59.4 billion
— Amount of the dividend to be paid to the U.S. Treasury by mortgage financier Fannie Mae, which was seized by regulators in 2008 as the housing market collapsed but has now returned to profitability
“Here's where we are with regard to Syria. With all the credibility we've gained in the world, we don't want to blow it like the last administration did in Iraq, saying 'weapons of mass destruction.'”
— Vice President Joe Biden to Rolling Stone's Douglas Brinkley on why the Obama administration is so cautious about its public statements on Syria
Morning Must Reads: May 10
In the news: Texas, Benghazi, immigration reform, Syria, Hispanics, Wall St. five years later, E-Bay, and Prince Harry.
On Jobs Tour In Texas, Obama Offers Little New Hope For Jobs Progress In Washington
Obama’s swing through the Texas was notable for what it left out—any plan for putting his proposals into law.
The Gang Reaches Across the Aisle as Senate Immigration Debate Kicks Off
As they try to sell the bill to skeptics, the Senate’s immigration supporters are pitching it as a return to bipartisanship and regular order.
Obama, Perry And The True Source Of The Texas Jobs Miracle
There’s a scramble to claim credit for the Texas miracle, and now President Obama has jumped in with both feet.
16
— Number of American babies born in 2012 who were named Romney, according to data released today by the Social Security Administration
“Our relationship has improved dramatically in the last 10 years … But when information is out there that affects the safety of my community, I need to know that.”
— Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis, responding to a question at a House hearing today about whether the FBI shares enough information with local police, particularly when there's a potential terrorist threat
Morning Must Reads: May 9
In the news: Benghazi, Syria, Wall Street, 2014, Timelapse pictures, and what’s prettier in print this week
Top White House Aide Has A Secret Beer With Rep. Paul Ryan
White House Chief of Staff Dennis McDonough and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan discussed the budget over beers at Brasserie Beck
Immigration Bill Faces First Major Test
Republicans will try to kill momentum for an immigration overhaul by drowning it in a flood of amendments
66.2%
— Turnout rate for blacks in the 2012 presidential election according to new figures from the Census Bureau, beating white electoral turnout for the first time in American history.
Syria: Intervention Will Only Make it Worse
The various schemes that have been proposed for a kind of tiddlywinks intervention from around the edges of the conflict—no-fly zones, bombing Damascus and so forth—would simply make the situation worse.
