MORNING MESSAGE
Why Is Washington Still Pushing the Trans-Pacific Partnership?
Both
Clinton and Trump oppose the TPP. It was exhibit one in the populist argument
made by Bernie Sanders. Leading environmental, consumer, labor, citizen-action,
and human-rights groups are organized against it. The white working-class voters
who flocked to Trump’s banner loathe it. Yet, bizarrely, first thing after this
election is over, President Obama, the Republican leaders of the House and
Senate and the business lobby are planning to launch a full-court press to drive
the TPP through a lame-duck session of Congress.
FINAL WEEKEND
Both
campaigns look to motivate base vote in final weekend. NYT: “…Clinton is
moving to reinforce her position among crucial constituencies, including black
communities in North Carolina and Florida, and Hispanic strongholds in Nevada
and Arizona … Where Mrs. Clinton has homed in on minority turnout in
early-voting states, Mr. Trump has delivered a broad-brush message denouncing
Mrs. Clinton as corrupt … Trump has tested his strength in unconventional places
— one day in tossup states, another in Democratic-leaning states like Michigan
and New Mexico, still another in states that Mrs. Clinton seemed to have locked
up long ago, like Virginia and Colorado.”
AP
reviews the early voting numbers: “Hillary Clinton … continues to maintain
an apparent edge over Donald Trump, with more than one-quarter of all expected
ballots cast … the tens of millions of early votes cast also point to strength
from Democratic-leaning Latino voters, potentially giving Clinton a significant
advantage in Nevada and Colorado … In North Carolina and Florida, Democrats did
better with mail balloting than they had in previous elections … But the big
turnout — especially among black voters — hasn’t yet happened…”
Wages
rise in final pre-election jobs report. Bloomberg: “Payrolls climbed by
161,000 last month following a 191,000 gain in September that was larger than
previously estimated … The jobless rate fell to 4.9 percent … The figures are
likely to keep the Federal Reserve on track to raise borrowing costs next month
for the first time in 2016 … Wage gains picked up, with average hourly earnings
rising 0.4 percent from a month earlier to $25.92. The year-over-year increase
was 2.8 percent…”
CORPORATIONS SEEK TO SHAPE & WIN BALLOT INITIATIVES
Corporations
spend heavily on secretary of state elections. NYT: “The targeting of
secretaries of state with campaign donations, corporate-funded weekend outings
and secret meetings with industry lobbyists reflects an intense focus on often
overlooked ballot questions, which the secretaries frequently help write … a
difference of even a few words on a ballot measure can have an enormous impact
on the outcome.”
Deceptive
enviro measures on state ballots. The Nation: “… what do you do if you’re a
big utility company that fears competition from alternative-energy sources? In
Florida, apparently, you perform a ‘little bit of political jiu-jitsu’ to make
an anti-solar measure sound like its opposite … California voters are
considering two ballot measures related to plastic bags, which can harm fish and
other wildlife. Like the solar-power amendment in Florida, both measures are
sponsored by industry groups—plastics manufacturers, who’ve funded a front group
called the American Progressive Bag Alliance—and they’re written in ways that
may confuse voters.”
Left
split on Washington state carbon tax ballot measure. The Hill: “Proponents
say it will help reduce the prime driver of climate change and reform a
regressive tax code … But it’s facing surprising opposition from many greens …
Any new revenue from the carbon tax will go toward lowering other taxes in the
state rather than raising money for potential carbon-cutting investments …
Opponents also point to projections that the tax will lead to millions of
dollars in lost revenue.”
Paris
agreement takes effect today. The Hill: “…John Morton, director for climate
and energy at the White House National Security Council … said the agreement is
taking effect ‘much, much faster, years faster, than most people expected. And
with that entry into force, that puts us on a much accelerated path toward
implementation of that goals that we laid out in Paris a year ago.'”
JOCKEYING FOR CLINTON CABINET
“Liberals
push Kara Stein to lead SEC” reports Politico: “When Sen. Elizabeth Warren
last month demanded that President Barack Obama immediately replace SEC Chair
Mary Jo White, she said the president could easily fill the position without
Senate confirmation. That was a tacit endorsement of Kara Stein, the agency’s
lone Democratic commissioner, who could move into the top job without Senate
involvement … Other names that have been circulated by progressives for top
jobs: Labor Secretary Tom Perez; former CFTC Commissioner Gary Gensler; Deputy
Treasury Secretary Sarah Bloom Raskin, and Heather Boushey, the chief economist
on the Clinton transition team.”
Huge
network of Clinton allies competing for administration posts. The Hill:
“this transition is expected to be brutal given the number of people in the vast
orbit of Bill and Hillary Clinton who have been waiting for years to have a shot
at a job in a future administration.”
Progressive
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