Dems Shaping Battle Plan Against Republicans For November
The Washington Post reports: “Architects of President Obama’s 2008 victory are braced for potentially sizable Democratic losses in November’s midterm elections. But they say voters’ unease about a GOP takeover will help their party maintain congressional majorities. ‘I think the prospect of a Republican takeover — while not likely, but plausible — will be very much part of the dynamic in October, and I think that will help us with turnout and some of this enthusiasm gap,’ said David Plouffe, who was Obama’s campaign manager two years ago and is helping to oversee Democratic efforts this fall. Still, he put all Democrats on notice, saying: ‘We’d better act as a party as if the House and the Senate and every major governor’s race is at stake and in danger, because they could be.'”
Obama’s Day Ahead
President Obama will depart the White House at 9:20 a.m. ET, and will make a 9:35 a.m. ET statement to the press on the economy at Andrews Air Force Base. Obama and Vice President Biden will depart from Andrews Air Force Base at 9:50 a.m. ET, arriving at 10:55 a.m. ET in Charleston, West Virginia. Obama and Biden will deliver remarks at an 11:30 a.m. ET memorial service for the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) at the West Virginia State Capitol. They will depart from Charleston at 1:55 p.m. ET, arriving at 3 p.m. ET at Andrews Air Force Base. Obama will then depart from Andrews Air Force Base at 3:05 p.m. ET, en route to Camp David.
Petraeus Arrives In Afghanistan
Gen. David Petraeus has arrived in Afghanistan, following his Senate confirmation as the top American field commander, the Associates Press reports: “General David Petraeus landed a day after his appointment was confirmed by the U.S. Senate and just hours after the U.S. House of Representatives approved $33 billion in funding for a troop surge he hopes will turn the tide of the war. An amendment demanding an exit timetable from Afghanistan failed, but got 162 votes — the biggest anti-war vote in the House on Afghanistan to date.”
House Dems Pass ‘Budget Enforcement Resolution,’ Leave Details To Fiscal Commission
The Hill notes the characteristics of the budget document passed by House Democrats Thursday, on a 215-210 vote: “The ‘budget enforcement resolution’ Democrats are substituting for a traditional budget resolution sets discretionary spending for 2011 at $1.12 trillion, about $7 billion less than Obama’s proposal and $3 billion less than a Senate Democratic plan. It also sets a goal of cutting deficits to the point where revenues equal all spending except for interest payments on the debt. But unlike traditional budget resolutions, this year’s version doesn’t detail how Congress should reach that goal, leaving those tough decisions to Obama’s bipartisan fiscal commission.”
Republican Eyes Hoyer for Speaker
Roll Call reports that Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID) is attempting to foment divisions among Democrats against Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), by recruiting supporters for House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD): “The scenario, as Simpson sees it, runs like this: Democrats lose a bunch of seats but cling to a narrow majority. If a handful of Democrats withhold their votes for Pelosi, Democrats would have to put up another candidate, or else Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) would become Speaker. ‘I’m trying to help Steny,’ Simpson said with a smile. ‘If it gets close enough, six or eight Blue Dogs could make the difference,’ he added, referring to the Blue Dog Coalition of fiscally conservative House Democrats.”
Tony Podesta: Obama ‘Exaggerates Our Power, But He Increases Demand For Our Services’
The New York Times profiles lobbyist Tony Podesta, who downplayed the influence of his profession in Washington. “The irony of it is that every time the president says we lobbyists have all this influence, people who don’t have a lobbyist want one,” said Podesta. “He exaggerates our power, but he increases demand for our services.”
