IN FOCUS: STATS

• Poll show health care plan gains favor President Obama reaches for a pen to sign the health care bill Tuesday. A poll finds increased support for the measure: By 49%-40%, those polled say it was"a good thing" rather than a bad one that Congress passed the bill. Half describe their reaction in positive terms — as"enthusiastic" or"pleased" — while about four in 10 describe it in negative ways, as"disappointed" or"angry." The largest single group, 48%, calls the legislation"a good first step" that needs to be followed by more action. And 4% say the bill itself makes the most important changes needed in the nation's health care system.
  "After a century of striving, after a year of debate, after a historic vote, health care reform is no longer an unmet promise," Obama declared in a celebration at the Interior Department auditorium with members of Congress, leaders of advocacy groups and citizens whose personal stories were cited during the debate."It is the law of the land."... - USA Today, 3-23-10
• House passes Democratic changes to health bill: The House has passed key changes to its just-approved overhaul of health care legislation. The changes are part of a prearranged agreement to guarantee passage of the historic legislation. The changes passed by a 220-211 vote. That bill now goes to the Senate for final approval, where it only requires a simple majority to pass.... - AP, 3-22-10

THE HEADLINES....

• It's the law of the land: Health overhaul signed: Claiming a historic triumph that could define his presidency, a jubilant Barack Obama signed a massive, nearly $1 trillion health care overhaul on Tuesday that will for the first time cement insurance coverage as the right of every U.S. citizen and begin to reshape the way virtually all Americans receive and pay for treatment. After more than a year of hyperpartisan struggle — and numerous near-death moments for the measure — Obama declared"a new season in America" as he sealed a victory denied to a line of presidents stretching back more than half a century. Democratic lawmakers cheered him on, giving the White House signing ceremony a rally-like atmosphere as they shouted and snapped photos with pocket cameras or cell phones.... - AP, 3-23-10
• Obama Signs Health Care Overhaul Bill, With a Flourish: With the strokes of 20 pens, President Obama signed his landmark health care overhaul — the most expansive social legislation enacted in decades — into law on Tuesday, saying it enshrines"the core principle that everybody should have some basic security when it comes to their health care."
  Republican lawmakers plan to put up roadblocks to the health reconciliation bill. At a news conference on Tuesday, from left, were Senators Jon Kyl, Judd Gregg and Mitch McConnell. Mr. Obama signed the measure, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, during a festive and at times raucous ceremony in the East Room of the White House. He spoke to an audience of nearly 300, including more than 200 Democratic lawmakers who rode a yearlong legislative roller coaster that ended with House passage of the bill Sunday night. They interrupted him repeatedly with cheers, applause and standing ovations.
  "The bill I'm signing will set in motion reforms that generations of Americans have fought for and marched for and hungered to see," Mr. Obama said, adding,"Today we are affirming that essential truth, a truth every generation is called to rediscover for itself, that we are not a nation that scales back its aspirations."... - NYT, 3-24-10
• Obama signs health care reform into law: President Obama signed legislation into law Tuesday that will overhaul the nation's health system and, jubilant Democrats hope, overhaul their own political fortunes and become not their Waterloo, but the GOP's. For House Speaker Nancy Pelosi enactment marks the pinnacle of her career, delivering a landmark law that has eluded Democrats for decades without a single Republican vote. Weeks after insisting that the House could not pass the legislation, the San Francisco Democrat led her chamber to do just that, showing a mastery of legislative maneuvering unmatched by any of her predecessors from either party in recent memory.
  On Tuesday, Obama singled out Pelosi as"one of the best speakers the House of Representatives has ever had," and Republicans turned to her as the chief target of their ire. So widespread were her kudos that she rivaled the president as the Washington leader most responsible for bringing Democrats' hard-fought victory to fruition.... - SF Chronicle, 3-23-10
• Biden to Obama:"A big [expletive] deal": After introducing Obama at Tuesday's health-care bill signing ceremony, Vice President Biden turned to the president and said,"This is a big [expletive] deal."... - WaPo, 3-23-10
• Ted Kennedy is celebrated for his longtime support of health-care reform: While President Obama gathered with lawmakers for a bill-signing ceremony in the East Room of the White House on Tuesday afternoon, dozens of others came to commemorate health-care legislation here, on a quiet hillside in Section 45 of Arlington National Cemetery. The grave site of Edward M. Kennedy consists of only a white cross and a flat marble footstone, but it has attracted hundreds of visitors during the past several days. First came Vicki Kennedy, the widowed wife, staying for several hours Sunday while Congress prepared for its decisive vote. Next was Patrick Kennedy, the son, who left behind a note written on his congressional stationery Monday morning. Then, on Tuesday, health-care advocates and student groups were led to the grave by tour guides, one of whom pointed to the white cross and recalled,"The Great Ted Kennedy, the man who championed health care."... - WaPo, 3-24-10
• Health bill included big Republican idea: individual mandate: The lawsuit against the health care overhaul filed Tuesday by Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum is focused on a provision that has long been advocated by conservatives, big business and the insurance industry. The lawsuit by McCollum, a candidate for governor, and 12 other attorneys general, focuses on the provision that virtually all Americans will need to have health insurance by 2014 or face penalties. The lawsuit calls this an"unprecedented encroachment on the liberty of individuals." It states the Constitution doesn't authorize such a mandate, the proposed tax penalty is unlawful and is an"unprecedented encroachment on the sovereignty of the states."... - Miami Herald, 3-24-10
• Israel Absorbs Twin Rebukes From Top Allies: Israel found itself at odds with its two most stalwart allies on Tuesday as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu culminated a tense visit to Washington with a face-to-face session with President Obama that apparently failed to resolve the impasse between the two over a comprehensive Middle East peace plan.... - NYT, 3-24-10
• Economic Scene In Health Care Bill, Obama Attacks Wealth Inequality: For all the political and economic uncertainties about health reform, at least one thing seems clear: The bill that President Obama signed on Tuesday is the federal government's biggest attack on economic inequality since inequality began rising more than three decades ago... - NYT, 3-24-10
• Gap in health care law's protection for children: The Obama administration is scrambling to fix a potential problem with a much-touted benefit of its new health care law, a gap in coverage improvements for children in poor health, officials said Tuesday.... - AP, 3-24-10
• Obama to sign health care reform into law, then promote it on the road: President Obama will sign sweeping health care reform legislation into law at the White House on Tuesday, according to two Democratic officials familiar with the planning....
  Passage of the bill was a huge boost for Obama, who made health care reform a domestic priority. Aides said Monday that Obama exchanged handshakes, hugs and"high-fives" with staffers when the outcome of the House vote became apparent."I haven't seen the president so happy about anything other than his family since I've known him," said senior adviser David Axelrod, adding that Obama's jubilation Sunday night exceeded his election victory in November 2004."He was excited that night, but not like last night."... - CNN, 3-23-10
• A look at the health care overhaul bill: Congress approved a major overhaul of the nation's health care system for President Barack Obama's signature. Here are some of the features of the legislation.... - AP, 3-23-10
• Republicans' new health care reform bill rallying cry: Repeal it: Republicans couldn't stop Democrats from passing the health care reform bill Sunday. Now, they vow to make the bill – and big government spending – the core issue of the 2010 elections.... - CS Monitor, 3-22-10
• 10 states line up to sue over health bill, Florida AG says: Virginia, 10 other states plan to file suit challenging health care reform bill... Florida AG Bill McCollum:"This is a tax ... on just living, and that's unconstitutional"... McCollum says bill would force states to spend money, which violates 10th Amendment
  (CNN) -- Ten states plan to file a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the new health care reform bill, Florida's attorney general announced Monday. Bill McCollum, the Republican attorney general under fellow Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, told a news conference that the lawsuit would be filed once President Obama signs the health care bill into law. He said he'll be joined by his counterparts in Alabama, Nebraska, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Washington... McCollum said the lawsuit would challenge the bill's provision requiring people to purchase health insurance, along with provisions that will force state government to spend more on health care services.... - CNN, 3-22-10
• Healthcare victory could bolster Pelosi: Keeping her majority come November will be another test for the House speaker.... - LAT, 3-23-10
• On health care, Pelosi kept Democrats thinking big: The landmark health care bill about to be signed into law is as large as it is due in no small part to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's stewardship. When Democrats in Congress and the White House were despondent and inclined to retreat on health care just two months ago, Pelosi stood firm against despair and downsizing. As a result, she could emerge from the yearlong struggle among the most powerful speakers in history...."It's safe to say that she's going to change some of the ways that we look at effective speakers, and maybe create a new definition of how to get things done under incredibly difficult circumstances," said Ray Smock, who was House historian for a dozen years under former speakers Tip O'Neill, Jim Wright and Tom Foley. - AP, 3-22-10
• Debra J. Saunders: ObamaCare means: Don't look behind the curtain: You've really got to hand it to President Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Saddled with a majority of both houses and a hold on the White House, they somehow managed to pass the Senate health care bill in the House. It's practically a miracle. And because Washington loves a victory, Pelosi is now seen as stronger, not as a Democrat who unconscionably lost 34 Dems and every Republican... - SF Chronicle, 3-22-10
• Before health vote, a weekend of ugly discourse: Remember how shocking it was six months ago when Rep. Joe Wilson shouted"You lie!" to the president? Suddenly, that outburst seems positively genteel. From the"N-word" and anti-gay slurs being leveled at congressmen by protesters right outside the Capitol, to a shout of"baby killer!" within the chamber itself, to veiled and not-so-veiled threats online, the weekend saw an explosion of stunningly ugly discourse. What is going on? Is our political culture sinking ever lower? Actually, say political historians, not necessarily, though it surely may seem so. In reality, they say, such a descent into incivility happens periodically at times of significant political change.... - AP, 3-22-10
• On final day, Obama works vote outside public view: Capping a long day and a consuming political journey, President Barack Obama celebrated the passage of health care legislation on Sunday with hugs, high fives and an emboldened attitude. Said the president to the nation,"Tonight, we answered the call of history." At nearly midnight in Washington, with a big swath of country asleep or headed that way, Obama strode into the ornate East Room with Vice President Joe Biden backing him. There was no hour too late for the president to embrace this moment.
  "I want to thank every member of Congress who stood up tonight with courage and conviction to make health care reform a reality," Obama said as the top members of his own health care team stood beaming nearby."I know this wasn't an easy vote for a lot of people. But it was the right vote."... - AP, 3-22-10
• House Passes Historic Health Care Reform Legislation: The House of Representatives on Sunday passed a sweeping $940 billion health care bill in a historic vote that will dramatically change the U.S. health care system and expand health insurance coverage to 32 million more Americans over the next decade."Tonight's vote is not a victory for any one party ... it's a victory for the American people. And it's a victory for common sense," President Obama said in a statement after the vote. He added:"This isn't radical reform, but it is major reform. It will not fix everything that's wrong with our system, but it will move us in the right direction. This is what change looks like.".... - PBS Newshour, 3-22-10
• House Approves Health Overhaul, Sending Landmark Bill to Obama: House Democrats approved a far-reaching overhaul of the nation’s health system on Sunday, voting over unanimous Republican opposition to provide medical coverage to tens of millions of uninsured Americans after an epic political battle that could define the differences between the parties for years. Reporters gathered around Representative Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, at the Capitol on Sunday. Ms. Pelosi called the health care bill"liberating legislation."
  With the 219-to-212 vote, the House gave final approval to legislation passed by the Senate on Christmas Eve. Thirty-four Democrats joined Republicans in voting against the bill. The vote sent the measure to President Obama, whose yearlong push for the legislation has been the centerpiece of his agenda and a test of his political power. After approving the bill, the House adopted a package of changes to it by a vote of 220 to 211. That package — agreed to in negotiations among House and Senate Democrats and the White House — now goes to the Senate for action as soon as this week. It would be the final step in a bitter legislative fight that has highlighted the nation’s deep partisan and ideological divisions.... - NYT, 3-22-10
• With the vote, a new stature for Obama: President Obama scored a stunning political and legislative victory on health care last night that not only will earn him a place in history books, but promises to establish him as a stronger leader of the Democratic party after a tumultuous first year.... Boston Globe, 3-22-10
• Obama achieves health law success that eluded past: Rarely does the government, that big, clumsy, poorly regarded oaf, pull off anything short of war that touches all lives with one act, one stroke of a president's pen. Such a moment has come. After a year of riotous argument, decades of failure and a century of spoiled hopes, the United States is reaching for a system of medical care that extends coverage nearly to all citizens. The change that's coming will reshape a sixth of the economy and shatter the status quo. To the ardent liberal, President Barack Obama's health care plan, passed by the House on Sunday night, is a shadow of what should have been, sapped by dispiriting downsizing and trade-offs. To the loud foe on the right, it is a dreadful expansion of the nanny state.... - AP, 3-22-10

POLITICAL QUOTES

• Remarks by the President and Vice President at Signing of the Health Insurance Reform Bill East Room: Our presence here today is remarkable and improbable. With all the punditry, all of the lobbying, all of the game- playing that passes for governing in Washington, it’s been easy at times to doubt our ability to do such a big thing, such a complicated thing; to wonder if there are limits to what we, as a people, can still achieve. It’s easy to succumb to the sense of cynicism about what’s possible in this country.
  But today, we are affirming that essential truth -– a truth every generation is called to rediscover for itself –- that we are not a nation that scales back its aspirations. (Applause.) We are not a nation that falls prey to doubt or mistrust. We don't fall prey to fear. We are not a nation that does what’s easy. That’s not who we are. That’s not how we got here.
  We are a nation that faces its challenges and accepts its responsibilities. We are a nation that does what is hard. What is necessary. What is right. Here, in this country, we shape our own destiny. That is what we do. That is who we are. That is what makes us the United States of America.
  And we have now just enshrined, as soon as I sign this bill, the core principle that everybody should have some basic security when it comes to their health care. (Applause.) And it is an extraordinary achievement that has happened because of all of you and all the advocates all across the country.... - WH, 3-23-10 Video
• This is What Change Looks Like: Good evening, everybody. Tonight, after nearly 100 years of talk and frustration, after decades of trying, and a year of sustained effort and debate, the United States Congress finally declared that America’s workers and America's families and America's small businesses deserve the security of knowing that here, in this country, neither illness nor accident should endanger the dreams they’ve worked a lifetime to achieve.
  Tonight, at a time when the pundits said it was no longer possible, we rose above the weight of our politics. We pushed back on the undue influence of special interests. We didn't give in to mistrust or to cynicism or to fear. Instead, we proved that we are still a people capable of doing big things and tackling our biggest challenges. We proved that this government -- a government of the people and by the people -- still works for the people.
  Today’s vote answers the dreams of so many who have fought for this reform. To every unsung American who took the time to sit down and write a letter or type out an e-mail hoping your voice would be heard -- it has been heard tonight. To the untold numbers who knocked on doors and made phone calls, who organized and mobilized out of a firm conviction that change in this country comes not from the top down, but from the bottom up -- let me reaffirm that conviction: This moment is possible because of you....
  Tonight’s vote is not a victory for any one party -- it's a victory for them. It's a victory for the American people. And it's a victory for common sense.... - WH, 3-22-10
• "Make True on that Promise": Remarks by the President to the House Democratic Congress Capitol Visitor Center Auditorium, Washington, D.C.: In his remarks to the House Democratic Caucus yesterday, President Obama put the upcoming health insurance reform effort into a larger context with some powerful thoughts about how he got invovled in politics and what moments like now mean for the country. ...
  And this is one of those moments. This is one of those times where you can honestly say to yourself, doggone it, this is exactly why I came here. This is why I got into politics. This is why I got into public service. This is why I’ve made those sacrifices. Because I believe so deeply in this country and I believe so deeply in this democracy and I’m willing to stand up even when it’s hard, even when it’s tough.
  Every single one of you have made that promise not just to your constituents but to yourself. And this is the time to make true on that promise. We are not bound to win, but we are bound to be true. We are not bound to succeed, but we are bound to let whatever light we have shine. We have been debating health care for decades. It has now been debated for a year. It is in your hands. It is time to pass health care reform for America, and I am confident that you are going to do it tomorrow. - WH, 3-21-10 WH, 3-21-10
• Fiery Boehner: 'Hell no you can't!': In his final words from the floor of the House before a vote on health care reform legislation, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) led a fiery round of rhetorical questions....
  "Can you say it was done openly with transparency and accountability, without backdroom deals and struck behind closed doors, hidden from the people?," Rep. Boehner asked."Hell no you can't!"
  "Have you read the bill? Have you read the reconciliation bill? Have you read the manager's assessment?" he asked."Hell no you haven't."
  The acting speaker then banged his gavel, saying calmly,"Both sides would do well to remember the dignity of the House."
  "By our actions today, we disgrace their values. We break our ties to history in this chamber," Rep. Boehner said.... - NECN, 3-21-10

HISTORIANS & ANALYSTS' COMMENTS

• Bruce Schulman: Before health vote, a weekend of ugly discourse: "I was on my way to work this morning and I saw an amazing bumper sticker," says Bruce Schulman, a historian at Boston University. It directed a vulgar curse word at Obama."It's hard for me to believe that we would have seen that a few decades ago," says Schulman."Even with Richard Nixon, who was so hated by many." Still, Schulman says, it's clear that with the Internet, social media and other platforms, many with extreme views now merely have a megaphone they didn't have years ago...."The rawest, most unfiltered comments now become part of the political discourse," Schulman says. - AP, 3-22-10
• How Will History View the Health Reform Debate?: After months of debate, deals and delays, a health reform bill is now headed to the president's desk. Three historians assess the significance of the moment, in the context of nearly 100 years of U.S. health care legislation.... - PBS Newshour, 3-22-10
• Robert Dallek, Presidential Historian, Stanford University: How Will History View the Health Reform Debate?: ...In terms of the future, I would say the argument will not disappear. I don't think we've seen the last of this debate about national health insurance. If it works well, the Democrats will have a very significant talking point for the future. If it falls short, if it's somehow seen as a failure, the Republicans are going to have a powerful talking point against the Democrats.... - PBS Newshour, 3-22-10
• Ellen Fitzpatrick, Professor of History, University of New HampshireHow Will History View the Health Reform Debate?: ...The battle over this legislation -- waged with skills and determination by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, reinforced by pressure from the grassroots who looked with dismay upon the prospect of another defeat at the hands of political inertia and incompetence -- marks a milestone in the young Obama presidency. Having staked so much on a promise of change, Obama redeems that pledge in ways that -- whatever the struggles ahead -- casts in stark relief the recalcitrance of his opponents. - PBS Newshour, 3-22-10
• Richard Norton Smith, Scholar in Residence, George Mason University, How Will History View the Health Reform Debate?: To state the obvious, it is an enormous personal victory for Barack Obama -- not only the magnitude and scope of what is being achieved but how it's been done, how it has been brought back from the grave. That is the stuff of instant legend as well as lasting history. In some ways, it's almost easier to predict what historians a generation from now will say than what voters will say six or seven months from now. What we can't know, what no poll can measure, is what aura will accrue to this president and his party as a result of pulling this rabbit out of a hat.... - PBS Newshour, 3-22-10
• Jordan Michael Smith: What Obama Could Learn from a New Book on FDR: Health care reform is a major victory for the United States. But, paradoxically, its very passage illustrates the depths of government dysfunction. Reform took 13 months, billions of dollars in advertising and lobbying, and Herculean patience and effort on the part of lawmakers, voters and grassroots supporters -- and still the United States' health care falls well short in terms of quality and breadth of coverage per capita than almost every industrialized country in the world. Even worse, the Supreme Court may strike down some of the new health plan's provisions.... - Huffington Post, 3-22-10
• Julian E. Zelizer: Pelosi emerges as powerhouse in D.C.: The passage of health care will certainly rank as one of the major political achievements of recent decades. Legislation that will eventually extend health care coverage to more than 30 million more Americans, greatly expand the number of options that citizens have when purchasing health care, bring healthy citizens into the pool of the insured and thus lower costs and create important regulations on health care companies will be remembered as one of the biggest domestic policy changes since the Great Society of the 1960s.
  While most attention will focus on President Obama for pulling off a Herculean task that eluded many of our great presidents, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi emerges from this battle as the real powerhouse in Washington. She has pursued a clear ideological agenda but through pragmatic political tactics. Like the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, she stands for something, yet knows how to round up votes.... - CNN, 3-21-10
• DAVID E. SANGER: News Analysis A Major Victory, but at What Cost?: The House’s passage of health care legislation late Sunday night assures that whatever the ultimate cost, President Obama will go down in history as one of the handful of presidents who found a way to reshape the nation’s social welfare system. After the bitterest of debates, Mr. Obama proved that he was willing to fight for something that moved him to his core. Skeptics had begun to wonder. But he showed that when he was finally committed to throwing all his political capital onto the table, he could win, if by the narrowest of margins. Whether it was a historic achievement or political suicide for his party — perhaps both — he succeeded where President Bill Clinton failed in trying to remake American health care. President George W. Bush also failed to enact a landmark change in a domestic program, his second-term effort to create private accounts in the Social Security system.... - NYT, 3-22-10
• With the vote, a new stature for Obama: "Some were saying the bloom was really off the rose," said Roger Wilkins, a historian and author who served as an assistant attorney general in the Johnson administration."There's a 'Bambi' quality to him. When you look at him, there's this lithe young man who likes to play backyard basketball."I think that everybody who thought that Bambi had moved into the White House knows that’s not true today." Wilkins continued."He is one tough fellow, and he has proved himself to be pretty good at politics as well." - Boston Globe, 3-22-10

IN FOCUS: STATS

• Poll: Republican resurgence among young adults: A new poll shows 18- to 29-year-old Republicans are more politically energized than young Democrats and are more inclined to vote in this fall's elections. Young adults are also extremely concerned about the economy.
  Forty-one percent of young Republicans say they plan to vote in November, compared with 35 percent of Democrats and 13 percent of Independents, according to the poll conducted by Harvard University’s Institute of Politics (IOP), a nonpartisan group. Fifty-three percent of those who voted for Sen. John McCain (R) of Ariz., in 2008 say they will definitely vote in midterm elections, compared with 44 percent of those who voted for President Obama.... - CS Monitor, 3-9-10
• Poll: Financially pinched, young adults lose faith: Young adults are financially anxious, worried that they can't meet their educational, housing and health care needs, according to a new poll that exposes a growing pessimism about achieving the American Dream. The poll by Harvard's Institute of Politics found that six out of 10 of those surveyed worry they may not meet their current bills and obligations. Nearly half of those attending college wonder whether they will be able to afford to stay in school. And more than eight out of 10 said they expect difficulty finding a job after graduation. Fewer than half said they believe they will be better off than their parents when they reach their parents' age.... - AP, 3-9-10
• Poll: U.S. has lost global standing under Obama: A majority of Americans say the United States is less respected in the world than two years ago and believe President Obama and other Democrats fall short of Republicans on the issue of national security, according to a poll by two left-leaning groups.
  The Democracy Corps-Third Way survey released Monday finds that by a 10-point margin - 51 percent to 41 percent - Americans think the standing of the United States has dropped during the first 13 months of Mr. Obama's presidency.
  "This is surprising, given the global acclaim - and Nobel peace prize - that flowed to the new president after he took office," the pollsters said.... - Washington Times, 3-9-10
• New poll spells potential trouble for Democrats: A new poll on Monday found signs of trouble ahead for President Barack Obama and his Democrats on national security issues such as the handling of terrorism suspects. The poll was conducted jointly by Democratic Corps, a Democratic organization, and Third Way, a progressive non-profit organization. It was done mainly to gauge voters' views on Democrats' handling of national security.
  The poll found 60 percent of Americans believe the United States is on the wrong track. It also found that people rated Democrats at about the same level as Republicans, in what amounted to an erosion of the advantage Democrats have held.
  "We would not want the election to be held today, with this poll," said Democracy Corps' chief pollster Stan Greenberg."If the election were held today, this would be a 'change' election."... - Reuters, 3-8-10

THE HEADLINES....

• Agencies lag in following Obama's openness order: President Barack Obama is having difficulty getting all federal agencies to follow his order to deliver"a new era of open government," according to a study of how they administer the Freedom of Information Act. The National Security Archive, a private group that publishes declassified government information and uses the act and lawsuits to pry out official records, found a decidedly mixed record in an audit of how 90 agencies responded to Obama directives to open more records, and the guidelines and training sessions that followed from the Justice Department.... - AP, 3-14-10
• Catholic hospitals support health care bill: A group representing Catholic hospitals is rallying behind President Barack Obama's health care bill. Support from the Catholic Health Association could help persuade anti-abortion lawmakers to provide critical votes in the House for the overhaul. The group's chief executive, Carol Keehan, writes on the association's Web site that the legislation isn't perfect, but is"a major first step" toward covering all Americans and would make"great improvements" for millions of people....- AP, 3-13-10
• Reports: U.S. Pressuring Israel to Scrap Building Plan: The controversial plan to build 1,600 apartments was approved during Vice President Joe Biden's visit to the region last week.... - AP, 3-15-10
• GOP Lawmaker: White House Job Offer to Sestak Would Have Been a 'Crime': A GOP lawmaker says that the White House committed a" crime" if it offered Democratic Rep. Joe Sestak a federal job in exchange for dropping his primary challenge to Sen. Arlen Specter, D-Pa.... - FOX News, 3-13-10
• Obama promise: Brighter education futures for kids: President Barack Obama is promising parents and their kids that with his administration's help they will have better teachers in improved schools so U.S. students can make up for academic ground lost against youngsters in other countries.
  A plan to overhaul the 2002 education law championed by President George W. Bush was unveiled by the Obama administration Saturday in hopes of replacing a system that in the last decade has tagged more than a third of schools as failing and created a hodgepodge of sometimes weak academic standards among states.
  "Unless we take action — unless we step up — there are countless children who will never realize their full talent and potential," Obama said during a video address on Saturday."I don't accept that future for them. And I don't accept that future for the United States of America."
  In the proposed dismantling of the No Child Left Behind law, education officials would move away from punishing schools that don't meet benchmarks and focus on rewarding schools for progress, particularly with poor and minority students. Obama intends to send a rewrite to Congress on Monday of the law.... - AP, 3-13-10
• Coffee vs. Tea: A political movement is brewing: The new Coffee Party movement deemed its official kickoff Saturday a"huge success," with dozens of talks held at coast-to-coast coffee shops as members came together to discuss the issues most important to them.
  Billed by many as an answer to the conservative Tea Party movement, the Coffee Party was born on Facebook just six weeks ago. While the group has become an instant hit online -- it boasts more than 141,000 Facebook fans as of Saturday -- gauging the success of this weekend's coffee meetups was predicted to be an indicator of the group's strength.... - CNN, 3-13-10
• Democrats move toward grouping health reform with student-aid bill: Democratic leaders said Thursday that they were increasingly inclined to release a final health-care bill that could accomplish two of President Obama's top domestic priorities: guaranteeing coverage to 30 million uninsured Americans and vastly expanding federal aid for college students.... - WaPo, 3-12-10
• Health Care Bill 'Still a Jump Ball,' White House Official Says: Passage of health care reform bill is"still a jump ball," official tells Fox News, as Democratic leaders point to progress...
  The prospects for Democratic victory on health care reform, the president's signature domestic initiative, have improved, but"it's still a jump ball," a top White House official intimately involved in the ongoing health care negotiations with House and Senate Democrats told Fox News late Friday. That assessment confirms that the White House and Democratic leaders so far lack the votes to pass health care in the House. And it undercuts somewhat the declaration Friday from Press Secretary Robert Gibbs that President Obama finally feels the wind at his back on the issue.... - Fox News, 3-12-10
• Obama prepares for showdown on health care: This time, the President acts as if he has set a deadline he can believe in... - Globe & Mail, 3-12-10
• Clinton Rebukes Israel for Housing Announcement: In a tense, 43-minute phone call on Friday morning, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel’s plan for new housing units for Jews in East Jerusalem sent a"deeply negative signal" about Israeli-American relations, and not just because it spoiled a visit by Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr.
  Such blunt language toward Israel is very rare from an American administration, and several officials said Mrs. Clinton was relaying the anger of President Obama at the announcement, which was made by Israel's Interior Ministry and which Mr. Netanyahu said had caught him off guard.... - NYT, 2-12-10
• Scott Brown to give GOP rebuttal to President's weekly radio address: US Sen. Scott Brown, who was elected on a wave of opposition to current health care reform plans, will give the GOP rebuttal to President Obama's weekly address as the White House ramps up their reform efforts. The high-profile address comes as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) announced yesterday he would push to pass the reforms through reconciliation.... - Boston Herald, 2-12-10
• Senators give Obama a bipartisan plan on immigration: The president is encouraged, but healthcare politics could jeopardize the proposal.... - LAT, 3-12-10
• At U.N., Clinton rallies for more women's opportunities worldwide: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told government delegates and activists here Friday that violence against women remains a"global pandemic" and that their"subjugation" constitutes"a threat to the national security of the United States." Speaking on the final day of a two-week U.N. conference on women's rights, Clinton urged U.N. member states to expand opportunities for women and end practices that subject them to discrimination and violence.... - WaPo, 3-12-10
• Dems look to health vote without abortion foes: House leaders have concluded they cannot change a divisive abortion provision in President Barack Obama's health care bill and will try to pass the sweeping legislation without the support of ardent anti-abortion Democrats. A break on abortion would remove a major obstacle for Democratic leaders in the final throes of a yearlong effort to change health care in the United States. But it sets up a risky strategy of trying to round up enough Democrats to overcome, not appease, a small but possibly decisive group of Democratic lawmakers in the House.... - AP, 3-12-10
• Dems Abandon Abortion Deal, Ready Health Vote: White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel emerged from a meeting in the Capitol with top Democratic lawmakers Thursday night saying,"We made a lot of decisions. We're getting towards the end."... - AP, Fox News, 3-12-10
• Obama Lists Who Will Get Prize Money From Nobel: President Obama has made good on a promise to give his $1.4 million in Nobel Peace Prize money to charity, releasing on Thursday the names of the organizations that will benefit.
  "These organizations do extraordinary work in the United States and abroad helping students, veterans and countless others in need," Mr. Obama said in a statement."I'm proud to support their work."
  Mr. Obama put Fisher House, an organization that provides housing for the families of those being treated at major military and Veterans Affairs medical centers, at the top of the list with a $250,000 donation. Fisher House was followed by the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, the project his two immediate predecessors are running to raise money for relief and reconstruction efforts in Haiti, which will get $200,000... - NYT, 3-11-10
• Senate approves $138-billion spending bill: The legislation, which must be reconciled with the House version, would extend jobless benefits and tax measures created to boost the economy, and help states pay for Medicaid.... - LAT, 3-11-10
• Key senators balk at adding student loan overhaul to health-care legislation: As they push to finish health-care legislation by the end of the month, Democratic leaders in Congress are weighing whether to add another of President Obama's priorities to the package: a popular proposal to overhaul the federal student loan program. The move could clear the way for Obama to claim victory on two of his most significant domestic initiatives in a single signing ceremony. Administration officials and House leaders have pressed aggressively for the addition in recent days. But key senators are objecting to the move, arguing that political resistance in the Senate and the rapidly rising cost of the education measure could jeopardize efforts to push health-care reform to final passage.... - WaPo, 3-11-10
• It's Obama vs. the Supreme Court, Round 2, over campaign finance ruling: Roberts calls scene at State of the Union 'very troubling' In remarks during a question-and-answer session with law students at the University of Alabama, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. protested the timing of President Obama's State of the Union disapproval of the court's decision in a major campaign finance case.
  President Obama and the Supreme Court have waded again into unfamiliar and strikingly personal territory. When Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. told law students in Alabama on Tuesday that the timing of Obama's criticism of the court during the State of the Union address was"very troubling," the White House pounced. It shot back with a new denouncement of the court's ruling that allowed a more active campaign role for corporations and unions.... - WaPo, 3-11-10
• Bill Clinton, Bill Gates unite in foreign aid plea: Former president Bill Clinton and Microsoft founder Bill Gates called Wednesday on US lawmakers to boost foreign aid to fight diseases like HIV/AIDS and malaria in the world's poorest nations. The leading philanthropists went to Capitol Hill to boost support for the so-called Global Health Initiative (GHI) and promote a crucial health aid budget bill proposed in 2009 by President Barack Obama's administration.
  "I hope you will pass this bill," Clinton said in testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee."It is a very good bill, I think, and I think it is the next logical step" in US efforts to boost global health care... - AFP, 3-10-10
• Obama Gets Tough on Health Care Fraud: President Obama continued his drive for a health care overhaul on Wednesday, ordering a crackdown on Medicare and Medicaid waste and fraud, while in Washington, House leaders said they hoped to have a completed bill to present to rank and file members Thursday morning....
  "The health care system has billions of dollars that should go to patient care, and they’re lost each and every year to fraud and abuse and massive subsidies that line the pockets of insurance company executives," Mr. Obama told about 500 mostly supportive local residents in the gymnasium of St. Charles High School here.... - NYT, 3-10-10
• Obama backs bipartisan crackdown on healthcare cheats: President Barack Obama, making a final push for healthcare reform, will back bipartisan plans to stamp out waste in government-run medical programs for the old and needy, the White House said on Tuesday... - Reuters, 3-9-10
• Mitt Romney: Tea Party movement is great as long as they vote Republican: Mitt Romney is supportive of the Tea Party movement but draws the line when it comes to a third party. CS Monitor, 3-9-10
• Ex-Congressman Massa says groping wasn't sexual: Former Rep. Eric Massa, a New York Democrat who resigned his seat Monday amid a sexual harassment investigation, goes on TV to defend himself.... - LAT, 3-10-10
• Obama takes hard-sell health pitch to Pa.: President Obama stepped up pressure Monday on his fellow Democrats to retool the nation's health care system, decrying those who put politics above policy. Saving his harshest rhetoric for the insurance industry, Obama began his latest attempt to pass his 10-year, $950 billion measure by declaring,"The issue here is not the politics of it."
  "It's hard for some members of Congress to make this vote. There's no doubt about that," Obama said. In contrast, he said,"What's hard is what millions of families and small businesses are going through because we allow the insurance industry to run wild in this country.",.... - USA Today, 3-8-10
• Obama hails contributions of 'daring' women: Crediting their role in the American story, President Barack Obama on Monday praised the nation's"daring, indomitable" women — including the one-time political rival who is now his secretary of state."Women like Hillary Rodham Clinton, who, throughout her career, has put millions of cracks in America's glass ceiling," Obama said in the grand East Room packed mostly with women."It's because of them — and so many others, many who aren't recorded in the history books — that the story of America is, ultimately, one of hope and one of progress, of an upward journey."
  "We're doing all of this not only because promoting women's empowerment is one of the best ways to promote economic development and economic success," Obama said."We are doing it because it's the right thing to do. I say that not only as a president, but also as the father of two daughters, as a son and a grandson, and as a husband." - AP, 3-8-10
• Joe Biden in Israel to press Mid-East peace talks: US Vice-President Joe Biden has arrived in Israel to promote a new round of Middle East peace talks more than a year after they stalled. Mr Biden - the highest-ranking Obama administration official to visit the region - will meet both Palestinian and Israeli officials. Iran's nuclear intentions are expected to be at the top of Israel's agenda.... - BBC News, 3-8-10
• Pa. Sen. Arlen Specter is penning a book: Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, who switched to the Democratic Party last year, is writing a book about his experiences... - USA Today, 3-8-10
• Healthcare overhaul comes down to Pelosi and Obama: A bill's fate depends on whether the House Speaker can land enough votes - and whether the president can take control of the debate, which Democrats complain he has not done.... - 3-8-10
• Democrats Voice Health-Bill Doubts: Some House Democrats wavering over whether to back a health-care overhaul questioned whether it would effectively curb the country's health costs, highlighting a difficult issue that the White House and congressional leaders must address in the final negotiations on the measure. The issue is one of several that have been raised by Democrats over the bill, which President Barack Obama and Democratic leaders are pushing to pass by the end of March. Conservative Democrats have raised questions over the bill's language on abortion and tax increases, while liberals are unhappy with its failure to include a government plan that would compete with private insurers.... - WSJ, 3-8-10

ELECTIONS 2010, 2012....

• Voter turnouts for primaries 'a concern': The red-hot race in Texas earlier this month between Gov. Rick Perry and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison for the Republican gubernatorial nomination helped drive the state to its biggest primary turnout in 20 years. And just how many people showed up for the election? About 1.5 million Texans cast ballots in the March 2 GOP primary for governor, according to the secretary of State's office. That means only about 1 in 10 of the 15.3 million Texans 18 and older who were eligible to vote actually cast a ballot, according to Curtis Gans at American University's Center for the Study of the American Electorate... - USA Today,
• McCain campaigns for NH Senate candidate: Arizona Sen. John McCain told New Hampshire voters Saturday that if the current health care bill passes, opponents will immediately launch a nationwide movement to repeal it.
  "We can repeal it, but I would hate to have to have that task; obviously because there's still the same resident of the White House," he said at a town hall meeting reminiscent of those he held during his two presidential campaigns.
  On Saturday, McCain was stumping for fellow Republican Kelly Ayotte, a former state attorney general who is seeking the U.S. Senate seat held by Sen. Judd Gregg.... - Boston Globe, 3-12-10
• Bush keeps Crist in his gun sights: Former Gov. Jeb Bush has been increasingly critical of Gov. Charlie Crist, but his election endorsement is still pending. There's been a lot of speculation about when Jeb Bush will finally make his preference official and endorse Marco Rubio for the Senate. But it strikes us that Rubio is better served for now with the popular ex-governor continuing with his current role: ostensibly neutral and taking increasingly tough shots at Charlie Crist from the sidelines.... - St. Peterberg Times, 3-14-10
• GOP nominates newcomer to succeed Murtha: Republicans last night selected a political newcomer who has never sought elected office as their nominee in the special election to succeed the late U.S. Rep. John P. Murtha. Tim Burns, a self-made millionaire from Eighty Four, Washington County, and a native of Mr. Murtha's hometown of Johnstown, handily defeated Bill Russell, who mounted a strong challenge to Mr. Murtha in 2008.... - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 3-12-10
• Palin will make an appearance at fundraiser for Bachmann: Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will bring her star power and fundraising prowess to Minnesota next month to help U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann with reelection. Bachmann announced Thursday that Palin will host a fundraising dinner April 7 at a Minneapolis hotel. There will be a private reception and photo opportunity at 4:30 p.m., a general reception at 5 p.m. and a dinner at 6 p.m. It's not known how much tickets will cost.... - Star Tribune, 3-11-10
• Cuomo Hands Paterson Case to an Ex-Judge: Facing growing political pressure, Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo on Thursday appointed an independent counsel to take over his office’s investigation into the Paterson administration’s response to a domestic violence case. Mr. Cuomo said Judith S. Kaye, the former chief judge of New York, would lead the inquiry, along with an investigation into whether the governor lied when he was questioned by the State Commission on Public Integrity about his office’s solicitation of Yankees World Series tickets.... - NYT, 3-11-10
• With a huge lead in Florida polls, Rubio dazzles crowd: The second poll in a week shows him more than 30 points ahead of Gov. Charlie Crist.... - Jacksonville.com, 3-11-10
• Romney Ties Decision on Presidential Bid to Outcome of November Elections: Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney suggested Sunday that his decision on whether to run again for president may hinge on the outcome of the November midterm elections....
  "I don't really have the pros and cons laid out yet," he said."It's something which we won't have to decide until some time after the November elections. My guess is after those elections are over and we see where the country is, and we see the features in our own lives that may affect a decision like that, we'll sit down and make a decision."... - Fox News, 3-8-10

POLITICAL QUOTES

• Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA) Delivers Weekly GOP Address on Health Care: In the Weekly Republican Address, newly-elected Sen. Scott Brown of Massachusetts explains that the Democrats running Washington have their priorities all wrong. Sen. Brown says Americans"told me that they want their President and Congress to focus on creating jobs and reviving Americas economy. Instead, for more than a year now, we have seen a bitter, destructive, and endless drive to completely transform Americas health care system."
  "Somehow," Sen. Brown notes,"the greater the public opposition to the health care bill, the more determined they seem to force it on us anyway. Their attitude shows Washington at its very worst the presumption that they know best, and theyre going to get their way whether the American people like it or not."
  Sen. Brown says,"I havent been here very long, but, I can tell you this much already: Nothing has distracted the attention and energy of the nations capital more than this disastrous detour. And, the surest way to return to the peoples business is to listen to the people themselves: We need to drop this whole scheme of federally controlled health care, start over, and work together on real reforms at the state level that will contain costs and wont leave America trillions of dollars deeper in debt." - You Tube, 3-13-10
• Weekly Address: President Obama to Send Updated Elementary and Secondary Education Act Blueprint To Congress on Monday Remarks of President Barack Obama As Prepared for Delivery Weekly Address March 13, 2010: Under the leadership of an outstanding Education Secretary, Arne Duncan, we launched a Race to the Top, through which states compete for funding by committing to reform and raising standards, by rewarding good teaching, by supporting the development of better assessments to measure results, and by emphasizing math and science to help prepare children for college and careers.
  And on Monday, my administration will send to Congress our blueprint for an updated Elementary and Secondary Education Act to overhaul No Child Left Behind. What this plan recognizes is that while the federal government can play a leading role in encouraging the reforms and high standards we need, the impetus for that change will come from states, and from local schools and school districts. So, yes, we set a high bar – but we also provide educators the flexibility to reach it.... - WH, 3-13-10
• The Conscience of a Florida Conservative: "They voted for somebody they'd never heard of in Barack Obama because he ran on the platform of a very devoted centrist." That's the answer from Marco Rubio when asked about his stunning rise to national prominence as a Republican challenger to a popular Republican officeholder in the key electoral state of Florida. Underlying this strange political season, says Mr. Rubio, is the president's rapid uncloaking in office as anything but the postpartisan that voters thought they had elected."Within weeks," says Mr. Rubio,"he began trying to implement what appears to everyone else to be the left-of-center politics of the last 50 years, but in a much more aggressive way, using the excuse of a severe economic downturn as justification for growing and in essence redefining the role of government in America."... - WSJ, 3-15-10

HISTORIANS & ANALYSTS' COMMENTS

• Tevi Troy: Health Care: A Two-Decade Blunder: ...Fast-forward 19 years: it is the Democrats who are now faced with divining the results of another underdog’s victory. In January, a little-known state senator named Scott Brown defeated Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley in a special election for the United States Senate. Universal health care was once again on center stage. This time around, though, the Republican seized on widespread antipathy to what has come to be seen as an incoherent Democratic scheme for an unworkable federal takeover of health care.... - Commentary Magazine, 4-10
• Nerd is another word for smart Republicans have long been viewed as those who get gentleman’s"C" in the national classroom. In fact, it is almost a liberal trope to call Republican presidents"dumb."
  Eisenhower, Ford, Reagan and both Bushes (the latter more than the former) got this critique. Nixon was spared — but only because it so clearly did not fit his image as a Machiavellian manipulator. -
  Democrats, in contrast, are usually cited as the smart ones in American politics....
  But this simplistic analysis of smart Democrats contrasted with dumb Republicans does not fit reality. - Politico, 3-12-10
• Fred Greenstein: Obama Gets High Scores on Leadership Report Card: That's according to presidential historian and author Fred Greenstein, professor of politics emeritus at Princeton University. The author of the new Inventing the Job of President has just updated his initial Obama report card and declared the president a"rare political leader."
  In a scholarly paper, Barack Obama: The Man and His Early Presidency, Greenstein looks at six key leadership qualities and seems to find that the nation's first African-American president is up to snuff."Barack Obama is a fascinating political specimen," writes Greenstein, whose books include The Presidential Difference: Leadership Style from FDR to Barack Obama; The Hidden-Hand Presidency: Eisenhower as Leader; and How Presidents Test Reality: Decisions on Vietnam, 1954 and 1965.
  "Indeed," adds Greenstein,"he may turn out to be the rare political leader who is marked by both a first-rate temperament and a first-rate mind."... - US News, 3-12-10
• Julian Zelizer: GOP health care refusal could backfire: Most Republicans have opposed President Obama's health care bill from the first day he proposed reform. If the House passes the Senate bill in the next few days, it will probably do so without any Republican support.
  Regardless of whether the legislation passes, Republicans can already claim a victory, given that the struggle for legislation has lasted more than a year and tied up the rest of the Democratic agenda....
  Yet Republicans should be wary about celebrating too much. The strategy of obstruction poses significant risks....
  A recent leaked document from the Republican National Committee suggests that the party is planning to base its 2010 campaign on fear and negative attacks, rather than hope and ideas. Sometimes, in the enthusiasm over a battle, armies can lose sight of the war.
  Republicans might have regained their fighting spirit over health care, but the strategy could prove to be costlier than they expect. - CNN, 3-8-10

IN FOCUS: STATS

• Majority of Americans say President Obama doesn't deserve 2nd term: poll: President Obama's new jobs plan may include finding one, a new survey suggests. A majority of Americans think Obama should be a one-term president, the CNN / Opinion Research Corp. poll says, with 52% saying he is undeserving of a second term in office. 44% of respondents answered that Obama deserves reelection, with 4% saying they had no opinion.... - NY Daily News, 2-17-10
• Congress poll is Capitol hell Voters' support for incumbents hits historic low: Just when you thought Congress couldn't reach a new low, it did. Only a third of US voters think their Congress members have earned the right to get sent back next year -- a record-low number, a poll released yesterday shows. Thirty-four percent of voters queried think members of the House and the Senate ought to be re-elected -- while an astonishing 63 percent were in favor of throwing the bums out, the new CNN poll showed..... - NY Post, 2-17-10

THE HEADLINES....

• Obama plan would curb health insurers on rate hikes: The proposal would give the Health and Human Services secretary power to block premium increases deemed excessive.... - LAT, 2-21-10
• White House adjusts strategy on Republicans: The Obama administration aims to put members of the GOP on the spot, forcing them to compromise on issues or be portrayed as obstructionists.... - LAT, 2-20-10
• Michelle Obama thinks doubts about her have eased: Michelle Obama wears blinders, of sorts. That helps her to see the real America. As the first lady put it in an interview Saturday, the people she's met and the causes she's taken up have put her in touch with a side of the country far removed from the tempest of attack politics and nasty commentary, which she tries her best to shut out."Most of America isn't like that and they're tired of that," she said."You know, they want folks to get stuff done. The beauty of my job is that I get to see more of that America. And that feeds me."... - AP, 2-20-10
• Conservatives Help Fuel Primary Challenges to Some Republicans: Before the activists at this week's Conservative Action Political Conference battle Democratic candidates in the fall election, they’re first helping challenge some Republican officeholders. Insurgents such as former Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio, former Representative J.D. Hayworth of Arizona and Utah lawyer Mike Lee -- all running against well-established Republicans in party primaries -- have found receptive audiences among those attending the annual gathering sponsored by the American Conservative Union in Washington."I'd rather have 30 Republicans in the Senate who believe in the principles of freedom than 60 who don’t believe in anything," Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina told the conference."I believe in holding incumbent Republican senators accountable."... - Bloomberg
• On Reid turf, Obama plugs his agenda: Days before hosting a potentially intensive health care summit with Republicans and Democrats, President Obama made a fervent push yesterday for his overhaul, calling it critical not just for the millions without insurance but also for the entire country’s economic well-being."It is vital for our economy to change how health care works in this country," Obama said at a town hall meeting in a high school gym."Don't let the American people go another year, another 10 years, another 20 years without health insurance reform in this country."... - Boston Globe, 2-20-10
• Obama sets record straight: 'I love Vegas': President Barack Obama is setting the record straight - he loves Las Vegas. And Las Vegas was glad to hear it. Obama had irked Nevada officials by using Las Vegas as an example of how people should not spend irresponsibly in tough times. But during an overnight visit to the city, Obama made it clear he meant no harm."I love Vegas," Obama told an audience of 650 business and tourism leaders Friday at a resort and casino on the Las Vegas Strip.... - AP, 2-19-10
• Obama to Offer Health Bill to Ease Impasse as Bipartisan Meeting Approaches: President Obama will put forward comprehensive health care legislation intended to bridge differences between Senate and House Democrats ahead of a summit meeting with Republicans next week, senior administration officials and Congressional aides said Thursday. Democratic officials said the president's proposal was being written so that it could be attached to a budget bill as a way of averting a Republican filibuster in the Senate. The procedure, known as budget reconciliation, would let Democrats advance the bill with a simple majority rather than a 60-vote supermajority. Congressional Democrats, however, have not yet seen the proposal or signed on.... - NYT, 2-19-10
• How the GOP Sees It What Republicans would do if given carte blanche to run the country: "We've offered to work with the president all year. We've been shut out, shut out, and shut out." —House GOP leader John Boehner Such is the lament of the party out of power in Washington. Republicans on Capitol Hill say they have many good ideas and want to join with President Obama and the Democrats to alleviate the country's problems. They want to collaborate on a health-care bill, a jobs bill, a clean-energy bill. But they can't, because the Democrats—intent on pushing through a radical agenda that is out of touch with real Americans—won't listen to them. Republicans want to help the president succeed, but he won't let them. This isn't true, of course—any more than it was true when the Democrats said the same thing as they dedicated themselves to thwarting George W. Bush. In zero-sum Washington, members of the opposition party have little incentive to help the president, especially if it means the credit for their actions could accrue to him and not them. If politics is the art of compromise, then politics as practiced in the capital is the art of preventing compromise at all costs. This is why, infuriatingly, our elected officials spend so much time plotting ways to stick it to the other side with"filibuster-proof super-majorities" and"nuclear options," while the unemployment rate hovers in the double digits and 46 million Americans go without health insurance. It is why not a single GOP senator voted for the health-care bill now stalled in Congress, and why Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell turned against a GOP-inspired plan for a deficit commission once Obama endorsed the idea.... - Newsweek, 3-1-10
• Obama tries to rally his party in Colorado visit: At a fundraiser for Sen. Michael Bennet, the president has tough words for Republicans. He'll next take his message to Nevada to help out another embattled Democratic senator: Harry Reid.
  "A lot of these guys when it comes to the ribbon-cuttings for the projects, they show up," Obama told a packed concert hall."They're holding up those big checks: 'Look what I did for you!'"I'm not going to give 'em hell," the president continued."I'm going to tell the truth and they'll think it's hell. That's what Harry Truman said."... - LAT, 2-18-10
• Romney courts the right with jabs at Obama Crowd reserves fervor for new faces: Sounding like a potential rival for President Obama in 2012, Mitt Romney delivered a brutal critique yesterday of what he called American liberal"neo-monarchists" as he sought the favor of traditional conservatives and insurgent tea party activists at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference. While Romney received several standing ovations in the packed ballroom, his reception did not have the same feverish enthusiasm awarded to such new faces as Marco Rubio, a conservative US Senate candidate from Florida, and Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown, who, in a surprise appearance, introduced Romney.,... - Boston Globe, 2-19-10
• GOP leaders agree to panel on federal deficit: With the national debt soaring, Republican leaders reluctantly consented Thursday to join Democrats on a bipartisan commission to address the government's budget problems. But they continued to reject any solution that involves higher taxes, and analysts in both parties said the effort faces a dauntingly poisoned political atmosphere.... - WaPo, 2-18-10
• Energized conservatives pound on Democrats at CPAC: A newly muscular"tea party" movement dominated an old-line conservative conclave Thursday, depicting Democrats as destroying America's freedoms and warning Republicans not to take their support for granted. President Obama and congressional Democrats"are using this downturn as cover, not to fix America but to try to change America, to fundamentally re-define the role of government in our lives and the role of America in the world," Marco Rubio said in the opening address at the annual Conservative Policy Action Conference (CPAC). The rising conservative star, who is seeking the GOP Senate nomination in Florida, said,"The good news is it didn't take long for the American people to figure this out."... - USA Today, 2-18-10
• Dick Cheney's bold proclamation: Barack Obama's 'a one-term president': Former Vice President Dick Cheney made a surprise appearance this afternoon at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference gathering in Washington after a speech by his daughter, Liz Cheney. And a surprise proclamation. He was greeted by cheers and chants of"Run, Cheney, Run!" To which Cheney responded:"A welcome like that almost makes me want to run for office -- but I am not going to do it."... - LAT, 2-18-10
• GOP sees possible upside in health care summit: Congressional Republicans see a chance for political gain in President Barack Obama's televised health care summit next week, even though the president will be running the show. Obama and the Democrats are certain to highlight a crucial element of their health care plan — extending coverage to more than 30 million Americans — at the one-of-a-kind event. By comparison, a Republican plan would only help 3 million more. But during a time of ballooning deficits, the GOP figures reining in rising medical costs — not coverage — could resonate with voters in an election year.... - AP, 2-18-10
• Obama says stimulus bill averted deeper economic crisis A year later, he repudiates GOP criticism: President Obama hailed the success of his much-debated $787 billion stimulus legislation yesterday, saying the one-year-old program has created or saved 2 million jobs and helped prevent a second Great Depression.
  "No large expenditure is ever that popular, particularly at a time when we are also facing a massive deficit," the president said."Our work is far from over, but we have rescued this economy from the worst of this crisis. The American people are rebuilding a better future. We will continue to support their efforts."
  And he made fun of GOP lawmakers who he said were unsure whether to clap last month when, during his State of the Union speech, Obama recounted the tax cuts in the act."They were all kind of squirming in their seats," he said.... - Boston Globe, 2-17-10
• Second Tea Party Convention Planned for Vegas in July: Fresh off a convention just a few weeks ago, Tea Party organizers on Wednesday announced another national convention, and this time they're going to invade Las Vegas from July 15-17 with their message of lower taxes and smaller government.... - Fox News, 2-17-10
• Stimulus funds going to slashed programs: More than $3.5 billion in economic stimulus funds are going to programs that President Obama wants to eliminate or trim in his new budget. The president's budget released this month recommends getting rid of Army Corps of Engineers' drinking-water projects, which got $200 million in stimulus funds, and a U.S. Department of Agriculture flood-prevention program, which received $290 million from the stimulus, a USA TODAY review of stimulus spending reports show.... - USA Today, 2-17-10
• Obama pledges $8 billion for new nuclear reactors: The move represents a new federal commitment to the low-carbon-emitting, but highly controversial, sector long championed by Republicans. Environmentalists voice concern.... - LAT, 2-16-10

ELECTIONS 2010, 2012....

• Illinois Republicans see unique chance for victory: The last decade was lousy for Illinois Republicans. They lost a Senate seat, their party's last governor went to prison and they were shut out of every statewide office. But the recent surprise win by Scott Brown in the Massachusetts Senate race and a string of setbacks for Illinois Democrats have Republicans giddy about their chances to claim the next big election prizes: President Barack Obama's old Senate seat and ousted Gov. Rod Blagojevich's old job. Republicans have reason to feel confident. This year's races are likely to be fought against the backdrop of Blagojevich's corruption trial — a point Republicans are sure to belabor — and Illinois' finances are in shambles, with the state deficit likely to reach $13 billion this year.... - AP, 2-17-10
• Elections' Stakes: Control of Senate Retirements, Voter Ire Make GOP Majority a Possibility: Lawmakers in both parties are contemplating for the first time the possibility that the Republicans might recapture the Senate this year, though it's an uphill climb in which the GOP would have to win states that have recently been inhospitable to the party. Republicans' prospects are surging, driven by an electorate deeply dissatisfied with Washington, the economy and incumbents. And the surprise retirement announcement from Sen. Evan Bayh (D., Ind.) Monday on the heels of a host of other bad news for Democrats is prompting party leaders to take a fresh look at the Senate landscape. Because Democrats hold a 59-41 voting majority in the Senate, Republicans would have to gain 10 new seats and retain all of their own to gain control.... - WSJ, 2-16-10

POLITICAL QUOTES

• Powell: We Are Not Less Safe Under Obama Disputes Critics' Charges That Current Admin's Actions Compromise National Security, But Says U.S."Still at Risk": Claims that the United States is less safe under President Obama are not credible, former Secretary of State Colin Powell said on"Face the Nation" Sunday.
  "The point is made, 'We don't waterboard anymore or use extreme interrogation techniques.' Most of those extreme interrogation techniques and waterboarding were done away with in the Bush administration," Powell said."They've been made officially done away with in this current administration."
  "The Transportation Security Administration created by George Bush is still in action working in our airports; they take care of me every day that I go to an airport," Powell told moderator Bob Schieffer.
  The Office of the Director of National Intelligence was also created under President Bush,"and it is still under President Obama working hard," he said."Our counterterrorism authorities and forces are hard at work. Our law enforcement officials are hard at work. We have gone after the enemy in Afghanistan with 50,000 more troops, more predators are striking al Qaeda and Taliban leaders in Pakistan. We have continued the policies that President Bush put in place with respect to Iraq.
  "The bottom line answer is the nation is still at risk. Terrorists are out there. They're trying to get through. But to suggest that somehow we have become much less safer because of the actions of the administration, I don't think that's borne out by the facts," Powell said. CBS, 2-21-10
• Weekly Address: President Obama Says it is Time to Move Forward on Health Care Reform Remarks of President Barack Obama Weekly Address February 20, 2010:
  And as bad as things are today, they'll only get worse if we fail to act. We’ll see more and more Americans go without the coverage they need. We’ll see exploding premiums and out-of-pocket costs burn through more and more family budgets. We'll see more and more small businesses scale back benefits, drop coverage, or close down because they can’t keep up with rising rates. And in time, we'll see these skyrocketing health care costs become the single largest driver of our federal deficits.
  That’s what the future is on track to look like. But it's not what the future has to look like. The question, then, is whether we will do what it takes, all of us – Democrats and Republicans – to build a better future for ourselves, our children, and our country.
  That's why, next week, I am inviting members of both parties to take part in a bipartisan health care meeting, and I hope they come in a spirit of good faith. I don’t want to see this meeting turn into political theater, with each side simply reciting talking points and trying to score political points. Instead, I ask members of both parties to seek common ground in an effort to solve a problem that’s been with us for generations.... - WH, 2-20-10

HISTORIANS & ANALYSTS' COMMENTS

• Historians say that Obama's chance to be next FDR or Reagan fading fast: "He's tried, but to this point, he's failed," said George Edwards, a scholar of the presidency at Texas A&M University."He got things done, but they're not the historic things that are transformational."...
  "I wouldn't call it transformative because it's short-term," said Edwards."It's ephemeral and it's designed to be ephemeral. And, there's no support for doing it again."... - McClatchy Newspapers (2-16-10)
• Historians say that Obama's chance to be next FDR or Reagan fading fast: "If he doesn't get significant health care reform, it's going to be very difficult to accomplish much domestically in the remaining three years of his term," said Richard Shenkman, an historian at George Mason University in Virginia.
  "He'll have the Carter problem. Members of Congress will have taken very hard votes on this, and if there's no payoff, they're going to look out for themselves and abandon him and his leadership."
  Said Shenkman:"If I were making bets at this point, aside from his election, I would very much doubt that he's going to be much of a transformative figure.".... - McClatchy Newspapers (2-16-10)
• Julian Zelizer: Obama can model Ike in fighting off GOP hawks: ...When Obama campaigned, he emphasized the importance of diplomacy and multilateralism -- working through international alliances and institutions -- as well as the need to re-establish stronger respect for civil liberties in counterterrorism policy.
  He has also called for more investment in domestic programs to prevent bioterrorism and to improve intelligence officials' foreign language skills, particularly in Arabic. Unless he has drastically changed his positions, there is a path for sticking with his principles. As a model, President Obama could turn to a Republican predecessor, Dwight Eisenhower, who served in the White House from 1953 to 1961. Nicknamed Ike, he remains one of the most popular presidents in American history.... - CNN, 2-16-10
• Obama as campaigner in chief: Will his record improve?: On the road in Colorado and Nevada, Obama looks to boost embattled Democrats after similar bids failed in New Jersey, Virginia, and Massachusetts."He has to pick his spots," says Julian Zelizer, a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University."He can’t afford that many campaigns where he’s not seen as having clout, because that just resonates toward the Republicans.".... - CS Monitor, 2-20-10
• Obama and Reid forge bond beyond politics as usual: Julian Zelizer, a Princeton University professor who writes about U.S. politics, sees a bleak landscape ahead."The honeymoon is over, and it is possible the divorce is about to begin," Zelizer said."This has been an incredibly strained relationship. In general, there is a perception that the Senate has not delivered. President Obama has proposed, the House has passed and the Senate has stalled." - Las Vegas Sun, 2-18-10