TPMDC William Daley
Barack Obama
Hill Democrats Pleased With Daley's Diminished Role
Congressional Democrats weren't surprised Tuesday to learn, in a story first reported by the Wall Street Journal, that White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley had handed a big chunk of his portfolio over to senior adviser -- and former acting Chief of Staff -- Pete Rouse. Indeed, they've been living under the new regime for several weeks, and according to one highly placed Senate Democratic aide the improvement has been self evident.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Topics: American Jobs Act, Barack Obama, Bill Daley, Democrats, Economy, Harry Reid, Jobs, John Boehner, Nancy Pelosi, Pete Rouse, Rob Nabors, White House, William Daley
Government Shutdown
Republicans Prepare To Reject Final White House Budget Offer
House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH)
It's been almost a week since House Republicans, Senate Democrats and the White House last sat down to hammer out a budget agreement, and the schedule's still blank. Accusations of bad faith are now flying from both sides. Republicans are poised to reject a White House offer, TPM has learned, that would cut over $30 billion in current spending because of disagreements over whether the package should include cuts to mandatory spending programs. Democrats are pushing for such cuts, which include the big entitlement programs, though the specific cuts they're proposing remain unclear. In an ironic twist, Republicans oppose those cuts and want to limit the negotiations to non-defense discretionary spending, a smaller subset of the federal budget.
Taken together, the last several days' worth of developments bode very poorly for the goal of reaching a six-month agreement on spending. The parties have until April 8 to reach agreement, and the odds of a government shutdown are higher now than they've been since this process began.
Asked about the offer the White House has floated, a top Republican aide says, "This debate has always been about discretionary spending -- not autopilot 'mandatory' spending or tax hikes."
If that position doesn't soften, it's hard to see how the two parties reach agreement.
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Topics: Appropriations, Barack Obama, Budget, Eric Cantor, Government Shutdown, Jack Lew, John Boehner, Medicaid, Medicare, Spending, William Daley
Roundup
TPMDC Sunday Roundup
Daley: People Talk About No-Fly Zone As If It Were A 'Video Game'
Appearing on Meet The Press, White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley criticized those who call for a no-fly zone in Libya: "Well, you know, lots of people throw around phrases of 'no-fly zone,' and they talk about it as though it's just a game on a video game or something, and some people who throw, throw that line out have no idea what they're talking about," said Daley. "Bob Gates understands the difficulty of going to war. This is a man who spent his--almost his entire life working for the government. He, he knows the difficulty of war and the challenges, as does Admiral Mullen. So when, when people comment on military action, most of them have no idea what they're talking about."
McCain: Qaddafi 'Insane,' A No-Fly Zone Can Send Message To People Around Him
Appearing on This Week, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) reiterated his support for a no-fly zone as part of an effort to oust Muammar Qaddafi. He's insane. But perhaps the people around him would begin to depart the sinking ship," said McCain. He also added: "Again, by a no-fly zone, by declaring our support for a provisional government, perhaps, which is being formed up now - there is a lot of steps we can take."
Topics: 2012 Presidential Primaries, 2012 elections, Barack Obama, Budget, Donald Trump, John McCain, Keith Ellison, Lamar Alexander, Libya, Michele Bachmann, Mitch McConnell, Muslims, Peter King, Pres '12, Roundup, Sunday Shows, Supreme Court, Westboro Baptist Church, William Daley
Roundup
TPMDC Morning Roundup
Obama, GOP Start $50 Billion Apart
The Hill reports: "The Obama administration opened talks on a budget deal Thursday with congressional Republicans and Democrats, but the two sides appeared miles apart on how much to reduce this year's spending. The White House offered to slash spending by an additional $6.5 billion a day after President Obama signed short-term legislation cutting spending by $4 billion to prevent a government shutdown. Republicans, however, want $61 billion in cuts, and some dismissed the new offer from Democrats as small grapes."
Obama's Day Ahead
President Obama and Vice President Biden will receive the presidential daily briefing at 9:30 a.m. ET. Obama will meet with senior advisers at 10 a.m. ET, will meet with Chicago Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel at 10:45 a.m. ET, and will meet with Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner at 11:15 a.m. ET. Obama will depart from the White House at 12 p.m. ET, will depart from Andrews Air Force Base at 12:15 p.m. ET, and will arrive at 2:40 p.m. ET in Miami, Florida. At 3:05 p.m. Et, he will tour a classroom at Miami Central Senior High School with former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-FL) and Education Secretary Arne Duncan, and deliver remarks at 4 p.m. ET. He will deliver remarks at a DSCC fundraiser at 5:35 p.m. ET, and deliver remarks at another DSCC fundraiser at 7:30 p.m. ET. He will depart from Miami at 8:30 p.m. ET, arriving at Andrews Air Force Base at 10:35 p.m. ET, and arriving back at the White House at 10:50 p.m. ET.
Topics: 2012 elections, Barack Obama, Budget, Joe Biden, Pres '12, Rahm Emanuel, Roundup, William Daley
Roundup
TPMDC Sunday Roundup
Hillary Clinton Calls For Democracy In Egypt
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton appeared on all five major Sunday morning talk shows, calling for a peaceful transition to democracy in Egypt. She said on State of the Union: "We want to see this peaceful uprising on the part of the Egyptian people to demand their rights to be responded to in a very clear, unambiguous way by the government, and then a process of national dialogue that will lead to the changes that the Egyptian people seek and that they deserve,"
Daley: Mubarak Must Support "Basic Human Rights"
Appearing on Face The Nation, White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley called for the Egyptian government to show restraint in the current political crisis. "The determination of Egypt will be done by the people of Egypt," said Daley. "The U.S., again, can stand by, we can support, we can support the basic human rights of the people of Egypt."
Topics: Debt, Debt Ceiling, Egypt, Hillary Clinton, Hosni Mubarak, John Boehner, John McCain, Mitch McConnell, Roundup, Sunday Shows, William Daley
Howard Dean
Howard Dean Says Bill Daley Would Be 'Huge Plus' For Obama, Criticizes Outgoing Staff
Former DNC Chairman Howard Dean
Howard Dean weighed in today on the rumors that President Obama is considering former Commerce Secretary William Daley to be his new chief of staff, saying Daley's appointment would be a "huge plus" for Obama, since he is someone "who knows Washington, but he also is not of Washington."
PERMALINK | COMMENTS | RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (0)Topics: Howard Dean, William Daley
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