All Monitor Breakfast
Will Syria hurt Democrats in 2014 elections? Campaign chief weighs in.Rep. Steve Israel, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, on Tuesday predicted that a potential US strike against Syria would have limited impact on the 2014 elections. Here's why.
Labor leader sees need to 'address' employers who dodge ObamacareRichard Trumka, head of the AFL-CIO, says Obamacare is largely a positive step. He is concerned about reports that some employers are cutting workers' hours to avoid having to offer health insurance.聽
Can AFL-CIO make inroads in Texas? Richard Trumka will try.For the 2014 election season, the AFL-CIO 'will be in Texas in a bigger way than we have in the past,' Richard Trumka, the organization's president, said at a Monitor breakfast Thursday.
DOE's Moniz: Even if US becomes top oil producer, oil security issues remainEnergy Secretary Ernest Moniz says US won't be insulated from oil-related security issues, even if shale oil boom makes it world's largest oil producer. Price sensitivity of oil in the global market is a reason.
Obama won't name new Fed chairman until fall, advisers sayPresident Obama 'puts more stock' in private advice than in public advice about who should replace Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, say presidential advisers Gene Sperling and Dan Pfeiffer.
Energy Secretary Moniz: 'There's no war on coal'The Department of Energy aims to push down costs for all low-carbon energy technologies, not prioritize one fuel over another, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said Thursday. The coal industry complains that the Obama administration is anti-coal.
Will gridlock ruin Obama's second term? Top advisers weigh in.President Obama can use executive action and the bully pulpit, pointed out Dan Pfeiffer and Gene Sperling at a Monitor breakfast. Another topic at the breakfast was the president's pending decision on the next Fed chair.
Moderate Republicans are marooned in their own party, poll suggestsA Democratic pollster looked into the divisions within the Republican Party. What he found, he suggests, shows that moderates are vastly outnumbered by the GOP's more conservative elements.
Why Sen. Carl Levin backs military's position on sexual-assault casesSen. Carl Levin (D), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, believes military sexual-assault cases should remain under the control of the chain of command. Many in his party disagree. What's his rationale?
Sen. Carl Levin imagines NSA phone-tracking in hands of J. Edgar HooverThe Michigan Democrat frames in vivid terms the potential for abuse of the NSA phone-surveillance program, invoking the memory of J. Edgar Hoover and his secret FBI files on public officials. But the program has pluses, too, says Sen. Carl Levin.
Pentagon girds for Senate fight over sexual assault billA bill to strip commanders of their authority in sexual assault cases has bipartisan support in the Senate. But Pentagon officials say it would make a bad situation worse.
'Major accountability issues' for IRS, Congress's tax chairmen sayThe Internal Revenue Service may need to be restructured聽after the agency was found improperly targeting conservative groups seeking nonprofit status, say聽Rep. David Camp (R) and Sen. Max Baucus (D), chairmen of congressional tax-writing committees.
Two Senate immigration reformers outline benefits to US ... and the GOPSens. Jeff Flake (R) and Michael Bennet (D), who helped craft bipartisan legislation now before the Senate, predict economic and political benefits if Congress enacts immigration reform.
Its approval rating at new low, Congress plows ahead on immigration, taxesThe approval rating for Congress has never been lower, a poll shows. Might that change as the 'the broken branch' of government makes bipartisan headway on vexing issues of immigration and tax reform?聽
IRS shakeup needed after scandal, chairmen of Congress' tax-writing panels sayThe chairmen of congressional tax writing committees say the Internal Revenue Service may need to be restructured after the agency was found improperly targeting conservative groups seeking non-profit status.
Immigration reform: Two Senate bill authors see pathway to ... passageSens. Michael Bennet (D) and Jeff Flake (R), two of the Gang of Eight immigration reformers, said Wednesday there's room to amend the immigration reform bill to include some things conservatives want without sacrificing Democratic votes. Other 'gang' members are more worried.
IRS controversies boost chances for tax reform, key Republican saysRep. Tom Price, a major conservative voice in the House, sees 'a greater opportunity' for tax reform in the wake of IRS controversies. He made the comments at a Monitor breakfast Wednesday.
Are budget negotiations helpful or a sellout? No surprise, GOP is splitGOP leader Rep. Tom Price explains why he wants to start negotiations with Senate Democrats over how to strike a budget deal. Tea partyers in the Senate are blocking talks.
Immigration reformers McCain, Schumer agree on need to halt 'future wave'Sens. John McCain (R) and Charles Schumer (D) help craft the immigration reform bill the Senate is now weighing. Americans will support it if they trust that enforcement is robust enough to prevent a 'future wave' of illegal entries, the senators say.
Why America's top general is wary of US military intervention in SyriaGen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a Monitor-sponsored breakfast he has doubts about whether US military action in Syria would achieve three key aims.