MORNING MESSAGE
George
W. Bush suffered Hurricane Katrina and the Iraqi quagmire, Bill Clinton was
impeached, Ronald Reagan was staggered by the Iran-contra scandal, and Richard
Nixon was run out of town. What did Obama do right?
Bernie Hits Big Fundraising Mark
Sanders
beats Obama fundraising record. NYT: “…Sanders’s campaign announced that he
had outpaced Barack Obama’s record for the number of contributions in a
presidential race, with more than 2.2 million donations. Mr. Obama’s record was
2,209,636 donations … Sanders could beat Hillary Clinton for contributions in
the final fund-raising quarter of the year.”
Can
Sanders ride single-payer to nomination? WSJ’s Drew Altman: “Most Democrats
either strongly favor (52%) or somewhat favor (24%) the general idea of Medicare
for all … [But] just 5% of Democrats are pure ‘single-payer voters’ who … say
that the candidate’s stand on the issue will be the single most important factor
in their vote.”
“Democrats
embrace modern America as Republicans reject it” says W. Post’s E. J.
Dionne: “…Hillary Clinton, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Martin O’Malley
all stand up for the rights of a younger America — today’s country — that is
less white, more Latino and more Asian (and, yes, more Muslim) … [Republicans]
yearn for the United States of Then. The current version is cast as a fallen
nation.”
Ryan Defends Compromise
Speaker
Ryan defends spending bill compromise from right-wing attacks. NYT: “Mr.
Ryan acknowledged that divided government means that Republicans were not in a
position to achieve all their goals … Mr. Ryan said he would meet over a meal
with Mr. Obama early next year … He singled out criminal justice reform as a
potential area in which the two leaders could act.”
Republicans
struggle to stymie Paris climate deal. The Hill: “…Republicans vowed to
block American contribution to the [climate] fund, an international pool of
public and private money directed to help poorer nations prepare for climate
change. But the omnibus spending deal passed this week allows Obama to find [the
funding] …”
Breakfast Sides
Low
gas prices not stimulating economy. WSJ: “The price of a gallon of regular
gasoline fell to $2 nationally Sunday … Americans reaped more than $100 billion
in savings this year alone … [Yet] the economy remains mired in the slow-growth
trajectory that has marked the economic expansion over the past 6½ years.”
High-speed
rail stalled. The Hill: “Obama included $8 billion in his 2009 economic
stimulus package to jump start the high-speed rail program in the U.S. But seven
years later, Obama has little to show for the effort … His stimulus offer was
rebuffed by Republican governors … [California] has been beset by delays and
funding problems. Meanwhile, private companies are considering the development
of high-speed railways in places like Texas and, ironically, Florida.”
Progressive
Breakfast is a daily morning email highlighting news stories of interest to
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