Rick Perry

Will Rick Perry Defy International Law (Again)?

Thomas Lane | July 2, 2011, 6:21PM

Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R)

It's Rick Perry v The World. On Thursday the Texas Governor (and possible Republican presidential player) will face a stark choice: allow the execution of Mexican national Humberto Leal Garcia, or listen to high-ranking international figures and grant a last-minute delay.

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Herman Cain

Herman Cain Hauls In $2.46M In Fundraising, 'No Debt'

Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 1, 2011, 11:42PM

GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain

Former Godfather's Pizza CEO Herman Cain is a grassroots sensation on the 2012 presidential campaign trail. Now we know what that looks like as a dollar figure: Cain brought in $2.46 million in campaign contributions, a number the campaign tells TPM it expects to see rise to closer to $2.48 when all the final reporting is done.

"It's not Mitt Romney money, it's not [President] Obama money, but we're excited," spokesperson Ellen Carmichael told TPM late Friday night.

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House Ethics Committee

Under Ethics Investigation: Reps. Meeks, Schmidt

Susan Crabtree | July 1, 2011, 4:19PM

Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) and Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-OH)

The House Ethics Committee is investigating Reps. Greg Meeks (D-NY) and Jean Schmidt (R-OH) on allegations that they violated House ethics rules.

The panel announced the probe Friday afternoon in a terse letter saying only that Reps. Jo Bonner (R-AL), the committee's chairman, and Linda Sanchez (D-CA), its ranking member, have "jointly decided to extend matters" regarding Meeks and Schmidt.

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Wisconsin State Legislature

Wis. GOPer Loses Court Case To Get On Ballot In State Senate Recalls

Eric Kleefeld | July 1, 2011, 3:45PM

State Rep. John Nygren (R-WI)

A Dane County judge has ruled against Wisconsin GOP state Rep. John Nygren's effort to get onto the ballot to challenge Democratic state Sen. Dave Hansen, after state election officials disqualified Nygren due to a lack of sufficient petition signatures. It leaves the GOP with only one other candidate in the race -- who brings some personal baggage.

As WisPolitics reports, Nygren has now announced that he will not further contest the decision, and as such is dropping out of the race. "While I disagree with the court's decision, I respect the process and will cease any further actions to appeal this decision," Nygren says. "It's unfortunate that my candidacy in this recall election has been determined by Democrat-appointed GAB staff that has constantly worked against me as I defended myself from the Democratic Party's frivolous challenges."

When he filed his petitions, Nygren only turned in 424 signatures, just over the 400 minimum. Candidates are allowed to turn in up to 800 signatures, twice the minimum, in order to have a buffer against signature disqualifications (and in nearly all cases, they do submit a significant buffer). After Democrats challenged errors and qualifications for some signatures at the state Government Accountability Board -- which oversees elections in the state -- he was busted down to 398, two short of the threshold, thus keeping him off the ballot.

Some perspective: Republicans were able to gather over 18,000 signatures to trigger a recall against Hansen (and even though some of them were fraudulent, this was still an accomplishment overall) -- yet did not make enough of an effort to get 400 signatures plus a decent-sized buffer for their preferred candidate.

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Tim Pawlenty

Ouch: Tim Pawlenty Raises Anemic $4.2 Million For Presidential Bid

Benjy Sarlin | July 1, 2011, 3:38PM

GOP Presidential Candidate Tim Pawlenty

Tim Pawlenty raised a disappointing $4.2 million in his first quarter as a presidential candidate, falling short of expectations and raising questions about his ability to compete with the better-funded Mitt Romney and buzzier Michele Bachmann.

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2012 elections

Six Months, Seven Fails: The Opening Round Of Campaign 2012 (VIDEO)

Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 1, 2011, 2:43PM

Tim Pawlenty (R-MN), Sarah Palin (R-AK), Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Herman Cain (R-TN)

Running for president is hard. Candidates have to be focused, dedicated and possess an almost unfathomable amount of vanity. It also takes a healthy appetite for shoe leather -- you're gonna put your foot directly in your mouth, usually on national television, more than few times before all is said and done.

At the end of June, campaign 2012 is coming along nicely on that front. We've seen candidates (and potential candidates) choke up on a debate stage, claim Paul Revere rang bells, scream at reporters on camera, flip-flop mightily and even misspell their own names at their own kickoffs. If the first six months of the presidential campaign trail are any guide, it's going to be an exceptionally fun year.

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Anthony Weiner

Anthony Weiner Replacement Election Set For Sept. 13

Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 1, 2011, 2:25PM

Voters in New York's 9th Congressional District will head to the polls to choose disgraced Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner's replacement on Sept. 13, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced today.

That makes the second Tuesday in September a kind of mini-Super Tuesday for special election fans and sex scandal observers: voters in Nevada's 2nd Congressional District will also go to the polls to fill the seat vacated by Sen. Dean Heller (R) when he was appointed following disgraced Sen. John Ensign's (R) resignation earlier this year.

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Chuck Schumer

Is The GOP Sabotaging The Economy? Schumer: 'They Give Us No Choice But To Answer Yes'

Brian Beutler | July 1, 2011, 12:49PM

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

To a casual observer's eyes, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is flogging a dead horse. He keeps hinting that the GOP is intentionally try to damage the economy or forestall recovery because it will improve their election chances in 2012. But he also keeps inching closer to outright declaring it.

He took another step in that direction Friday. On a conference call Friday morning, another reporter asked Schumer whether he believes the GOP's committing sabotage (my words, not the reporter's). Here's his response.

"It's a thought you just don't want to believe in, because that would be [horrible]," Schumer said. "But every day they keep giving us more and more evidence that there's no choice but to answer the question 'yes.' They give us no choice but to come to that conclusion."

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2012

July 4 Big-Time Campaign Day For 2012 Field

Benjy Sarlin | July 1, 2011, 12:39PM

GOP Presidential Candidates Debate, Jun 13, 2011

Fairs, rallies, parades! They're everywhere a candidate wants to be and July 4 is the mother lode for voter-friendly events. The top candidates are all keeping busy schedules for the holiday and their plans say plenty about their broader strategy.

In one case, two candidates will directly overlap. Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman are both participating in a parade in Amherst, New Hampshire to commemorate Independence Day. New Hampshire is the center of Romney's strength in the 2012 race and he enjoys heavy frontrunner status. Romney will also hit up a couple of other holiday events in the state, including another parade later in the day. For Huntsman, who is competing with many of the same moderate and establishment voters and donors, catching up on Romney in the polls there is crucial to scoring him some much-needed credibility.

Herman Cain will end his busy day in New Hampshire, throwing out the first pitch at a minor league baseball game, but he'll start off in Philadelphia for a Tea Party rally with former UN Ambassador John Bolton. Firing up the grassroots is crucial to Cain's candidacy and he needs to broaden his small donor base if he wants to make an impact in fundraising after a lackluster start.

Michele Bachmann's presidential hopes rest on a strong showing in Iowa, where she was born and launched her campaign (albeit with a few hiccups). Not surprisingly, she's digging in for the entire holiday weekend, hoping to capitalize on her momentum in the polls. She'll be hitting her share of parades and local celebrations across the state.

Intersecting with Bachmann will be Newt Gingrich, whose campaign has lost most of its top staff. The two are both participating in the Clear Lake Independence Day parade. Rick Santorum is also expected to campaign in Iowa that day, where he will need a strong performance to stay in the race.

One exception to the July 4 rush: Tim Pawlenty, who has not released a public schedule for the holiday.

Debt Ceiling

Schumer: Obama May Not Need Congress To Avoid Default -- But Congress Needs To Act

Brian Beutler | July 1, 2011, 12:10PM

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

On a conference call with reporters Friday, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) acknowledged that President Obama may not need Congressional authorization to avoid a default on the national debt. But he noted, too, that the Constitutional debate on this question isn't ripe enough yet for Obama to take an end run around Congress, even if Republicans refuse to increase the national borrowing limit.

I asked Schumer, a lawyer, whether, in his view, the administration had the power to continue issuing new debt even if Congress fails to raise the debt limit. He acknowledged that the question's been discussed, but said the White House probably shouldn't go there just yet.

"It's certainly worth exploring," Schumer said. "I think it needs a little more exploration and study. It's probably not right to pursue at this point and you wouldn't want to go ahead and issue the debt and then have the courts reverse it."

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2012

Romney: OK, Maybe Obama Didn't Make The Recession 'Worse'

Benjy Sarlin | July 1, 2011, 12:02PM

Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney walked back his oft-repeated claim that President Obama made the recession worse, telling reporters in Pennsylvania on Thursday that he never meant to suggest any such thing.

Asked by NBC how he squared his claim that Obama worsened the lousy economy he inherited given that the stock market has surged, unemployment is down from its peak, and the economy is no longer shrinking, Romney demurred.

"I didn't say that things are worse," he said. He went on to make the case that Obama had failed to do enough on jobs, a much less inflammatory claim.

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Jon Huntsman

Jon Huntsman Raises $4.1M When You Include The Donation He Gave Himself

Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 1, 2011, 9:55AM

Jon Huntsman

Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman promised not to use his considerable wealth to fund his presidential campaign. Shortly thereafter he told the Salt Lake Tribune he donated some cash to his campaign after all -- but only to "prime the pump."

Now his campaign is reporting he raised $4.1 million in the last fundraising quarter, including the unspecified sum Huntsman put in himself. Huntsman won't be making a formal FEC filing like the rest of the 2012 contenders will, because he entered the campaign so late.

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Debt

Pick Up The Pace! White House Says Congress Needs Debt Deal By July 22

Brian Beutler | July 1, 2011, 9:46AM

President Barack Obama and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner

For all the talk about August 2 being the hard-and-fast deadline for Congress to raise the debt limit, that's never really been the case. The Treasury department considers August 2 the day they're likely to run out of headroom and either take drastic action to avoid a credit default, or begin missing interest payments and unleashing hell. It's like the outer bound. But practically, White House officials now say, that means Congress needs to have a debt limit deal in hand about two weeks before then -- a legislative lifetime -- if they're going to have enough time to crank out a bill and raise the debt limit in time to prevent calamity.

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Tim Pawlenty

Tim Pawlenty Tells Minnesota GOP To Shut 'Er Down!

Benjy Sarlin | July 1, 2011, 9:38AM

Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN)

Minnesota's government is shutting down amid a fight over -- what else -- raising taxes, but former governor Tim Pawlenty couldn't be happier. In fact, he wishes his own shutdown standoff in 2005 had lasted even longer.

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Debt

Going Populist? Dems Put GOP On Spot Over Tax Benefits For The Super-Rich

Brian Beutler | July 1, 2011, 6:00AM

Several weeks after Republicans and Democrats began high-level negotiations to slash federal spending by trillions of dollars -- the GOP's price for raising the national borrowing limit, and avoiding a catastrophic debt default -- Democrats finally peeped up. New tax revenues, of some kind, of some amount, would have to be part of the deal.

The group, led by Vice President Joe Biden, had already identified nearly $2 trillion in cuts to discretionary and mandatory spending programs -- nearly enough to raise the debt limit through the end of 2012 and take a contentious issue off the table this election season.

That's when Democrats said, "your turn to give!" and put $400 billion in tax cuts on the table. Republicans balked. No tax hikes at all. Some Republicans have left the door open to closing certain indefensible loopholes. But party leaders have tried, for all intents and purposes, to take the tax code off the table. Cuts only.

The Democrats' response, from the rank and file up to President Obama, has been a political twofer. If Republicans are taking all taxes off the table, then they're playing reverse Robin Hood -- demanding trillions in cuts to social programs while refusing to budge on preferences to unfathomably wealthy special interests. It's class war, but in tactical sense. If they can make the GOP feel so uncomfortable that they agree to end special tax favors for the ultra-wealthy -- even if those favors don't ultimately cost that much money -- then maybe they can break the anti-tax firewall and encroach on $400 billion.

Here's what they're focusing on.

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Rick Perry

Climate Skeptics Want Rick Perry To Run, Not Big Christie Fans

Evan McMorris-Santoro | July 1, 2011, 6:00AM

Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX)

The political news from the gathering of global warming skeptics at the Heartland Institute in DC this week is, for the most part, the same news you'll find at any predominantly conservative gathering these days. Attendees here want Texas Gov. Rick Perry to run for the Republican presidential nomination. Oh, and they're not thrilled with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

But there was one surprise -- climate skeptics are not as high on New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie as nearly every other Republican on the planet is.

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Minnesota

Lights Out: Minnesota Government Shuts Down Without Budget Agreement

David Taintor | July 1, 2011, 5:30AM

Minnesota State Capitol Building

Minnesota lawmakers just couldn't get it done.

After many consecutive days of intense budget negotiations, the state's government has begun shutting down ahead of the Fourth of July weekend. That means state parks and rest stops are closed -- as well as other government services the court doesn't deem "core" functions of government. More than 22,000 state employees will be forced out of work.

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2012 Presidential Primaries

Michigan Rep. McCotter Running For GOP Nomination

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 30, 2011, 6:35PM

Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI)

The race for the Republican presidential nomination just got a big dose of electric guitar. USA Today's Jackie Kucinich reports that Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI) will make official Saturday what he's been hinting at for months: he's a candidate for president.

McCotter, a name most people don't know but a former player in House Republican leadership, has already made moves to suggest serious about his bid.

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Minnesota

Hours Before State Government Shutdown, No Budget Deal In Minnesota

David Taintor | June 30, 2011, 6:04PM

Minnesota State Capitol

Minnesota lawmakers have just hours to avert a state government shutdown. And while talks continued on Thursday a deal did not yet appear close.

Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton again held meetings with Republican leaders Thursday, the Star Tribune reports. A couple of jibes against Democrats were launched via Twitter, but lawmakers have mostly maintained their "cone of silence" while negotiations are underway.

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National Labor Relations Board

Judge Rules For NLRB Over Boeing, Graham Piping Mad

Susan Crabtree | June 30, 2011, 6:02PM

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)

A federal judge denied Boeing's motion to dismiss a National Labor Relations Board lawsuit that charged the aerospace giant with unfairly penalizing Washington workers' collective bargaining rights by moving a new production line to South Carolina.

Administrative Law Judge Clifford Anderson is allowing the case against Boeing to proceed to trial. The NLRB charged Boeing executives with retaliating against union workers in Washington state for striking by opening up the South Carolina factory, which Boeing flat-out denies.

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Paul Ryan

Democratic 'Craigslist Bomb' Bursting Online For Paul Ryan's Fourth Of July

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 30, 2011, 3:37PM

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI)

Like most Americans, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) has plans to celebrate our nation's independence on July 4. But an email that appears to have come from his Congressional campaign shows his staff is hoping to boost turnout at a Kenosha, WI parade by promising miniature flags and free T-shirts.

Some Democrats think that means Ryan -- who's under fire for his plan to convert Medicare into a voucher system -- is having trouble getting people to turn out and walk with him in Kenosha. Now some are driving the point home with a series of satirical Craigslist posts that goad him over the budget plan that he wrote, that the House Republicans passed, and that polls show the public is rejecting in droves.

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MSNBC

Carney 'Expressed' To NBC that Halperin Was 'Inappropriate'

Susan Crabtree | June 30, 2011, 2:05PM

White House spokesman Jay Carney may have played a direct role in MSNBC's decision to sack -- er, suspend indefinitely -- Time magazine's Mark Halperin for calling President Obama a "dick" on Morning Joe.

Carney said he personally told MSNBC that he didn't appreciate Time magazine's Mark Halperin's obscene name-calling.

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Barack Obama

Reid: Actually Obama Will Meet With Senators On Debt Limit Wednesday

Brian Beutler | June 30, 2011, 1:29PM

Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y.

Turns out President Obama will come to the Capitol to talk debt ceiling...just not today.

At a Thursday Senate press conference, scheduled minutes before it began, Democratic leaders called out their GOP counterparts, who invited Obama to the Hill without notice in order to swipe at him later for declining. Majority Leader Harry Reid announced that Obama will come, along with the Vice President Joe Biden, to visit Senators on Wednesday.

"Next week, on Tuesday, we're going to have Sen. [Kent] Conrad who's worked really hard with the people on the Budget Committee to come up with a way forward on the budget," Reid said.

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Iowa caucus

Cain To Visit John Wayne's Hometown In Iowa (The Actor, Not The Serial Killer)

Eric Kleefeld | June 30, 2011, 1:04PM

Herman Cain and John Wayne

Hmm, is Herman Cain trying to take the spotlight back from Michele Bachmann?

Cain is set to make a campaign stop this Sunday in a special town: Winterset, Iowa, the hometown of actor John Wayne -- whose name has suddenly re-entered the American political psyche, thanks to a gaffe during Bachmann's campaign rollout.

And that's not all: Cain will be visiting a Godfather's Pizza restaurant -- the corporation that he used to head up -- on John Wayne Drive in Winterset.

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Massachusetts

MA Dem Apologizes For Comparing Lobbyist Badges To Holocaust Tattoos

Jillian Rayfield | June 30, 2011, 11:42AM

Massachusetts State Rep. John Binienda (D)

Massachusetts state Rep. John Binienda (D) apologized Thursday for comparing a proposal to make lobbyists wear badges when talking to lawmakers to Adolf Hitler's forced tattooing of Jews during the Holocaust.

"Yesterday, I made an inappropriate analogy regarding a proposed change to the House Rules," he said in a statement. "No comparison can be made between the Nazi regime and a rules proposal made by members in good faith. I apologize to the sponsors as well as the people of Massachusetts for my words and look forward to working with the sponsors on these proposals."

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Barack Obama

McConnell Same-Day Invites Obama To The Hill To Talk GOP Opposition To Taxes

Brian Beutler | June 30, 2011, 11:26AM

Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

Washington's perennial saga of escalating gimmickry continues Tuesday as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) pulls the ol' "same-day invite the President to the Capitol" trick.

Shortly after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) canceled next week's Independence Day recess -- a bit of Kabuki in its own right -- McConnell took the Senate floor to set himself up with an opportunity to criticize President Obama for rejecting an invitation to have some real talk about the debt limit in order to attend a political fundraiser.

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2012

Romney Highlights Closed Plant Obama Visited In Web Video

Benjy Sarlin | June 30, 2011, 11:02AM

Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney's campaign is up with a new web video about Allentown Metal Works, a Pennsylvania factory that closed up shop after President Obama visited it in 2009 to tout his economic agenda.

Romney has focused like a laser on the country's high unemployment in recent months, making the heavily disputed claim that the White House's policies made the recession even worse. He's scheduled to speak in Allentown today.

Video after the jump:

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Mark Halperin

MSNBC Suspends Mark Halperin For Calling Obama A 'Dick' (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | June 30, 2011, 10:53AM

Mark Halperin

Time magazine's Mark Halperin has been suspended indefinitely from his role as an analyst for MSNBC, after he called President Obama a "dick" on Morning Joe for his confrontational performance vis-a-vis Congressional Republicans at Wednesday's press conference:

MSNBC issued a statement containing comments from both the channel and from Halperin:

Statement from MSNBC:

Mark Halperin's comments this morning were completely inappropriate and unacceptable. We apologize to the President, The White House and all of our viewers. We strive for a high level of discourse and comments like these have no place on our air. Therefore, Mark will be suspended indefinitely from his role as an analyst.

Statement from Mark Halperin:

I completely agree with everything in MSNBC's statement about my remark. I believe that the step they are taking in response is totally appropriate. Again, I want to offer a heartfelt and profound apology to the President, to my MSNBC colleagues, and to the viewers. My remark was unacceptable, and I deeply regret it.

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Climate Change

James Inhofe: Al Gore Is Right, Obama's Bailed On Talking About The Environment

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 30, 2011, 10:38AM

Jim Inhofe

One of America's foremost climate change skeptics, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) says Al Gore (one of the nation's foremost climate change believers) is right in saying that President Obama has backed off when it comes to selling climate change to the electorate.

Inhofe says climate skeptics like him are partially responsible for the change. And he also warns that the shift is only skin-deep.

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Harry Reid

Harry Reid To Senate: You're Not Going Anywhere

Benjy Sarlin | June 30, 2011, 10:12AM

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)

President Obama warned Congress on Wednesday that unless they made progress on debt ceiling talks soon, "we're going to start canceling things." Making good on the White House's threat, Majority Leader Harry Reid is keeping the Senate in session over the July 4 recess.

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2012

Mitt Romney Leads Fundraising Pack, But With Modest Haul

Benjy Sarlin | June 30, 2011, 10:09AM

GOP Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney

Quarterly fundraising totals are due today and Mitt Romney is the first to put out some confirmed numbers: $15 to $20 million, according to a campaign source.

The quarterly cash gives him a total of between $25 and $35 million raised overall. While Romney's haul is expected to easily outpace the rest of the field, the numbers fall short of the huge figures some fundraisers had touted to the press in recent months and are roughly in line with his quarterly performance in 2008, when he was less established as a frontrunner. In March, one fundraiser raised the bar as high as $50 million by the early summer filing deadline in an interview with the WSJ. Expectations were further boosted after he raised over $10 million at one Vegas event.

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2012 elections

Bachmann: I Became 'Committed To Life' After Miscarriage

Eric Kleefeld | June 30, 2011, 9:55AM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

During a campaign stop in South Carolina, Michele Bachmann said that her dedication to the pro-life cause, as well as her experience of serving as a foster parent for a total of 23 children, were rooted in a miscarriage she had years ago.

"After our second was born, we became pregnant with a third baby," Bachmann told an audience of 400, CNN reports. "It was an unexpected baby, but of course we were delighted to have this child. The child was coming along and we ended up losing our child. And it was devastating to both of us, as you can imagine if any of you have lost a child."

"At that moment, we didn't think of ourselves as overly career-minded or overly materialistic but when we lost that child, it changed us, and it changed us forever," she further added. "We made a commitment that no matter how many children were brought into our life, we would receive them because we are committed to life."

Debt Ceiling

Schumer: Republicans' 'Slash-And-Burn' Policies May Be Effort To Sabotage Economy

Brian Beutler | June 30, 2011, 9:28AM

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY)

In a blistering Thursday morning speech at the Economic Policy Institute -- a progressive think tank -- Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) asked a question that's been on the minds of many Democrats and progressives: Are Republicans sabotaging the economic recovery as part of their quest to defeat President Obama next year?

"[W]e need to start asking ourselves an uncomfortable questions -- are Republicans slowing down the recovery on purpose for political gain in 2012?" Schumer said. "Senator McConnell made it clear last October that his number one priority, above everything else, is to defeat President Obama. And now it is becoming clear that insisting on a slash-and-burn approach may be part of this plan -- it has a double-benefit for Republicans: it is ideologically tidy and it undermines the economic recovery, which they think only helps them in 2012."

Schumer -- the third ranking Democrat in the Senate and the party's top political strategist -- has been inching in this direction ever since Republicans trotted out new-found opposition to a payroll tax cut for business owners. But the Thursday speech constituted an escalation of his strategy. And, in a new twist, he pre-emptively saddled Republicans with blame for economic fallout of a debt default if Congress fails to raise the debt limit in a timely fashion.

"If the public comes to believe that Republicans are deliberately sabotaging the economy, it will backfire politically," Schumer said. "If there are any negative repercussions on the economy resulting from the delay in raising the debt ceiling, Republicans rightly fear that Americans will hold them responsible."

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Climate Change

With Climate Change Denial In Ascendancy, Skeptics Gather In Washington

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 30, 2011, 9:17AM

This is a good time to be a Republican climate change skeptic -- at least one who doesn't live below sea level, in a flood plain or in the path of a deadly heatwave, tornado or hurricane.

It's strange, experts say, because more and more members of the party believe climate change is a real thing. But with the economy down, Americans have turned away from the issue -- leaving a Republican vacuum the tea party has filled with skepticism. And in DC this week, the skeptics are gathering to celebrate their ascendancy.

Read more »

Debt

Report: S&P Will Downgrade Dramatically Unhonored Treasuries After August 4

Brian Beutler | June 30, 2011, 5:45AM

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner

It almost goes without saying that if the United States doesn't raise its debt limit and, thus, fails to make an interest payment on the world's supposedly safest investment -- its own Treasuries -- then the value of that investment will plummet.

Standard & Poors made it official Wednesday by declaring that any Treasury maturing on August 4, that the government fails to honor, will be given a D-rating.

As , the country's biggest credit ratings agencies, including S&P will downgrade the country's triple-A credit rating if it defaults, even briefly, on any of its obligations. S&P in particular told TPM that the U.S. rating would drop to "Selective Default."

This revelation, reported by Reuters, created a bit of confusion, and led some to conclude that the credit rating for the entire country would be given a big fat "D."

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Minnesota

Judge: 'Core' Gov't Functions Must Be Funded In Event Of MN Shutdown

David Taintor | June 30, 2011, 5:45AM

Minnesota state Capitol building

Details of what a state government shutdown in Minnesota would look like are becoming a bit clearer. A Ramsey County District Court judge on Wednesday ruled that "core" government functions must continue if the government shuts down.

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Gay Marriage

NJ Same-Sex Couples File Lawsuit For Marriage Equality

Jillian Rayfield | June 29, 2011, 5:10PM

Pro Same-Sex Marriage Parade, Maplewood, NJ

The New Jersey gay advocacy group Garden State Equality and seven same-sex couples and their children filed suit Wednesday, arguing that same-sex marriages should be recognized by the state.

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2012

Michele Bachmann Defends Medicaid Payments To Husband's Clinic

Benjy Sarlin | June 29, 2011, 4:43PM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Presidential hopeful Michele Bachmann (R-MN) is pushing back against charges of hypocrisy over Medicaid payments her husband collected for his therapy practice.

Bachmann's husband, Marcus, runs a Christian counseling agency that has come under scrutiny in the past for its strong religious ties. The Los Angeles Times noted this week that it had received about $30,000 in public funds since 2007, partly federal, to help prepare staff to properly deal with mentally ill patients. On Tuesday, NBC revealed an additional $137,000 in Medicaid payments since 2005, which they said contradicted Rep. Bachmann's claim that her husband only received a training grant that went to employees.

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Defense Spending

Boeing Caught With Hand In The Cookie Jar, Overcharged Army Millions

Igor Bobic | June 29, 2011, 4:38PM

Apache Attack Helicopter

Boeing Co. raked in millions of dollars from the U.S. Army by marking up spare helicopter parts as much as 177,000 percent, according to a Defense inspector general report first obtained by the Project on Government Oversight.

Boeing, a major defense contractor, overcharged the Army on 18 different parts and collected $23 million dollars instead of the $10 million it should have received in fiscal year 2010. One part, a straight pin that usually valued at $0.04, was sold to the Army for an astronomical $74.01 per unit. A plain stud used on Apache helicopters fetched $3,369.48, even though it usually retails for $190.00 a piece - a 1,673 percent markup.

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Chuck Schumer

Schumer To Boehner: If You Think You Can Raise The Debt Limit Without Dem Support, You're Dreaming

Brian Beutler | June 29, 2011, 3:49PM

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY)

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) says Republican leaders are kidding themselves if they think they'll prevail in their bid to keep new tax revenues out of a grand bargain to lift the nation's borrowing limit. And to prove it, he says, look no further than the House of Representatives.

[TPM SLIDESHOW: Battle Over The Budget: Behind The Scenes At The White House]

"Speaker Boehner should realize we're in a different world than we were even a few months ago," Schumer told reporters at the Capitol Wednesday. "He needs Democrats to pass a bill through the House."

A number of Republican House members have said they won't vote to raise the debt limit at all, or only under certain, highly partisan circumstances. Schumer's math suggests that means he'll need Democratic votes to pass a viable debt limit bill, and that means new revenues will have to be part of the equation.

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Bobby Jindal

Whether He Wants It Or Not, Bobby Jindal's Got David Vitter's Endorsement

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 29, 2011, 3:26PM

Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-LA) and Senator David Vitter (R-LA)

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's (R) reelection campaign just got the prostitution scandal bump.

A few months after Jindal publicly declined to endorse Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) for reelection last year, Vitter is being the bigger person and endorsing Jindal for another term as governor anyway.

Team Jindal told reporters in Louisiana the governor is "appreciative of the senator's support."

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2012 elections

Poll: Perry Trails Obama In Texas

Eric Kleefeld | June 29, 2011, 3:17PM

Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX)

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has reportedly been eyeing the race for the Republican presidential nomination -- but Texas isn't eyeing him for president, according to new survey from Public Policy Polling (D).

Indeed, the poll shows Perry trailing President Obama in heavily Republican Texas, which last voted Democratic for president in 1976, when Jimmy Carter was the South's favorite son. Obama leads 47%-45%, even though Obama's net approval rating is underwater at 42%-55%. Of course, this could potentially change if Perry actually became the nominee in a real election, but it's not a good starting point.

The poll found Perry's approval rating at only 43%, with 52% disapproval. In addition, the poll asked simply: "Do you think Rick Perry should run for president next year, or not?" The result was only 33% saying he should run, to 59% saying he should not.

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Constitution

Bush-Appointed Former Scalia Clerk Upholds Constitutionality Of Health Care Law On Appeal

Brian Beutler | June 29, 2011, 1:40PM

President Barack Obama

For the first time, a Republican appointed federal judge -- part of a three-judge circuit court panel -- has ruled that the individual insurance mandate in President Obama's health care law is constitutional.

The Sixth Circuit appellate court panel -- the first appellate court to rule on the question -- dismissed the plaintiffs' claim that levying a penalty against people who choose not to purchase insurance exceeds Congress' Commerce Clause powers. The justices also dismissed the underlying argument that the provision amounts to "regulating inactivity."

The development represents a significant victory for the Obama administration, which is facing numerous challenges to the mandate from individuals, conservative interest groups and Republican governors. A number of district court judges have ruled on the question already, and in a striking pattern, all Republican-appointed judges have ruled against the administration, and all Democratic judges with the administration. Today's development upends that trend.

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Barack Obama

Obama Dodges On Personal View Of Gay Marriage: 'Not Going To Make News On That Today'

Jillian Rayfield | June 29, 2011, 1:26PM

In his Wednesday press conference, President Obama dodged a question about whether he personally supports same-sex marriage: "I'm not going to make news on that today -- good try though."

Obama also wouldn't say whether he thinks marriage is a civil right, instead characterizing it as a state level issue: "What you saw was the people of New York having a debate, talking through these issues. It was contentious, it was emotional, but ultimately they made a decision to recognize civil marriages. And I think that's exactly how things should work."

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Barack Obama

Obama To Congress: I've Been Working, Why Don't You Try (VIDEO)

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 29, 2011, 1:18PM

President Obama got a little testy with Congress during Wednesday's nationally-televised press conference in the East Room of the White House.

Congressional Republicans recently forced Obama to take a direct hand in the debt limit negotiations he had put Vice President Biden in charge of. Asked about the risks of default and the August deadline for those talks, Obama got testy with Congressional foot-dragging on getting a debt deal done.

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Barack Obama

President Obama Demands Action From House GOP on Jobs, Taxes

Benjy Sarlin | June 29, 2011, 12:37PM

President Barack Obama

President Obama opened up his press conference with jabs at Congress for failing to pass a series of bills aimed at creating jobs and at Republicans for refusing to end tax breaks on the wealthy.

Acknowledging widespread pessimism among Americans over the state of the economy, Obama urged patience.

"The struggles of middle class families were a big problem before the recession hit in 2007," he said. "They weren't created overnight, and the truth is our economic challenges are not going to be solved overnight."

Without directly singling out Republicans, Obama outlined a series of steps Congress could do to help bolster job creation.

"There are a number of steps that my administration is taking, but there are a number of steps that Congress could take," he said. "Many of these ideas have been tied up in Congress for some time."

They included passing a number of pending free trade agreements, a move popular with many GOP lawmakers, but also renewing temporary tax breaks negotiated with Republicans as part of the deal extending the Bush tax cuts last year. Democrats have recently used the GOP's refusal to extend the payroll tax cut to imply Republicans are deliberately tanking the economy, since tax breaks for businesses typically enjoy broad support from the party. Obama did not go that far, but his explicit call on Congress to take action lends weight to the Democrats' pressure and could be a preview of his 2012 campaign message.

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Barack Obama

Obama: 'Fuss' Over Libya Is Pure Politics

Susan Crabtree | June 29, 2011, 11:18AM

President Barack Obama

President Obama is standing behind his decision to authorize military action in Libya, dismissing months of furor over his failure to win Congressional approval before launching strikes as pure politics.

"...A lot of this fuss is politics, and if you look substantively at what we've done, we've done exactly what we'd said we'd do under a NATO mandate," Obama said at a press conference in the East Room of the White House Wednesday morning.

"But do I think our actions in any way violate the war powers resolution? The answer is no," he said. "We have engaged in a limited operation to help a lot of people against one of the worst tyrants in the world...and we should be sending out a unified message to this guy that he should step down."

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Gay Marriage

Rudy Giuliani Breaks His Gay Wedding Vows

Benjy Sarlin | June 29, 2011, 10:53AM

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R)

After promising a close friend he would officiate his same-sex wedding, Rudy Giuliani is reportedly dodging efforts to hold him to his word in the wake of New York's landmark gay marriage law.

"I asked if he would marry us," Howard Koeppel, who put Giuliani up in his home during a tough divorce with then-wife Donna Hanover, told the New York Post. "He said, 'Howard, I don't ever do anything that's not legal. If it becomes legal in New York, you'll be one of the first ones I would marry.'"

Well, it's legal now. And Koeppel is eager to have the state recognize his marriage to his longtime partner. But he says Giuliani is no longer returning his calls and his spokesman isn't responding to the Post's requests for comment.

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2012 elections

Bachmann: Obama Should Go Back To...Hawaii!

Eric Kleefeld | June 29, 2011, 10:17AM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Michele Bachmann's multi-state campaign announcement tour took her to South Carolina on Tuesday, home of some of the most right-wing Tea Partiers around. And interestingly, while she was there she made a comment that distanced herself sharply from the fringe "Birther" movement in a subtle way.

As CNN reports, Bachmann promised to run a fully national campaign. "We want to win Hawaii," she said. "And we think that there is a certain Hawaiian president who should go back to Hawaii!"

Of course, President Obama was born in Hawaii, though he made his adult life and his political career in Chicago, Illinois. Moreover, Hawaii is a heavily Democratic state, and has only voted Republican for president in the landslide re-elections of Richard Nixon in 1972 and Ronald Reagan in 1984. Obama won his birthplace state by a whopping 72%-26% margin in 2008 -- up from John Kerry's much narrower 54%-45% in 2004 -- aided by the prospect of electing the first Hawaiian president.

On the other hand, this hasn't stopped conspiracy theorists from spinning rumors that Obama was really born in Kenya, and isn't legally qualified to be president, and that the multiple Hawaiian documents attesting to his birth there are forgeries.

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Republicans

Pressed On How Obama Made The Economy 'Worse' GOP Says 'He Passed Health Care Reform!'

Brian Beutler | June 29, 2011, 10:10AM

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell

The GOP has a new favorite line about President Obama and if the speed with which they've all adopted it is any indication, then it works well with focus groups, and, through sheer repitition, it makes its way seamlessly into news article after news article.

Obama inherited a tough economy, they say, but "he made it worse."

Mitt Romney's saying it, members of the GOP congressional leadership say it over and over again at their weekly press conferences. It's not going anywhere.

The problem is that, by most metrics, this is simply false. Yes, the economy shed millions of jobs in late 2008 and early 2009, so unemployment is higher now than it was when Obama took office. But, as others have pointed out, when he took office the economy was shrinking, it's now growing again. When he took office, the economy was shedding jobs, it's now creating them. You can fault him for doing too little, or not doing it well enough, but as bad as things are, they're not worse than they were two and a half years ago. And non-partisan fact checkers agree.

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2012

Priorities USA Counters Karl Rove With New Ad

Benjy Sarlin | June 29, 2011, 10:06AM

Progressive Super-PAC Priorities USA is hitting the airwaves in five states in an effort counter ad buys from Karl Rove's anonymous-money organization, Crossroads GPS.

The ads specifically target Rove for playing "politics at its worst" and highlight the House GOP's plan to turn Medicare into a private voucher system with stingier benefits. They'll run in Iowa, North Carolina, Virginia, Florida and Colorado, all highly competitive states in 2012 that President Obama won in his first election.

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Debt Ceiling

Erickson To GOP: 'Hold The Debt Ceiling Hostage'

Brian Beutler | June 29, 2011, 9:27AM

RedState's Erick Erickson

An influential conservative activist is explicitly calling on Republicans to hold U.S. creditworthiness hostage until Democrats agree to pass a constitutional amendment requiring Congress to slash federal spending until the budget is balanced.

Erick Erickson -- a CNN contributor and founder of the conservative website Red State -- says Republicans should refuse to raise the nation's borrowing limit, likely triggering a catastrophic debt default, until a two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate sign on to the Balanced Budget Amendment.

"Make it clear that until you do get the votes necessary for passage you will obstruct and block an increase in the debt ceiling," Erickson wrote in a Wednesday morning post. "Hold the debt ceiling hostage. If the Democrats want the debt ceiling raised, they need to send [the BBA] out to the states for ratification. They can fight to stop it there. But do this for me -- draw a line in the sand. You force a vote and then another vote and then another vote until you get the two-thirds needed in both houses and don't you dare give up fighting against the debt ceiling increase until you get that two-thirds vote. The rules in this fight must be different. You must keep blocking until they give you what you want."

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Minnesota

Is It Still Possible To Avert A State Government Shutdown In Minnesota?

David Taintor | June 29, 2011, 6:00AM

Minnesota state Capitol building

Another day and more gridlock in Minnesota.

Budget negotiations continued Tuesday to try to avert a state government shutdown, but no deal has stuck yet.

Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton again met with Republican leaders of the legislature, calling the talks "constructive." But he said they still have their differences. Beyond that, details of the negations have been been intentionally vague, as lawmakers have committed not to speak publicly about the specifics of the meetings.

With a June 30 deadline to avert a shutdown, how realistic are the chances of a deal?

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Debt

Republicans Find A Tax Cut They Don't Like -- One That Helps Obama

Brian Beutler | June 29, 2011, 5:50AM

Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ)

Let's assume Democrats and Republicans team up in the next few weeks to pass a very GOP friendly debt reduction bill. And let's stipulate, too, that, as in Britain and elsewhere, the spending-cut magic doesn't do anything to help the unemployment crisis, leaving President Obama and the Democrats a huge political liability -- and national problem -- they won't be able to resolve by election time in November.

[TPM SLIDESHOW: Battle Over The Budget: Behind The Scenes At The White House]

This is why they're trying to squeeze something -- anything -- into the debt ceiling package that will provide near-term stimulus, to improve the jobs situation or at least counteract the austerity measures. Unfortunately, Republicans have foreclosed on the highest-impact ideas economists have recommended -- aid to states, infrastructure investment, and other direct spending projects.

So they've settled on a fourth- or fifth-best option: a plan to provide employees deeper, temporary relief from the payroll tax, and extend that relief to employers as well. It's not the most stimulative thing in the world -- but it is a tax cut for business owners, so at the very least it should have some buy-in on the right, no?

You might think so, but you'd be wrong.

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Michele Bachmann

Michele Bachmann's Big Presidential Campaign Walkbacks

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 29, 2011, 5:50AM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) is a firebreather. It's a significant part of her charm. But as polls show her to be a serious candidate in the Iowa caucuses -- and, therefore, the race for the nomination -- Bachmann's been up on TV rounding off some of her sharper edges.

No longer is President Obama "un-American," as Bachmann said in 2008. Nor is eliminating the minimum wage the top priority it was back in 2005. As she steps into the national spotlight -- with the help of big-time campaign strategist Ed Rollins -- Bachmann is presenting a kinder, gentler face.

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Wisconsin

After Months-Long Battle, Wis. Anti-Union Law Officially Takes Effect

Eric Kleefeld | June 29, 2011, 5:50AM

Demonstrators outside the Wisconsin state Capitol, March 12, 2011.

Today is a big day in Wisconsin, which has been rocked by protests, legislative boycotts, ongoing recall elections, litigation and some associated chicanery, and possibly even a physical altercation at the state Supreme Court, centered around Gov. Scott Walker's anti-public employee union legislation. After all of that...the law is now finally set to kick into effect.

Two weeks ago, when the state Supreme Court upheld the law by a 4-3 margin, against a lawsuit challenging a procedure used to pass it, it then fell to Secretary of State Doug La Follette, a Democrat, to formally publish the act in the Wisconsin State Journal, which acts as the state's official newspaper for the purpose of giving the public official notice of new laws. This is normally to take place 10 business days after passage -- though Republicans insisted it should happen immediately, after it was bottled up for three months in litigation. But instead, La Follette declared a new 10-day period, and the act is taking effect today.

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New York

So You've Passed Gay Marriage In New York -- Now What?

Jillian Rayfield | June 29, 2011, 5:50AM

Gay rights supporters in New York are riding high after the success of the marriage equality law, and are optimistically talking up efforts to advance gay rights in other states. But it might not be so easy.

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Medicare

Top Dems Reject Coburn, Lieberman Plan To Raise Medicare Retirement Age

Brian Beutler | June 28, 2011, 5:35PM

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)

Republicans may be suffering politically for voting to phase out Medicare. But they moved the needle on the policy debate way to the right, and, as such, cutting Medicare now is basically a fait accompli.

The latest plan comes from Sens. Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Joe Lieberman (I-CT). This is an interesting political coalition for a few reasons. Recall that Coburn left the Gang-of-Six Senate debt talks for proposing dramatic cuts to Medicare, and has now found comfort in the arms of liberals' darkest bete noire.

What they propose doesn't seek to replace Medicare with a private insurance scheme as does the GOP budget. Nonetheless it has already been rejected by the top Democrats on Capitol Hill -- House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV).

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2012 elections

Tom Petty Tells Bachmann: Stop Draggin' My Songs Around

Eric Kleefeld | June 28, 2011, 5:24PM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) and Tom Petty

Michele Bachmann might be a proud "American Girl" -- but she can't blast it over the P.A. systems anymore.

Rolling Stone has confirmed reports that after Bachmann's campaign played Tom Petty's song "American Girl" at her campaign announcement rally in Waterloo, Iowa, Petty's management sent her a cease-and-desist letter for her unauthorized use of his music.

For a presidential candidate who warns that President Obama is allegedly destroying the private-sector economy, this treatment of other people's intellectual property might not be the best way to start off the campaign.

This is not Tom Petty's first run-in with Republican politicians purloining his music. Back in 2000, the George W. Bush campaign played his song, "I Won't Back Down" -- and were quickly told to, well, back down. At the request of Petty's management, the song's official publisher told the Bush camp to stop, saying that the use of the song "creates, either intentionally or unintentionally, the impression that ... [the Bush] campaign have been endorsed by Tom Petty, which is not true."

DREAM Act

Senate Democrats Renew Push For DREAM Act

Megan Reback | June 28, 2011, 5:03PM

Seeking to breathe new life into its prospects, on Tuesday Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) chaired the first-ever Senate hearing on the DREAM Act. The bill, which was initially proposed in different form in 2001, would grant citizenship to children of undocumented immigrants who "have maintained good moral character since entering the U.S.," and who either attend college or serve in the U.S. armed forces.

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Ron Johnson

Ron Johnson Paralyzes Senate Over Budget Fight

Benjy Sarlin | June 28, 2011, 4:49PM

Ad from candidate for U.S. Senate Ron Johnson (R-WI), "57"

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) ground the Senate to a halt on Tuesday, threatening to block "business as usual" until Democrats submit a budget.

Johnson began his broadside by objecting to a quorum call, blocking the Senate from proceeding with a vote. Quorum calls, like many basic Senate procedures, are approved by unanimous consent and Johnson threatened in a floor speech to wreak havoc on these uncontroversial motions.

"Business as usual is bankrupting America," he said in a floor speech. "It must stop."

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Ethics

Pols Brace For Probes After House Ethics Panel Staffs Up

Susan Crabtree | June 28, 2011, 4:42PM

Reps. Jo Bonner (R-AL) and Maxine Waters (D-CA)

The House Ethics Committee has hired six new staffers, ending a nearly seven-month period when the panel suffered an exodus of aides and investigative functions were at a standstill, the House Ethics Committee said in a statement Tuesday.

The hirings complete the staff roster and come one month after the committee unanimously tapped Daniel Schwager, a former counsel for the Senate Ethics Committee, as its staff director.

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Debt

Senate GOP To Dems On Debt Limit: Give Us Huge Medicare Cuts, Or Raise It Yourself

Brian Beutler | June 28, 2011, 4:07PM

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX)

Senate Republicans are threatening openly to throw up their hands and let Democrats vote to raise the debt limit on their own if President Obama doesn't cave and agree to trillions of dollars in entitlement cuts and zero tax increases. Here's how NRSC chairman John Cornyn (R-TX) put it, speaking to reporters Tuesday:

"I am wondering if as the deadline approaches, whether our Democratic colleagues in the Senate have realized that unless the President's willing to do a grand bargain that's good for the American people how much he's opening his own political party -- candidates running for 2012 in the United States Senate -- to a referendum on his failure to reach a grand bargain," Cornyn said. "Obviously if it's possible to deal with the spending problem and the entitlement reforms, that's our first choice. But if the President and his party refuse to do the right thing, then in the Senate they're going to be required to vote to raise the debt limit and we'll have a referendum in 2012 on that decision. I don't think if I were a senator on the other side of the aisle I would view that prospect with a lot of pleasure."

Translation: give us what we want, or we'll leave it to you to avoid default, then spend the next year and a half running against you on the grounds that you voted to give President Obama a blank check for massive government spending.

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Planned Parenthood

NC Gov. Bev Perdue Vetoes Abortion Restricting Bill

Jessica Kim | June 28, 2011, 3:58PM

Gov. Bev Perdue (D-NC)

Gov. Bev Perdue (D-NC) on Monday vetoed a bill that would have required women seeking abortions to wait for 24 hours and receive ultrasound images of the fetus along with descriptions of what they are seeing before having the procedure.

"This bill is a dangerous intrusion into the confidential relationship that exists between women and their doctors. The bill contains provisions that are the most extreme in the nation in terms of interfering with that relationship," Perdue said in a statement to the Raleigh News & Observer.

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Environment

Tim Pawlenty Says Climate Change Not Man-Made

Benjy Sarlin | June 28, 2011, 3:49PM

Tim Pawlenty

Tim Pawlenty went full climate denier on Tuesday, embracing fringe claims that the vast international consensus on the issue is "bad science."

"So there is climate change, but the reality is the science of it indicates that most of it, if not all of it, is caused by natural causes," Pawlenty told FOX News. "And as to the potential human contribution to that, there's a great scientific dispute about that very issue."

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Campaign Finance

Ron Johnson Ducks TPM Questions On His $10 Million Payday: 'It's A Private Company'

Benjy Sarlin and Susan Crabtree | June 28, 2011, 1:04PM

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI)

Legal experts say that whether Sen. Ron Johnson's (R-WI) $10 million parting gift from his company potentially violates campaign laws depends on when it was negotiated. But asked by TPM to directly address the timing, Johnson repeatedly ducked the question.

Johnson's collected $10 million in deferred compensation from his former company, Pacur, a figure that Wisconsin papers have noted lines up conveniently with the $9 million he spent on his Senate campaign in 2010 against incumbent Democrat Russ Feingold. The freshman lawmaker has offered few details on how or when the company worked out the $10 million number, but legal experts told TPM that if the package was negotiated after his Senate run it could potentially count as an illegal corporate donation to his campaign.

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Debt Ceiling

Top Economist: Even Brief Default Will Cause New Recession And Blow Recovery 'Out Of The Water'

Brian Beutler | June 28, 2011, 11:39AM

Moody's Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi

How big are the stakes on Capitol Hill right now? According to one of the most influential economists in federal policy making, the next four weeks will make the difference between a slow glide toward economic recovery, and a severe tumble into a new recession.

[TPM SLIDESHOW: More Than Just Forms: Tax Day Tea Party-Style]

Moody's chief economist, and former McCain economic adviser Mark Zandi is forecasting GDP growth of 4 percent by the end of the year and into next. But in response to a question from TPM, he told reporters at a breakfast meeting hosted by the Christian Science Monitor that his forecast would be "blown out of the water," if Congress fails to "reasonably gracefully" raise the national borrowing limit.

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Tim Pawlenty

Pawlenty's Big Foreign Policy Speech: Talk Tough To Saudi Arabia, Spend Big On Defense

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 28, 2011, 11:11AM

Tim Pawlenty

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty seemed intent on separating his foreign policy views from those of President Obama and even his fellow Republicans in a major address on the topic he delivered this morning.

The way he's doing it: Promising to get tough with Saudi Arabia and stand in the way of any cuts to the defense budget.

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Mitt Romney

Mitt Romney: 'Obama Will Cost This Company Jobs,' Company: 'No, He Won't'

Benjy Sarlin | June 28, 2011, 10:56AM

Former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA)

Mitt Romney took a dig at President Obama for visiting an Alcoa plant in Iowa, saying the White House's labor appointees will soon force them to lay off workers.

[TPM SLIDESHOW: Meet The 2012 GOPers: Ex-Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA)]

Alcoa's plant makes parts for the Dreamliner, a Boeing plane that is currently the subject of a legal battle between the company and the National Labor Review Board, an independent agency whose members are appointed by the White House. The NLRB recently sided with unions in Washington State who claim that a new manufacturing line for the plane in South Carolina is illegal retaliation against them for previous strikes.

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Michele Bachmann

Bachmann On John Wayne/Gacy Gaffe: 'I Wish I Could Be Perfect Every Time I Say Something'

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 28, 2011, 9:15AM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) stopped by CNN this morning and addressed her embarrassing gaffe where she told a reporter the actor John Wayne was born in Waterloo, IA right after she kicked off her presidential campaign in the town.

Wayne was acutally born hours away in Winterset, IA. The John Wayne Waterloo is connected with is John Wayne Gacy, the notorious serial killer who committed a couple of sex crimes in the town in his 20s.

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Minnesota

Lawmakers Tight-Lipped As Minnesota Government Shutdown Looms

David Taintor | June 28, 2011, 6:00AM

Minnesota State Capitol

Budget negotiations are going down to the wire in Minnesota -- where the state is heading for a government shutdown if a budget deal isn't passed by the end of the week. And lawmakers are keeping tight-lipped about the progress of their negotiations.

Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton met with Republican House Speaker Kurt Zellers and Republican Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch Monday evening to continue hammering out a deal. But details of the meetings have, for the most part, been kept under wraps. The meeting Monday follows negotiations over the weekend that broke off abruptly Sunday.

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Sarah Palin

Iron Lady Margaret Thatcher Casts Shadow Over GOP Primaries

Benjy Sarlin | June 28, 2011, 5:45AM

They say the sun never sets on an English friendship. Certainly that's the case in the Republican primary this year, where Ronald Reagan's partnership with Margaret Thatcher comes up often in speeches, interviews, and even campaign slogans.

Britain's "Iron Lady," famed for her free market ideals and tough-minded style of governance, has always been a popular figure in Republican circles across the pond, but she seems to have taken on new relevance in recent years for the party's leading lights. While George W. Bush identified strongly with wartime Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, as he struggled to prosecute the War on Terror, national security has fallen far down the list of priorities for the party and the field is significantly divided on foreign policy. Instead, the focus is on the weak economy, which is clearly Maggie's wheelhouse.

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Ron Johnson

Johnson Has Yet To Produce Written $10M Compensation Agreement

Susan Crabtree | June 28, 2011, 5:45AM

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) and Fmr. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI)

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), who defeated longtime campaign finance crusader Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) last year, has been under the microscope in recent days for possibly violating laws against corporate underwriting of campaigns.

Last week the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel started asking uncomfortable questions about $10 million in deferred compensation Johnson received from his former company, Pacur, weeks after his $9 million self-financed successful 2010 campaign came to an end.

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Michele Bachmann

John Wayne Museum Director: Hard to Miss Us In Winterset, Iowa

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 27, 2011, 5:49PM

The man in charge of keeping John Wayne's legacy alive in his native Winterset, Iowa says he's not blaming Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN) for her apparent gaffe regarding the actor's birthplace this morning.

But Brian Downes, executive director of the John Wayne Birthplace Museum, pointed out that other presidential candidates -- Ronald Reagan in 1984 and Barack Obama in 2007 -- have found their way to John Wayne's boyhood home.

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Wisconsin State Legislature

Wis. GOP Loses Recall Candidate On Signatures -- Stuck With Damaged One

Eric Kleefeld | June 27, 2011, 5:38PM

State Rep. John Nygren (R-WI)

Wisconsin Republicans just hit a bump in the road in the state Senate recall campaigns, with one of their chosen candidates against a Democratic incumbent having just gotten knocked off the ballot -- leaving another candidate who is less than ideal.

The state Government Accountability Board, which oversees elections in the state, knocked GOP state Rep. John Nygren off the ballot Tuesday in his effort to unseat Dem state Sen. Dave Hansen. Nygren's campaign had initially only turned in 424 petition signatures for Nygren, just over the 400 minimum -- but following Democratic challenges, this was busted down to 398, just two short of the required total.

As WisPolitics reports, Nygren is vowing to appeal the decision in court, saying in a statement: "Since Dave Hansen has chosen legal maneuvers to silence the voters of northeastern Wisconsin, I feel obligated to my supporters to fight this decision and pursue further legal options."

However, another Republican will remain on the ballot: GOP activist David VanderLeest, whose signatures passed muster against Dem challenges. Thus, the good news for Republicans is that Hansen will not run unopposed.

But the bad news for the GOP is, VanderLeest is going to be Hansen's opponent.

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Barack Obama

Obama, McConnell Prepare For Gridlock Ahead Of Key Debt Limit Meeting

Brian Beutler | June 27, 2011, 4:43PM

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

Updated 6:45 p.m.

With just over one month left until the government begins to default obligations to creditors, vendors, and entitlement beneficiaries, leaders of both parties in Washington made clear Monday that the underlying gridlock isn't going anywhere. That means a half-trillion dollar impasse will have to be bridged, quickly, if the country's to avoid a domino effect of economic consequences. And with the White House and Congressional Republicans staking out incompatible positions, it's unclear how that will happen.

In the hours before an evening meeting with President Obama, and in a number of different venues, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell renewed his insistence that Republicans will not accept any tax increases as part of a trillion-dollar deficit reduction package the GOP is demanding before agreeing to let the country pay all its bills on time.

But according to a top Democratic aide, Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) agreed at a White House meeting Monday morning that any such package must take "a balanced approach, and that revenues need to be a part of that approach, especially ending taxpayer-funded giveaways to corporations that don't need them."

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Iowa caucus

Bachmann Confuses John Wayne With John Wayne Gacy (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | June 27, 2011, 3:08PM

Actor John Wayne, presidential candidate Michele Bachmann, and serial killer John Wayne Gacy

The Bachmann campaign staff might want to double-check their Google searches. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), who on Monday launched her presidential campaign in her original hometown of Waterloo, Iowa, appears to be just a bit confused about the town's history of favorite sons.

In an interview with Fox News, Bachmann boasted: "But what I want them to know, just like John Wayne was from Waterloo, Iowa, that's the kind of spirit that I have, too."

About that spirit of "John Wayne" in Waterloo...

In fact, the actor John Wayne (real name, Marion Morrison) was from Iowa, but not from Waterloo -- he was from Winterset, Iowa, about 120 miles away. But as it turns out, there was another "John Wayne" with some history in Waterloo: Serial killer John Wayne Gacy, known as the "Killer Clown," who raped and murdered over 30 young men before he was finally incarcerated and put to death.

Though if it helps Bachmann at all, Gacy is not known to have committed any murders when he lived in Waterloo, though he was imprisoned for a sexual assault case that was committed there.

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Tea Party

Freedomworks Launches Tea Party Budget Commission

Benjy Sarlin | June 27, 2011, 1:49PM

William Temple, Chairman of the Tea Party Founding Fathers

Budget commissions are all the rage right now, and Dick Armey's Freedomworks have put together a Tea Party-flavored panel of their own to try and mark down a specific legislative goals for the movement.

According to the group, the Tea Party Debt Commission is modeled the White House's own commission, led by Erksine Bowles and Alan Simpson, which recommended about $4 trillion in savings through cuts and revenue increases and drew support from Democratic and Republican Senators who are now trying to negotiate a similar deal amongst themselves. Rather than relying on a blue-ribbon gathering of economists, former budget officials, and retired lawmakers, however, the Tea Party version will consist of 18 local activists from 2012 swing states and focus on finding a consensus among the grassroots.

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Michele Bachmann

Michele Bachmann Says 'Iowa' 14 Times In 2012 Kick-Off Speech (VIDEO)

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 27, 2011, 1:20PM

Michelle Bachmann (R-MN), Announces Candidacy For President

We already told you Rep. Michele Bachmann's (R-MN) official entry into the presidential contest was Iowa-heavy.

Here's how Iowa-heavy: she dropped the name of the state 14 times in a 21-minute speech.

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Michele Bachmann

Bachmann Announces She's From Iowa, Also Running For President

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 27, 2011, 12:12PM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Rep. Michele Bachmann may look like the first Republican woman ever elected to Congress from the great state of Minnesota. But she's really just a proud and native Iowan at heart.

Formally announcing her candidacy for President in Waterloo, Iowa -- where she was born and lived for her early childhood -- Bachmann embraced The Hawkeye State as though she had never left. In a speech aimed squarely at the potential caucus voters who already seem to be into her, Bachmann talked up her Iowa roots, then talked a little policy, then talked about Iowa again.

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2012 elections

Bachmann Slams Romneycare: The Mandate Is Unconstitutional At The State Level, Too! (VIDEO)

Eric Kleefeld | June 27, 2011, 9:56AM

Former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-MA) and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

During her appearance Sunday on Face The Nation, Michele Bachmann staked out what might be the toughest line in the Republican field against Mitt Romney on health care: That the individual mandate is not only unconstitutional at the federal level -- but the mandate is unconstitutional at the state level, too, as Romney passed it in Massachusetts.

Romney has tried to massage the issue, by arguing that health care reform is largely a state matter, and a conservative would respect states' rights on the mandate while allowing other states to come up with their own solutions. But not Bachmann -- she rejects the states' rights notion on this one.

During the interview, Bob Schieffer asked Bachmann whether Romney's Massachusetts health care reform should be held against him.

"I firmly am against the individual mandate. I think it is unconstitutional, whether it's put into place at the state level by a state legislature or whether it's put into place at the federal level. I think it's unconstitutional," said Bachmann.

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Michele Bachmann

On Day Of 2012 Kick-Off, It's Michele Bachmann Vs. Fox News (VIDEO)

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 27, 2011, 9:26AM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) is set to throw her hat in the presidential ring in Iowa this morning. In the hours before she does, she's engaged in a tussle with Fox News Sunday Chris Wallace that's riled up her base and made Fox do something it rarely does: apologize.

Perhaps mindful of the buzz the story is giving her campaign, Bachmann refused to accept the apology in her first television interview about the controversy. That puts Fox in a new and different position: battling with one of conservatism's brightest stars.

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2012 elections

Bachmann To Announce Presidential Campaign (Again!)

Eric Kleefeld | June 27, 2011, 8:50AM

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Monday is a big day for the presidential race, with Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) set to officially launch her presidential campaign in Waterloo, Iowa, the town where she was born, at 9 a.m. CT -- well, launching her campaign after she had already participated in a debate, announced her candidacy at that debate, and was also welcomed at a rally in Waterloo Sunday evening, addressing more than 700 people.

Bachmann now enters the race in a position that much of conventional wisdom would not have expected: As a top-tier candidate, running in a dead heat with Mitt Romney in the latest Iowa polling.

Before she launched her campaign, Bachmann had been saying that she would announce her 2012 decision in Waterloo. Instead came the announcement during the debate two weeks ago, followed that night by a pre-recorded video announcement on YouTube. With that said, she's now making it up with Monday's kickoff in Waterloo -- on top of Sunday night's "Welcome Back to Waterloo" event that was advertised on local radio Friday.

Bachmann has already been making a splash in the race, attacking frontrunner Mitt Romney on abortion, and possibly already starting to emerge as a major threat to him -- especially if Sarah Palin does not run. (And of course, she has also had some of her signature blatant errors of fact of history.) So a key thing to look out for is how this national Tea Party movement star pitches her candidacy today -- as a positive, favorite daughter of Iowa, or a fire-breathing conservative activists, or perhaps all at once.

House Majority PAC

Democratic Super PAC Sticks GOPers With Ryan Budget In Ad Blitz (VIDEO)

Evan McMorris-Santoro | June 27, 2011, 6:00AM

U.S. Capitol building

On the heels of the $20 million economic-themed ad blitz by Karl Rove's political money machine this week, Democrats are taking to the air with their own attack ad campaign targeting Republicans over the budget.

The six-figure campaign by House Majority PAC, a Super PAC which can take in unlimited amounts from donors thanks to the Citizens United ruling, launches Monday with ads taking on eight Republican members of Congress across the country.

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Barack Obama

Romney Falsely Calls Long-Term Unemployment 'Worst In Recorded History' Under Obama (CHART)

Brian Beutler | June 27, 2011, 5:45AM

If Mitt Romney was making a movie about the Great Depression, he'd try to cast President Obama as Herbert Hoover.

He more than other Republican candidates has made the flagging economy a central theme of his presidential campaign, and feels no compunction about blaming Obama for the mess.

The Romney camp has taken to tying Obama to the nation's high long-term unemployment rate -- and to saying that long-term unemployment is now worse than it was during the Great Depression. Indeed, a recent fundraising email, Romney claimed long-term unemployment is now the "worst in recorded history." 

There's one big problem with this: It's not true.

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Tea Party

Can The Tea Party Survive A Debt Ceiling Deal?

Benjy Sarlin | June 27, 2011, 5:45AM

Imagine the following: President Obama and Speaker John Boehner emerge next week after a series of tense, closed-door meetings to announce a historic deal that cuts the deficit by $4 trillion over the next decade -- more than anyone thought possible. Additional goodies are thrown in that Republicans have been clamoring for as well: an enforceable cap on spending and a vote (symbolic, of course) on a balanced budget amendment. The breakthrough? Republicans agreed to raise $1 trillion in new revenue, mostly through closing various tax loopholes and credits but also by allowing the absolute highest end of the Bush tax cuts -- those affecting millionaires only -- to expire next year.

But that's not good enough for the Tea Party movement, whose leaders say the GOP sold them out. Activists cry bloody murder. Primaries are threatened. Michele Bachmann stages a sit-in. A week of protests are quickly organized outside the Capitol.

But then a funny thing happens...nothing. A large number of Freshman Republicans vote against the bill in protest, but it passes with near unanimous Democratic support. There's considerable grumbling in the press until the next week, when Obama proposes something conservatives hate, perhaps a new executive order slowing deportations, and the base rallies to stop him. Polls show conservative Republicans as unified as ever as another round of dismal economic news puts the White House within reach, and soon everyone is too focused on 2012 to care about the last fight. In such a scenario, can the Tea Party remain a credible force?

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