Hillary Hears Bernie Footsteps
WMUR/CNN poll has Bernie Sanders 8 points behind Hillary Clinton in NH: "UNH political science professor Andrew Smith [said,] 'Historically, New Hampshire has had about 40 percent of the Democratic voters be progressive voters' ... with Warren out of contention, 'Sanders was the beneficiary. If you added the Sanders and Warren numbers in May, they added up to 33 percent, and now we have 35 percent for Sanders as the progressives are coalescing around him.'"
Clinton surrogates lob attacks on Sanders. The Hill: "[Sen. Claire] McCaskill assailed him for having 'an extreme message' and being 'unrealistic.' ... 'I don’t know if he likes immigrants, because he doesn't seem to talk about immigrants,' [said Rep. Luis] Gutierrez ... some Democrats who are broadly supportive of Hillary Clinton fear that attacking Sanders will only burnish his appeal."
Sanders' strategy involves no "mudslinging," reports Mother Jones: "...Sanders has survived and thrived in politics by neutralizing negative ads and resisting the urge to attack ... Team Sanders does have what it considers to be a smarter way: implying a contrast ... Contrast without attacking—that's the mantra."
Scott Walker's budget problems complicate presidential launch. Chicago Tribune: "[A] projected surplus has morphed into a $2.2 billion budget deficit that Republican lawmakers are struggling to fix ... GOP lawmakers ... have refused to go along with the governor's proposed cuts in money for elementary and secondary schools and his plans to finance a big boost in road construction solely by borrowing. They have also forced him to moderate his proposed reductions in funds for higher education."
No Greek Deal Yet
Greece talks resume tomorrow. Reuters: "German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country is Greece's biggest creditor, said the next meeting of Eurogroup ministers on Saturday would be 'of decisive importance' for a Greek solution since time was running out ... [Greece] is set to default on a crucial repayment to the International Monetary Fund next Tuesday."
Missing payment may be worse for IMF than Greece. Bloomberg: "There’s a difference between missing a payment to bond investors, and to an official institution ... a missed IMF payment probably won’t trigger a wave of defaults on other loans ... A Greece in arrears to the IMF would further undermine the institution’s credibility among emerging markets such as China and India..."
Breakfast Sides
Ex-Im Bank expires Tuesday. LAT: "[The House is] leaving Friday for the Fourth of July recess without even holding a vote ... Shutting the bank's tap ... would eliminate tens of thousands of jobs, say business executives, trade groups and the Obama administration ... Even if there's hope of reauthorizing the bank sometime after Wednesday, there's likely to be at least a short period during which the bank cannot provide any new loan guarantees or other assistance. And that delay already has endangered foreign sales..."
After court loss, GOP plans yet another Obamacare repeal vote. The Hill: "The [budget reconciliation] procedure would allow Republicans to pass a repeal package through the upper chamber with a simple majority vote, bypassing the 60-vote threshold usually required for major bills ... The effort has no real chance of becoming law — Obama is certain to veto it — but it will enable Republicans to satisfy their base supporters..."
