to encourage senators to back the bill.

OFA volunteers were calling Washington, D.C.-area people on the campaign mailing list tonight asking them to show at the Capitol Visitors Center at noon Thursday.

A volunteer who called TPMDC said the goal was "just to show support for reform."

Late update: This post has been updated. A Democratic source tells us it's not an official OFA event, and said volunteers have been directing supporters to Majority Leader Harry Reid's official roll out of the health care plan.

NY-23

Owens Leads Hoffman By 2,832 Votes, With Only 4,262 Absentee Ballots Left

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 5:02PM

Conservative Party Candidate Doug Hoffman, Rep. Bill Owens (D-NY)

The latest absentee ballot totals show Rep. Bill Owens (D-NY) holding on to his lead over Conservative Party opponent Doug Hoffman in the recent special election, the Watertown Daily Times reports.

With about 40% of the total absentee ballots counted, Owens leads by 2,832 votes, with only 4,262 absentees left to be opened up by the various counties. If Republican nominee Dede Scozzafava were to keep up her current percentage of 21% the absentees -- she dropped out of the race the weekend before the election, after most absentees had been mailed in -- then Hoffman would need to win 3,099 out of the remaining pile.

Hoffman conceded on election night, when he was apparently down by 5,000 votes, and Owens was sworn in that Friday. However, corrections of clerical errors revealed that Owens had only won the election day total by about 3,000 votes -- and Hoffman recently said he would take back his concession if it were possible.

The absentee count shows that Hoffman is making some minor headway with these votes, but the likelihood of him actually catching Owens is shrinking by the day -- and it was quite small to begin with.

Late Update: "I'm never gonna rule out a win, but as I've said from the start, there's a very small shot," Hoffman spokesman Rob Ryan just told us. "And we will see, we'll make a decision as we get near the end of the week, how to proceed."

CBO

CBO: Senate Bill Costs $849 Billion, Major Deficit Reducer

Brian Beutler | November 18, 2009, 4:52PM

Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

Democratic leadership has distributed figures to reporters from a CBO analysis of Senate health care legislation. The numbers affirm what we reported this morning--that Majority Leader Harry Reid is very pleased.

The health care bill--which includes an opt-out public option--will require $849 billion over 10 years in new spending, to be paid for with cuts to Medicare, while reducing the deficit by $127 billion.

In that time it will extend coverage to 31 million Americans--94 percent of citizens will be covered by 2019.

Over the second 10 years, CBO projects even greater cost savings--up to $650 billion, with the caveat that after 10 years, their analyses become highly uncertain.

This meets all of President Obama's goals, and, as has been the pattern during this legislative process, the Senate bill comes at a lower cost, and with greater cost-savings than the House bill, while the House bill covers more Americans.

Guantanamo Bay

Retired Generals Accuse Boehner Of Playing Politics With National Security

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 18, 2009, 4:38PM

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH)

A group of retired Generals led by former Maine Rep. Tom Andrews (D) accused the House GOP leader John Boehner of putting politics before national security today with his plan to force a vote on a bill that would prevent prisoners from being transferred from Guantanamo Bay to the United States.

The National Campaign To Close Guantanamo called Republican arguments that transferring Gitmo detainees to New York will endanger Americans "fear mongering." In a statement, Andrews pointed to past terror trials in the U.S. as evidence of his claim that the GOP is making political hay in the days since Attorney General Eric Holder announced that terror suspects will be tried in the U.S..

"Since 2001, 195 terrorists have been tried, convicted and locked up in federal supermax prisons on US soil under the Bush and Cheney administration," Andrews said. Boehner and other GOP leaders "never uttered a word of concern and opposition " back then, he continued, "but now that a Democratic President is doing it, the sky is going to fall and America will soon be under attack."

Read more »

John McCain

McCain Defends Staffers From Palin: 'I Think It's Just Time To Move On'

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 4:32PM

Fmr. Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) is now defending his former presidential campaign staffers from attacks by his ex-running mate, Sarah Palin.

"There's been a lot of dust flying around in the last few days and I just wanted to mention that I have the highest regard for Steve Schmidt and Nicolle Wallace and the rest of the team ... and I appreciated all the hard work and everything they did to help the campaign," McCain told Reuters.

He added: "I think it's just time to move on."

Read more »

Stimulus

GOP Jumps On Administration's Self-Inflicted Stimulus Goofs

Christina Bellantoni | November 18, 2009, 4:04PM

Vice President Joe Biden and President Barack Obama

Every time the Republicans said the $787 economic stimulus plan didn't create jobs, the Obama administration was ready with a counterargument proving them wrong. That's one reason the self-inflicted problems of inaccurate reports at Recovery.gov sting.

The administration says it's a non-story, since the errors were about data entry, and the data entry only happened because they have tried to make the spending as transparent and real-time as possible.

Officials pointed us to today's AP Fact Check on so-called phantom districts, and said they are correcting "rough" data that is less than one percent of the total that's been posted at Recovery.gov.

But this afternoon came the latest, when ABC News obtained a report from the Government Accountability Office showing "more than 50,000 jobs or one out of every 10 jobs the White House says were 'saved or created' by their economic stimulus plan came from projects that reported spending no money."

ABC reported that GAO says there are a "range of significant reporting and processing problems that need to be addressed."

It may not be fair, but the Republicans are having a field day.

Read more »

Norm Coleman

Norm Coleman: It's Really Nice When 'Nobody Is Trying To Kill You Politically Today'

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 3:55PM

Fmr. Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN)

Former Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN), now a visiting fellow at Harvard's Institute of Politics, told the Harvard Crimson that being out of politics right now has some benefits.

Coleman, who very narrowly lost re-election to Democrat Al Franken in a race that involved a recount and six months of litigation, was asked by the Crimson about the possibility of running for governor in 2010:

"I'm not going to make that decision for a little bit. I thought it was important to step away from the political process. It's really nice waking up in the morning and reading the paper and realizing that nobody is trying to kill you politically today. I'm a public servant at heart, but I haven't made a final decision on whether being the governor is the best way to do that."

(Via Minnesota Independent)

Guantanamo Bay

Hoekstra Calls Terror Suspects A Dem 'Pot Of Gold' For Economically Devestated Communities

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 18, 2009, 2:46PM

Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-MI)

Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-MI) said today that the Obama administration is "bribing" economically suffering towns across the country as it attempts to relieve itself of the political problem of closing Guantanamo Bay.

"They're going into communities that are hard-pressed economically and holding out a pot of gold," he told reporters. Hoekstra was referring to the White House plan to bring terror suspects to prisons across the country. He said that the administration was taking advantage of hard-hit towns across the country by promoting the jobs that would be created by adding Guantanamo Bay detainees to their prison populations.

Read more »

Michele Bachmann

Franken Raising Money For Bachmann Opponent Clark

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 2:42PM

Senator Al Franken (D-MN), Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Sen. Al Franken (D-MN), one of the most prominent liberals in his state, is now raising money for state Sen. Tarryl Clark, the leading Democratic candidate to challenge one of Minnesota's most prominent conservatives, Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann.

Interestingly, Franken shies away from directly attacking Bachmann in a new fundraising letter, but instead praises Clark's record in public service. The closest he gets to a direct attack on Bachmann is this:

P.S. The eyes of the nation - and Michele Bachmann's right-wing allies - will be on this race. You can make sure Tarryl gets off to a strong start by joining Franni and me in supporting her today.

Franken's wife Franni has already been involved in fundraising for Clark's campaign. Clark has an opponent for the nomination, Maureen Reed, a former state university regent and the 2006 Independence Party nominee for Lt. Governor.

Abortion

DeGette: Study Confirms Radical Implications Of Stupak Amendment

Brian Beutler | November 18, 2009, 2:26PM

Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO)

I just spoke with Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO), co-chair of the Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus, who insisted that the findings of a new George Washington University study confirm many of her suspicions about the Stupak abortion amendment.

"Certainly if it doesn't confirm my suspicions about the intent, it concerns my suspicions about the effect the Stupak amendment would have," DeGette said. "What the findings show are that women who want to purchase policies with their own money--with their own premiums--will not be able to buy insurance policies.... That's frankly the intention of the anti-choice movement now."

DeGette says she's spoken in private to many of the pro-life Democrats who voted for the Stupak amendment, some of whom have acknowledged that they didn't realize what they were voting for.

"I will say that I have spoken privately with several pro-life members about the Stupak amendment, and they acknowledged that the Stupak amendment goes far beyond where they thought it did," she told me.

Read more »

Tommy Thompson

Tommy Thompson Could Run For Senate, Or Governor -- Or Small-Town Mayor

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 1:04PM

Former Gov. Tommy Thompson (R-WI)

Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson appears to be considering any number of political comebacks, ranging from a return to the state's open governorship, to a Senate run -- in which he would likely be a very strong challenger to Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold -- or perhaps even mayor of a small town.

"I haven't said no," Thompson told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "I'm looking at it. I'm looking at governor, I'm looking at senator and I'm looking at mayor of Elroy. One of the three."

For your information, Elroy is Thompson's home town. I just called the city hall, and they told me the population is approximately 1,500 people.

Thompson was elected to four terms as governor, starting in 1986 and only left when President George W. Bush appointed him as Secretary of Health and Human Services. He ran for the Republican nomination for president in 2008, but dropped out in the face of bad poll numbers and fundraising in the middle of 2007. He was frequently talked about as a potential Senate candidate in the 1990s and 2000s, but has never run.

(Via Political Wire)

Sarah Palin

Palin Digs In On Death Panels, Also Calls For Primary Against Lindsey Graham

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 12:22PM

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)

In an interview with National Review, Sarah Palin explained how "death panels" are not meant to be taken literally -- and then gave a pretty much literal description -- and also called for a Republican primary challenge against Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC).

On death panels:

"To me, while reading that section of the bill, it became so evident that there would be a panel of bureaucrats who would decide on levels of health care, decide on those who are worthy or not worthy of receiving some government-controlled coverage," she explains. "Since health care would have to be rationed if it were promised to everyone, it would therefore lead to harm for many individuals not able to receive the government care. That leads, of course, to death."

"The term I used to describe the panel making these decisions should not be taken literally," says Palin. The phrase is "a lot like when President Reagan used to refer to the Soviet Union as the 'evil empire.' He got his point across. He got people thinking and researching what he was talking about. It was quite effective. Same thing with the 'death panels.' I would characterize them like that again, in a heartbeat."

There are two problems here. As Dave Weigel notes, Reagan was not speaking figuratively about the Soviet Union -- they were an empire, and they were evil. But beyond that, Palin gives a literal description of a panel of bureaucrats deciding that some people won't be worthy of getting any health care.

Read more »

Guantanamo Bay

Giuliani: I'm Glad To See We're At War Again

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 18, 2009, 12:10PM

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R)

On a conference all with reporters just now, Rudy Giuliani said there was one thing about Attorney General Eric Holder's decision to bring terror suspects to New York City he could stand fully behind.

"I was glad to see Holder say 'we're at war,'" Giuliani said on the RNC-sponsored call. "I had thought we had virtually stopped being at war with the terrorists."

The former New York City mayor was referring to Friday's press conference by Holder where he announced the plan to try terrorists in the city.

Giuliani said he hoped the use of the word would hearken back to a return to the Bush era "War On Terror" which Giuliani said President Obama has abandoned, both in rhetoric and actions. "I was under the impression that the Obama administration thought this was just an unfortunate situation we're dealing with."

"'War' is important," he said.

Read more »

White House

White House Disputes Fox Report On New Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines

Christina Bellantoni | November 18, 2009, 11:53AM

Deputy White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer

The White House is pushing back against a Fox News report spinning the results of a new study on breast cancer screening.

White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer blogged a response to a Fox report suggesting "Critics See Health Care Rationing Behind New Mammography Recommendations."

Pfeiffer quoted from the report, which suggested "some lawmakers on Capitol Hill are blasting new guidelines from a government task force that recommends against routine mammographies for women under 50, questioning whether they are tantamount to health care 'rationing' in the fight against the No. 2 cancer killer in U.S. women."

His response:

Read more »

Joseph Cao

Americans United To Run Another Ad Praising GOP Rep. Joseph Cao

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 11:31AM

Rep. Joseph Cao (R-LA)

Rep. Joseph Cao (R-LA) is getting more support for his status as the only House Republican to support health care reform -- from the pro-Barack Obama, labor-backed group Americans United For Change.

Americans United has already run an ad in support of Cao, as part of their ad campaigns praising key swing members who voted in favor of the bill. And they'll be having another one soon, too, the Hotline reports.

Cao is widely seen as a vulnerable incumbent going into 2010, having been elected in an upset against an indicted (and later convicted) Democratic incumbent in a district that voted 75% for Barack Obama.

Bart Stupak

Study: Stupak Amendment Will Eliminate Abortion Coverage 'Over Time For All Women'

Brian Beutler | November 18, 2009, 10:56AM

Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI)

A new study by the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services adds some expert imprimatur to what many progressives have been saying all along: The Stupak amendment to the House health care bill--which will prevent millions of women from buying health insurance policies that cover abortion--is likely to have consequences that reach far beyond its supposedly intended scope.

The report concludes that "the treatment exclusions required under the Stupak/Pitts Amendment will have an industry-wide effect, eliminating coverage of medically indicated abortions over time for all women, not only those whose coverage is derived through a health insurance exchange."

In other words, though the immediate impact of the Stupak amendment will be limited to the millions of women initially insured through a new insurance exchange, over time, as the exchanges grow, the insurance industry will scale down their abortion coverage options until they offer none at all.

Read more »

MO-SEN

Poll: Statistical Tie In Missouri Senate Race

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 10:54AM

Missouri Sec. of State Robin Carnahan (D) and Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO)

The new survey of Missouri by Public Policy Polling (D) shows a dead heat in the race for this state's open Republican-held Senate seat.

The numbers: Democratic Secretary of State Robin Carnahan 43%, Republican Rep. Roy Blunt 42%, with a ±3.6% margin of error. The last time PPP tested this race in January, Carnahan had an edge of 45%-44%. Carnahan also leads Blunt's primary challenger, state Sen. Chuck Purgason, Carnahan has a 42%-35% lead. Blunt leads Purgason in the GOP primary by 53%-16%.

The pollster's analysis finds that Carnahan's personal ratings are much better than Blunt's. Her favorable rating is at 40%, to a 36% unfavorable, compared to Blunt's upside-down rating of 30%-38%. Nevertheless, this is a close race. One possible factor: President Obama's approval rating in the state is low, at 43%-52%.

"If Robin Carnahan had faced off against Roy Blunt in any election year between 1996 and 2008 she would likely have won given her superior popularity," said PPP president Dean Debnam, in the polling memo. "But 2010 has the potential to be an extremely good year for Republicans, and that's made this race highly competitive."

Asia trip

Save Darfur Slams Obama Over China Trip

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 18, 2009, 10:18AM

President Barack Obama

The Save Darfur Coalition lashed out at President Obama today, claiming he is not doing enough to confront the human rights crisis still unfolding in Sudan. The group, one of the largest focused on protecting the victims of genocide in the region, say that Obama's decision not to raise the issue publicly during his trip to China suggests he is not willing to push for peace in the region.

"President Obama's public silence on Sudan in Beijing sent an unfortunate message to the Sudanese government and other key actors that he is not willing to lead publicly for peace in Sudan," Save Darfur president Jerry Fowler said in a statement. "The Administration's new Sudan strategy cannot succeed without vigorous multilateral leadership that starts with the President. Tacking Sudan on to a laundry list of items behind closed doors is not that kind of leadership."

Read more »

Tim Pawlenty

Poll: Obama Would Beat Pawlenty In Minnesota

Eric Kleefeld | November 18, 2009, 9:49AM

Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN) and President Barack Obama

A new poll of Minnesota by St. Cloud State University finds that Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a potential Republican candidate for president in 2012, would lose his Democratic-leaning home state to President Obama if the election were held today.

The numbers: Obama 49%, Pawlenty 40%, with a ±5% margin of error.

In 2008, Obama beat John McCain in Minnesota by 54%-44%. As the Star-Tribune notes, Pawlenty received less than 50% of the vote in each of his two elections as governor. He won 44% of the vote in a three-way race in 2002, and in 2006 he narrowly edged out his Democratic opponent by a 47%-46% margin.

CBO

Reid To Unveil Health Care Bill To Caucus At Evening Meeting

Brian Beutler | November 18, 2009, 9:36AM

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), Senator Max Baucus (D-MT)

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will unveil and discuss his health care bill to Democrats at a special 5 pm caucus meeting tonight, leadership sources say. Reid hopes to brief the caucus before the bill is publicly unveiled, and that could happen late tonight. A CBO analysis of that legislation is expected to be unveiled publicly somewhat earlier in the day, and despite some last minute road bumps, Reid is very pleased with the report.

Reid may give the public 72 hours to review the bill before holding a cloture vote on a motion to proceed this weekend, though he may call for that vote slightly earlier.

Republicans, led by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) are expected to call for the entire bill to be read aloud before debate can begin in earnest after the Senate returns from a week-long Thanksgiving recess at the end of the month.

Health Care

Health Care Wednesday: Biden Meeting With Reid Before CBO Score Released

Christina Bellantoni | November 18, 2009, 9:20AM

Vice President Joe Biden

Fresh off his Daily Show appearance, Vice President Joe Biden is on Capitol Hill this morning to speak privately with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid about health care.

As we reported earlier, Biden agreed it's "baffling" that Democrats need 60 votes to get anything done in the Senate.

The health care plan is far from a sure thing in the Senate, and a first test procedural vote is expected to get debate started either Friday or Saturday.

Biden and Reid are huddling this morning, hours before Reid is expected to reveal the chamber's bill and Congressional Budget Office score to his caucus members tonight. Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, a former senator from Colorado, also are reportedly attending.

Guantanamo Bay

Obama On Critics Of Gitmo Detainees Facing Trial: Won't Be Offensive 'When Death Penalty Is Applied'

Christina Bellantoni | November 18, 2009, 7:49AM

President Barack Obama

President Obama dismissed critics who don't like his administration's plan to transfer detainees from Guantanamo Bay to the U.S. to stand trial for the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, suggesting if Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is found guilty and executed, they will stop being offended.

Obama did a round of interviews with the network White House correspondents traveling with him in Asia. Some of them are airing tonight, but a few networks have released clips.

NBC's Chuck Todd asked Obama about some Americans offended by the decision to transfer detainees, including Mohammed, from Guantanamo Bay to New York.

"I don't think it will be offensive at all when he's convicted and when the death penalty is applied to him," Obama said.

Todd pressed the president, suggesting he was already deciding how the trial would go.

"What I said was, people will not be offended if that's the outcome. I'm not prejudging it, I'm not going to be in that courtroom. That's the job of the prosecutors, the judge and the jury," Obama said.

Read more »

Joe Biden

VP Joe Biden Bows To Jon Stewart On Daily Show, Riffs On Senate Democrats

Christina Bellantoni | November 18, 2009, 6:36AM

Vice President Joe Biden mock-bows to Daily Show host Jon Stewart when appearing on the show Nov. 17, 2009

Vice President Joe Biden poked fun at his boss and the media on The Daily Show last night, coming onto the set by bowing to host Jon Stewart.

Biden was in good spirits for the interview, his sixth appearance on the show but the first time a sitting vice president has been on.

The vice president joked about Amtrak and explained the discrepancies with the stimulus money (more on that in a later post), but the closing segment was the most interesting, when Stewart asked, "How much of the majority do the Democrats need to pass something?"

Read more »

2010 elections

Rep. Mark Kirk Taking Local Heat For Gitmo Stance

Christina Bellantoni | November 17, 2009, 6:40PM

Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL)

Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL) has been one of the most prominent critics of a possible plan to transfer Guantanamo Bay detainees to a prison in Thomson, Illinois.

As we wrote yesterday, some conservatives favor it, and the local community sees it as an economic boon. (The Senate defeated a Republican measure to block funding for the detainee transfer today.)

But Kirk, seeking the GOP nomination for the U.S. Senate, said today on Fox News he thinks it should be up to the voters. He said it's a "decision bigger than any one senator" and said the "risk is unnecessary."

The Chicago Sun-Times called it a political move, editorializing today: "Kirk's scare talk might do him wonders with the GOP base, but it won't convince a single terrorist that this nation has a backbone."

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee accused Kirk of being a flip-flopper, since he supported a bill last month on the House floor authorizing Obama to transfer detainees. They also said he's using "Karl Rove style fear mongering."

Read more »

Economy

Progressives Warn Of Coming Crisis Unless More Is Done To Create Jobs

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 17, 2009, 6:13PM

NAACP President Benjamin Jealous, National Council of La Raza President Janet Murguia, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka

Progressive groups representing millions of workers and minorities across the country assembled today to send a message to President Obama and Congress -- it's time to do more to create new jobs. The AFL-CIO, the NAACP and the National Council Of La Raza held a joint event today on what the groups called the "worst crisis in America today" -- unemployment. Leaders of each group called on Washington to put other priorities aside and immediately begin pumping billions into job creation programs the groups say will target the worst-hit in the economic downturn.

Overall unemployment stands at around 10%, according to the most recent numbers. In minority communities, the groups say, that number is far higher reaching as high as 16% for African Americans. The effects of the jobless rate are far-reaching in minority communities, the speakers said -- and could be a sign of things to come for the rest of the nation.

"Black people in this country are the canaries in the economic coal mine," said Benjamin Jealous, president of the NAACP. "In this country, we act like what's happening in one room doesn't affect what's happening in another. But what is happening in the black community is happening everywhere."

Read more »

NY-23

NY-23 Update: Owens Maintains Lead, As Absentees Begin To Be Counted

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 6:09PM

Conservative Party Candidate Doug Hoffman, Rep. Bill Owens (D-NY)

Here's a quick update on the NY-23 special election, in which Democrat Bill Owens defeated Conservative Doug Hoffman, and was sworn into office after Hoffman conceded, only to have Hoffman recently un-concede after late results showed him narrowing Owens' lead from around 5,000 votes to 3,000.

According to the Watertown Daily Times, the most up-to-date totals with partial absentee-ballot counts have Owens still ahead by 2,940 votes, with 5,570 absentees yet to be counted. If this were strictly a two-way race, Hoffman would need to take over 75% of the absentees to win -- and this is not a two-way race, and Hoffman is highly unlikely to get the margin he would need.

Read more »

Health Care

Carper: Conservative Democrats Not Likely To Support Senate Public Option

Brian Beutler | November 17, 2009, 5:22PM

Sen. Thomas Carper (D-DE)

Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) cast serious doubt tonight on whether conservative Democrats will ultimately vote for cloture on the Senate health care bill if it retains a public option with an opt-out clause, and gave new details on yet another compromise that he says might work for them.

Carper, who voted for a public option amendment during the Senate Finance Committee proceedings, first floated his idea last week as a potential alternative, in the event that Reid's public option proposal failed to muster enough Democratic support to overcome a filibuster. Now he says he doubts the support is there.

"We're concerned that a number of centrists aren't prepared to vote for a national public plan, even with an opt-out," Carper said in response to a question from TPMDC. "We're trying to find something that addresses their concern about government run, government-funded, but still addresses the need for the affordability needs and the need for more competition in states that don't have it."

"What we're asking centrists is, What concerns do you need to have addressed so that you can vote for cloture, either to bring the bill to the floor, or to take the bill off the floor and to go to conference? And the two concerns we keep hearing over and over again: government-run, government funded."

(The opt-out plan Reid has proposed would not be government funded, though it's not clear whether it would be run directly by the government, or outsourced to a non-governmental body accountable to Congress.)

Read more »

Linda McMahon

Linda McMahon: We Need To Focus On Real Issues, Not 'Fictitious Content' Of Pro-Wrestling

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 5:10PM

Former Worldwide Wrestling Entertainment CEO Linda McMahon (R-CT)

Former WWE CEO Linda McMahon, a candidate for the Republican nomination to run against Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT), denounced Democratic attacks on her for the racy moments in pro-wrestling.

Connecticut Democrats have gone after McMahon for some of the WWE's content, including depictions of public sex, rape and necrophilia.

McMahon was asked about it in an online chat hosted by The Day:

WWE is a company that produces fiction. It's a soap opera that runs 52 weeks a year. I think instead of focusing on fictitious content, we need to focus on the issues that are real: unemployment, job creation, healthcare, education and the direction our country is taking in terms of fiscal issues. Those are the serious issues of the day, not the fiction that WWE creates for its entertainment product.

I will also say that the people I have spoken to around this state smile when I give the analogy that I don't believe the voters who elected Arnold Schwarzenegger expected him to show up in one of his outfits from the movie "Terminator" in Sacramento.

Read more »

Health Care

OFA Picks Ad Starring Children: 'I'll Die ... Because We Couldn't Afford Health Care'

Christina Bellantoni | November 17, 2009, 5:10PM

David Plouffe

Last month Organizing for America solicited homemade health care ads from supporters, and today they released the winning video.

It stars several children with health care messages, including:

"Two years from now, I'll be diagnosed with Leukemia and I'll die, because we couldn't afford health care."

and

"There are over 8 million uninsured children in America. ... We all deserve health care."

In an email asking for donations to put the ad on television, David Plouffe says the Organizing for America Health Reform Video Challenge shows "our supporters' creativity and passion is more than a match for the slick ads and partisan spin doctors on the other side."

Read more »

Health Care

Influential Economists Say Tax On Cadillac Health Care Plans Must Remain In Health Care Bill

Brian Beutler | November 17, 2009, 4:41PM

Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV)

A number of high-profile economists are asking Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid not to change a number of key aspects of his health care legislation, including a controversial tax on insurance companies that sell luxurious insurance policies.

"Four elements of the legislation are critical: 1) deficit neutrality, 2) excise tax on high cost insurance plans, 3) independent Medicare commission, and 4) delivery system reforms," they write in a letter delivered to Reid today.

Here's what they say about the excise tax, specifically: "Like any tax, the excise tax will raise federal revenues, but it has additional advantages that are essential."

The excise tax will help curtail the growth of private health insurance premiums by creating incentives to limit the costs of plans to a tax-free amount. In addition, as employers and health plans redesign their benefits to reduce health care premiums, cash wages will increase. Analysis of the Senate Finance Committee's proposal suggests that the excise tax on high-cost insurance plans would increase workers' take-home pay by more than $300 billion over the next decade. This provision offers the most promising approach to reducing private-sector health care costs while also giving a much needed raise to the tens of millions of Americans who receive insurance through their employers.

Read more »

Sheila Johnson

Sheila Johnson Co-Chairing McDonnell's Inauguration

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 4:37PM

Sheila Johnson, BET Co-Founder

A special name pops up on the list of co-chairs for Gov.-elect Bob McDonnell's (R-VA) inauguration: Sheila Johnson, a co-founder of Black Entertainment Television -- who is best known for having made fun of Democratic candidate Creigh Deeds for stuttering.

The McDonnell campaign had initially declined to condemn Johnson's joke or distance themselves from it, after it had come to light. Johnson herself issued an apology shortly afterward. Her status in the campaign did not seem to be damaged, as she later continued to hold McDonnell events and even starred in a campaign ad.

Also on the list is Susan Allen, a former first lady of the state, and wife of former Governor and former Senator George Allen.

Tim Kaine

Kaine: Deeds Was 'Nervous' About Virginia Electorate, Shouldn't Have Distanced Himself From Obama

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 4:03PM

DNC Chair Tim Kaine and unsuccessful VA-GOV candidate Creigh Deeds (D)

DNC chairman Tim Kaine, the outgoing Governor of Virginia, told the Washington Post that Democratic nominee Creigh Deeds made some key mistakes in his landslide defeat to Republican Gov.-elect Bob McDonnell -- mainly failing to tie himself to President Obama and thus mobilize Democrats:

"After the [June] primary was done, his advisers basically said, distance yourself from the president. We think we have our base locked down, we've got to win independents. And we're going to win by being negative about McDonnell," Kaine said. "That was the basic strategy they pursued, despite some significant urging to the contrary."

...

Kaine said the key to victory for Democrats in a highly competitive Virginia is recognizing that party members need not be "apologetic" about their affiliation to find success. He noted that about 200,000 more people voted in the Democratic primary for president on a frigid February day in 2008 than cast ballots for Deeds this year, and said McDonnell successfully spooked Deeds by suggesting that Virginians had grown anxious about the Democratic agenda.

"I think the issue of being nervous about the Virginia electorate was overdone and I think Creigh did exactly what the McDonnell campaign hoped he would do, which was distance himself from the president and national issues," Kaine said.

Guantanamo Bay

Senate Defeats Inhofe Amendment On Gitmo Detainee Transfer

Christina Bellantoni | November 17, 2009, 3:29PM

The Senate this afternoon defeated an amendment aimed at the Obama administration's efforts to transfer detainees from the prison at Guantanamo Bay to the United States.

Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) had tried to attach an amendment to the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act that would have blocked money for building or modifying prisons to hold Gitmo detainees.

The Senate killed the Inhofe amendment in a 57-43 vote hailed by the ACLU. All 40 Republicans were joined by Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Sens. Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln, both Democrats from Arkansas.

Read more »

Mitch McConnell

McConnell Takes Sides For Grayson, Ayotte In Key Senate Primaries

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 2:59PM

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and KY-SEN candidate Trey Grayson (R)

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is taking sides in two key open-seat Republican primaries for Senate, Chris Cillizza reports, with an upcoming fundraiser for Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson and former New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte.

Both of these candidates are in primary races. Grayson is being opposed by Rand Paul, an ophthalmologist and son of Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), with similar small-government libertarian positions. Ayotte is running against businessmen Jim Bender and William Binnie, and former state Board of Education chairman Ovide Lamontagne.

In the Kentucky race, Rand Paul recently had a gaffe in which he failed to fully commit to supporting McConnell for Republican leader -- not the best move to make in McConnell's own state, where he is the biggest name in the state GOP.

Late Update: The Rand Paul campaign has given us this statement from the candidate:

After the primary, I will want to work with Senator McConnell. We will need each other. He and I agree on many issues such as the unconstitutionality of McCain-Feingold.

Until then, it would be unfair of me to to ask Grayson to compete on his own merits, all by himself. I think the only way we can be evenly matched is for him to have significant help from DC insiders, PACs, and special interest money.

Even then, it will likely not be enough. 2010 will be the year of the outsider. The Tea Party movement wants reform of government and they are embracing our message of Term Limits, Balanced Budgets, and the Read the Bills Act.

Ben Nelson

Reid: No Health Care Bill Today, First Vote May Come This Weekend

Brian Beutler | November 17, 2009, 2:58PM

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid did not present his caucus with a CBO analysis of his health care bill at a weekly lunch meeting this afternoon. And though that report may still come in later this afternoon, according to his spokesman, Jim Manley, Reid is unlikely to unveil his bill until tomorrow at the earliest.

"He didn't go into any of the numbers...nothing yet. He said he would have that information for us soon, soon meaning not giving us a particular time to come here and announce it. He'll announce it." said Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) as he emerged from the meeting.

Once the numbers are in and the bill has distributed to Democrats, Reid will likely old one or two more meetings with the caucus, to answer any questions, and allay any concerns, before holding the first procedural vote--on the motion to proceed to debate--later this week, or possibly this weekend. "We're going to hold it as soon as we can," Reid told reporters today.

Read more »

Tea Party

World Net Daily Dumps 5 Million 'Pink Slips' On Capitol, Bachmann Cheers

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 17, 2009, 1:32PM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Publisher of World Net Daily Joesph Farah

World Net Daily has a message for all 535 members of Congress: do what we say or you're fired.

Today, Michele Bachmann and three other right-wing members of Congress responded to the threat with a hearty "thank you."

Read more »

2008 campaign

Trippi Disputes Plouffe's Claim About Edwards Offer To Trade Endorsement For Joint Ticket

Christina Bellantoni | November 17, 2009, 1:01PM

Fmr. Howard Dean Campaign Manager Joe Trippi

Former John Edwards adviser Joe Trippi is pushing back against David Plouffe's claim that the Edwards camp tried to strike deals on the vice presidency during the 2008 Democratic primary.

As we reported last night, Plouffe charges in his new book "The Audacity to Win" that a "senior Edwards adviser" suggested Edwards would drop out and that he and Obama could team up as a joint ticket.

Trippi told the Washington Post's Greg Sargent he wasn't aware of the pitch. He also suggested Edwards, who was later mired by scandal due to an affair, was more interested in being attorney general than the No. 2 slot.

Read more »

Health Care

Progressives To Moderates: Do You Really Want To Kill Health Care Reform?

Brian Beutler | November 17, 2009, 12:46PM

Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV)

The urgency of last night's meeting between Senate progressives and Majority Leader Harry Reid surrounded the fact that, though the overwhelming majority of Democrats want a public option, and several think they've already compromised enough on that score, the votes still aren't there. So, with key votes just around the corner, how can those moderate hold-outs be swayed, and what happens if they can't be? One possibility is simply leaving the ball in the moderates' court.

"There's potentially a dynamic that works in all of this that as you get closer and closer to the vote, you say--you really do say--we're going to make or we're not going to make history, and it takes on another dimension, psychologically," Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) told reporters. "I mean I've been through that myself. I've gone downstairs thinking maybe I'm not going to vote for that, and then suddenly I see its dimension, think of it in large terms, and then vote for it."

Rockefeller downplayed the possibility that, at the end of the process, there won't be 60 votes to end a filibuster.

"We're not taking that tack, what if we can't--we're talking about how we can," Rockefeller told TPMDC. He said using the budget reconciliation process as a procedural tool to circumvent a filibuster would be ugly, and, for that reason, the focus has to be on making sure Democrats (and perhaps Olympia Snowe) stick together to against a filibuster.

Read more »

Health Care

Poll: Plurality Opposes Health Care Bill -- Some From Right, Some From Left

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 12:34PM

President Barack Obama

The new CNN poll has mixed news for President Obama and the Democrats on health care, with a plurality against the health care bill that just passed the House -- but their reasons vary, coming from both the right and the left.

The poll found 46% in favor of the bill, with 49% against it, with a ±3% margin of error.

"Roughly one in three Americans opposes the House bill because it is too liberal, but one in 10 oppose the bill because it is not liberal enough," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "That may indicate that a majority opposes the details in the bill, but also that a majority may approve of the overall approach taken by House Democrats and President Obama."

In addition, President Obama's approval rating remains in good territory, with 55% approving to 42% disapproving. The poll also gives the Democrats a continued lead in the generic Congressional ballot, with a 49%-43% lead over Republicans among registered voters.

Sarah Palin

Poll: Even Conservatives Don't Want Palin Running For President

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 11:05AM

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin

A new CBS poll finds that Americans overwhelmingly don't want Sarah Palin to run for president -- and furthermore, even conservatives don't want her in the race.

Respondents were asked: "Would you like Sarah Palin to run for president in 2012?"

The top-line numbers: Only 24% would like Palin to run, compared to 66% who don't want her to run. Broken down by party identification, among Republicans it's 44%-48%, with Democrats 9%-83%, and among independents 26%-62%.

And among self-identified conservatives, only 41% said yes, to 50% who said no. Palin's only bright spot was white evangelicals, who favored a run by a narrow margin of 48%-42%.

Charlie Crist

Flashback: Crist 'Absolutely' Would Have Voted For Stimulus

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 10:52AM

Florida Governor Charlie Crist (R)

Gov. Charlie Crist (R-FL) has been trying to downplay or even deny his past support for the stimulus package, which has been used as a major wedge issue in his Senate primary by the more conservative Marco Rubio. Now Rolling Stone's Tim Dickinson digs up some further evidence against Crist:

"Most revealing, he told CNN on November 4th: "I didn't endorse it, I didn't even have a vote on the darn thing."

But when I interviewed Crist this spring for my piece The GOP Jihad, here's what he told me he'd have done had he had a darn vote:

Rolling Stone: Just a final question: Had you been in the Senate, would you have voted with the other Republicans for the stimulus package?

Crist: Absolutely.

Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin Quotes C.S. Lewis And Asks For Cash

Christina Bellantoni | November 17, 2009, 10:16AM

For all her 2012 denials, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is sure sounding like a presidential candidate in her fundraising emails.

Palin (R) asks supporters for up to $5,000 in donations, and anything over $100 gets a free, signed copy of "Going Rogue."

She says Ronald Reagan "showed us the way" and "charted the course for us," and goes on to quote C.S. Lewis:

C. S. Lewis once wrote: "We all want progress, but if you are on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road." We need to get back on the right road. In order to progress, we must return to our founding principles of limited government, fiscal responsibility, and strong national defense.

Palin says she'll help commonsense candidates "regardless of party" and asks for fundraising help with a peppy message:

"We won't let anyone tell us to sit down and shut up. We're going to stand up, stand together, and fight for what's right!"

Palin's full email after the jump.

Read more »

Health Care

Poll: Public Split On Health Care, Heavily In Favor Of Public Option

Eric Kleefeld | November 17, 2009, 10:07AM

President Barack Obama

The new ABC/Washington Post poll finds Democrats in a tricky the public divided on health care reform as it now stands -- but some internal numbers find potential for Democrats to break through, with no clear Republican alternatives in sight.

The poll found 48% of respondents in favor, and 49% against, the health care proposals current being developed by Congress and the Obama administration. In addition, opponents were more intense, with 39% strongly against and 10% only somewhat against, compared to 30% strongly in favor and 18% somewhat in favor.

In addition, 52% expect their own personal health care costs to increase if the bill is passed, and 56% expect the country's overall costs to increase.

However, respondents were also asked: "Do you think leaders of the Republican Party are mainly presenting alternatives to
Obama's proposals, or mainly criticizing Obama's alternatives?" In this case, only 31% said the Republicans were presenting alternatives, with 61% saying they were mainly criticizing Obama.

Read more »

Asia trip

WH: Obama's Internet Comments In China Most 'Direct' Human Rights Talk To Date

Christina Bellantoni | November 17, 2009, 9:23AM

President Barack Obama

White House aides traveling with President Obama on his trip abroad say his brief remarks on human rights and technology at the Shanghai town hall with Chinese students on Monday mark a key turning point in U.S.-China relations.

"I have never heard that kind of a discussion publicly in China before," Jeff Bader, senior director of the National Security Council for Asian Affairs, told reporters traveling with Obama in Beijing. "This was as direct a discussion on human rights as I've seen by any high-level visitor with the Chinese."

Bader said during private discussions with Chinese officials, Obama was "equally candid in describing human rights as a core, a fundamental, bedrock principle of U.S. foreign policy." He said Obama holds up the United Sates as an example while recognizing it remains an "unfinished project."

Read more »

Health Care

Progressives Push Reid On The Public Option

Brian Beutler | November 17, 2009, 9:02AM

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)

Last night, a number of Senate progressives, led by Sherrod Brown (D-OH), met with Majority Leader Harry Reid to make sure his eyes are still trained on the importance of a public option, and to game out a strategy for getting 60 votes to pass a health care bill with a public option on the floor.

According to sources, the meeting was meant to serve as a reminder to that progressives still feel very strongly about the importance of including a public option in the Senate's health care bill and that they've compromised enough.

Today, Reid expects to receive an analysis of his bill from CBO, which he'll circulate among members of his caucus. It should show that the cost of the bill is below $900 billion, and that it reduces the deficit in both the near and long term.

AFL-CIO

AFL-CIO Debuts Job Creation Program

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 16, 2009, 6:43PM

Richard Trumka, President of the AFL-CIO

The AFL-CIO is heading to Congress this week to sell Democratic leaders on the union's new plan to "create or save" 2 million jobs over the next year. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka will present the 5-point plan to a meeting of the Democratic caucus tonight before presenting it to the public at a speech in downtown Washington tomorrow morning.

TPMDC got an early look at the proposal this evening.

Essentially, the AFL-CIO plan calls for dramatically increasing the amount of government money spent on job creation efforts. Trumka will praise the stimulus package in his speech tomorrow, but will also criticize the government's economic recovery program for not spending enough on infrastructure repairs or encouraging loans to small businesses.

Read more »

2008 campaign

Plouffe Shocker: Edwards Camp Offered To Endorse If Obama Would Pick Him As VP

Christina Bellantoni | November 16, 2009, 5:56PM

Fmr. Sen. John Edwards (D-NC), Fmr. Barack Obama campaign manager David Plouffe

In the thick of the Democratic presidential primary, a top operative offered up John Edwards' withdrawal from the race and endorsement - on the condition the person he endorsed would offer him a spot on the ticket.

David Plouffe details the deal that "a senior Edwards" adviser" tried to ink before the South Carolina primary, spilling the beans in his book "The Audacity To Win."

Plouffe, then campaign manager for Barack Obama, was worried after the New Hampshire loss and polls tightening in South Carolina.

He said that the rival Edwards camp was in trouble and wanted to make a move with either Obama or Hillary Clinton while Edwards was "at a point of maximum leverage."

In this portion of the book, Plouffe hedges a bit, saying he's not sure Edwards was aware of the effort's specificity.

But he also has direct quotes, suggesting he documented the conversation.

Read the excerpt after the jump.

Read more »

Norm Coleman

Poll: Norm Coleman Is Frontrunner For GOP Nomination For Governor Of Minnesota

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 5:23PM

Fmr. Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN)

A new Rasmussen poll in Minnesota finds that former Sen. Norm Coleman is far and away the frontrunner for the Republican nomination for governor of Minnesota in 2010 -- even though he's not actually in the race at this time.

The numbers: Coleman 50%, former state House Minority Leader Mary Seifert 11%, and other candidates in single digits.

The Democratic race is a tie between Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak and former Sen. Mark Dayton at 30% each, with other candidates in single digits.

Coleman, of course, lost the heavily-litigated 2008 Minnesota Senate race to Democrat Al Franken. Coleman had initially led by 206 votes before the recount, out of about 2.9 million ballots cast, but the recount result put Franken ahead by 225 votes. Coleman contested the election in court, putting the Senate seat in legal limbo for six months, with Franken finally winning by a certified margin of 312 votes.

Doug Hoffman

Hoffman Takes Back His Concession Speech In NY-23

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 16, 2009, 5:19PM

NY-23 Candidate Doug Hoffman (Conservative) and Glenn Beck

Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman tried to reopen the NY-23 race this afternoon. Two weeks after he conceded defeat to Rep. Bill Owens (D), Hoffman attempted to take it all back in an interview with Glenn Beck.

Beck who championed Hoffman during the race, asked Hoffman if he regretted conceding in the wake of new poll results that show him losing to Owens by a narrower margin than was projected on election night. Some Hoffman supporters have held out hope that the 10,000 absentee ballots currently being counted by election officials in New York could reverse the election night result, which saw Owens become the first Democratic representative from the district in over a century.

Today, Hoffman seemed willing to oblige their fantasies.

Read more »

Sarah Palin

Poll: Palin Not Qualified To Be President, Hillary Clinton Is

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 4:48PM

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin

A new CNN poll finds further evidence that Americans don't think Sarah Palin is qualified for President -- and that Hillary Clinton, the country's other top woman in politics, is qualified.

The numbers on Palin: qualified 28%, not qualified 70%.

By contrast, the same question was asked about Hillary Clinton -- and 67% of Americans say that she is qualified to be president.

Among Republicans only, 54% say Palin is qualified, and 44% say she is not.

Tea Party

Tea Party Group Cancels Plan To Burn Perriello And Pelosi In Effigy

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 3:52PM

Rep. Tom Perriello (D-VA)

The plan by the Danville TEA Party Patriots to burn Rep. Tom Perriello (D-VA) and Speaker Nancy Pelosi in effigy -- a sort of Tea-Party Burning Man -- has been called off, Greg Sargent reports:

"We will not be going forward with the plan," a crestfallen Coleman told me by phone moments ago. "We had to cancel it. The property owner won't allow us to do it. The media attention was something that he didn't want."

Coleman said he was upset that people had gotten the wrong idea about his plan. "I'm disappointed that the story got out of hand and people misinterpreted something we thought would be a little historical lesson. They made people believe that we were committing an act of violence," he said, adding that the "they" in question were the "liberal blogs."

Joe Lieberman

CT Religious Leaders Pray For Lieberman 'To Come Home' On Health Care

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 16, 2009, 3:36PM

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT)

A growing number Connecticut's religious leaders are calling on Sen. Joe Lieberman to appeal to a higher power and change his mind about including a public option in a health care reform bill.

Last night, hundreds of reform supporters from congregations across the state held a candlelight vigil outside Lieberman's home in Stamford, CT. Today, a group of more than 70 religious leaders from Christian and Jewish congregations sent a letter calling on Lieberman to abandon his threats to filibuster any health care reform bill in the Senate that includes a public option.

"A lot of groups who have historically supported [Lieberman] are praying for him to come back home," Rabbi Ron Fish, leader of the Concerned Clergy Of Connecticut, which sent the letter, told TPMDC.

Read more »

DE-SEN

Poll: Beau Biden Ahead Of Mike Castle In Delaware Senate Race

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 3:19PM

Rep. Mike Castle (R-DE) and state Atty. Gen. Beau Biden (D-DE)

A new Susquehanna (R) poll of the Delaware Senate race gives Democratic state Attorney General Beau Biden, a son of Vice President Joe Biden, a five-point lead over long-time GOP Congressman Mike Castle in the 2010 race for Joe Biden's former Senate seat.

The numbers: Beau 45%, Castle 40%, with a ±3.36% margin of error. Way back in April, the last time Susquehanna polled this race, they had Castle with a whopping lead of 55%-34%.

This is big news, considering that Castle has been in state politics for over 40 years and has never lost a race, and was seen as a moderate candidate whose entrance into the race gave a huge boost to the GOP.

The pollster's analysis says that this is the first public poll in which Beau Biden has been ahead, and suggests that Castle's current decline "may be a result of negative publicity he received in the state after casting a 'no; vote for President Obama's health care reform bill in the U.S. Congress. The current poll was conducted 11/10 - 11/15, the week immediately following the weekend when the U.S. House of Representatives voted on this landmark legislation."

(Via Dave Weigel)

Chuck DeVore

GOP Senate Candidate DeVore Seeks To Defuse Birtherism Story

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 2:45PM

CA-SEN candidate Chuck DeVore (R)

Chuck DeVore, a California state Assemblyman running for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in California, is working to defuse comments that seemingly made him out to be a birther-sympathizer.

"The president is doing himself no favors by spending millions of dollars to block the release of documents surrounding his birth certificate," DeVore said to Dave Weigel. "As long as the president keeps fighting tooth and nail to prevent the release of such things, people are going to remain skeptical."

In an interview just now, DeVore's communications director Josh Trevino told TPM that key statements the candidate made were omitted from the published report. "Assemblyman DeVore believes that Barack Obama is the rightful, legitimate and constitutional President of the United States," said Trevino. "He said 10 years ago that the move to impeach Bill Clinton was a distraction from countering his liberal policies, and he believes that the movement now to question Barack Obama's birth is a similar distraction."

Weigel has responded to inquiries about this by posting a full transcription of DeVore's answer to his question -- and maintains that DeVore did not fully repudiate the birthers: "I was a little surprised that DeVore didn't knock this down harder; it seems to be stinging him today."

Read more »

Sarah Palin

Pro-Life Group Says Palin 'Misleading And Unreliable' On Abortion

Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 16, 2009, 1:28PM

Sarah Palin

On a day where most critics are attacking Sarah Palin for being too conservative, one group of anti-choice activists is slamming former Alaska governor for not being conservative enough when it comes to the issue of abortion.

American Right To Life, the self-proclaimed "personhood wing of the right-to-life movement" attacked Palin today for using "liberal, pro-choice, socialist terminology" in her political rhetoric on abortion and for distinguishing "between her 'personal' and public pro-life views" ("personally pro-life means officially pro-choice," the group says.

ARL on Palin, from the website the group launched today:

As a candidate whom many pro-lifers want to support, her actual abortion record and rhetoric is shocking to the conscience.

Read more »

Health Care

Senate Dems Will Force Republicans To Debate Long Hours If They Obstruct

Christina Bellantoni | November 16, 2009, 12:36PM

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA)

The health care debate will be restarted in earnest tomorrow as Senate Democrats expect the Congressional Budget Office to score their version of the bill, which includes the opt-out public option.

But Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) today on a radio show laid out a schedule that would put the bill on Obama's desk in January, another delay.

Harkin was not very optimistic about the timing of final passage, saying on the "Bill Press Radio Show" the Senate would need to work every weekend in December to pass the bill by Christmas, according to The Hill.

Read more »

Tea Party

Tea Party Group Getting Cold Feet About Burning Perriello And Pelosi In Effigy?

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 10:45AM

Rep. Tom Perriello (D-VA)

The Danville TEA Party Patriots, a group that has courted controversy by planning to burn Rep. Tom Perriello (D-VA) and Speaker Nancy Pelosi at a rally this Saturday, may be having second thoughts.

"We've been getting a lot of flack about this," Danville TEA Party chairman Nigel Coleman told the Lynchburg News & Advance, "about burning those two in effigy and a lot of people in the public are unhappy about it. The story has gotten so large, it's kinda strange."

As the News & Advance notes, Coleman himself had announced this event by sending out a press release that promoted the event as "a move sure to spark controversy."

"I still would like to do it, but it's still up in the air at this point," Coleman added. "We've already started stacking firewood and building the effigy...we will have a bonfire. Burning someone in effigy was just gonna be part of it."

Guantanamo Bay

Conservatives Say Gitmo Detainees Would Be Fine In IL Prison, Warn GOP Of 'Scaremongering'

Christina Bellantoni | November 16, 2009, 10:19AM

President of The American Conservative Union David Keene, frmr House Rep./Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr, and Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist

Three prominent conservatives warned in a joint statement against Republican "scaremongering" on Guantanamo Bay detainees, saying the prison in Thomson, Illinois would be fine to handle them.

Former Republican Congressman and Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr, David Keene, chairman of the American Conservative Union and Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, have teamed up to urge the Gitmo detainees be taken to the U.S.

"The scaremongering about these issues should stop," Barr, Keene and Norquist wrote.

"Civilian federal courts are the proper forum for terrorism cases," they wrote. "Civilian prisons are the safe, cost effective and appropriate venue to hold persons in federal courts."

"Likewise the federal prison system has proven itself fully capable of safely holding literally hundreds of convicted terrorists with no threat or danger to the surrounding community," they wrote. "We are confident that the government can preserve national security without resorting to sweeping and radical departures from an American constitutional tradition that has served us effectively for over two centuries."

Read the full letter here.

AR-02

Poll: Dem Congressman Vic Snyder In Dead Heat With GOPer Tim Griffin

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 9:47AM

Rep. Vic Snyder (D-AR) and former U.S. Atty. Tim Griffin (R)

A new survey in Arkansas by Public Policy Polling (D) finds Democratic Rep. Vic Snyder in a dead heat with Republican challenger Tim Griffin -- a "star" of the U.S. Attorney scandal in 2007.

The numbers: Snyder 44%, Griffin 43%, within the ±4.9% margin of error. Against the other GOP candidates, Snyder leads Army veteran and Republican activist David Meeks by 45%-42%, and is ahead of restaurateur Scott Wallace by 44%-42%.

The Republican candidates are essentially unknowns, but Snyder's job approval is only 42%, with a 46% plurality disapproval. In addition, President Obama's approval rating in the district is only 41%-52%.

Joe Biden

Tuesday: Joe Biden To Be First Sitting VP To Appear On 'Daily Show'

Christina Bellantoni | November 16, 2009, 9:40AM

Vice President Joe Biden

Vice President Joe Biden tomorrow night will become the first sitting vice president to appear on Comedy Central's "Daily Show with Jon Stewart."

Biden, sometimes known for sticking a foot in his mouth, has appeared five other times on the show.

President Obama pitched in via satellite for a stunt on The Colbert Report earlier this year when Stephen Colbert did his show from Iraq.

Sarah Palin

Poll: Americans Don't Like Sarah Palin

Eric Kleefeld | November 16, 2009, 9:12AM

Sarah Palin

A new ABC/Washington Post poll finds that Americans still do not like Sarah Palin, who is kicking off her Going Rogue book tour with a taped interview airing today on the Oprah Winfrey show.

The poll finds that a majority of Americans, 52% of respondents, have an unfavorable opinion of her, compared to only 43% favorable.

In addition, respondents were asked this question: "Regardless of whether or not you'd vote for her, do you think Palin is or is not qualified to serve as president?" The numbers: qualified 38%, not qualified 60%.

In addition, 53% say they would definitely not vote for her. Only 9% would definitely vote for her, and 37% would consider it (those people are likely Republicans and GOP-leaners who want to see all the options).

Asia trip

Obama Tells Chinese Students Decision On Afghanistan Gives Him 'A Heavy Heart'

Christina Bellantoni | November 16, 2009, 8:57AM

President Barack Obama

President Obama's town hall in Shanghai (held around midnight East Coast time) was a highlight of his 8-day Asia trip. He'll be holding a press conference today in Beijing and also will see the Great Wall and Forbidden City.

He makes the diplomatic visit as he's considering whether to send a surge of up to 40,000 troops to Afghanistan, and the 300 Chinese students he spoke to at the town hall were well aware of the upcoming decision. A Fudan University student asked Obama if terrorism is still the greatest security concern for the United States, adding, "How do you assess the military actions in Afghanistan, or whether it will turn into another Iraqi war?"

His answer in full after the jump.

Read more »

Asia trip

In China Obama Touts Freedom Through Twitter, Basketball's Yao Ming And Being The First Black President

Christina Bellantoni | November 16, 2009, 7:55AM

President Barack Obama

President Obama held up Twitter and non-censored technology as a key foundation for a free society while addressing students in China.

Speaking in Shanghai during his 8-day trip through Asia, Obama operated much like he does at his typical U.S. town hall, even going boy-girl, boy-girl as he took questions.

He opened up on winning the Nobel Prize, how he views the conflict in Afghanistan and complimented the students on their English skills.

During the town hall Ambassador Jon Huntsman read the question, submitted through the embassy: "In a country with 350 million Internet users and 60 million bloggers, do you know of the firewall? ... Should we be able to use Twitter freely?"

Obama admitted he had never actually tweeted - despite his campaign and the White House's large presence on Twitter - but said technology helps unite the world.

Read more »