Immigration Reform
Immigration reform is moving from the Senate Judiciary Committee to the full Senate. "A Senate committee approved a sweeping immigration reform bill Tuesday that would provide a path to citizenship for up to 11 million illegal immigrants, setting the stage for the full Senate to consider the landmark legislation ... The Judiciary Committee voted 13 to 5 in support of the bill, with three Republicans joining the committee’s 10 Democrats. The legislation emerged with its core provisions largely intact, including new visa programs for high-tech and low-skilled workers and new investments in strengthening border control." David Nakamura in the Washington Post.
The Hatch compromise amendment on H-1B policy passed. "Mr. Hatch’s amendment, which reflects the compromise he reached after lengthy negotiations led by Mr. Schumer, raises the minimum number of visas annually for high-skilled foreign workers — known as H-1B visas — to 115,000, from 110,000 in the bill, while keeping the maximum at 180,000 a year. More important ... his provision includes a mechanism based on conditions in the labor market, intended to ensure that companies based in the United States can bring in qualified foreign workers when jobs are not filled by Americans, but decreases visas when they are." Ashley Parker and Julia Preston in the New York Times.
And the Hatch amendment is evidence of Congress working the way it's supposed to. "If this were the health care bill, the way it would have played out would have been that Hatch would be unable to get 100 percent of what he wanted and then that would have become a key talking point of his over why he can't support the law. What happened instead is that Hatch and Durbin struck a compromise ... It's an important bellwether, and it shows that so far senators are working together constructively on 'getting to yes' rather than finding reasons to block the process." Matthew Yglesias at Slate.
Meanwhile, the Leahy amendment went down in flames. "Shortly before the final vote, the panel's chairman, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D., Vt.) reluctantly opted not to demand a vote on his amendment extending immigration rights to same-sex couples, bowing to bipartisan concern that including that provision would sink the bill. ... Gay-rights groups expressed disappointment that supporters of same-sex marriage didn't force opponents to vote on an issue they said has growing public approval." Kristina Peterson in the Wall Street Journal.
But the fight isn't over. "Senate Democrats on the Judiciary Committee ... yanked provisions out of the immigration reform bill that would extend immigration rights to gay married couples ... But this battle is not necessarily over. ... Democratic aides expect Senator Patrick Leahy ... to reintroduce one or both of those amendments at some point, when the immigration bill is on the Senate floor. For Republicans, apparently, immigration reform is completely unacceptable if it is extended to gays. ... Senate Democrats say they believed the threats, which is why they pulled the LGBT amendments." Greg Sargent at the Plum Line.
Graham's terrorism amendment is bad news. "Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) added an amendment requiring additional screening for immigrants ... the Graham amendment mandates additional review for those who are from 'a region or country known to pose a threat, or that contains groups or organizations that pose a threat, to the national security of the United States.' If the State Department list were to ultimately serve as the guide ... Graham's amendment might apply to an exceptionally broad class of applicants. The list ... catalogues 52 organizations operating in dozens of countries, including many not ordinarily associated with terrorism." Ty McCormick at Foreign Policy.
Graham's terrorism amendment is bad news. "Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) added an amendment requiring additional screening for immigrants ... the Graham amendment mandates additional review for those who are from 'a region or country known to pose a threat, or that contains groups or organizations that pose a threat, to the national security of the United States.' If the State Department list were to ultimately serve as the guide ... Graham's amendment might apply to an exceptionally broad class of applicants. The list ... catalogues 52 organizations operating in dozens of countries, including many not ordinarily associated with terrorism." Ty McCormick at Foreign Policy.
For the House, it's all about healthcare. "House immigration negotiators have given themselves until the end of the week to hash out language on what kind of health benefits should be available to undocumented immigrants seeking U.S. citizenship, a crucial issue for the talks. If they can’t resolve this issue ... immigration negotiations could come to a crashing halt." Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan at Politico.
Fiscal Fights
The Budget
Budget fights aren't just for Democrats and Republicans. They're for Republicans and Republicans. "Long-simmering divisions among Republicans burst into public view ... when GOP moderates challenged tea-party conservatives on the Senate floor over their refusal to proceed to formal negotiations with Democrats over the federal budget." Lori Montgomery in the Washington Post.
Pretty absurd, if you ask me. Or Senator McCain. "When Senate Democrats agreed and passed a budget plan ... GOP officials did a 180-degree turn, insisting on behind-closed-doors talks to negotiate what could be included in the negotiations. Specifically, Republicans are afraid the budget talks might include a debt-ceiling increase ... Even McCain finds all of this absurd. 'What [do] we on my side of the aisle keep doing?' ... 'We don't want a budget unless -- unless -- we put requirements on the conferees that are absolutely out of line and unprecedented.' McCain added that the Republican position on budget talks is 'a little bit bizarre.'" Steve Benen at Maddowblog.
More incorrect talking points. "Sen. Rand Paul is still using an obsolete GOP talking point that Roll Call debunked back in March — and since then, he’s only gotten more wrong. 'We are now borrowing $40,000 a second. We are borrowing $4 billion a day,' the Kentucky Republican said on the Senate floor ... Neither figure is accurate. Indeed, the latest Congressional Budget Office estimates show the deficit dropping to $642 billion this year — or less than $1.8 billion a day and about $21,000 a second." Steven Dennis at Roll Call.
Pretty absurd, if you ask me. Or Senator McCain. "When Senate Democrats agreed and passed a budget plan ... GOP officials did a 180-degree turn, insisting on behind-closed-doors talks to negotiate what could be included in the negotiations. Specifically, Republicans are afraid the budget talks might include a debt-ceiling increase ... Even McCain finds all of this absurd. 'What [do] we on my side of the aisle keep doing?' ... 'We don't want a budget unless -- unless -- we put requirements on the conferees that are absolutely out of line and unprecedented.' McCain added that the Republican position on budget talks is 'a little bit bizarre.'" Steve Benen at Maddowblog.
The Deficit
More incorrect talking points. "Sen. Rand Paul is still using an obsolete GOP talking point that Roll Call debunked back in March — and since then, he’s only gotten more wrong. 'We are now borrowing $40,000 a second. We are borrowing $4 billion a day,' the Kentucky Republican said on the Senate floor ... Neither figure is accurate. Indeed, the latest Congressional Budget Office estimates show the deficit dropping to $642 billion this year — or less than $1.8 billion a day and about $21,000 a second." Steven Dennis at Roll Call.
The Sequester
The impact of the sequester - Head Start edition. "Head Start ... is at capacity but a lack of funds for expansion, partly because of sequestration, means ... 70,000 children nationally who would have been served by Head Start will not have access to the program by the end of the year. ... The majority of Head Start students come from low-income families and about 10 percent of enrolled students have special needs. ... Head Start is funded through a mix of federal, state and county dollars, but the uncertainty generated by sequestration has left the program’s expansion unfunded in the Fiscal Year 2014 budget." William Callahan at Reston Patch.
The impact of the sequester - National Weather service edition. "One thing ... that shouldn’t be up for debate is whether or not we should be as prepared as possible for inevitable weather events ... but there’s an increasing chance that we will not be, thanks to the manufactured crisis known as sequestration. ... A letter from the U.S. Secretary of Commerce put it bluntly: 'The government runs the risk of significantly increasing forecast error, and the government’s ability to warn Americans across the country about high impact weather events, such as hurricanes and tornadoes, will be compromised.'" David Sirota at Salon.
The impact of the sequester - FEMA edition. "Due to the massive cuts brought on by sequestration, the disaster relief section of FEMA's budget will lose $1 billion this year. Following the devastation from Hurricane Sandy earlier this year, FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate said FEMA's Disaster Relief Fund would pay out a total of $10.8 billion to storm victims by the end of the fiscal year. That would leave $2.5 billion in its disaster fund for the rest of the year." Matt Vasilogambros at the Atlantic.
The impact of the sequester - scientific research edition. "Less visible ... is the harm to our economic growth that will result from drastic across-the-board sequestration cuts to agencies that support scientific research. These cuts would severely damage the work being done at scientific agencies including the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science, National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology — all of which fund cutting-edge research that have led to discoveries that improved our quality of life, strengthened national security and enhanced economic growth." James Kakalios in the Minnesota Post.
Middle East
Afghanistan
The Karzai presidency is coming to a close. "President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan said Wednesday that there was 'no circumstance that will allow me to stay as president.' ... Elections are scheduled for April of next year, and American and European officials say privately that billions of dollars of aid on which Afghanistan depends would be jeopardized if the vote does not go ahead." Doug Mataconis at Outside the Beltway.Iran
Iran's nuclear program is still chugging along. "The latest report from the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog shows that Iran continues to process nuclear fuel, it is making sure to keep its total amount low enough to not cross Israel’s so-called 'red-line.'" Hayes Brown at Think Progress.
Ayatollah Khamenei is maintaining his influence over the candidates for the upcoming presidential election. "Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s preferred successor, Esfandiar Rahim Mashai, will not be running in the June 14 election. Neither will former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. The disqualification of both sends a strong message from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei. Simply put, Khamenei will not tolerate any diminution of his power, and he is determined to avoid the type of friction that has characterized his relationships with previous presidents, particularly Ahmadinejad." Mehdi Khalaji at Project Syndicate.
Syria
The chemical weapons investigation continues. "The State Department is working behind the scenes to identify medical professionals who have evidence of chemical weapons use in Syria and is planning to help move them out of the country to meet with United Nations investigators ... The U.N. team tasked with investigating alleged uses of chemical weapons inside Syria has not been able to enter the country because of a dispute over access with the regime of Bashar al-Assad, so the State Department is bringing the medical professionals and physiological samples taken from victims of the attacks to them." Josh Rogin at the Daily Beast.
Syrian peace talks are running into a problem. "Secretary of State John Kerry's goal of bringing the Syrian rebels and the Assad regime to the negotiating table next month has hit a major snag. ... Gen. Salim Idris, the commander of the rebels' Supreme Military Council, says that the United States must establish 'strategic military balance' between the rebels and Assad as a precondition to any peace talks. The demand requires anti-aircraft and anti-tank weaponry such as 90 mm rockets, recoilless rifles, and ideally man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS)." John Hudson at the Cable.
If anyone can negotiate a peace deal, it's Lakhdar Brahimi. "UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon ... will turn over the work of mediation to Brahimi, a veteran diplomatic trouble shooter who has negotiated peace deals in Iraq and Afghanistan. ... Brahimi's goal is to gain support for the implementation of the June 2012 Geneva action plan, which outlined a roadmap for a political transition to a provisional government with full executive powers in Damascus. The Geneva pact -- which was backed by Russia and the United States -- represents the most important big-power agreement on a plan to resolve the conflict." Colum Lynch at Turtle Bay.
German Intelligence now believes Assad is making a comeback. "The situation has changed dramatically, the BND believes. ... Assad's troops once again possess effective supply lines to ensure sufficient quantities of weapons and other materiel. Fuel supplies for tanks and military aircraft, which had proved troublesome, are once again available ... The new situation allows Assad's troops to combat spontaneous rebel attacks and even retake positions that were previously lost. The BND does not believe that Assad's military is strong enough to defeat the rebels, but it can do enough to improve its position in the current stalemate." Matthias Gebauer at Spiegel.
If anyone can negotiate a peace deal, it's Lakhdar Brahimi. "UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon ... will turn over the work of mediation to Brahimi, a veteran diplomatic trouble shooter who has negotiated peace deals in Iraq and Afghanistan. ... Brahimi's goal is to gain support for the implementation of the June 2012 Geneva action plan, which outlined a roadmap for a political transition to a provisional government with full executive powers in Damascus. The Geneva pact -- which was backed by Russia and the United States -- represents the most important big-power agreement on a plan to resolve the conflict." Colum Lynch at Turtle Bay.
German Intelligence now believes Assad is making a comeback. "The situation has changed dramatically, the BND believes. ... Assad's troops once again possess effective supply lines to ensure sufficient quantities of weapons and other materiel. Fuel supplies for tanks and military aircraft, which had proved troublesome, are once again available ... The new situation allows Assad's troops to combat spontaneous rebel attacks and even retake positions that were previously lost. The BND does not believe that Assad's military is strong enough to defeat the rebels, but it can do enough to improve its position in the current stalemate." Matthias Gebauer at Spiegel.
The next Mideast war? "Israel is prepared to attack Syria to prevent advanced weapons reaching jihadi rebels or Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon if President Bashar al-Assad is toppled, Israel's air force chief said on Wednesday. Major-General Amir Eshel also said Israelis should brace for a protracted and painful conflict should their forces engage in combat with Hezbollah or its main backer, Iran." Dan Williams at Reuters.
Politics
The Economy
Bernanke to Congress: You're the problem here. "Ben Bernanke ,,, the Federal Reserve chairman has a message for lawmakers: You’re the reason the economy isn’t taking off more. Of course, Bernanke is too polite to phrase things quite so bluntly. But to anyone versed in Fedspeak, that’s the gist of his message. Even as state and local governments are becoming less of a drag on growth, Bernanke says in his prepared testimony before the Joint Economic Committee, 'fiscal policy at the federal level has become significantly more restrictive.'" Neil Irwin at Wonkblog.
Filibuster Fights
The Cordray nomination will set up the filibuster fight for July. "The likelihood of a knockdown fight over the filibuster this summer increased ... as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) pulled back a vote on the confirmation of Richard Cordray to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Cordray is a contentious nominee because 43 Republicans have demanded changes to ... the CFPB before they will approve any nominee to run it. That means Republicans can deny Democrats the 60 votes needed to begin debate ... Reid indicated ... he would bring Cordray's nomination to a vote in July ... at a time when Reid is ready to launch into a broader fight over all of Obama's stalled nominees." Ryan Grim and Jennifer Bendery at the Huffington Post.
But Cordray isn't the only red line for Reid. "This ... amounts to the sharpest line yet drawn by Reid. ... The current threat comes very close to saying that if Republicans obstruct Cordray — and others, such as Gina McCarthy to head the EPA, and Thomas Perez as Labor Secretary — then Reid will push the nuke button. ... If the GOP blocks those nominations, the pressure on Reid to press the button will get very intense indeed. Major Democratic constituencies (labor, environmentalists) have a big stake in these nominees, and the consumer protection bureau represents a major component of one of Obama’s signature domestic initiatives — Wall Street reform." Greg Sargent at the Plum Line.
Judicial wars are coming. "The biggest piece of President Obama’s second-term agenda is his widely expected plan for the Environmental Protection Agency to issue new carbon regulations for power plants ... Harry Reid is warning that, unless Republicans stop routinely filibustering Obama’s nominees for cabinet and judicial positions ... he will change the Senate rules to ban such filibusters ... The Republican response is more audacious. They propose not merely to continue blocking Obama’s nominees but to simply eliminate all three vacancies on the D.C. Circuit, which will hear the inevitable legal challenge to power plant regulations." Jonathan Chait at New York Magazine.
Health
Low-wage employers may be trying to get out of providing health insurance under the ACA. "When its big coverage provisions take effect in January, employers with more than 50 employees are supposed to provide real insurance—or pay a stiff penalty. But some employers and insurers may find a way to avoid facing that choice: They’d offer 'skinny' insurance, similar to the barebones policies some of them now offer, and then pay a more modest penalty. ... Different companies will undoubtedly respond in different ways, although, for the moment, administration officials say they have not seen signs many companies will really opt for the barebones approach." Jonathan Cohn at the New Republic.
Oklahoma
Welcome to the desert of the conspiracy theorists. "It took less than 48 hours for the truthers to furiously accuse the White House ... of creating the tornado itself. ... The conspiracy theory of the moment goes something like this: The Obama administration is being asked how much they knew about three apparent scandals — Benghazi, the IRS, the Justice Department's double leak investigations — and in order to make Americans think about something else, the administration manipulated the weather and created the mile-wide Moore tornado." Alexander Abad-Santos at the Atlantic Wire.
Regulation
We might see some new chemical safety laws. That hasn't happened before in my lifetime. "The current U.S. law on chemical safety is 37 years old, riddled with exceptions, and widely seen as ineffective ... Now that law could soon get a face-lift, amid growing concern that ingredients in ordinary consumer products are leading to health problems. On Wednesday, Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) announced they had reached a 'groundbreaking' agreement to revamp the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act, ending two decades of gridlock in the Senate." Brad Plumer at Wonkblog.
SCOTUSwatch
Supreme Court upholds FCC ruling on cellphone towers. "The court, by a 6-3 vote, upheld a rule adopted by the Federal Communications Commission that says cities and counties must decide within five months whether to approve an application for erecting a new wireless phone antenna." David Savage in the LA Times.
International
Africa
The report of Kenya's TRC. "Kenya's president received a long-awaited Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission report that names the president and his deputy as ... planning and financing Kenya's 2007-08 postelection violence in which more than 1,000 people died and 600,000 were evicted from their homes. President Uhuru Kenyatta and Prime Minister William Ruto already face trial at the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity charges related to the election violence ... Kenya's state security agencies ... have been the main perpetrators of human rights violations, including massacres, enforced disappearances, torture and sexual violence, the report said." Tom Odula at the Associated Press.
The WHO has found new cases of polio in Africa. "The World Health Organization says the Horn of Africa is experiencing an outbreak of polio with cases confirmed in Kenya and Somalia. ... In response, a vaccination campaign reaching 440,000 children began May 14 in Somalia. A second round of vaccinations is planned and will include parts of Kenya. WHO said the risk to neighboring countries is very high due to population movements." AP.
Asia
This is a pleasant surprise. "The battle against global warming has received a transformational boost after China, the world's biggest producer of carbon dioxide, proposed to set a cap on its greenhouse gas emissions for the first time." Tom Bawden at the Independent.
South America
Argentina is going after former Ford executives. "Three former Ford Motor Co. executives were charged Tuesday with crimes against humanity for allegedly targeting Argentine union workers for kidnapping and torture after the country's 1976 military coup. All three men are now in their 80s. Their case is part of a new wave of prosecutions focusing on corporate support for the dictators who ran Argentina in 1976-1983, and the 150-page indictment written by Judge Alicia Vence reads like a history lesson, going to considerable lengths to explain why their actions constitute crimes against humanity and why it has taken nearly four decades to result in criminal charges." Michael Warren at the Associated Press.
Military
More scandals, more problems. "An Army sergeant has been charged with secretly photographing and videotaping at least a dozen women at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, including in a bathroom. The Army said Wednesday that Sgt. 1st Class Michael McClendon is facing charges of dereliction of duty, mistreatment, entering a women's bathroom without notice, and taking and possessing inappropriate photos and videos of women." Lolita Baldor at the Associated Press.
Science
Baby saved by a 3-D printer! "Her son had a rare obstruction in his lungs called bronchial malacia. ... With hopes dimming that Kaiba would survive, doctors tried the medical equivalent of a 'Hail Mary' pass. Using an experimental technique never before tried on a human, they created a splint made out of biological material that effectively carved a path through Kaiba's blocked airway. What makes this a medical feat straight out of science fiction: The splint was created on a three-dimensional printer." Stephanie Smith at CNN.
A new dig in Bahrain has unearthed one of the world's oldest civilizations. "Dilmun, one of the most important ancient civilisations of the region and said to date to the third millennium BC, was a hub on a major trading route between Mesopotamia - the world's oldest civilisation - and the Indus Valley in South Asia. ... On the northern tip of the island, archaeological expeditions have uncovered seven successive levels of settlements at the Qal'at al Bahrain (the fort of Bahrain). Under the oldest and most extensive fort, three consecutive Dilmun cities as well as a Greek city dating back to 200 BC have been unearthed." Sylvia Smith at BBC.
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