Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) says he is “tired of caving” on the debt limit and is dialing up the pressure on Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) not to swoop in to strike a last-minute deal with President Biden, The Hill reports.
China Moves From Contrite to Confrontational Over Balloon
“Beijing’s abrupt shift from expressing regret to threatening retaliation over the U.S.’s spy-balloon claims reflects the domestic imperative for Xi Jinping to show he’s standing up for China against external pressure, further narrowing the window to reset ties before the US election season gets into full swing,” Bloomberg reports.
More Than 1,700 Killed in Earthquake in Turkey
A 7.8-magnitude earthquake in southern Turkey early Monday killed more than 1,700 people across the country and in neighboring Syria, the Washington Post reports.
Trump Aims to Be the Dove Among Hawks
Politico: “Over the past week, Trump has assailed President Joe Biden’s handling of Afghanistan. He has said he could end the almost year-long conflict in Ukraine within “24 hours,” but without any indication how, and suggested sending tanks to the country could spark nuclear war. He has railed against China and called Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis a ‘globalist.'”
“Those close to Trump’s campaign operation say he plans to try and paint himself as an anti-war dove amongst the hawks. They believe doing so will resonate with GOP voters who are divided on, but growing wary of, continued support for Ukraine in its war with Russia.”
Record Numbers Say They Are Worse Off
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds that 41% of Americans say their personal finances have gotten worse since President Biden took office — the highest that survey has ever measured going back 37 years.
Fears Mount Around ‘Catastrophic’ Abortion Case
Washington Post: “Driving their anxiety is a Texas lawsuit brought by conservative groups seeking to revoke the decades-old government approval of a key abortion drug.”
“The suit has been widely ridiculed by legal experts as rooted in baseless and debunked arguments. But in recent weeks, abortion rights advocates and some in the Biden administration have grown increasingly concerned that the case is likely to be decided entirely by conservative judges who might be eager for a chance to restrict abortion access even in Democrat-led states, where the procedure has remained legal since the fall of Roe v. Wade.”
The Politics of China
Politico: “The hostile one-upmanship aimed at China over the intelligence-gathering balloon served as just the latest example that lawmakers across the political spectrum see a clear benefit in taking a hawkish stance toward the global power. Even as China remains a crucial trading and economic partner, Republicans and an increasing number of Democrats are positioning the country as a key political concern — and thus a domestic and geopolitical battering ram.”
“Over just the last couple of years, lawmakers have blamed Beijing for worsening the spread of Covid and exacerbating supply chain shortages. Senior officials in the Biden administration and on Capitol Hill have raised national security concerns tied to Chinese apps like TikTok, and hardened their rhetoric over the independence of Taiwan.”
Steve Clemons: “I’ll be honest: The way Washington has hyperventilated over a Chinese spy balloon feels silly, and a little depressing, to me. Chinese, American, and Russian satellites orbit earth every day, carrying out intelligence gathering with incredible photographic precision. The balloon isn’t much different, yet it’s sparked an uproar that’s forced Secretary of State Antony Blinken to cancel his trip to Beijing.”
Jeffrey Katzenberg Made the Mayoral Race His Priority
“Early last year, the Hollywood mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg sat for lunch with Rick Caruso, a billionaire mall tycoon who was preparing his run for Los Angeles mayor,” Politico reports.
“Katzenberg told Caruso he understood why he was running. He made clear his support for Congresswoman Karen Bass in the race.”
“And then came the warning: If Caruso took the high road, Katzenberg said that he would, too. But, ‘If you take the low road,’ a person familiar with the conversation recounted, ‘I’m going lower.'”
“The threat was a quintessential demonstration of political power from Katzenberg — one of the country’s premier Democratic donors, and for decades a kingmaker for aspiring politicians. But it also illustrates the nuance with which the former Walt Disney Studios chairman and DreamWorks co-founder was now using his influence.”
Chinese Spy Balloon Deflates Biden’s Big Speech
Playbook: “It’s a distraction Democrats aren’t exactly thrilled about. They’ve been hoping Biden could use the biggest bully pulpit of them all to tout their legislative victories of the past two years — moving to cut prescription drug prices, combat climate change, rebuild the nation’s infrastructure, tighten gun laws and protect same-sex marriage. They’re also eager for Biden to highlight a resilient economy and paint a sharp contrast with Hill Republicans while millions of voters tune in to watch.”
“And yet, thanks to the balloon saga, it’s the GOP that’s relishing the chance to differentiate itself this week. Republicans have spent days casting Biden as weak on China and suggesting he was too slow to confront foreign spying on American soil. As of last night, House GOP leaders were still entertaining holding a vote before the speech chiding the administration’s response.”
Americans Not Feeling the Impact of Biden Agenda
“Two years into a presidency that the White House casts as the most effective in modern history, President Biden is set to deliver a State of the Union address Tuesday to a skeptical country with a majority of Americans saying they do not believe he has achieved much since taking office,” according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll.
“The poll finds that 62 percent of Americans think Biden has accomplished ‘not very much’ or ‘little or nothing’ during his presidency, while 36 percent say he has accomplished ‘a great deal’ or ‘a good amount.’ On many of Biden’s signature initiatives — from improving the country’s infrastructure to making electric vehicles more affordable to creating jobs — majorities of Americans say they do not believe he has made progress.”
This is truly baffling since it defies all facts.
Most Democrats Think One Term Is Plenty for Biden
A new AP-NORC poll shows just 37% of Democrats say they want President Biden to seek a second term, down from 52% in the weeks before last year’s midterm elections.
“Follow-up interviews with poll respondents suggest that many believe the 80-year-old’s age is a liability, with people focused on his coughing, his gait, his gaffes and the possibility that the world’s most stressful job would be better suited for someone younger.”
Politico: “The president has said he intends to stand for re-election, though some of his closest advisers caution that a final decision has not yet been made. In somewhat classic Biden fashion, the timeline for an announcement has shifted.”
Year Two of the Ukraine War Is Going to Get Scary
Tom Friedman: “As we approach the first anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine — and the ferocious Ukrainian response backed by a U.S.-led Western coalition — the following question urgently needs answering: How is it that on Feb. 23, 2022, virtually no one in America was arguing that it was in our core national interest to enter into an indirect war with Russia to stop it from overrunning Ukraine, a country most Americans couldn’t find on a map in 10 tries?”
“And yet now, nearly a year later, polls show solid (though slightly shrinking) American majorities for backing Ukraine with arms and aid, even though this risks a direct conflict with Vladimir Putin’s Russia.”
“That’s a head-snapping shift in U.S. public opinion. Surely it’s partly explicable by the fact that no U.S. combat forces are in Ukraine, so it feels as if all that we’re risking, for now, is arms and treasure — while the full brunt of the war is borne by Ukrainians.”
House GOP Hasn’t Settled on What to Ask For
“House Republicans are demanding that President Biden agree to policy concessions in exchange for their support in raising the nation’s $31.4 trillion borrowing limit. But it is not clear — even to leading GOP officials — what they’re asking Biden to do,” the Washington Post reports.
“As Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) evades questions about his demands on the debt ceiling, which must be lifted to avoid an economically catastrophic government default, dozens of House Republicans and other conservatives have put forward their own ideas for what McCarthy should bring to the negotiating table.”
Kamala Harris Is Still Trying to Define Her Role
New York Times: “The painful reality for Ms. Harris is that in private conversations over the last few months, dozens of Democrats in the White House, on Capitol Hill and around the nation — including some who helped put her on the party’s 2020 ticket — said she had not risen to the challenge of proving herself as a future leader of the party, much less the country. Even some Democrats whom her own advisers referred reporters to for supportive quotes confided privately that they had lost hope in her.”
“Through much of the fall, a quiet panic set in among key Democrats about what would happen if President Biden opted not to run for a second term. Most Democrats interviewed, who insisted on anonymity to avoid alienating the White House, said flatly that they did not think Ms. Harris could win the presidency in 2024. Some said the party’s biggest challenge would be finding a way to sideline her without inflaming key Democratic constituencies that would take offense.”
“Now with Mr. Biden appearing all but certain to run again, the concern over Ms. Harris has shifted to whether she will be a political liability for the ticket.”
Pete Buttigieg Says He Won’t Run for Senate
“Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Sunday he will not run for the open US Senate seat in Michigan in 2024, in his most direct answer to date ruling out a potential bid,” CNN reports.
Biden Plans Travel Blitz After State of the Union
“President Biden will give the State of the Union address before a newly divided Congress on Tuesday, hoping to build off positive economic signs but facing fresh tensions with China and the lingering war in Ukraine,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Following the speech, Mr. Biden will travel on Wednesday to Wisconsin, a 2024 presidential battleground, and tout union jobs during a visit to Madison. On Thursday he is scheduled to visit Florida—the home of two potential 2024 GOP rivals, former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis—to highlight plans to strengthen Social Security and Medicare and reduce healthcare costs, the White House said. On Friday he will discuss his economic agenda with the nation’s governors and meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.”
Democratic Insiders Are All In On Biden
NBC News: “Despite lackluster approval ratings, an ongoing classified documents scandal and polls showing most voters would like the 80-year-old to retire, Biden faces zero meaningful opposition to his leadership of the Democratic Party and an unobstructed path to renomination next year, even before he has officially declared his intention to seek it.”
“During the three-day gathering of elected officials, activists, union leaders, operatives and donors this weekend, serious dissent or discontentment with Biden was almost impossible to find, even after hours at the hotel bar, where alcohol and opinions flowed freely.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“In the end, Joe Biden is not an exciting candidate. He’s old. He’s boring. And the American people are not relating to him.”
— Former Gov. Chris Christie (R), on ABC News, adding that the unique characteristics of the 2020 presidential election — during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic — were a “gift” to Biden.
