Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell says he’s willing, nay anxious, to work with President Obama on one issue. The economy? Nope. Health care? Not at all. McConnell, speaking at a breakfast this morning hosted by the Christian Science Monitor, says he wants to work hand in hand on Social Security reform. Perhaps he’s hoping the …
Newly crowned Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele is the gift that just keeps on giving. In this GQ interview Steele calls abortion an “individual choice,” being gay not a choice and the Rat Pack the Pack Rats. He does know he’s the head of the RNC, right?
Here’s the latest from me on Obama’s efforts to reach out to Dem moderates on the FY2010 budget. His case was probably not helped much by the omnibus which most moderates hated though were coerced into voting for it – to the point that Claire McCaskill took Chuck Schumer to the carpet outside of last week’s Senate policy lunches. …
Allegations that Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha is corrupt are no shock to anyone. One of the most prodigious and proud porkers in Congress, Murtha, whom Nancy Pelosi supported for Majority Leader upon winning the Speaker’s gavel (thankfully the caucus overruled her and picked Steny Hoyer), has long been under the shadow of corruption. …
Here‘s a story from me today on Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd, who is polling just below Joe Lieberman these days. I also wanted to include this link to my interview with Dodd late last night. Be forewarned, the audio isn’t great as we had been told up until that last minute that we weren’t getting an interview (yes, at …
There had been talk of waiting for Congress to act, but Obama is expected Monday to undue* undo Bush’s ban on federally funded research using embryonic stem cells. Congress is still expected to pass legilsation* legislation later this year to prevent future presidents from reinstating the ban. The lifting of the ban would be effective …
While we’re on the subject on non-political news, I thought I’d share my latest attempt at travel writing. For anyone in DC, Spirit Airlines flies from Reagan National to Cartagena for $400 roundtrip…
Every great hero needs a nemesis to overcome – look at how engrossed the nation became with Barack Obama’s epic struggle for the Democratic nomination with Hillary Clinton. In their search for an opponent after the defeat of John McCain, Democrats and the media have alternately tried to promote Rush Limbaugh, Eric Cantor, Sarah
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For months now the weekly Senate policy lunches have been a mess of hundreds of journalists packed into scrums and horded at top decibel by Capitol Police and the Secret Service trying to hack a path for visitors like the president, the vice president and Rahm Emanuel. That is, until this week. Yesterday, a few dozen journalists lounged …
The reviews of Bobby Jindal’s rebuttle to Obama’s address to the joint session of Congress have not been exactly, um, raves. And,Politico’s Ben Smith scoops it just keeps getting worse: apparently the story that Jindal told “during Katrina” was, actually, a few days later and didn’t unfold the way he remembered it.
Update:
If you …
Every week Katherine Lanpher talks with TIME business and economics reporters to sort through the headlines, forecasts, news and numbers to help readers/listeners weather these challenging times. This week I did a spot on TIME’s new financial toolkit to talk about Obama’s budgetary ambitions and the challenges he’ll face in …
Here‘s a story out today (I know you’re excited, two in one day!) about the state of health care reform legislation. While everyone agrees that the loss of Tom Daschle was a set back, most folks that I’ve spoken with this week feel Obama’s doubling down in the budget and in his address to the joint session of Congress has overcome any …
