Good morning folks,
“I don’t think that the president actually thinks we have a fiscal crisis,” Paul Ryan said on NBC’s “Meet The Press” in his first live interview since the 2012 presidential campaign, when he was Mitt Romney’s running mate. “He’s been reportedly saying to our leaders that we don’t have a spending problem, we have a healthcare problem. That leads me to conclude that he just thinks we ought to have more government-run healthcare and rationing.”
Chairman Ryan raises a fair point. Before we get into budget season, before arguing over spreadsheets and this billion or that billion (yes, snark intended), it would actually be interesting to learn how President Obama prioritizes the challenges facing America. For instance, does President Obama believe we have a spending problem? How about a fiscal crisis? A lingering jobs crisis? Based on his public comments it’s be hard to imagine that he does.
As the immigration reform debate shifts into gear for the first time in years, it is worth noting American’s top priorities according to Pew Research:
- 86% say imporving economy,
- 79% say improving jobs situtation,
- 72% say reducing deficit tops,
- 71% say defending from terrorism
- 70% say making Social Security financially sound
- 65% say making Medicare financially sound
So how about immigration? It comes in at a whopping 39% or 17th on the old list. That isn’t do say that a thoughtful approach to modernizing our immigration system for the 21st Century isn’t important, but it is worth noting that yet again under President Obama’s watch, jobs and economic growth are being put on the backburner in favor of another comprehensive overhaul. Wasn’t this this mistake of his first two years in office? Just asking.
And in case you missed it, SNL hit a grand slam with “Biden Bash.” You really need to watch it. OOOOH YEAAAH.
Seize the day,
Brad Dayspring
@BDayspring
Mark Bednar
@MarkBednar
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@brianefallon MT @AshleyRParker Immigration Week: Bipartisan gang of senators to unveil immig principles today at 2:30, in advance of Obama trip to Nevada
@DanielStrauss4 “Secretary of State Clinton holding a ‘global town hall’ at the Newseum on Tuesday.” http://bit.ly/W8EPuV
@MailOnline: Man’s funeral procession stops at Burger King drive-thru so he can get one last Whopper Jr.
@TheAtlantic. “The NFL’s Response to Brain Trauma: A timeline by @tanehisi and @malcolmburnley http://theatln.tc/WVNspR”
@ByronTau. “I will not livetweet how bad Amtrak wifi is. I will not livetweet how bad Amtrak wifi is. I will not livetweet how bad Amtrak wifi is.”
@EsquireMag. “Why is everyone on Downton Abbey dying? A theory: http://esqm.ag/6018V4BO”
On The Radar
Economic Growth
Piling On: The Year In Regulation. “Despite a pronounced regulatory slowdown before Election Day, regulators still managed to add $236.7 billion in regulations.”
The Urgency Of Growth. “If you care about deficits, you should want our economy to grow faster. If you care about lifting up the poor and reducing unemployment, you should want our economy to grow faster. And if you are a committed capitalist and hope to make more money, you should want our economy to grow faster.”
Mort Zuckerman: Enduring an economic ‘Long Misery,’ American hope has turned into despair: There are no mysteries here. We simply must invest more in our decaying infrastructure and our education system at all levels. We must re-conceptualize immigration as a recruiting tool. We have a history of national consensus, and in moments of crisis, of finding a leader who fits Harry Truman’s definition: “a man who has the ability to get other people to do what they don’t want to do and like it.”
What’s Next For The National Labor Relations Board? “A federal appeals court on Friday ruled that President Obama exceeded his constitutional authority with three appointments to the National Labor Relations Board while the Senate was on break last year.”
Ryan Says Obama Ignores Fiscal Woes To Fight Republicans. “’I don’t think that the president thinks that we actually have a fiscal crisis,’ he said. ‘He’s been reportedly saying to our leaders that we don’t have a spending problem, we have a health care problem. That just leads me to conclude that he actually thinks we just need more government-run health care.’”
Immigration
MUST READ: Immigration Reform Preview: ….Whatever happens, it will play out in a big way. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has designated immigration legislation with the bill number S.1, a signal the bill is the top Senate priority. (He did the same thing for Obama’s health care bill.) The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to begin crafting it in February. It should be on the Senate floor in May or June. Lengthy congressional debates of this sort are public and messy. Drafters of the bill will have their hands full keeping the amendment process from sinking the effort. The White House will need to keep up the pressure without scaring away skittish Republicans. It’s a delicate dance that has never been attempted without Kennedy.
Senators Forge Deal On Immigration Reform. “A bipartisan group of influential senators has agreed to a framework of principles to guide immigration reform, paving the way for a comprehensive overhaul of immigration laws in the next year.”
Seeking Workers, Wisconsin Dairy Farmers Call For Immigration Reform. “The dairy industry says it will push hard this year for immigration law reform that would allow foreign workers to be employed on farms year-round and could give them a pathway to permanent jobs in whatever industries they choose.”
Health Care
Consumer Alert: New health Care Markets On The Way. “Obama’s law is called the Affordable Care Act, but some people in the new markets might experience sticker shock over their premiums. Smokers will face a financial penalty. Younger, well-to-do people who haven’t seen the need for health insurance may not be eligible for income-based assistance with their premiums.”
A Flood Of Suits Fights Coverage Of Birth Control. “As applied by the Health and Human Services Department, the law offers an exemption for ‘religious employers,’ meaning those who meet a four-part test: that their purpose is to inculcate religious values, that they primarily employ and serve people who share their religious tenets, and that they are nonprofit groups under federal tax law. But many institutions, including religious schools and colleges, do not meet those criteria because they employ and teach members of other religions and have a broader purpose than inculcating religious values.”
N.J. Medical Community Tepid On Medicaid Expansion. “The decision is a big one for each state government to make under President Barack Obama’s 2010 overhaul of health insurance laws. Originally, states were going to be required to expand Medicaid, the joint state-federal insurance programs for low-income people, or face penalties.”
X-Factor
Iran Cracks Down On Media Before Election. “Iranian authorities have arrested more than a dozen journalists in the past two days over their links to ‘anti-revolutionary’ media, Iranian media reported, in what appeared to be a coordinated crackdown on the press.”
This & That
Focused on the Big Stuff: Chuck Schumer Demands Apology From Beyonce for Lip-Syncing
MLB Rule Change Eliminates A Fake Pickoff.
College Fix: Polls Find Disdain for Race Based Admission Policies
SAG Awards: Who Rocked the Red Carpet (And Who Didn’t)
Papa John’s PR People In Crisis Mode Over ObamaCare Comments
Barnes & Noble to Cut 30% of Stores