Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton
–Obama will make a his case for financial reform “in the shadow of Wall Street” today at Cooper Union. A taste:
I believe in a strong financial sector that helps people to raise capital and get loans and invest their savings. But a free market was never meant to be a free license to take whatever you can get, however you can get it. That is what happened too often in the years leading up to the crisis. Some on Wall Street forgot that behind every dollar traded or leveraged, there is family looking to buy a house, pay for an education, open a business, or save for retirement. What happens here has real consequences across our country.”
–Since they have to squabble over something, I guess it’s nicer to see lawmakers debate who deserves more credit for bipartisanship than argue over who is trying to kill your grandmother.
–The IMF floats its own resolution fund of sorts.
–Chris Cillizza explains why Charlie Crist is no Joe Lieberman.
–Mark Blumenthal and Nate Silver play “what if?” with a three-way race. They agree it doesn’t look good for Crist.
–But some heavyweight donors may stick around. Another but: Crist may not escape the federal probe unscathed.
–Kent Conrad presents a deficit-reducing budget. He wants to pay for (or drop) alternative minimum and estate tax relief.
–Obama leaves all deficit reduction options on the table and says he will wait for his bipartisan panel’s recommendations. This invariably leads to headlines suggesting he’s pushing a VAT. Over to you, Matt Drudge.
–Obama and SEC chair Schapiro categorically deny White House influence in the Goldman suit.
–Our colleague Stephen Gandel explains the case.
–Pelosi and Reid reportedly want immigration reform before an energy/climate bill.
–Bibi officially rejects Obama construction freeze.
–Ben Smith and Jonathan Martin have a smart piece on the over-correction of Tea Party coverage.
What did I miss?
