Reid, Union Push Back Hard Against Grand Bargain
Sen. Majority Leader Reid draws line on Social Security, in HuffPost interview: "Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has no interest in a budget deal that trades sequestration relief for entitlement cuts, believing that future spending reductions scheduled to hit the Pentagon give Democrats the upper hand ... 'I would like to suggest that maybe the Republicans aren't too happy with next year's sequestration. Who does it hurt, non-defense? I get an extra billion dollars this year compared to [last] year. Defense? They lose $23 billion,' Reid said ... 'It is the most successful social program in the history of the world. The program is not about to go broke, so take it easy on Social Security,' Reid said. President Obama made a similar commitment during a meeting with the Democratic Senate caucus last week, but added that if the Republican offer also included infrastructure money or investment in early childhood education ... it would at least be worth considering ... If Republicans want to trim Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid, Reid said, they'd have to give on tax revenue in exchange. Asked specifically if the deal must be revenue for entitlements, he said: 'Yes, and we call it mandatories.'"
"Unions Warn Lawmakers" reports WSJ: "...union officials wasted no time stating their demands for future congressional budget talks: no cuts to Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid benefits and repeal the across-the-board budget cuts known as sequestration ... Damon Silvers, director of policy and special counsel for the AFL-CIO, signaled some give in a recent interview, noting that there are Medicare cost-savings in President Barack Obama’s budget that the AFL-CIO would 'be OK with.' However, 'they are savings not cuts,' he said. The federation will oppose any cuts, he said, and issued a stern warning to lawmakers. 'We’re going to give no cover to anybody who proposes them,' said Mr. Silvers, referring to unions’ support, or lack thereof, for lawmakers in the 2014 elections."
"Forget talk of a budgetary grand bargain" says Bloomberg: "Lawmakers say even a mini-bargain to carry the government through the next year or two would be difficult, never mind a breakthrough on entitlement spending limits and tax revenuethat’s eluded negotiators for the past three years ... Republicans say Democrats must go beyond the entitlement cuts in Obama’s budget, or there can be no discussion of revenue. Democrats say they want a ratio of revenue to spending cuts that Republicans are bound to reject."
"...a long-term budget deal is possible, just not a big one" reports McClatchy: "...here’s little hope for a compromise budget to be agreed on in eight weeks. But there’s optimism that the two sides at least may come up with a smarter version of the austerity that’s already the law of the land ... defense spending is likely the starting place for any deal. 'Sen. [Parry] Murray thinks the defense cuts are a horrible way to cut spending,' said Eli Zupnick, a spokesman for the Budget Committee. 'There is no reason the two sides shouldn’t be able to replace the automatic across-the-board cuts to both defense and non-defense investments with smarter savings.'"
GOP establishment struggles to contain their radical wing. W. Post: "'You roll them,' advised former Senate majority leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.). 'I do think we need stronger leadership, and there’s got to be some pushback on these guys who think they came here with all the solutions.' Only then, he said, can the party begin to push an agenda and 'get things done,' rather than obstruct ... Some Republicans lament that it has been difficult to get business leaders and other influential establishment figures to weigh in during primary season."
Immigration Back In Spotlight
Dems renew immigration push. W. Post: "With Democrats convinced that they have the GOP on the defensive, the president cited the passage of an immigration bill, along with securing a long-term budget and a farm bill, as top priorities over the next three months ... But it’s not clear that GOP lawmakers ... will be forced to the negotiating table ... On one hand, immigration advocates said, Boehner has appeared to emerge with more respect from the conservative bloc of the GOP caucus long skeptical of his willingness to take on the White House. That could embolden him to push for a broader set of immigration proposals that could result in a conference with the Senate. On the other hand, Boehner was forced to bring a short-term spending plan to the House floor late Wednesday that was approved with mostly Democratic support, a move the speaker acknowledged was a political loss for his party. That could make him fearful of pursuing a vote on an immigration plan that would also likely depend heavily on Democrats."
W. Post edit board pushes House GOP to introduce compromise measure: "[Judiciary Chair Bob] Goodlatte ... said he supports granting unauthorized immigrants some sort of legalized status that would permit them to stay and work in this country, though it would lack a special or certain path to citizenship. Mr. Goodlatte floated that idea before, but he has yet to offer it as legislation ... conferring legal status on millions of illegal immigrants would throw down a gauntlet to Democrats, many of whom regard it, with revulsion, as creating a new underclass of non-citizens who would be free to work but not free to vote ... At the least, it could restore momentum to a debate that has grown moribund ..."
Where Obamacare Is Working
TNR's Jonathan Cohn tells "The Truth About the Obamacare Rollout": "On one side is the story you’ve heard so much about. In 36 states, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is operating the new insurance marketplaces, where non-elderly people without employer benefits can buy coverage on their own. This part of the rollout has gone … really badly. Two weeks after the sites went online, people are still have trouble setting up accounts and logging onto the system ... But it’s not the whole story—not by a longshot ... 14 states plus the District of Columbia are managing their own markets ... while it's difficult to get a precise sense of how each one is operating, most appear to be functioning well ... Consumers are getting opportunities they never had before—to shop for insurance plans, each one with clearly defined benefits that make true comparisons possible, and to receive substantial financial assistance that provides many with thousands of dollars a year in assistance. And, from the looks of things, people are taking advantage of it."
Conservative resistance to Medicaid expansion leaving 5M without coverage. Bloomberg: "Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and South Carolina will be particularly hard-hit, as those southern states will fail to provide coverage to at least one-third of uninsured adults, according to a report from the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured. In Texas, more than 1 million people won’t have access to insurance provided through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, while 763,890 Floridians won’t receive health coverage."
