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Leading Off: Our first thoughts of the morning.
-- With every new Congress comes new precedent. The 113th Congress changed filibuster rules, over the objections of old bulls who warned of the unforeseen consequences. Now, the 114th is becoming the Congress that asserts itself into foreign policy territory that was once the sole domain of presidents.
-- Speaker John Boehner's invitation to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rankled the White House and damaged an already-strained relationship. A letter sent to Iranian leaders, signed by 47 Republican senators including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and meant to undermine nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran, inspired fits of outrage from Democrats.
-- Power is cyclical. That's what the older Democrats who warned against the filibuster change told the younger class chafing for change. Both Boehner and McConnell are students of history, and especially the history of the institutions they lead. The precedents they set today won't be easily reversed tomorrow. Politics no longer stops at the water's edge.
A1: Today's top stories.
-- The letter to Iran, spearheaded by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), drew sharp rebukes from the other side of Pennsylvania Ave. President Obama said Republicans were "mak[ing] common cause with the hard-liners in Iran." Vice President Biden called it "beneath the dignity of an institution I revere." Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) declined to sign the letter, citing sanctions legislation that's still pending before the Senate. (Washington Post)
-- Historical Context: "Jim Wright, the Democratic House speaker during Ronald Reagan’s presidency, was accused of interfering when he met with opposing leaders in Nicaragua’s contra war. Three House Democrats went to Iraq in 2002 before President George W. Bush’s invasion to try to head off war. And Nancy Pelosi, the House Democratic leader, went to Syria in 2007 to meet with President Bashar al-Assad against the wishes of the Bush administration, which was trying to isolate him." (New York Times)
-- Almost 11.7 million people signed up for health care under the Affordable Care Act, HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell said Monday. Nearly 7.7 million people who signed up through HealthCare.gov qualified for an average tax credit of $263 per month, she said. (USA Today) The Congressional Budget Office said Monday the ACA will cost $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years, 11 percent, or $142 billion, less than January projections. (Washington Post)
-- U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Hanen refused to lift his injunction blocking the Obama administration's executive action on immigration for at least another 10 days. Hanen said he would not rule on any pending motions until a March 19 hearing, at which government attorneys will be asked to explain the 100,000 people who have already been given three-year periods of deferred action. The Justice Department said it would appeal to the 5th Circuit in New Orleans. (Reuters)
-- The FBI last year interviewed Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid as part of its inquiry into Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.). Reid voluntarily agreed to the interview, which took less than an hour and which focused on a meeting between Reid, Menendez and federal health officials over a billing dispute involving Salomon Melgen, the eye surgeon at the heart of the case against Menendez. The NRSC will file a FOIA request with HHS seeking more information about Reid's involvement. (Politico, New York Times) HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius was also questioned. (Politico)
-- Front Pages: WaPo, WSJ and NYT lead with the GOP's letter to Iran. USA Today leads with growing protests in Madison, Wis., over the shooting death of 19-year old Tony Robinson, with the GOP letter below a four-column photo. LA Times reports on the fading Ebola epidemic, which is winding down before scientists found a cure.
White House 2016: The long, strange road to Pennsylvania Ave.
-- Clinton: Hillary Clinton is likely to hold a press conference in New York this week to answer questions about the private email server she used as Secretary of State. People close to Clinton acknowledge the risk of putting an out-of-practice candidate in front of a media scrum, but they say it's something she has to do, echoing other Democrats who have called for Clinton to speak out. (Politico) Dan Balz: "The apparatus that is Clinton World has responded [to the email scandal] in predictable ways: aggressively and unresponsively, seemingly looking to blame others rather than answer questions." (Washington Post)
-- Polls: More Americans now say they want a candidate who can bring change than said so back in 2008, the year of hope and change. Sixty percent of voters say former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) represents a return of the policies of the past, while 51 percent say Hillary Clinton represents the past. Just over half, 52 percent, of Republican primary voters say they would view a candidate who supports Common Core unfavorably; 62 percent said they would oppose a candidate who supports a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. (NBC News)
National Roundup: What's happening outside the Beltway.
-- Wisconsin: Gov. Scott Walker (R) signed legislation making Wisconsin the 25th right-to-work state on Monday after both legislative chambers passed the measure on party-line votes. Walker had said as late as October he wouldn't back a right-to-work law this year. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) President Obama issued a statement critical of the legislation, which he cast as Walker "claim[ing] victory over working Americans." (Washington Post)
-- Missouri: The state Supreme Court said Monday it will place a state judge in charge of cases in Ferguson, Mo., after the Justice Department's report critical of the city's municipal court system. Municipal Judge Ronald Brockmeyer, whom the DOJ criticized by name, resigned his post. The state judge who takes over Ferguson's court system has the power to change policies and procedures. (Washington Post, St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
-- Michigan: Attorney General Bill Schuette (R) has dropped three subpoenas of journalists' notes and records after those reporters refused to turn over information. Schuette's office had issued subpoenas to the Huffington Post's Dana Liebelson and to Michigan Radio, both of whom had worked on stories involving inmates in two state juvenile prisons. Seven inmates are suing the state after they said they were forced to perform sexual acts. The Michigan Supreme Court has halted the lawsuit until an appeals court decides whether to grant the prisoners class-action status. (Detroit News)
-- Washington: Liberal philanthropist Nick Hanauer says he'll fund a ballot measure to raise the state minimum wage to $16 an hour if the legislature doesn't act first. The Democratic-controlled state House passed a $12 an hour wage bill, though that's dead in the GOP-run state Senate. Hanauer has also said he'll advocate tougher gun control laws. (Seattle Times) Hanauer : Washington :: Tom Steyer : California.
-- Iowa: Attorneys for Planned Parenthood will ask the state Supreme Court to declare that Iowa's constitution protects a woman's right to an abortion. The hearing on Wednesday involves a state law that allows doctors in Des Moines and Iowa City to see patients by video conference and to dispense abortion pills by remote-controlled drawer. Sixteen other states have banned video conferencing. (Des Moines Register) It will be the first Iowa Supreme Court case revolving around abortion in more than 40 years.
-- Maryland: Del. Kumar Barve (D), the first Indian American to serve in a state legislature, says he'll run for the seat being vacated by Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D). Barve, 56, has served in Annapolis for 24 years. He becomes the first candidate to actually enter the race, though plenty of other Democrats are considering runs. (Washington Post) Rep. Donna Edwards (D)is getting in the Senate race today; read this smart Mike DeBonis look at the Maryland Senate race as a microcosm for the evolution of the Democratic Party.
DC Digest: What's on tap today in DC.
-- President Obama heads to Atlanta this morning to deliver remarks at Georgia Tech, where he'll speak about college affordability. While in Atlanta, Obama hosts a DNC roundtable. He heads back to D.C. this evening.
-- Vice President Biden travels to Boston this morning for a DNC fundraiser at Thornton LLP. He's headed to Wilmington this afternoon, where he'll remain overnight.
-- The House is working from home this week.
-- The Senate meets at 10 a.m. for morning business and at 11 a.m. for legislative business, when they'll take up Sen. John Cornyn's (R-Texas) bill to stop human trafficking.
-- The Club for Growth's 2014 scorecard, by the numbers: House Republicans with 100 percent ratings: 8 (Reps. Justin Amash, Jeff Duncan, Scott Garrett, Tim Huelskamp, Jim Jordan, Mike Pompeo and Tom McClintock and Sen. James Lankford). Senate Republicans with a perfect score: 1 (Former Sen. Tom Coburn). Most conservative Democrats: Ex-Rep. Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.), who scored 41 percent, and Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), at 24 percent. Most liberal Republicans: Ex-Rep. Jon Runyan (R-N.J.), who scored just 19 percent, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who notched a 27 percent. (CfG)
-- The Secret Service will operate drone flights around D.C. over the next few weeks as part of a series of secret tests of systems like signal jamming aimed at thwarting an attack. Commercially available drones use the same common radio frequencies as WiFi and Bluetooth devices. (Associated Press)
-- Comings and Goings: A correction from yesterday: Ellis Brachman celebrated his first day as chief communications officer at the Congressional Research Service. We incorrectly identified his agency. Sorry, Ellis!
B1: Business, politics and the business of politics
-- WMATA has hired two public relations firms to help rebuild its image after the Jan. 12 incident in which one woman died when smoke entered a train stuck beneath L'Enfant Plaza. The agency would not say how much it is paying O'Neill and Associates, where a former NTSB managing director works, and Hill + Knowlton Strategies, though a spokeswoman said the companies were being paid by WMATA's insurance company. The NTSB is still investigating the January incident. (Washington Post)
-- What We're Watching: 24 percent of Americans said they were following U.S. economic news very closely last week, while 20 percent followed the DOJ's report on race and policing in Ferguson. One in five followed news of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to Congress -- a reminder, if we ever needed one, that the average American isn't paying attention to politics. Republicans were about twice as likely to pay attention to Netanyahu's speech and Hillary Clinton's private emails as Democrats, while slightly more Democrats paid attention to the Ferguson report. (Pew Research Center)
-- Hold on to your seats: Stock futures are down sharply this morning after the Dow tacked on 139 points on Monday. Asian and European markets dropped on Tuesday; the FTSE in London is off more than 1 percent. (CNN)
C1: Take time to digest the long reads
-- "[T]he absence of any real connection between [Obama and Netanyahu] underscores the rule, not the exception, for Mr. Obama, who has only occasionally invested time in cultivating foreign leaders. ... [H]istorians and some of the president’s former foreign policy advisers say the distance the president keeps from foreign leaders leaves him without the durable relationships that previous presidents forged to help smooth disagreements and secure reluctant cooperation."
-- Obama did get along well with Russian Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and, at one time, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He's particularly close to German Chancellor Angela Merkel. And though he tried to build a relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Xi wasn't terribly interested. (New York Times) A little nugget from our notebook: Obama was particularly impressed by former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, especially when aides showed him her speech accusing an opposition politician of being sexist.
Attn Matt Drudge: What outrages conservatives today
-- More than 6.5 million Social Security numbers exist for Americans who are 112 years or older, a new inspector general's audit found, even though there are only 35 people known to be older than 112 in the entire world. The audit came after a man attempted to open bank accounts using active Social Security numbers from people born in 1869 and 1893. The inspector general found 70,000 active but too-old Social Security numbers were used between 2006 and 2011 to claim $3.1 billion. (TownHall)
Attn HuffPo: What outrages liberals today
-- Florida is hardly the only state where employees are told to avoid the phrase "climate change." Officials in Pennsylvania's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources were ordered to scrub the phrase from the agency's website. North Carolina's Department of Environment and Natural Resources last year removed inks and documents about climate change from its website. (ThinkProgress)
Reid Wilson covers state politics and policy for the Washington Post's GovBeat blog. He's a former editor in chief of The Hotline, the premier tip sheet on campaigns and elections, and he's a complete political junkie.
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