Jobless Aid Stalls
No deal imminent for offset to cover cost of extended unemployment insurance. Politico: "Democrats are moving away from finding a way to cover the cost of an emergency three-month extension of unemployment benefits, hoping instead to strike a deal to pay for a full-year long extension of the program ... But Republicans said on Wednesday afternoon that they aren’t engaging in talks to do anything other than offset the three-month extension at this point."
House GOP shrugs: "House Republicans are showing little appetite, urgency and interest in extending the program, and are hinting that they are content to let the issue disappear if the Senate fails to pass its own legislation ... Some Republicans think the nation is awash with unoccupied jobs, others are wary of shuffling more government money to the unemployed and nearly every GOP lawmaker wants to see seismic changes to the way benefits are administered."
Boehner Prepares Immigration Principles
House GOP leadership previews immigration strategy. AP: "House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, told rank-and-file Republicans in a closed-door session that he would soon outline party principles on the issue, which could serve as a precursor to legislation. One of the GOP's crucial backers on many policies, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, promised to 'pull out all the stops' to get legislation done ... Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, a chief foe of comprehensive immigration overhaul, said the issue would divide the GOP caucus and shift the focus from what he called the 'calamity' of the health care law."
NYT adds: "House Republicans hope to release their principles near the end of the month before President Obama’s State of the Union address, as well as before their annual retreat. Republican aides had previously said that their leadership team was unlikely to make any strategic decisions on immigration before the retreat."
"Big Business Doubles Down on GOP Civil War With Tea Party" reports Bloomberg: "The U.S. Chamber of Commerce plans aggressive efforts to back 'pro-business' candidates, some of whom will face Tea Party opponents in Republican primary elections this year, Tom Donohue, the group’s president, said today."
Congress Nears Food Stamp Deal
Farm bill deal may cut $9B from food stamps. W. Post: "Plans call for eliminating about $9 billion in funding for food stamps ... over the next decade ... The cuts are a compromise between a proposed $4 billion reduction approved by the Democratic-led Senate in June and nearly $40 billion in cuts approved by the GOP-controlled House ... Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), a longtime champion for the poor from one of the nation’s most prosperous farm states, said in a statement that 'compared to the draconian cuts' sought by House Republicans, the negotiated change is 'a dramatic improvement, particularly because it wouldn’t cut anyone from the program.' Other liberal senators, including Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), signaled Wednesday that a higher level of cuts would force them to vote against the entire bill."
Push to limit defense projects in omnibus spending bill. The Hill: "Defense lobbyists are seeking to make sure their pet programs are safe, after the December budget agreement forced an extra $25 billion in cuts to their sector. But given the $520 billion cap for defense spending, K Street doesn’t expect any major programs to get the ax, and [Rep. Rodney] Frelinghuysen said he didn’t foresee big changes to initiatives such as the F-35 fighter jet ... that hasn’t stopped groups seeking to rein in defense spending from reaching out to Capitol Hill. A selection of otherwise strange bedfellows, ranging from Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform to the liberal U.S. PIRG, are pressing to delay, cancel or reform a variety of defense projects, including the F-35."
Highway bill stuck over gas tax dispute. Bloomberg: "A compromise measure that used general tax revenue to keep highway construction going expires Sept. 30, and Congress’s research arm has said lawmakers can no longer delay broader action ... the U.S. Highway Trust Fund, which pays for road and bridge projects, will be insolvent by 2015 unless Congress raises the gasoline tax, bails out the fund again with general tax dollars, or eliminates most highway spending ... The U.S. Chamber and other groups that usually support Republicans have endorsed a bill introduced in December by Representative Earl Blumenauer, an Oregon Democrat and member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, that would boost the gasoline tax by 15 cents a gallon over three years ... Former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood yesterday called for raising the tax by 10 cents a gallon and indexing it to inflation ... Some Republican lawmakers, particularly in the House, want to move all responsibility for road projects to the states."
Warren introduces bipartisan bill to bring transparency to bank settlements. Bloomberg: "U.S. government agencies would have to provide 'accessible and detailed' disclosure of settlements over corporate wrongdoing under a bill proposed by Senators Elizabeth Warren and Tom Coburn ... Under the lawmakers’ Truth in Settlements Act, all public statements referencing dollar amounts would have to include explanations of how those agreements are categorized for tax purposes and whether payments may be offset by 'credits.'"
Obama eyes executive orders, public-private partnerships to circumvent Congress. The Hill: "An initial example of the public-private partnerships are five 'promise zones' Obama will announce Thursday at the White House. That initiative will mix millions in funding from the Department of Education with private investments to help schools and create new career services in five impoverished areas."
