MORNING MESSAGE
...a
surprise issue is already emerging among both Republican and Democratic
candidates: Social Security. Some observers thought that conservative candidates
would be inclined to avoid the so-called "third rail" of American politics this
time around, but the opposite seems to be true. A lot of Republicans are eager
to propose cutting it, even as many progressives talk of expanding it. Where
does that leave the Democratic Party and its odds-on favorite for the
presidential nomination? Will Hillary Clinton embrace her party's growing call
to increase Social Security benefits?
Obama v. Warren Over TPP
Obama
criticizes Warren on TPP during MSNBC interview. Time quotes: “We’re allies
on a whole host of issues. But she’s wrong on this … [She] is out there saying
things like this about the trade agreement: ‘It’s going to help the rich get
richer and leave everyone else behind,’ … I’ve spent the last 6½ years yanking
this economy out of the worst recession since the Great Depression … I would not
be doing this trade deal if I did not think it was good for the middle
class.”
Hillary
Clinton lays out criteria for her to support TPP. W. Post: “‘Any trade deal
has to produce jobs and raise wages and increase prosperity and protect our
security,’ Clinton said during a tour of a community college that focuses on
technical skills. ‘We have to do our part in making sure we have the
capabilities and the skills to be competitive.’ That fell short of an
endorsement of the [fast-track] bill.”
Martin
O’Malley comes out squarely against TPP. Bloomberg: “‘We need to stop
entering into bad trade deals,’ O’Malley says in [a new] video. ‘I’m for trade,
and I’m for good trade deals, but I’m against bad trade deals like the
Trans-Pacific Partnership. We need to focus on making our economy more
sustainable, more circular, and making ourselves strong here at home.'”
US-Japan
breakthrough may speed TPP deal. Bloomberg: “President Barack Obama and
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may be able to declare next week that the
U.S. and Japan have all but completed their part of negotiations on a
Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, Japan’s ambassador to the U.S. said.
Kenichiro Sasae said in Washington that while some issues remain to be settled
on autos and agriculture, he hopes Abe and Obama will announce agreement when
the Japanese leader visits the White House on April 28.”
Senate
poised to pass fast track during Japan visit. Politico: “Republicans say
they are confident the bill will pass committee and possibly hit the Senate
floor by next week, when Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is visiting
Washington.”
But
Sen. Minority Leader Harry Reid opposed. HuffPost: “‘You couldn’t find a
person … who feels more negatively about it than I do,’ he said. ‘So the answer
is not only no, but hell no,’ he added … Reid said that he wouldn’t try to
defeat the legislation in any ‘single-handed’ way, but that he is pressing [Sen.
Ron] Wyden to slow it down.”
“Coalition
to Stop Fast Track” announces major ad campaign. Politico: “A coalition of
labor, environmental and progressive interests is launching a seven-figure ad
campaign aimed at pressuring congressional Democrats … a coalition spokesman
said the ad would be aimed primarily at members who had yet to take a public
position on the proposal …”
Fast
track bill would push final approval into the fall. NYT: “… the full
agreement would have to be made public for 60 days before the president gives
his final assent and sends it to Congress. Congress could not begin considering
it for 30 days after that. That extra time means that Congress probably will not
consider the Trans-Pacific Partnership until at least October, the thick of the
presidential primary debate season and just as White House hopefuls are
preparing for the first primary voting.”
Hillary: Class Warrior?
Did
Clinton say we need to topple the 1%? HuffPost: “Hillary Clinton believes
that strengthening the middle class and alleviating income inequality will
require ‘toppling’ the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans, according to a New
York Times profile published on Tuesday …’“No one in the room remembers this
quote, and it doesn’t sound like language she’d use,’ a Clinton aide emailed to
HuffPost. ‘That said, our economy was nearly toppled in 2008 because the deck
was stacked for those at the top and Hillary Clinton has said she’s running to
reshuffle the deck for everyday Americans so that it doesn’t topple again and
people can actually get ahead.'”
TNR’s
Danny Vinik argues progressives should be pleased with her rhetoric: “This
should allay fears on the left that Clinton would run as a centrist, crafting
her language carefully to avoid angering Wall Street donors. Instead, she’s
going right after them.”
Dean
Baker offers a “Simple Progressive Economic Agenda for Hillary Clinton (or
Anyone Else)”: “While many policies will be needed to improve the situation
of the poor and middle class, there are three simple ones that could make a big
difference: a more competitive dollar, a Federal Reserve Board committed to full
employment and a financial transactions tax to rein in Wall Street.”
Little Victory For Clean Energy
Modest
energy-efficiency bill clears Congress. NYT: “Congress on Tuesday passed a
bill focused on improving energy efficiency in buildings and water heaters, a
move celebrated by both parties for breaking longstanding partisan gridlock …
President Obama is expected to sign [the bill] into law this week…”
WH
proposes billions for energy infrastructure. The Hill: “…it would cost up to
$3.5 billion over 10 years to replace natural gas pipelines and improve
maintenance. The Energy Department also wants to spend up to $5 billion to
support state ‘energy assurance’ pipeline programs, to help them protect their
energy infrastructure from various threats. The administration calls for nearly
$4 billion to modernize the electrical grid, as well as $2 billion to promote
carbon dioxide capture and sequestration, along with pipelines to move the
gas.”
Breakfast Sides
Koch
may back multiple presidential candidates. WSJ: “The network affiliated with
billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch sees five contenders as having
a good message and a shot at the White House. They are: former Florida Gov. Jeb
Bush, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, and Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida,Ted Cruz of
Texas and Rand Paul of Kentucky … [Charles] Koch said the network would only
intervene in the primary on behalf of a single candidate ‘if somebody really
stands out from the standpoint of their message and what they would actually do
to benefit America,’ and is electable.”
“Flash
Crash” trader arrested. NYT: “…prosecutors said that much of the blame for
the event could be pinned on a single person: a 36-year-old man who had been
boldly manipulating markets from his suburban rowhouse just a few minutes from
Heathrow Airport outside London, where he was arrested … news of the arrest, if
anything, has raised anew concerns about how an individual could manage to exert
such influence over the world’s financial markets.”
Greece
buys six more weeks. Bloomberg: “Greek officials expect an order that local
governments transfer funds to the central bank will keep the country afloat
until the end of May …”
Progressive
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