No deal
The Warren wing of the Democratic Party deals Obama a ringing defeat on his trade agreement by refusing to consider fast-tracking. Populism wins. Obama, Republicans and corporate America lose. And, writes Dana Milbank in The Washington Post, while the trade agreement will probably pass eventually, the strength of the Warren populists cannot be ignored.
Hello? Hello?
Hillary Clinton goes mum on the Obama free-trade agreement, leaving the president out there by himself and leaving Senate Democrats free to vote against the bill. Via The Washington Post.
Tick tock
The Washington Post’s Fix blog is now putting a clock on Hillary Clinton and the time since she last took a question from the press.
Back pedal
Jeb Bush walks back his comments on Iraq, saying he misunderstood the question. Sort of. It’s not the first time in this campaign he’s had to walk back a comment. The question is, how many more times will he have to? Via The New York Times.
Anything goes
Peggy Noonan, meanwhile, is feeling very mellow about the Republican presidential field. If most Republicans think anyone can win the primary race, she thinks most Republicans are just fine with that. Via The Wall Street Journal.
Show case
How Republican women who got a late-term abortion bill pulled from the House floor got it fixed to the point that they could bring it back. The bill would never get through the Senate, much less signed by the president, but it was a sign of strength for the conservative women’s caucus. Via The National Journal.
Red scare
The Daily Beast asks: Is Pope Francis a commie? The not-altogether-serious question comes up as a liberation-theology hero returns to Rome.
Happy marriage
You don’t have to worry, writes Timothy B. Lee in Vox, about the rumored New York Times-Facebook deal. It would be good for readers and probably good for journalism, too.
Photo credit: AFGE, Creative Commons, Flickr.
