MORNING MESSAGE: Minorities to GOP: We're Just Not That Into You
OurFuture.org's Terrance Heath: "The reason that Blacks, Latinos, Asians, Women, gays, young people and a whole lot of white people didn’t vote for your party is simple. Republicans spent much of the last four years insulting these groups with your rhetoric, and adding insult to injury with your politics. The biggest surprise after your shock at losing the election is your anger at all of these groups for not voting Republican. Your expectation that any of these groups would vote your way, and apparent belief that you’d given them any reason to do so, is beyond mystifying."
Norquist v. America
Pressure on Grover Norquist to keep Republicans in line against taxes. NYT: "Mr. Norquist contends that every few years, several noisy Republicans say their support is squishy. Yet every time, he says proudly, the outcome is the same. 'It’s been 22 years since a Republican voted for a tax increase in this town,' he said in a recent interview. 'This is not my first rodeo.' Ask Republicans in Congress today what they think of the pledge, and many of them say that while they still subscribe to a low-tax view of government, they resent being hamstrung by a piece of paper they signed well before they were elected. Some of them are even saying they want out."
Norquist urges Republicans to use debt ceiling to take Congress hostage again. Reuters: "'The debt limit is an additional tool to explain to Obama that he is not the king,' Norquist said. 'He has to go to Congress for resources.' The U.S. Treasury Department has said it will have enough funds to avoid the ceiling until near the end of the year, and experts say they can use accounting maneuvers to delay the limit beyond that."
But one year ago. Norquist told W. Post letting tax cuts expire on schedule isn't a tax increase: "'Not continuing a tax cut is not technically a tax increase,' Mr. Norquist told us. So it doesn’t violate the pledge? 'We wouldn’t hold it that way,' he said."
Leader Pelosi has leverage in deficit talks. Roll Call: "With House Republicans acknowledging they have little hope of passing a fiscal cliff deal with just the votes of their own conference, Democrats will likely prove crucial to House passage. Democrats already appear to be in good position to wrangle some tax hikes out of Republicans … But what they give in return on entitlements could depend in large part on whether the former speaker wants to persuade House Democrats to go along with it … Sources close to the minority leader point to the fact that there were no entitlement cuts in the 2011 budget deal in part because of her efforts to keep them out … Pelosi has not ruled out changes to entitlement programs, but she has drawn a line at benefit cuts."
WH preparing massive grassroots effort to press Congress on taxes. HuffPost: "…Obama previewed the strategy in a conference call with activists after the election … one of president's top campaign aides, Mitch Stewart, alerted listeners that they would be asked to help support the White House … pointing the 30,000 call participants to a newly developed initiative called TheAction.org … One organizer said the coalition would spearhead rallies, encourage op-eds and letters to the editor and, if an infusion of cash comes around, launch media campaigns."
Breakfast Sides
Enviros plan to push WH on climate. Politico: "Officials at the groups acknowledge it’s unlikely climate legislation, even in the form of a carbon tax attached to a broad tax reform package, can win congressional approval in the short term. As a result, the groups are prepared to put pressure on the president to tackle climate change in the executive branch, particularly when it comes to Environmental Protection Agency regulations."
Undocumented immigrants can pay in-state tuition rates at public colleges in MA. NYT: "The shift builds on the Obama administration policy, adopted in June, that the federal government will not seek to deport most young immigrants who, as children, were either brought to the United States illegally or kept here illegally. The Massachusetts policy applies to that same group. Officials say there are very few illegal immigrants currently enrolled who might benefit from the in-state tuition discount; the much larger effect will be in encouraging others to enroll … 12 states have laws allowing illegal immigrants to claim state residency and pay in-state tuition."
NLRB to rule on Friday's planned Wal-Mart protests. NYT: "Nancy Cleeland, the labor board’s spokeswoman, said the type of complaint filed by Wal-Mart would be handled quickly because such complaints, asserting illegal picketing, take priority over other labor board cases under federal labor law."
Conservatives say Romney wasn't conservative enough: "The conservative backlash sets up an internal fight for the direction of the Republican Party, as many top leaders in Washington have proposed moderating their views on citizenship for illegal immigrants [and] softening the party’s rhetoric on social issues…"
