Democrats Will Keep Turning To Bill Clinton
CQ reports on the increasing campaign trail presence this cycle of former President Bill Clinton: “Even at this early stage in the campaign season, Obama is already dispatching Clinton into some of the roughest electoral territory in the country. And the good news keeps rolling in. The former president helped to bring out nearly 700 Democrats to cheer on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) at a rally Thursday. And some say he may have single-handedly saved Sen. Blanche Lincoln (Ark.) from a bruising primary defeat last week; she relied heavily on ads that Clinton — a former Arkansas governor — cut for her in the final days of her campaign. And this is just the beginning.”
Obama’s Day Ahead
President Obama will depart the White House at 9:05 a.m. ET, and depart from Andrews Air Force Base at 9:20 a.m. ET, arriving at 11:35 a.m. ET in Biloxi, Mississippi. At 12 p.m. ET, he will receive a briefing from Adm. Thad Allen and local officials on the BP oil spill. He will host a roundtable with local residents at 1:25 p.m. ET. He will depart from Biloxi, arriving at 2:50 p.m. ET in Theodore, Alabama. At 3:45 p.m. ET, he will tour the Theodore Staging Facility, and at 4:40 p.m. ET he will deliver a statement to the press. At 5:35 p.m. ET, he will travel from Dauphin Island, Alabama, arriving at 6:05 p.m. ET in Fort Morgan, Alabama. He will later depart from Fort Morgan, arriving at 8:25 p.m. ET in Pensacola, Florida.
Sharron Angle In New York
Senate nominee Sharron Angle (R-NV) is visiting New York City today, following her victory in last week’s primary. Angle will visit with a conservative group, and also make an appearance on Fox News.
Administration Issuing New Rules on Changes To Health Benefits
The New York Times reports that the White House will issue a new set of rules on employer-based health insurance: “The rules limit the changes that employers can make if they want to be exempt from certain provisions of the health care law passed by Congress in March. Many employers want the exemption because it allows them to keep their existing health plans intact with a minimum of changes. More than 170 million Americans have employer-sponsored insurance. The administration said the rules would allow a smooth transition to a new, more competitive insurance market that works better for consumers. But in some respects, the rules appear to fall short of the sweeping commitments President Obama made while trying to reassure the public in the fight over health legislation.”
Vanilla Is the New Flavor for High Court Picks
Roll Call reports: “Two of the most influential justices ever to sit on the Supreme Court — Thurgood Marshall and Antonin Scalia — probably couldn’t get confirmed to the bench today. So say scholars and Senators who argue that the high court has turned into such a political battleground that recent presidents now eschew nominating individuals like Marshall and Scalia. Instead, they argue, presidents are trending in favor of nominees who, like current Supreme Court hopeful Elena Kagan, have spent their lives avoiding controversy.”
Relevance Of Kagan’s Work As Clerk On Supreme Court Debated
The Washington Post notes the increased attention on Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan’s background as a former clerk for Justice Thurgood Marshall: “The nomination of Kagan, who clerked for the liberal icon Justice Thurgood Marshall for the 1987-88 term, has put a new focus on exactly what clerks do for justices and whether it is possible to divine their own legal thinking in the memos they prepared. No such documentation was available at the time of confirmation hearings for the current justices who were clerks — John Paul Stevens, Stephen G. Breyer and John G. Roberts Jr. (The other two former clerks were William H. Rehnquist and Byron R. White.) Kagan, 50, has played down the role her opinions had in Marshall’s work that year. During her confirmation hearings as solicitor general, Kagan called herself a ’27-year-old pipsqueak” working for an “80-year-old giant in the law.'”
Dems Not Showing Barrow The Money After Vote Against Health Care Reform
The Hill reports: “Rep. John Barrow is not as popular among his Democratic colleagues as he used to be. Far fewer of Barrow’s colleagues in the House have contributed to the Georgia Democrat’s reelection campaign this cycle than they did in previous years. Barrow attracted widespread criticism from the left after voting no on the final health reform bill earlier this year. That vote has been a focal point of his primary challenger’s campaign. Only five lawmakers, Reps. Brian Baird (D-Wash.), Richard Neal (D-Mass.), Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) and Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) have given money from their personal campaign funds to Barrow in the 2010 cycle.”
