David Leonhardt: “The rise in approval ratings of former President George W. Bush has received some attention this week, in advance of the opening of his presidential library in Dallas. But that rise is exactly what one would expect, based on the history of other ex-presidents’ approval ratings.”
What Could Fracture the Democratic Base
Ron Brownstein: “What could dissolve the powerful electoral coalition that powered both of President Obama’s victories? The latest Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor poll points to the greatest risk: continuing economic dissatisfaction.”
House Will Do Immigration Reform Piece-by-Piece
House Republicans “will take on the immigration issue in bite-size pieces, shunning pressure to act quickly and rejecting the comprehensive approach embraced in the Senate,” the AP reports.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) also “declined to commit to finishing immigration legislation this year… The approach Goodlatte sketched out was not a surprise, but it was a sign of the obstacles ahead of congressional passage of the kind of far-reaching immigration legislation sought by Obama and introduced last week in the Senate by four Republican and four Democratic lawmakers.”
The Biggest Financial Scandal Yet
Matt Taibbi: “Conspiracy theorists of the world, believers in the hidden hands of the Rothschilds and the Masons and the Illuminati, we skeptics owe you an apology. You were right. The players may be a little different, but your basic premise is correct: The world is a rigged game. We found this out in recent months, when a series of related corruption stories spilled out of the financial sector, suggesting the world’s largest banks may be fixing the prices of, well, just about everything.”
“You may have heard of the Libor scandal, in which at least three – and perhaps as many as 16 – of the name-brand too-big-to-fail banks have been manipulating global interest rates… That was bad enough, but now Libor may have a twin brother. Word has leaked out that the London-based firm ICAP, the world’s largest broker of interest-rate swaps, is being investigated by American authorities for behavior that sounds eerily reminiscent of the Libor mess. Regulators are looking into whether or not a small group of brokers at ICAP may have worked with up to 15 of the world’s largest banks to manipulate ISDAfix, a benchmark number used around the world to calculate the prices of interest-rate swaps.”
Clinton Jokes About Bush’s Painting
During his speech at the dedication of the George W. Bush presidential library, Salon notes Bill Clinton joked about Bush’s dog and landscape paintings – as well as those nude paintings of Bush himself in the shower.
Said Clinton: “I probably shouldn’t say this, but I’m going to anyway. Your mother showed me some of your landscapes and animal paintings and I thought they were great. Really great. And I seriously considered calling you and asking you to do a portrait of me until I saw the results of your sister’s hacked e-mails. Those bathroom sketches were wonderful, but at my age I think I should keep my suit.”
U.S. Suspects Syria Used Chemical Weapons
The White House said that U.S. intelligence agencies now assess, with “varying degrees of confidence,” that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons, the New York Times reports.
Barbara Bush Doesn’t Want Jeb to Run
While former President George W. Bush says he wants his brother Jeb to run for president in 2016, their always-blunt mother told CNN she feels differently.
Said Mrs. Bush: “He’s by far the best qualified man, but no. I really don’t. I think it’s a great country. There are a lot of great families, and it’s not just four families or whatever. There are other people out there that are very qualified and we’ve had enough Bushes.”
GOP Handing Another Seat to Democrats?
Stu Rothenberg looks at Mark Sanford’s flailing comeback attempt in South Carolina and concludes, “Republicans are on quite a streak when it comes to throwing
away elections.”
“This tossup contest tilts toward the Democrat.
If Colbert Busch wins the seat next month, it won’t be because most
voters wanted her to represent them in Congress. It will be because many
voters — Republican voters — concluded that Sanford was unacceptable.”
Congress Caught Off Guard by Sequester
“With Congress and the flying public up in arms over airline delays
caused by Federal Aviation Administration furloughs, lawmakers seem
somehow caught off guard by the extent of the problem caused by the
sequester,” Roll Call reports.
Obama Hits Fundraiser Before Bush Library Event
A day before sharing the stage with his Republican predecessor, President Obama raised money for Democrats at a supporter’s sprawling home in Texas, the AP reports.
“Even as he sought to build up his party on Wednesday, Obama hinted at a more bipartisan tone set to envelop Dallas on Thursday, when the Obamas attend the dedication ceremony for former President George W. Bush’s presidential library. He vigorously defended the Republican whose record as president he derided in both of his presidential campaigns.”
First Read: “Meanwhile, are we the only ones surprised that Obama decided to hit a fundraiser in Dallas last night… It’s an odd tone.”
Can Bush Ever Escape His Iraq Legacy?
First Read: “To be sure, Bush supporters tout his accomplishments, such as the No Child Left Behind education law, the Medicare prescription-drug benefit, the Africa/AIDS work, and the Roberts-Alito appointments to the Supreme Court. Other events — like 9/11, Hurricane Katrina and the 2008 financial crisis — would have challenged any president.”
“But it’s the Iraq War that Bush will find hard to escape. After all, it was a war of choice that resulted in the deaths of thousands of U.S. soldiers, the deaths of many more civilians, the destabilization of the Middle East (think Iran would be the threat it is today without the Iraq War?), and the election of Barack Obama in 2008 (who essentially campaigned against Bush in his two winning elections). More importantly, the war’s primary justification — Iraq having weapons of mass destruction — turned out to be incorrect.”
Quote of the Day
“He’d be a marvelous candidate if he chooses to do so. He doesn’t need my counsel ’cause he knows what it is, which is ‘run.'”
— George W. Bush, in an interview with ABC News, urging brother Jeb Bush to run for president in 2016.
Obama’s Delicate Task at Bush Library Dedication
New York Times: “It has become an awkward ritual of the modern presidency that the current occupant of the Oval Office is called upon to deliver a generous historical judgment of the previous one. With the opening of each new presidential library, the members of the world’s most exclusive fraternity put aside partisan differences to honor the shared experience of running the nation in difficult times.”
“The task in such moments is especially acute when, as with Mr. Obama and Mr. Bush, the current and previous presidents come from opposing parties and such different sensibilities. The incumbent must hit grace notes without appearing inconsistent with past criticism or, worse, hypocritical. Sometimes a president goes through the motions, dutifully reading what aides put before him. Other times, library dedications have become bonding moments when presidents genuinely grow closer.”
Lawmakers Seeking Obamacare Exemption for Themselves
“Congressional leaders in both parties are engaged in high-level, confidential talks about exempting lawmakers and Capitol Hill aides from the insurance exchanges they are mandated to join as part of President Obama’s health care overhaul,” Politico reports.
“The talks — which involve Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), the Obama administration and other top lawmakers — are extraordinarily sensitive, with both sides acutely aware of the potential for political fallout from giving carve-outs from the hugely controversial law to 535 lawmakers and thousands of their aides.”
Nelson May Challenge Scott in Florida
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) is apparently considering a run against Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R), Roll Call reports.
“If Nelson ran for and won the governor’s mansion in 2014, he would be charged as governor with appointing someone to serve two years as his Senate successor. But there’s some confusion about who would actually make the Senate appointment. An aide with Florida’s Division of Elections said such a situation would leave a small window of time for Scott to appoint a Republican to the Senate. Democrats say Nelson would appoint his own successor.”
Sanford Debates Fake Pelosi
Mark Sanford debated a cardboard cutout of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
Charleston City Paper: “Acting as a stand-in, Sanford says, for his Democratic opponent Elizabeth Colbert Busch, the former governor peppered posterboard Pelosi with questions ranging from unions, to the stimulus, to the federal budget.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“I’m not going to let that tool go unused.”
— Anthony Weiner, quoted by the New York Observer, on why he’s using Twitter again despite his rocky history with the social media network.
The Rent is (Still) Too Damn High
Jimmy McMillan is back and running for mayor of New York City. And he’s got a rap video to kick off his campaign.
