Capitol View: July 24, 2012 Archive

The Daily Digest

Posted at 6:30 AM on July 24, 2012 by Catharine Richert
Filed under: Daily Digest

Welcome to the Daily Digest, where Michael Brodkorb has filed a lawsuit claiming wrongful termination, Paulsen comes out against Bachmann's Muslim Brotherhood comments, and the presidential candidates resume their attacks.

Around Minnesota

Michael Brodkorb has filed a lawsuit against the state Senate, the state of Minnesota and the Senate's top administrator.

Read the lawsuit here.

Republican House Speaker Kurt Zellers is backing Cindy Pugh over House GOP incumbent Steve Smith of Mound, in the August 14 primary.

The Dayton administration is seeking an independent review into how the state set payment rates for Medicaid HMOs during the Pawlenty administration.

RNC Chair Reince Priebus spoke to the Elephant Club at the Minneapolis Hilton.

In Washington

Republican Rep. Erik Paulsen disputes Rep. Michele Bachmann's remarks about the Muslim Brotherhood.

But other Republicans still decline to weigh-in on her comments.

Facing the worst drought in decades, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Congress must pass a farm bill that reinstates expired disaster programs.

President Barack Obama signed DFL Rep. Tim Walz's Veterans Skills to Jobs bill.

Around the Nation

ProPublica has an FAQ on voter ID laws.

The Senate Campaign

U.S. Senate hopeful Rep. Kurt Bills is will be attending a fundraiser held by Ron and Rand Paul in the D.C. area today.

The Presidential Campaign

Norm Coleman is at the center of the fundraising and strategy for the 2012 elections, Roll Call writes.

The Washington Post Fact-Checker looks at a new Mitt Romney ad and finds that it took President Barack Obama's comments about businesses relying on government out of context.

ABC reports that the star of the ad received millions in government loans and contracts.

Romney's Salt Lake City Olympics archives are still off-limits.

In the wake of the Colorado shootings, Obama and Romney haven't changed course on gun issues.

Obama criticized Romney over foreign affairs issues.

A new poll shows that undecided voters are becoming a smaller and smaller group.

The Daily Digest (Fed ponders stimulus, Farm Bill fiasco, Scrutiny of Bachmann continues, Dayton hires top aide)

Posted at 10:11 PM on July 24, 2012 by Tom Scheck
Filed under: Daily Digest

The Federal Reserve is leaning toward a new stimulus if no economic growth is seen.

The CBO says the Supreme Court ruling cuts the cost of the health-care law but leaves 3 million more uninsured.

GOP House Speaker John Boehner may be working faster than Ag Committee members when it comes to getting a Farm Bill passed. GOP leaders are working to get a bill passed to help vulnerable members in swing farm districts.

The House will vote on a bill today that would audit the Federal Reserve.

The Senate is poised to vote on the Bush-era Tax Cuts today.

The House acts to stop rules for child labor on farms.

A GOP Regulation bill suffers a major typo. The mistake is that they took the "un" out of unemployment.

Some members of Congress are open to a national internet sales tax bill.

A Senate committee ponders whether existing cable laws make sense.

DFL Rep. Keith Ellison is calling for "reasonable" gun controls after Colorado shootings.

Bachmann
Frank Bruni with the New York Times questions how Bachmann can sling unsubstantiated stones and call herself a Christian.

The Fix says GOP Rep. Bachmann has "jumped the shark."

The Muslim Brotherhood characterized Bachmann's comments as ridiculous. One member even suggested that the organization couldn't even infiltrate the Egyptian government.

The Worthington Daily Globe says Bachmann needs a "time-out from Congress" in an op-ed.

The Hill says Bachmann is one of the "50 most beautiful people" in Washington.

Under the Dome

Minnesota has slid to fifth on a list of children who lack health insurance.

Gov. Dayton hired Jaime Tincher as his Deputy Chief of Staff. Tincher, who ran Margaret Anderson Kelliher's campaign for governor in 2010 and currently works for DFL House Minority Leader Paul Thissen, will direct Dayton's policy and legislative affairs.

AP says the Minnesota GOP sex scandal causes a political hazard.

A judge says the Minnesota Sex Offender suit can be a class action.

Bill Clinton will headline a memorial dedication for Hubert Humphrey.

Race for Congress
Republican Mike Parry increased his attacks on Republican Allen Quist.

Roll Call says Minnesota's 8th District is a toss-up and Minnesota's 2nd District is "Likely Republican."

Race for Senate
The Fraternal Order of Police is backing DFL Sen. Amy Klobuchar.

Race for President

A Wall St. Journal/NBC News poll shows President Obama leading Mitt Romney but it's close (like every other poll).

The poll also finds that negative campaigning is hurting both candidates.

A new Pew poll says a majority of Americans already know enough about the candidates.

Mitt Romney accused Obama of classified material leaks. He also criticized Obama for automatic spending cuts to defense spending through sequestration. AP says Romney ignored the fact that Congressional Republicans also supported those cuts.

Romney's adviser who criticized President Obama on leaks was involved in the Scooter Libby scandal.

Million-dollar donors account for nearly half of GOP super PAC fundraising.

The Atlantic ponders whether the Jewish vote is up for grabs.

New York Magazine says President Obama's job creation numbers would be better if Romney's own standards were implemented.

Romney's campaign is holding dozens of "You didn't build that" events across the country to criticize President Obama.

Obama released an ad reacting to Romney's hit on "You didn't build that."