Hotline Sort: The Social Network
Welcome back to Hotline Sort. Changes to social security appear to be on the table in the debt negotiations between the White House and congressional leaders, a Pawlenty aide apologizes for comments he made about Bachmann, and Bachmann hits the airwaves in Iowa with her first TV ad. Meanwhile, Snowe and DeMint team up for a Wall Street Journal op-ed while a familiar face launches a congressional bid in Illinois. Here's today's rundown:
10) A WMUR-TV Granite State Poll showed former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with a slight, four-point lead over President Obama, we wrote early Wednesday. A new release from the poll underscores Obama's challenge in the small, but historically competitive state: Obama's approval rating remains underwater for the fourth consecutive quarter. Just 46 percent of Granite Staters approve of the job Obama is doing, while 49 percent disapprove.
9) Add Karl Rove to the list of people who think Texas Gov. Rick Perry will make a White House bid.
8) Top Tim Pawlenty aide Vin Weber apologized on Wednesday after he told The Hill this about Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., "She's got hometown appeal, she's got ideological appeal, and, I hate to say it, but she's got a little sex appeal too."
"I've been a Bachmann supporter in her Congressional bids and I apologize. I was not speaking on behalf of Governor Pawlenty's campaign but nevertheless, it was inappropriate and I'm sorry," Weber said.
The flap is a distraction Pawlenty especially didn't need as he kicked off another Iowa swing Wednesday and is trying to make an impact in the very state where Bachmann has shown early strength.
7) Meanwhile, Politico reports that Bachmann is going up in Iowa with her first TV ad in which she reminds viewers she was born and raised in Waterloo and adamantly says, "I will not vote to increase the debt ceiling."
6)Two strong House fundraising reports released Wednesday come from a targeted freshman and an already-impressive young challenger. Rep. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., raised $316,000 in the 2nd quarter -- and he'll likely need it against the Democratic challenger he drew this week, state Sen. Pres. Brandon Shaffer. Even bigger -- 24-year-old GOP law student Ricky Gill has raised $420,000 for his bid against Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Calif.
5) Tammy Duckworth, who served as assistant secretary of veterans affairs after losing both legs in the Iraq war, is making another run for the House. Duckworth lost in 2006 to Republican Peter Roskam in the Illinois' 6th Congressional District. This time, she'll try in a newly drawn (and solidly Democratic) 8th Congressional District in the northwest suburbs of Chicago that takes in parts of the 6th she won. She'll have primary competition, though; fellow Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi, the former state deputy treasurer, has also announced and has already raised over $400,000 since entering in May.
4) AP has the latest fundraising figures in the Indiana gubernatorial race, and Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., the early frontrunner in the contest, pulled in more than $1 million since announcing his candidacy May 5. Democrat John Gregg, the former state House speaker, has raised $717,000 so far, and GOP businessman Jim Wallace -- who Democrats hope will be a handful for Pence -- raised $500,000. That figure includes the time since he began his campaign in February.
As expected, Pence is leading the pack. But it's not a bad showing for Gregg, who is trying to keep pace in a state where Democrats have not much success since 2008.
3) The Democratic Governors Association will report raising about $11 million in the first six months of 2011, and ending the period with $8.6 million cash on hand. That figure is more than double what the association raised during the same period in the 2007 cycle, but still lags behind the Republican Governors Association, who raised $22.1 million during the first six months of the year and had 16.2 million in the bank.
2) Sens. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, and Jim DeMint, R-S.C., join forces to pen a WSJ op-ed today. They write: "Before we consider saddling our children with even more debt, we must enact significant spending cuts and enforceable caps on future spending. For the long term, to prevent both this Congress and its successors from hijacking the promise of American prosperity, we also need a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution, like the one we and all 47 Senate Republicans have introduced."
It's a smart move by Snowe - who has faced criticism from some home state Republicans who don't believe she is conservative enough.
1) Obama and House Speaker John Boehner are raising the stakes ahead of a deficit reduction summit happening today, suggesting in talks that they might tackle longtime taboos, including tax increases and Social Security changes.
Today's session doesn't appear to be designed to settle matters but to continue the active discussions that have been taking place and improve the atmosphere heading into what all sides agree is a vital five or six days to cut a deal, reports National Journal's Major Garrett.
-- Josh Kraushaar and Steven Shepard contributed to this post
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