MORNING MESSAGE
According
to Politico’s Wednesday Morning Trade, the Obama administration is launching a
“TPP blitz” push to pass the Trans-Pacific Partnership ... This undermines
Clinton’s credibility [and] harms her ability to govern if she is elected ...
Clinton on Thursday is giving an economic speech near Detroit ... She should
loudly call on President Obama to withdraw TPP now, and call on Democrats to
vote against the TPP if he does not do that.
LEFT UNSETTLED BY CLINTON STRATEGY
Support
for Clinton from hawks unnerves left. W. Post: “…said Glenn Greenwald, … ‘I
think she’s receiving those endorsements because they like what her foreign
policy will be. That’s what worries me.’ … ‘I don’t like it, but it cannot give
me pause, since the alternative is vastly worse, even on endorsements,’ [Noam]
Chomsky said … What neither the critics nor the endorsers can know is how the
cross-party endorsements will affect a possible Clinton administration.”
“Liberals
hold nose as Clinton seeks to win over GOP” reports The Hill: “‘This is
going to be a base turnout election so there’s a real risk if you work too hard
to win some of these endorsements that are anathema to progressive values that
it could hurt Democratic turnout and enthusiasm and will make the legislative
fights you’ll face in the White House even tougher,’ said Democracy for America
(DFA) spokesman Neil Sroka … liberal groups have begun launching petitions and
email campaigns to keep the pressure on Clinton to hold steady in her support of
the progressive policies she embraced during the primary.”
Clinton
appears to diverge with Paul Krugman on deficit spending. Bloomberg: “While
not commenting specifically on Clinton’s economic program, Nobel prize winner
Paul Krugman made the case this week that now’s the time for the government to
be borrowing more and worrying less about debt … The former secretary of state
has contrasted the Republican’s plan with her own fiscal prudence, maintaining
that her proposed spending increases are offset by equal-sized tax hikes on the
wealthy and corporations.”
Poverty
gets short shrift in campaign. NYT: “…the candidates have this in common:
Both promise to help Americans find jobs; neither has said much about helping
people while they are not working.”
RACE FOR SENATE TIGHTENS
Some
Senate races tighten. USA Today: “…according to a Quinnipiac Poll … In
Florida, Republican Sen. Marco Rubio is ahead of Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Fla., by
3 points, 48%-45% … In Pennsylvania, Democratic challenger Katie McGinty was 3
points ahead of GOP Sen. Pat Toomey, 47%-44% … There was good news for the GOP
in Ohio, where [Sen Rob] Portman was clearly ahead of former governor Ted
Strickland, 49%-40%.”
Russ
Feingold leads in Wisconsin. The Hill: “Democrat Russ Feingold has a 6-point
lead over incumbent Sen. Ron Johnson … In a three-way race with Libertarian
Party candidate Phil Anderson included, Feingold’s lead grows to 9 points…”
NYT
speculates Mayor Bill de Blasio may have tough re-election: “…the recent
poll … found that a majority of respondents disapprove of Mr. de Blasio’s
performance as mayor, [but] none of his obvious potential opponents fared well
against him in hypothetical matchups. The poll’s findings, however, suggested
that there may be an opportunity for a Democrat running as an independent …
Among the politicians frequently identified as potential challengers are [City
Comptroller Scott] Stringer, who has a large campaign war chest and has already
won a citywide election; Letitia James, the public advocate; and Ruben Diaz Jr.,
the Bronx borough president.”
Progressives
score notable wins in state primaries. OurFuture.org’s Kathy Mulady: “… an
almost unnoticed but potentially more critical political wave is becoming
visible in state and local elections … The common link that unites many of them
is their connection to People’s Action … in [MN] Ilhan Omar [is] her way to
becoming the country’s first Somali-American legislator … In [VT] State Sen.
David Zuckerman … won the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor. Zuckerman
was endorsed by Rights and Democracy, another People’s Action affiliate
organization … The key victories Tuesday come on top of earlier primary season
wins – notably, that of the Washington candidate for a U.S. House seat Pramila
Jayapal, the founder and former executive director of People’s Action affiliate
OneAmerica…”
Progressive
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