MORNING MESSAGE
Though
it was announced that this year’s fast track bill was the result of a “deal”
between Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) the 2015 bill is
nearly identical to the 2014 bill that died in Congress without support for a
vote. ... It is unclear from this comparison why the “negotiations” between
Hatch and Wyden took so long, and what Wyden got that enabled him to put his
name on it, enabling the bill to be sold as “bipartisan.” ... If you don't want
to get mired in the wording and details of the fast track bill, here is a
shortcut to deciding if you are for it or against it.
Hillary Competes With Sanders, O'Malley For The Left
Hillary
aims to win over progressives. AP: “Clinton’s supporters say her recent
comments, particularly on inequality, do not reflect a shift in position [But]
Clinton is not in the clear with liberals yet … Her decision to accept political
donations from lobbyists … may undercut her efforts to change the campaign
finance system. Obama’s push for a trade pact with 11 Pacific nations will put
Clinton between the centrist wing of her party and union leaders who oppose the
deal.”
Clinton
prepares to take spotlight in NH. W. Post: “Clinton will visit a small,
family-owned children’s furniture and toy manufacturer in Keene, N.H., on Monday
and a community college in Concord on Tuesday. Like the roundtable-style
discussions that she held last week in Iowa, the New Hampshire campaign stops
are intended to look and feel low-key.”
Sen.
Sanders turns up heat on Hillary Clinton in Fox News Sunday interview: “What
the secretary will have to convince the American people is, in fact, based on
her past record and views today that: she is going to break up the major banks
on Wall Street; she is going to ask the wealthiest people in this country to
start paying their fair share of taxes; that she’s going to end the abomination
of major corporations making millions of dollars, stashing their money in the
Cayman Islands and not paying a nickel in income tax; that, in fact, she’s
prepared to deal with … our disastrous trade policies [including] the TPP.”
Martin
O’Malley makes his pitch on CBS’ Face The Nation: “I guided [Maryland]
through this recession, and I did so with results that actually mattered, the
highest median income in the country, middle class that is upwardly mobile,
greater participation, and fuller participation of my citizens in the economic,
social, political life of our state, doing difficult things like passing
marriage equality, passing the DREAM Act, doing commonsense things that allow
new American immigrants to fully participate, pay their taxes, play by the
rules, and take care of their families. That is the inclusive America that I
believe all of us want to move to.”
Fast-Track Backlash
Left
livid at Sen. Ron Wyden for striking deal on fast-track. Politico: “Wyden
has been hounded at home by union groups and other opponents of the trade bill …
Why has Wyden put up with all the heat? His home state is heavily dependent on
exports, particularly to Asia … Hatch did ultimately agree to many of Wyden’s
‘smart track’ proposals [including] a new requirement that the White House
publish the full text of trade pact 60 days before signing it … But critics
remain unsatisfied. They say the final provision for potentially stripping fast
track from a trade agreement was too weak to make a significant difference.”
NY
AG argues TPP will “gut state laws” in Politico Magazine: “One provision of
TPP would create an entirely separate system of justice: special tribunals to
hear and decide claims by foreign investors that their corporate interests are
being harmed by a nation that is part of the agreement … it is particularly
worrisome to those of us in states, such as New York, with robust laws that
protect the public welfare …”
Is Greece Near Default?
Tensions
rise as May payment looms. NYT: “Unless the creditors agree soon to release
the next allotment of bailout money, Greece could have trouble making a $763
million payment to the I.M.F. on May 12. It almost certainly would not be able
to meet the €11 billion in payments to the European Central Bank, the I.M.F. and
payments on Treasury bills in June and July.”
Greece
“defiant” reports Bloomberg: “Greek officials, including Deputy Prime
Minister Yannis Dragasakis, remained defiant over the weekend, saying the
government won’t betray its electoral promises and worsen the pain that came
from previous austerity measures … Greece won’t cut wages and pensions,
introduce new taxes or sell assets, Alternate Health and Social Security
Minister Dimitris Stratoulis told Athens-based Skai TV on Saturday … While
‘so-called’ partners … want to ‘blackmail’ Greece … ‘we won’t betray the
people’s mandate,’ Energy Minister Panagiotis Lafazanis said…”
NYT’s
Paul Krugman visits Greece: “I came away from the visit fearing that Greece
and Europe may suffer a terrible accident, an unnecessary rupture that will cast
long shadows over the future.”
House, Senate Republicans Seek Budget Deal
House
and Senate budget talks hung up over Medicare. The Hill: “The House budget
includes [Rep. Paul] Ryan’s proposal to convert Medicare into a premium support
system in 2024 … The problem is that Senate Republicans must defend 24 seats in
2016 to keep their majority, and they are not excited about jumping into a
battle with Democrats over a sensitive entitlement program ahead of the election
… The GOP hopes to get to a deal in the next few weeks.”
Final
budget may get junked after passage. Politico: “…some rank-and-file
Republicans are already expressing interest in a much bigger deal that would
adjust those caps, sweep away the still-developing blueprint and ease the
budgetary pressure on the Pentagon — and, grudgingly, domestic programs if
necessary … To crack open the 2011 budget law that put the caps in place,
however, they’re going to need buy-in from the White House and its Democratic
allies in the Senate, who will demand more spending on nondefense programs in
exchange for any loosening of the Pentagon’s purse strings.”
’16ers
Cruz and Paul both back flat tax. The Hill: “…advocates also insist that a
flat tax would give a spark to the economy by drastically reducing the top
marginal tax rates … tax analysts say they expect other GOP candidates in the
2016 race to at least propose slashing the top rate for individuals and
businesses, especially after conservative critics have dinged the tax plan of
Sen. Marco Rubio, another presidential candidate.”
Republicans
slow-walking Obama nominees across the board. Politico: “Sen. John McCain
has an explanation for Obama administration appointees whose confirmation votes
are languishing in the GOP-led Senate: It’s payback for Democrats using the
so-called nuclear option to push through scores of nominations in the previous
Congress … There are 18 nominations waiting for a vote on the Senate floor —
including Loretta Lynch’s nomination to be attorney general — and more than 130
idling in committees … After three months of no new judges on the federal bench,
the full Senate got the trains going on [two] judicial nominations last week …
23 judicial emergencies [exist] across the nation’s courts.”
Progressive
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