Trade Not On Agenda
Obama and Reid meet, but fast-track not discussed. NYT: "The dispute over trade, though, highlights the challenges facing Mr. Obama as he tries to advance his agenda in a campaign year ... But Mr. Obama did not make that case to Mr. Reid when he had the chance. White House officials are trying to avoid a public fight that they see as self-destructive."
Tea Party teams with labor on stopping fast-track. The Hill: "The AFL-CIO, Tea Party Nation and other groups privately acknowledged working together to stop a trade promotion authority law. Labor officials and Tea Party activists are working behind the scenes to build a coalition of liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans to block Obama’s priority."
"Harry Reid Knows Opposing Fast Track Is Smart Policy and Smart Politics" writes The Nation's John Nichols: "Reid has a history of skepticism when it comes to trade deals, having opposed the North American Free Trade Agreement, permanent normalization of trade relations with China and a host of other arrangements that were favored by Wall Street interests ... Yet Reid’s rejection of Obama’s request was not a show of skepticism. It was an expression of outspoken opposition ... Reid is determined to maintain Democratic control of the Senate in the difficult 2014 election cycle. And he understands that the debate about free-trade policy has evolved to a point where it is a concern not just in traditionally Democratic industrial centers but in rural regions that will play a critical role in determining control of the Senate."
GOP Gropes Toward Debt Limit Strategy
House GOP tries to forge debt limit strategy. W. Post: "...leaders have narrowed their list of possible debt-limit strategies to two options: trading a one-year extension for approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, or trading a one-year extension for repeal of the Affordable Care Act’s risk corridors ... A clean debt-limit extension is not yet on the GOP’s radar, though Boehner has said he would avoid default ... Growing tension, however, is already apparent between the two strategies and their supporters."
"Murray to Republicans: Don’t even try it" reports The Hill: "...Senate Budget Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said Democrats would not go along with the GOP’s 'political crusade against the Affordable Care Act.' ... Democratic stalwarts like Murray are taking a similar line, declaring they are not willing to entertain any GOP riders to the debt limit."
Deadline is the end of the month says Treasury Secretary to NPR.
Immigration Activists Inch Toward GOP
"Immigrant Youth Leaders Signal They May Be Open to a G.O.P. Compromise" reports NYT: "During a visit to Capitol Hill, the leaders struck a tough public posture ... But behind the demands were signs of a willingness to consider something less than a direct path to citizenship for all the estimated 11.7 million immigrants in the country illegally ... The move stemmed in part from growing frustration with Democrats while deportations under the Obama administration continue at a brisk pace ... youth leaders said that gaining direct citizenship for the majority of illegal immigrants could be a later goal."
"GOP battles base on immigration" reports The Hill: "GOP lawmakers who want to move forward say their leadership needs to do a better job of communicating, but the disconnect over the meaning of amnesty suggests their differences might be unbridgeable. As Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and his deputies last week attempted to coax their conference to act on immigration, prominent conservatives were making a lot of noise."
Breakfast Sides
"Preschool is having its moment" reports NYT: "In just the past year,Alabama, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana and the city of San Antonio have enacted new or expanded programs, while in dozens of other places, mayors, governors and legislators are making a serious push for preschool ... outside Washington, it has become a bipartisan cause, uniting business groups and labor unions, with Republican governors like Rick Snyder of Michigan and Robert Bentley of Alabama pushing some of the biggest increases in preschool spending."
Farm subsidy/food stamp bill nears passage. W. Post: "The $956.4 billion package has sailed through Congress in recent days with little opposition, making it a rare bipartisan accomplishment ... House and Senate negotiators ultimately agreed to cut about $8 billion [for food stamps] by closing a loophole that several states and the District of Columbia have used to boost SNAP payments to low-income households. That change will reduce benefits for about 850,000 households nationwide ... But the legislation also creates a new program that will allow the poor to double their food stamp benefits at farmers markets, a move that advocates say will help tens of thousands of SNAP users eat more-nutritious foods."
Reid expresses hope for jobless aid deal. McClatchy: "A Senate effort to reinstate emergency unemployment benefits could begin again later this week. 'I remain cautiously optimistic that Republicans will heed their constituents at home and help Democrats restore emergency benefits to Americans in need,' Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, told the Senate Monday."
