House Dems Aim To Shape Budget Deal
House Dems seek role in budget talks. The Hill: "House Democrats are making it known that they won’t serve as a rubber stamp for fiscal deals that the White House negotiates this fall. They say their views must be taken into account because Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) is likely to need their votes to pass legislation that funds the government and hikes the debt ceiling ... House Democrats are warning that unilateral dealmaking [between President and GOP] won’t fly — a message designed both to boost Obama's resolve and remind him that that they, too, have power in the fight."
Sequester killing science. HuffPost: "Top officials at academic and medical institutions have grown convinced that years of stagnant budgets and recent cuts have ushered in the dark ages of science in America. 'It is like a slowly growing cancer,' Steven Warren, vice chancellor for research at the University of Kansas said of sequestration at a recent gathering of academic officials in Washington, D.C. 'It's going to do a lot of destruction over time.'"
McConnell reminds that shutdown won't shut down ObamaCare. The Hill: "'I'm for stopping ObamaCare, but shutting down the government will not stop ObamaCare,' McConnell (R-Ky.) told a crowd at a healthcare center in Corbin, Ky. ... Supporters of the shutdown threat have been trying to build a grassroots campaign to pressure McConnell, who is facing a primary challenge from businessman Matt Bevin as he campaigns for reelection."
Rubio Says Immigration Law Beats Immigration Executive Order
Rubio tells conservatives Obama will use executive orders to legalize undocumented without new law. AP: "Rubio said the possibility highlighted the need for congressional action because the alternative would be legalization without benefits like border security and an E-Verify system to require employers to check their workers' legal status."
"“It’s not an empty threat," says top immigration reform advocate to Politico: "If Republicans block reform with a path to citizenship, immigration reform activists will look at all their options, including broad executive action ... [But the] White House says no."
Broad coalition for reform keep up pressure in August. W. Post: "An unusual alliance of advocates — including Internet moguls and evangelicals, representatives of big business and labor unions — is working across the country during the August congressional recess in an all-out push for immigration reform ... Overall, pro-reform groups say they are trying to reach about 130 Republicans, with different organizations focusing where they think they can be most effective ..."
"Pathway to citizenship would boost GDP by $1.4T over decade" according to WH, reports The Hill.
Justice Takes On American-US AIrways Merger
DOJ moves to block airline merger. NYT: "...the Justice Department filed a lawsuit on Tuesday to block the proposed merger between American Airlines and US Airways, which would create the world’s largest airline ... antitrust regulators said these past mergers had in effect undermined the case for the American-US Airways combination. While those mergers helped the industry return to profitability and brought more stability, they also led to higher fares, regulators said. A union between American and US Airways would take the consolidation too far, the Justice Department said, hurting consumers and leading to substantially less competition and higher airfares and fees, and to less service to many airports ... [the assistant AG] said the combined airline’s pricing power would be apparent at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, where it would have a monopoly on 63 percent of the nonstop routes."
More from NYT's Eduardo Porter: "...the American deal with US Airways is particularly anticompetitive. The airlines share many routes and airports, so a merger would take out two rivals who are proving strong competitors ... If Justice were to allow this to go through, only four airlines, including Southwest, would control 80 percent of the domestic air travel market ... or the sake of passengers and even the industry itself, there is a good case for them trying to go it alone. They might actually make it."
Conservatives Run Wild At State Level
Republican governors grapple with Republican legislatures. W. Post: "Republican legislators in several of these states have spurned their governor’s priorities – in some cases balking at proposed tax cuts, for example – and instead have passed new abortion regulations, voter ID laws and legislation reducing the power of unions, often without the initial support of the governor. As with many issues on the national stage right now, these bills have forced governors to choose between pleasing the conservative base and appealing to a broad electorate that may not support the legislation. In almost all of these cases, the governor wound up signing the bills."
"North Carolinians Fear the End of a Middle Way" reports NYT: "Conservatives and pro-business groups had been building a formidable organizational and donor structure, as part of a national Republican strategy to win control of statehouses in time to shape legislative redistricting. Most active in these efforts in North Carolina was Art Pope, a retail magnate, who founded groups that put over $1.7 million into the 2010 elections ... [Pat] McCrory won the governor’s office easily. Naming Mr. Pope as his budget director, he promised an agenda focused on economic growth, even pledging not to sign into law new restrictions on abortion. But Republicans in the legislature were not interested in half-measures..."
