It has been one week since the Democratic Debate. Congress is back in Washington as the Speaker Race continues to heat up and as a number of pressing deadlines are before it. It includes a raise in the Debt Ceiling along with a permanent budget. The GOP fight is continuing especially as the testimony of Hillary Rodham Clinton comes up in a few days.
Our team worked on a full snapshot of some of the coverage and analysis over the past week. We begin with this from one of the Conservative sites noting how the outgoing Speaker will faciltiate the raising of the debt ceiling to avoid potential downgardes of the full faith and credit of the United States:
Boehner likely to give Obama debt ceiling increase before he leaves Congress
House Speaker John Boehner is signaling that he'll move must-do legislation to increase the government's borrowing cap before he leaves Capitol Hill.
The second interesting point was on the comments by Senator Sanders during the Democratic Debate on what the United States should do to transform the way it does business. This guidance underscored what should be done first courtesy of FEE.COM:
|
As we were assessing the "broad view", our team saw this on what Government Employees must know Courtesy of Government Executive:
Candidates touch on veterans' issues, family leave and NSA surveillance.
This was the "afteraction" report courtesy of the Daily 202 that James Hohman of the Washington Post puts out daily which we found to be quite interesting read:
Hillary Clinton celebrates after Bernie Sanders declares that, “The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails.” (Reuters/Lucy Nicholson)
— Hillary Rodham Clinton was the only candidate on stage last night who looked like a plausible president. She had gravitas and filled the stage, while her four rivals came across as unelectable, unserious or both. In short, she solidified her status as the Democratic front-runner. Clinton’s strong performance will, at least temporarily, quiet doubts among party elites and make it less likely that Joe Biden enters the race.
The conventional wisdom among Washington elites that this was a T.K.O for HRC cemented overnight. This morning’s clips are, by far, the best Clinton has enjoyed all year. From nonpartisan reporters to thought leaders across the spectrum, there was a near consensus that Hillary won.
- The Post’s Karen Tumulty, in an A1 analysis, says that Hillary’s self-assured performance “showed that she remains the person to beat.”
- “Clinton makes convincing case” is the all-caps banner onCNN.com.
- Liberal activist Van Jones on CNN: “Hillary Clinton was Beyonce. She was flawless.”
- Conservative Post columnist Charles Krauthammer on Fox News: “She was competent. She wasn’t afraid. She was aggressive.”
- New York Times columnist Frank Bruni: “I never doubted that Hillary Clinton had many talents. I just didn’t know that seamstress was among them. There were moments … when she threaded the needle as delicately and perfectly as a politician could.”
- New Republic senior editor Brian Beutler: “Clinton staked out the sweet spot between aspirational and pragmatic politics, when she dubbed herself ‘a progressive, but…a progressive who likes to get things done.’”
- Vox.com editor-in-chief Ezra Klein: “Clinton reminded a lot of Democrats that they want her debating the GOP nominee next year.”
- Mother Jones Washington editor David Corn: “HRC folks should hope for a Clinton-Bush general. Compare her performance to his.”
- The Atlantic’s James Fallows: “HRC had her best two hours of the past two years.”
- The Boston Globe’s Annie Linskey highlights Clinton’s disarming sense of humor: “During a commercial break, it took her longer to return to the stage from the bathroom, a fact she attributed to her gender. ‘It takes me longer,’ she said. When asked late in the debate what would distinguish a Clinton presidency from the current administration, she answered simply: She’s a woman.”
- Post columnist Dana Milbank: “Clinton was a head shorter than her rivals when they lined up on stage for Sheryl Crow’s version of the National Anthem … But after that moment, she towered over them.”
- The Fix’s Chris Cillizza: “Clinton was confident, relaxed and good-natured. … She also smartly turned at least three questions into broad-scale attacks on Republicans, effectively playing the uniter role for the party — and winning a ton of applause in the process.”
- New York Times political correspondent Jonathan Martin: “Strong night for Hillary – will calm Dem nerves & tamp down Biden buzz. She helped herself a good deal, was elevated by comparison.”
- “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd: “Clinton was easily the most polished and prepped candidate on stage. Wasn’t even close. But Sanders isn’t going anywhere.”
Joe Biden 's absence was telling. He is supposed to make a statement over the next 48 hours on his plans. This was also a take from "Daily 202" which was interesting read on this:
Hillary’s tight hug of Obama means there is less room for Biden. Mindful of a possible bid by the vice president, Clinton clearly wanted to send a message that she will aggressively compete for the Obama coalition and continue to grab for the president’s mantle. “I would have to think this would give him some pause,” longtime Obama strategist David Axelrod said of Biden after the debate.
The Liberterian's reason.com laid out the Liberterian Position on it:
The President, in the meantime, is continuing his efforts despite the headwinds of the challenges beyond America's shores. This came through under his name as he begins the challenge of trying to get the TransPacific Partnership Agreement approved:
For the past few months, we've been hard at work finalizing the Trans-Pacific Partnership -- a trade agreement that puts American workers first, helps middle-class families get ahead, and levels the playing field for American farmers, ranchers, and manufacturers.
Last week, my administration reached that agreement with 11 other countries. That's good news for the global economy, and it's good news for American families and workers.
This wasn't a sure thing -- it took an incredible amount of organizing to get here, and OFA is one of the groups that has been fighting for leadership on trade.
Over the next few months, this agreement will be discussed and debated. It's important to remember that with 95% of the world's customers outside the United States and nearly 12 million American jobs supported by exports of products made in America, we can't leave it to other nations to uphold the values we care about -- we need trade agreements with tough, enforceable environmental and labor standards.
From the day I took office, I've fought for middle-class families, and this trade deal is no different.
But it's going to take organizing to help this agreement pass -- one way to get started is to add your name with OFA to show your support:
Stay tuned -- more soon,
Barack Obama
In the meantime, there is Jeb Bush. He continues to struggle in the Polls. Ben Carson and Donald Trump continue to lead the polls--although some of the analysts have been noting that his support has "ebbed". Right now, the "flavor" of the Mainstream Media is Ted Cruz. This is as Jeb Sent out this fundraising appeal earlier:
Mike,
I know we’ve been emailing you about this sweepstakes to meet the family in Houston at the end of the month, but news just broke that made it so much better.
President George W. Bush is attending, too!
If that isn’t enough of a reason to chip in $1 right now and enter, I don’t know what is. Remember, your flight and hotel are on us.
Mike, even if you’re still undecided in this GOP presidential primary, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that you’ll be talking about 20 years from now.
Don’t miss out on meeting Jeb, Columba, President George H.W. Bush, Mrs. Barbara Bush and now President George W. Bush in Houston.
Thank you,
Team Jeb
There is also the Fundraising "race" that all have had to deal with. Jeb has raised a lot of money--but is cutting back on Spending. Ted Cruz is not spending much and has money in the bank. The Money Race will be a determining factor. Fortune released this "snapshot" over the Weekend after all the major candidates released their financials:
| October 17, 2015 |  |
|
|
|
Saturday Morning Post: The Weekly View from Washington
Hillary Clinton continues to lap her presidential rivals from both parties in fundraising, pulling in $29 million from July through September. She finished the third quarter with $33 million in the bank — $6 million ahead of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (and $20 million past the nearest GOP contender, though the money can only be spent during the primaries). But if she's sending thank-you notes, not many will have Wall Street addresses. Employees of eight of the biggest banks, for example, only pitched in $125,000 over the three-month period. That's enough to outpace her nearest-running rival, but considering Sanders is a self-described Democratic socialist who wants to break up the big banks, it isn't really saying much. And consider how Clinton's latest Wall Street haul compares to what she raised from the industry during the same period in her 2008 bid: In the third quarter of 2007, she collected more than $625,000 from the same sources, a Fortune review of federal election records shows.
Of course, a lot's changed since 2007. Then, Clinton was the junior senator from New York, representing a financial industry enjoying dizzying highs before the crash. The ensuing crisis spawned populist movements on both ends of the political spectrum that are still exerting centrifugal pull on each party's establishment. As Republicans in Washington stood athwart Wall Street reform, Democrats pushed it into law. So these days, while friction over the issue aggravates the GOP's base-establishment divide, Democrats are haggling over how far they should veer to bring the industry to heel. Clinton has tacked left, tracking her party's lurch. But her proposals, while tough — she includes a call for prosecuting executives guilty of wrongdoing and targeting so-called shadow banking, like hedge funds — wouldn't upend the industry altogether. The flight of Wall Street money from Clinton tracks a broader realignment by the sector, from 58 percent in favor of Democratic candidates in 2008 to 69 percent for Republicans in 2012. Clinton likely won't miss the money, considering the political currency she gains from her anti-Wall Street pose.
|
|
