Jeff Merkley
The Filibuster and "The Fermata"
Welcome to Another Golden Era of Liberal Senators
One of the most stunning outcomes of the 2012 elections was the Democrats’ two-seat gain in the Senate. With 23 seats at risk to only ten for Republicans, Democrats were hoping simply to hold their own or keep their losses to a minimum. A gain of a single seat was almost wildly optimistic; picking up two seemingly unrealistic. READ MORE >>
Simmer Down, Jamie Dimon
I didn't watch Jamie Dimon's Senate testimony today, but from the Times live blog it looked like this was the most dramatic moment: Mr. Dimon gets testy for the first time in the hearing. "I think you are misinformed," he told Senator Jeff Merkley, Democrat of Oregon, who said JPMorgan was saved by government bailouts in 2008. READ MORE >>
Your Must-Read of the Day, Wall St. Edition
Bloomberg has an absolutely terrific piece of reporting out today about how the big banks have mobilized to water down the Volcker Rule—the reform measure designed to prevent federally-backed banks from placing bets for their own bottom line. Here’s the gist: READ MORE >>
It's Time for Harry Reid to Nuke the Senate
Packer On The Broken Senate
In George Packer's excellent New Yorker piece about the Senate's dysfunction, Lamar Alexander is quoted at the end offering a rebuttal: READ MORE >>
A Pretty Good Deal on Financial Reform
[Guest post by Noam Scheiber:] READ MORE >>
What About A Utility-Only Bill?
There are all sorts of rumors swirling around right now about what might be in the energy bill the Senate is planning to take up next month. The most recent involves a carbon cap that would only apply to electric utilities while leaving the rest of the economy uncapped. Would this be an acceptable compromise? Here's Dave Roberts: READ MORE >>
Tonight at 8 pm, President Obama will give one of his patented Big Speeches about the oil debacle in the Gulf—only this one will be his first-ever address from the Oval Office. The backdrop's no accident. Presidents typically only resort to Oval Office speeches when, as John Dickerson notes, they're "responding to an immediate crisis [or] trying to change the dynamic of an ongoing one." And this address falls into the latter category. READ MORE >>
