White House Flips Into Disaster Mode After Deadly Alabama Tornadoes
The Hill reports: “Obama and his staff have moved quickly since storms devastated Alabama and several other states, mobilizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and arranging for a presidential visit to Alabama on Friday. The president also canceled a visit with the Auburn University’s NCAA championship football team that had been scheduled for Friday. Obama is traveling to Alabama, which is the Auburn team’s home state. After the national embarrassment of Hurricane Katrina severely damaged former President George W. Bush, Obama has worked hard to appear engaged and responsive in the aftermaths of natural disasters.”
Obama’s Day Ahead
President Obama will meet at 8 a.m. ET with participants in the 1968 Memphis Sanitation Strike. The First Family will depart form the White House at 8:30 a.m. ET, and depart from Andrews Air Force Base at 8:45 a.m. ET, arriving at 10:50 a.m. ET in Alabama. At 11:10 a.m. ET, the President and First Lady will view damage from the recent storms, and meet with Gov. Robert Bentley (R-AL), state and local officials, and families affected by the storms. The First Family will depart from Alabama at 12:45 p.m. ET, and arrive at 2:10 p.m. ET in Cape Canaveral, Florida. They will tour the Kennedy Space Center’s Orbiter Processing Facility at 2:45 p.m. ET. Then at 3:30 p.m. ET, they will view the launch of the space shuttle Endeavour. Obama will arrive in Miami, Florida, at 5:40 p.m. ET, and at 6:55 p.m. ET will deliver the commencement at Miami Dade College. He will depart from Miami at 9:05 p.m. ET, and arrive back at the White House at 11:30 p.m. ET.
Biden’s Day Ahead
Vice President Biden will meet at 10 a.m. ET with Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, Budget Director Jacob Lew, and National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling, to discuss fiscal policy. He will meet with senior advisers in the afternoon.
New Democratic Money Group To Take On Republicans
Politico reports: “Democrats with ties to the Obama White House on Friday are launching a two-pronged fundraising effort aimed at countering deep-pocketed GOP groups in 2012 — and adopting some of the same policies on unlimited, secret donations that President Barack Obama himself has long opposed, the organizers tell POLITICO. The two groups, Priorities USA and Priorities USA Action, aim to raise $100 million to defend Obama’s re-election from an expected onslaught of attack ads from similar Republican outside money organizations activated in the 2010 midterms, organizers say.”
More Democrats Threaten To Vote Against Raising Debt Ceiling
The Washington Post reports: “A growing number of Democrats are threatening to defy the White House over the national debt, joining Republican calls for deficit cuts as a requirement for consenting to lift the country’s borrowing limit. The tension is the latest illustration of how the tea-party-infused GOP is driving the debate in Washington over federal spending. And it shows how the debt issue is testing the Obama administration’s clout as Democrats, particularly those from politically competitive states, resist White House arguments against setting conditions on legislation to raise the debt ceiling.”
Baucus To Hold Hearing On Deficit Triggers
Roll Call reports: “The suddenly white-hot issue of deficit caps — now a central front in the battle over raising the debt ceiling — will be the subject of a hearing Wednesday in the Senate Finance Committee. Panel Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) announced the hearing on the issue Thursday morning. It will include testimony from former Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas), who was part of the bipartisan Gramm-Rudman-Hollings deficit reduction plan in the 1980s.”
Despite Bipartisan Support, Nuclear Reactor Projects Falter
The New York Times reports: “In an effort to encourage nuclear power, Congress voted in 2005 to authorize $17.5 billion in loan guarantees for new reactors. Now, six years later, with the industry stalled by poor market conditions and the Fukushima disaster, nearly half of the fund remains unclaimed. And yet Congress, at the request of the Obama administration, is preparing to add $36 billion in nuclear loan guarantees to next year’s budget. Even supporters of the technology doubt that new projects will surface any time soon to replace those that have been all but abandoned.”
