MORNING MESSAGE
...the
GOP is on track to lose the Latino vote yet again ... But Republicans have a
bigger demographic challenge looming over them, one of which they are less
cognizant, of which they will have harder time accepting, and of which the
solutions are less obvious: the Republican “secular problem.” ... If in 2016,
Republicans again fail to cut into the secular vote in a presidential year, and
rack up a 1-6 record in presidential popular votes going back to 1992, the need
to win over the secular vote will become stark. But any moves to rectify the
problem tear at the social conservative pillar of the current base
Call To End Gerrymandering
Hedrick
Smith calls for grassroots movement to end gerrymandering: “…take heart –
and take a cue – from the recent Supreme Court decision that casts a shadow on
partisan gerrymandering … the high Court declared that rank-and-file voters have
the constitutional right … to set up an independent redistricting commission …
But it will take grass roots civic action.”
Senate Tackles Highway Bill This Week
Senate
to hold procedural vote on highway trust fund bill tomorrow. The Hill:
“Senators have been working on a longer six-year, $275 billion bill, though
lawmakers have struggled … to lock down how to pay for the funding … The
Senate’s plan includes a controversial proposal to take $30 billion in savings
from a federal employee retirement savings plan, though that’s gotten pushback
from Democrats …”
Final
details on the bill unclear. Roll Call: “Just how long the Senate’s surface
transportation bill will run remains a mystery … The uncertainty stems … from
the need to provide offsets … [The] Democratic leadership had been offered a
menu of offsetting provisions to consider …”
Ex-Im
Bank battle tied up with transportation bill. Politico: “[Some House
conservatives] are opposed to any highway deal that would reauthorize the bank’s
charter and have indicated to GOP leadership not to count on their votes — which
could force Speaker John Boehner … to turn to House Democrats for votes on a
final highway package … Sen. Ted Cruz [has] threatened to use any procedural
weapon in his arsenal … to shut down any prospects of a bank reauthorization.
But … at least 65 votes [are] already on record in favor of the bank…”
Clinton To Propose Higher Capital Gains Taxes
Hillary
Clinton to lay out capital gains tax reform. WSJ: “Investments held for less
than a year would continue to be taxed at regular income-tax rates, which can
top out at 39.6% or more for the highest earners. For those held just a little
longer—likely two or three years—the current capital-gains tax rate of 23.8% for
top earners … would be higher than the 28% President Barack Obama proposed
earlier this year for the highest earners.”
Bernie
Sanders attracts support from those on the left dissatisfied with the Obama
record. W. Post: “These activists are not just supporting Sanders’s agenda,
or asking Clinton to embrace free college tuition or vast new infrastructure
spending. They’re telling an alternate history of modern liberalism. And Sanders
has been telling it with them.”
Presidential
candidates in both parties criticize “too big to fail.” The Hill: “…liberals
have argued that Dodd-Frank didn’t go far enough to prevent more taxpayer
bailouts. Conservatives argue that Dodd-Frank went too far and ended up
codifying too big to fail.”
Republicans Brace For Papal Visit
September
congressional address by Pope Francis will force GOP to confront climate and
inequality. NYT: “The visit will fulfill a long-held dream of [Speaker]
Boehner … He has extended offers to popes for the last 20 years, and Francis,
after taking nearly a year to consider, was the first to accept … He has
excoriated the excesses of capitalism as the ‘dung of the devil’ [and] pleaded
for action to stop global warming … Boehner remains thrilled, shelving
ideological differences to honor Francis…”
GOP
donor Jay Faison details “A GOP Approach to Tackling Climate Change” in Politico
Magazine oped: “We need — and I believe we’re developing — better answers,
genuinely conservative answers that do exist in the realm of proven fact,
technological finding and smart forecasting … I believe it will fuel a
revitalized GOP…”
Progressive
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