San Diego Union Tribune:
“Republican City Councilman Kevin Faulconer easily won a spot Tuesday
in the runoff to be San Diego’s next mayor while Councilman David
Alvarez appeared likely to join him as the Democratic challenger.”
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Hopes Grow for Budget Deal
“They’ve been written off as a doomed-to-fail duo: Rep. Paul Ryan and Sen. Patty Murray, the congressional budget leaders who are on an uphill quest to reach any kind of fiscal deal. But an agreement may not be so elusive after all,” Politico reports.
“Hopes are growing that Ryan and Murray could reach a narrow deal to replace a portion of the automatic spending cuts known as sequestration, according to lawmakers and senior aides involved in the discussions. The changing dynamics are the result of several factors: The fears among GOP defense hawks of deep Pentagon cuts in the new fiscal year; the desire of Republican leaders to avoid another disastrous shutdown fight; and the willingness of Democrats to consider other revenue raisers besides tax increases.”
Obama Backs Piecemeal Immigration Overhaul
President Obama said he “would accept a piecemeal approach to overhauling the immigration system, a move aimed at jump-starting a moribund process that reflects the realities of a divided Congress,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Mr. Obama has long favored the sweeping immigration bill that passed the Senate in June, but the House has made clear it wouldn’t consider that measure.”
Said Obama: “If they want to chop that thing up into five pieces, as long as all five pieces get done, I don’t care what it looks like. What we don’t want to do is simply carve out one piece of it…but leave behind some of the tougher stuff that still needs to get done.”
Bachmann Says Liberalism is Crumbling
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) told Roll Call that she “is absolutely delighted by the troubled rollout of HealthCare.gov and President Obama’s recent mea culpas.”
Bachmann said that the rollout presented conservatives with the “opportunity of a lifetime” because “liberalism is crumbling in front of our eyes.”
Hickenlooper Leads GOP Rivals
A new Quinnipiac poll in Colorado finds that voters say that Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) does not deserve re-election by a 49% to 42% margin.
Nonetheless, Hickenlooper edges four possible GOP challengers: 46% to 41% over Tom Tancredo (R), 45% to 40% over Scott Gessler (R), 44% to 38% over Greg Brophy (R), and 44% to 40% over Mike Kopp (R)/
Give Obamacare a Chance
Wonk Wire: Stop hyperventilating about Obamacare
Daines Looks Strong in Montana
A new Public Policy Polling survey in Montana shows Rep. Steve Daines (R-MT) with pretty substantial leads over both possible Democratic challengers.
Daines leads John Bohlinger (D), 51% to 36%, and tops John Walsh (D), 52% to 35%.
Key findings: “But the number that may be most important to the US Senate race at this point is 34. That’s Barack Obama’s approval rating in the state, with 63% of voters disapproving of him. Only 31% of voters in the state support the Affordable Care Act to 58% opposed, and just 14% think the rollout of the ACA has been a success to 82% who think it’s been unsuccessful. 63% rate it as being ‘very unsuccessful.’ All of that is making it a tough start to the race for Democrats.”
The Party of Zilch
Ron Fournier: “The Republican Party stands for nothing. As Barack Obama threatens to fumble away his presidency along with the Democratic Party’s reasons for existence — championing an active, efficient government — the GOP lurches into the leadership breach with … zilch.”
“Rather than be the party of solutions in a gridlocked capital, appealing to a leadership-starved public, the GOP is the party of obstruction, ensuring that its putrid approval ratings nose-dive apace with Obama’s.”
Deeds Critically Wounded
Virginia state Sen. Creigh Deeds (D), a former gubernatorial candidate, “is in critical condition after being stabbed in his home and his son Gus is dead from a gunshot wound,” the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports.
“Authorities said they are trying to determine the sequence of events at the Deeds home.”
Will Liz Cheney Do Anything to Win?
Former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-WY) weighs in about the war of words between Wyoming U.S. Senate candidate Liz Cheney (R) and sister Mary over same sex marriage, First Read reports.
Said Simpson: “You’re not even destroying friendships — you’re destroying family relationships just because of this race. It’s hard for all of us who know the Cheneys to see the things she’s doing to win this race. It’s almost like she’ll do anything to win this race, because I cannot ever believe that there would be a breach between she and Mary.”
The Week: Why the Cheney family feud may hurt the GOP.
Can Obama Recover?
First Read: “Another day, another poll… As NBC/WSJ co-pollster Bill McInturff (R) has emailed clients, history shows that it’s difficult for presidents to recover from nosedives like this. And if that’s true, Obama will be a liability in 2014, period.”
“But it will be important to see where Obama’s approval rating is come Spring 2014, assuming the health-care website gets fixed and the Affordable Care Act rollout becomes a distant memory. Barring something unforeseen, these next two months are perhaps the president’s last shot at getting right before the midterms. He needs a working website and a State of the Union that somehow instills some hope that he’s up to the job as a leader. How the public responds will tell us if Obama will be able to recover in time for the midterms.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“We’re three years away from the presidential election. In this sense, I feel bad for President Obama. He just won a year ago, and everybody’s like, ‘Who’s next?’ There is work to be done in this country. As we shove him out the door, we minimize his ability to be an effective executive. We shouldn’t do that.”
— New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), quoted by the Wall Street Journal.
Iowa Republicans Urge Christie Not to Skip Caucuses
The Hill:
“Iowa Republicans are urging New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) to
contest the state’s first-in-the-nation caucuses if he runs for
president in 2016, warning a decision to ignore the Hawkeye State would
do more harm than good to his campaign. Christie is widely expected to
focus on the New Hampshire primary if he runs — partly out of a
calculation that he’d fare better in the Granite State than among social
conservatives, who hold powerful sway in the Iowa GOP.”
When Primaries are the Only Competition
Charlie Cook:
“So when people ask, ‘Why in the world is Elizabeth Cheney taking on
Mike Enzi?’ maybe the answer ought to be, ‘Why not?’ With so many Senate
seats now in states where the opposition party has no plausible chance
of winning, it does inject a bit of competition where there is
effectively none and punishes complacency in a body where members in
one-party states could easily get that way. When there is so much
animosity toward Washington, it actually is surprising that there are
fewer incumbents facing primary challenges. Cheney’s run appears to be a
campaign against Washington more than an ideological jihad. It would be
wrong to see this as a tea-party challenge; this is more of an
outsider–albeit from an insider family–running against a longtime
incumbent. These are so rare that they are newsworthy.”
San Diego Votes Today
“San Diegans will go to the polls Tuesday for the special mayoral
election, choosing from 11 candidates to replace Bob Filner, who
resigned in August following a sexual harassment scandal,” the San Diego Union Tribune reports.
“Because it’s
unlikely any one candidate will get more than 50 percent of the vote, a
runoff between the top-two finishers is expected to be scheduled for
sometime in February.”
Los Angeles Times: “With some policy
differences at the margins, the four top candidates have all promised to
improve neighborhood services, hire more police officers and streamline
city government to help private industry create jobs.”
Urgency Fades for Budget Deal
National Journal:
“When budget negotiations began last month, Democrats felt confident
that public opinion surrounding the government shutdown would force
Republicans to the table, eager to prove their party could compromise.
But today, there’s little sense of urgency on a budget deal. With less
than four weeks to go before the conference committee’s deadline, the
public focus has shifted to the troubled rollout of the Affordable Care
Act and pressure on Republicans has subsided.”
Ford Remains Defiant in Interview
Embattled Toronto Mayor Rob Ford was defiant in an interview with the Today Show saying, “They’re not going to find another Rob Ford.”
Meanwhile, the Globe and Mail asked me why Americans are so interested in the story.
Sink Holds Lead in Florida Special Election
A new St. Pete Polls survey in Florida’s 13th congressional district finds Alex Sink (D) leading Kathleen Powers (R), 50% to 31%, and topping David Jolly (R), 49% to 35%.
