MORNING MESSAGE: Austerity Is The New Greek Tragedy
OurFuture.org's Terrance Heath: "Thousands of Greeks who still have jobs are joining a general strike this week, in another attempt to bring down the curtain on the whole show … Unemployment in Greece has hit Depression era levels, and is only likely to get worse … Greece risks a 'lost generation' as young people face a 55% unemployment … Greek pensioners face looming poverty amid pensions reduced by more than half … Public anger is rising … Increasing restlessness among Greeks has given rise to 'demagogues that turn people against each other,' as the Golden Dawn party — a far-right, neo-Nazi political organization — casts its shadow over the Greek populace and its government … Ordinary Greeks are already paying a steep price for austerity and inequality. When the spark is lit, the bill may yet come due for Greece's own one-percenters."
Austerity Protests Rock Europe
New anti-austerity protests in Spain. Reuters: "Protesters clashed with police in Spain's capital on Tuesday as the government prepared a new round of unpopular austerity measures for the 2013 budget to be announced on Thursday … The police said at least 22 people had been arrested and at least 32 injured…"
And Greece. NYT: "Clashes erupted in central Athens on Wednesday as trade unions called a nationwide strike to contest billions of euros in new salary and pension cuts being discussed by the government and its international creditors … The proposed cuts in Greece have ignited fresh anger in a broad swath of society here. Many openly talk of increased impoverishment as the nation grapples with a third round of austerity measures in as many years."
Senate Conservatives May Sink "Grand Bargain"
Senate conservatives may block "grand bargain," allow sequester to proceed. Politico: "…Republican budget hard-liners fear that the White House, congressional Democrats and their own party leaders will try to replace or forestall the cuts with … new taxes … 'Whatever you say about the cuts, and we all opposed the [sequester law], it was a big victory for those wanting to cut spending,' said a Senate Republican source. 'To then turn around and replace that with revenue … is going to be a very hard thing to overcome on our side.'"
Carbon tax would slash deficit. Reuters: "Imposing a $20 per metric ton carbon tax in the U.S. could reduce the country's budget deficit by 50 percent over the next 10 years, a report by the Congressional Research Service said on Tuesday. Such a tax would generate approximately $88 billion in 2012, rising to $144 billion by 2020, the report said, slashing U.S. debt by between 12 and 50 percent within a decade, depending on how high the deficit climbs…"
Romney May Wish He Could Win 47%
NYT/CBS polls in OH, FL and PA show Romney campaign cratering after 47% remarks: "In Ohio — which no Republican has won the presidency without — Mr. Obama is leading Mr. Romney 53 percent to 43 percent in the poll. In Florida, the president leads Mr. Romney 53 to 44 percent in the poll … Mr. Obama is leading Mr. Romney by 12 percentage points [in PA.] … Mr. Romney’s comments about the “47 percent” of Americans seemed to be undercutting him with other working-class voters [in OH]. '[It's] hard to swallow,' said Kenneth Myers, a Republican who lives in Mansfield and is unemployed. 'I think I’m part of the 47 percent he is talking about. But I don’t want to be dependent on the government.'"
Romney plan adds more debt than Obama plan. NYT: "One analysis … estimated that the debt would grow to at least 86 percent of gross domestic product under Mr. Romney’s plan over the next decade, from 73 percent currently. Under Mr. Obama’s policies, the debt would increase slightly after a decade, to about 77 percent…"
Romney tries new food stamps lie in CNN interview: "'It has been shown time and again that the president's effort to take work requirement out of welfare is a calculated move,' Romney said in defense of [his debunked] ad. Romney went on to accuse the president of taking 'work out of the food stamps requirement.' An Obama campaign spokeswoman called the food stamps program attack 'another fallacy.' 'Participants in the program are required to be actively looking for work, take part in training programs as directed, and accept jobs that are offered,' Obama spokeswoman Lis Smith said."
But admits Obama did not raise taxes. ABC: "Mitt Romney strayed from his own campaign’s talking points … 'I admit this, [President Obama] has one thing he did not do in his first four years — he’s said he’s going to do in the next four years, which is to raise taxes.' Behind him, Ryan appeared to wince at the mention."
Republicans redistribute wealthy upward, says W. Post Harold Meyerson: "The most obvious way that Republicans have robbed from the middle to give to the rich has been the changes they wrought in the tax code … The less widely understood way that Republicans have helped redistribute wealth to the already wealthy is by changing the rules. Markets don’t function without rules, and the rules that Republican policymakers have made since Ronald Reagan became president have consistently depressed the share of the nation’s income that the middle class can claim."
Education summit highlights diverging priorities between Obama and Romney, McClatchy: "Romney wants to restrict Pell grants, the main source of federal financial aid for college, to just the poorest students. 'Flooding colleges with federal dollars only serves to drive tuition higher,' a Romney campaign education policy paper says. But campaign spokeswoman Amanda Henneberg declined to provide details about where Romney would set the limits. Under Obama, Pell Grants have more than doubled, from $16 billion in 2008 to $36 billion last year. The size of the grants increased, as did the number of recipients, from about 6 million to 9 million … Congress passed an Obama-backed effort to remove commercial banks from the federal student loan business … Romney, however, has said he’d let commercial banks back into the student lending market."
"Mitt Romney 2011 Tax Return Includes Massive Gain From Controversial Bain Deal" reports HuffPost: "…Bain allowed Romney to receive his [retirement] payments as 'carried interest' … Romney's 2011 return does not detail the amount of income he received in carried interest, but his campaign told HuffPost the amount is $5.5 million … Recording this $5.5 million as carried interest rather than ordinary income saved Romney $147,000 in self-employment taxes including Medicare and Social Security, plus additional savings of more than $700,000 in income taxes."
Active Government Impresses Ohio
Ohio appreciating active federal government. W. Post: "After President Obama pledged in March to create up to 15 manufacturing centers nationwide, the first federal grant went to a place at the heart of his affections: Ohio. When the Obama administration awarded tax credits to promote clean energy, the $125 million taken home by Ohio companies was nearly four times the average that went to other states … Administration officials said that they have not favored Ohio and that federal money flows to every state, including those with little political benefit, according to merit-based reviews … Brian Reis, who runs a company making potato chips and other snack food about 100 miles from Cleveland, says he is grateful for the attention. Reis, a Republican, has received three Small Business Administration loans totaling $3.9 million since Obama took office …"
Obama heads to Ohio today with stern words for China. WSJ: "Mr. Obama, in campaign events in battleground Ohio, will argue that he has been aggressive in filing trade complaints against China with the World Trade Organization … At the same time, the president will launch attacks against Mr. Romney, a former executive at a private-equity firm, saying he’s personally profiting from companies that outsource jobs to China … Mr. Obama will also add his voice to an effort this week by his campaign to highlight Mr. Romney’s past opposition to a trade complaint the administration filed against China on tires, citing Mr. Romney’s position in his book 'No Apology.'"
GOP Senate Candidates On Defensive
Dems have Senate edge. LAT: "[Republicans] need to gain a net of four seats to wrest away the majority that Democrats have held since 2006 … But in races from Virginia to Wisconsin, recent polls have shown a shift in Senate contests in favor of the Democrats, and the weakness of some GOP candidates has limited the party's prospects. Strategists in both parties say that part of the problem may be that Romney's campaign stumbles are hurting Republican candidates."
Video exposes GOP candidate for Sen in WI promising to "do away with Medicaid and Medicare" reports Political Wire.
Scott Brown tries to save Senate seat with purely negative campaign. NYT: "Video emerged on Tuesday showing supporters of Senator Scott P. Brown making tomahawk gestures with their arms and yelling Indian war whoops at supporters of Elizabeth Warren … With six weeks left and the high-stakes Senate race still very close, Mr. Brown is seeking to convert almost everything into a character issue … 'He’s voted against jobs, against women, against college students, he has worked in secret to weaken the rules against Wall Street, and the best he’s got is personal attacks,' [said Warren]."
PA Voter ID Law May Get Blocked
PA judge may block voter ID law. Reuters: "A Pennsylvania judge on Tuesday signaled he may block at least part of the state's controversial voter identification law … The hearing will resume on Thursday … Commonwealth attorney Alfred Putnam said he had hoped the Pennsylvania Department of State's move on Tuesday to make getting an ID easier would be enough to avoid a permanent injunction. The department said voters would be able to get its voting-only card without having to comply with the new law's requirement to show two proofs of residency … Attorneys who have been fighting to stop the law said they would advise the judge to block it in its entirety … said Tuesday's changes by the state come too late to be meaningful …"
New ID laws may mean more provisional ballots, slower vote counting. AP: "Tight races for Congress, governor and local offices also could be stuck in limbo while election officials scrutinize ballots, a scenario that would surely attract legions of campaign lawyers from both parties."
