First Read from NBC News : Team Obama’s work to do on health care : Thursday, 25 July 2013

Team Obama’s work to do on health care… On the road again: Obama talks about the economy in Jacksonville, FL at 2:35 pm ET… House amendment to defund NSA program falls short… NBC/WSJ poll: Plurality supports abortion restrictions after 20 weeks… Steve King doubles down… Rand Paul’s balancing act in the ’14 KY SEN race… The latest in that NYC mayoral race… Booker raises $2 million in last 24 days… And Jack Lew to appear on “Meet” this Sunday. 

*** Team Obama’s work to do on health care: During his expansive speech on the economy yesterday in Illinois, President Obama devoted a good chunk of it to health care’s implementation. “If you’re one of the 85% of Americans who already have health insurance either through the job or Medicare or Medicaid, you don’t have to do anything, but you do have new benefits and better protections than you did before,” he said. “If you don’t have health insurance, then starting on October 1st, private plans will actually compete for your business, and you’ll be able to comparison-shop online.” And our NBC/WSJ poll shows why he continues to mention it: 34% see the law as a good idea, versus 47% who believe it’s a bad idea, which is unchanged from June. In other words, his administration still has a lot of work to do to sell the law to the American public. The good news for the administration in our poll is that a majority of adults — 51% — believe Republicans should stop trying to block the implementation of the law. But here’s a bit more bad news: A whopping 79% of Republicans say the GOP should do everything it can to prevent it from going into effect. That’s the conundrum the president find himself in on this issue: If GOP lawmakers act rationally in their own political self-interest, it means more repeal attempts because it’s what their base wants.

Charlie Riedel / AP

President Barack Obama speaks about the economy, Wednesday, July 24, 2013, at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, Mo.

*** On the road again: After his speeches in Illinois and Missouri yesterday, Obama today heads back on the road to talk about the economy in Jacksonville, FL at 2:35 pm ET. In the past, he has used a series of speeches to re-energize his presidency. (Think the jobs act he was selling after the debt-ceiling debacle in 2011.) Yet the question we have: Will there be follow through? Will the White House still be doing this after Labor Day? By the way, one of the chief messages he delivered in Illinois was challenging Republicans to lay out their vision to help the middle class. “I’m laying out my ideas to give the middle class a better shot.  So now it’s time for you to lay out your ideas. You can’t just be against something. You got to be for something,” he said. “Repealing Obamacare and cutting spending is not an economic plan. It’s not.” But the speech itself didn’t contain new ideas (as the White House admitted during its buildup for this speech). Of course, the president believes his consistency and the inability of Congress to support his prescriptions make pushing this message over and over again worthwhile. Bottom line: It appears these events are as much about the president and West Wing trying to re-energize itself as it is to try and move the public. But will the president’s road show penetrate the public beyond supporters?

*** House amendment to defund NSA program falls short: Last night, the House defeated an amendment — by a close 205-217 vote — that would have defunded the NSA’s data-gathering program Edward Snowden disclosed more than a month ago, NBC’s Frank Thorp reports. And that strange-bedfellows vote (when is the last time Nancy Pelosi and Michele Bachmann voted the same way?) ALMOST reflected popular opinion. Per our NBC/WSJ poll, 55% of Americans say they’re more worried the United States will go too far in violating privacy rights. That’s a significant shift from the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, when an equal number in the Dec. 2001 NBC/WSJ poll — 55 percent — worried more that the United States wouldn’t go far enough in monitoring potential terrorists who live in the U.S. In yesterday’s vote, we saw the libertarian wings of both parties (the Democrats’ civil-libertarian wing and the GOP’s libertarians) join forces to produce 205 votes. It’s not every day you see that…

*** Poll: Plurality support abortion restrictions after 20 weeks: Also in our NBC/WSJ poll, a plurality of Americans — 44% — say they support efforts to ban abortions 20 weeks after fertilization, assuming the mother’s life isn’t in immediate danger. Yet on the broader issue of abortion, Americans continue to be split: 49% believe abortion should be legal either always or most of the time, while 48% say it should either be illegal with exceptions or banned outright. There is a striking divide when it comes to intensity: Among those who believe abortion legislation should be a high priority for state and federal lawmakers, a combined 70% say abortion should be illegal in all or most cases. And among those who think it should be a low priority, 65% say it should be legal either always or most of the time. Bottom line: Social conservatives have intensity on their side here, and they always do much better when the discussion is about procedures (so-called “partial-birth” abortions) and timelines (20 weeks). But they find themselves on rockier ground when the conversation turns to rights and access. All that said, a majority in the poll say they are more concerned about the GOP going too far to promote a conservative social agenda than about Democrats pushing a liberal one

*** Steve King doubles down: Turning to the issue of immigration, Rep. Steve King (R-IA) yesterday doubled down on his much-criticized comments about young undocumented immigrants — that for every valedictorian, there are another 100 running drugs across the border. “Every night there are dozens and scores of people that are smuggling drugs across our border. I’ve been down there multiple times. I’ve sat along the border at night,” he said on CNN. “This isn’t something made up in thin air,” he said. “I’ve seen it with my eyes and watched the data and video that support what I say, and the longer this dialogue goes, the more the American people will understand what I’m saying is factually correct.” By the way, here are the immigration numbers from our NBC/WSJ poll: 44% of adults (including 49% of Latinos) say they would blame Republicans if Congress doesn’t pass legislation by the end of its current term. By comparison, 21% of respondents (including 21% of Latinos) would blame the president, and 14% would blame congressional Democrats. Additionally, 59% of all adults (and 79% of Latinos) believe the notion that immigration reform must wait until the border is secure is an excuse to block reform, while only 36% say it’s a legitimate excuse.

*** Rand Paul’s balancing act in ‘14 KY SEN race: Any political junkie has to LOVE this year’s Kentucky Senate race — now that there’s a GOP primary in addition to a competitive general election. And here’s the latest story from that race: Rand Paul’s balancing act. “So as McConnell descends into a GOP civil war with tea party-backed candidate [Matt] Bevin to defend his Senate seat in 2014, Paul must perform a careful balancing act: Show complete support for McConnell, all the while avoiding alienating the same tea party supporters who helped him in 2010 and whom he’ll need in 2016,” Politico writes.

*** New York, New York: No we turn to that — shall we say — colorful mayoral race in New York City. We’ve been saying this for a while, but a new Quinnipiac poll (conducted before the latest news about Anthony Weiner) is evidence that Bill Thompson is the sleeper in this race. Though Weiner leads in the overall primary, he looks to be fatally damaged — and Thompson leads both Weiner and Quinn in a runoff.  And here’s the latest reporting by NBC’s Kelly O’Donnell: Sources close to Huma Abedin tell NBC News that she did not know about the most recently revealed incidents of sexting by her husband until last fall, more than a year after his resignation from Congress and the fallout that deeply embarrassed her. Accordingly, sources say Abedin was not aware the behavior had continued when she participated in an image repair profile in People Magazine in June 2012. Sources say Abedin nearly left their marriage late last year after she found out that her husband had not stopped contacting other women online.

*** Booker raises $2 million in last 24 days: For next month’s Democratic primary in New Jersey’s Senate contest, Cory Booker will report raising $2 million from July 1 to July 24, according to a campaign source. That’s on top of the $4.6 million he raised last quarter and the $1.9 million he raised in the first quarter.

*** Lew to appear on “Meet”: Lastly, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew will appear on “Meet the Press” this Sunday.

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This story was originally published on Thu Jul 25, 2013 9:13 AM EDT

*** Thursday’s “Daily Rundown” line-up: More on the new wave of NBC/WSJ poll numbers on health care, abortion and immigration… Latest on Snowden with NBC’s Jim Maceda from Moscow and last night’s House floor fight over the NSA with one of the defeated bill’s sponsors Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) as well as a vocal opponent of the bill (and top Intelligence Committee Republican) Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)… a Deep Dive into how the Senate’s dysfunction is decades in the making with “The American Senate” co-author and U.S. Senate historian emeritus Richard Baker… Plus Politico’s Rachel Smolkin, The Grio’s Perry Bacon Jr. and TIME’s Michael Scherer join the Gaggle.

*** Thursday’s “Jansing & Co.” line-up: Radhika Jones/Time and Manu Raju/Politico on Eric Holder speaking this morning at a National Urban League forum on the George Zimmerman verdict and Voting Rights Act, Rep. Chris Van Hollen/(D) Maryland on the very narrow loss of a House vote to curb the NSA’s effort to collect private phone information as well as new NBC/WSJ poll numbers that show increasing concern about government intrusion on privacy, Lizzie Crocker/The Daily Beast on the latest efforts to get Anthony Weiner to drop out of New York City Mayoral race in wake of latest sexting revelations, Amy Holmes and Former Rep. Patrick Murphy on President Obama’s new economic push and whether it will amount to anything, and Chris Jansing live from London with the latest on the Royal Baby

*** Thursday’s “MSNBC Live with Thomas Roberts” line-up: Guests include the Huffington Post’s Marc Lamont Hill, VF.com’s Juli Weiner, Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL), Attorney Faith Gay, The Grio.com’s Joy-Ann Reid, MSNBC Political Contributor Steve Benen, msnbc.com’s Irin Carmon, and syndicated columnist Earl Ofari Hutchinson.

*** Thursday’s “NOW with Alex Wagner” line-up: Alex Wagner’s guests include former PA Gov. Ed Rendell, Jonathan Alter, theGrio’s Joy Reid, and Huffington Post’s Sam Stein.

*** Thursday’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” line-up: NBC’s Andrea Mitchell interviews Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), PA Attorney General Kathleen Kane, National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial, The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza and USA Today’s Susan Page.

*** Thursday’s “News Nation with Tamron Hall” line-up: MSNBC’s Tamron Hall interviews the NY Times’ Jonathan Weisman and Michael Smerconish.

“It’s hard to find anyone who thinks President Barack Obama’s series of heavily promoted economic speeches will be the flash point that unclogs the system in Washington — including the president,” the AP writes. “A day after he kicked off the tour in Illinois and Missouri, Obama was traveling Thursday to a seaport in Jacksonville, Fla., to yet again deride the wide gulf between his vision for a new American prosperity driven by a burgeoning middle class and the intense gridlock snarling up Congress.”

Said Obama: “Here’s the thing: It will be a pretty good speech. But as we’ve learned, I’ve given some pretty good speeches before and then things still get stuck here in Washington. … Which is why I’m going to need your help.”

Looking for what Obama’s priorities for a second-term agenda will be? Look to his speech yesterday (the way one would to a State of the Union): “President Obama made clear on Wednesday that championing the middle class will be the central focus of his remaining time in office. It was the opening salvo in a campaign to cement a second-term legacy that will hinge in large part on the economy he leaves behind,” USA Today writes. “Obama laid out in broad brushstrokes his plan to focus on issues such as creating manufacturing jobs, reining in the cost of higher education and implementing his signature health care law.”

Today… “President Obama will push for new infrastructure projects and investments as he hits the road again Thursday, traveling this time to Jacksonville, Fla., for his third consecutive speech on the economy,” The Hill writes, adding, “Obama will continue to target the GOP in his speech Thursday, according to a White House official. … The White House chose the port as the site of the speech because it is home to two projects — a container terminal and a rail yard — that the administration expedited last year as part of a broader infrastructure push.”

Andrea Mitchell: “President Barack Obama will name Caroline Kennedy as his next ambassador to Japan, the White House announced on Wednesday. Obama will follow through on speculation and name the daughter of former President John F. Kennedy to her first diplomatic post. Her grandfather, Joseph Kennedy, was the U.S. Ambassdor to Great Britain before World War II.”

Kennedy has been rumored to be in the running for the job for months.

Politico: “A hard fought deal to keep student loan interest rates down cleared the Senate Wednesday on a 81-18 vote, despite strong opposition from liberal Democrats who believe it would make skyrocketing student debt even worse in the long run.”

Tim Alberta: “An emerging coalition of House Republicans is arguing that young immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children constitute ‘a special protected class’ that should eventually be eligible for citizenship, an approach they say combines sound policy with smart politics. Conservatives remain adamant, however, that no such legislation be considered until a border-security bill is passed and tough enforcement triggers are in place.”

Of course, before the 2012 election and at the height of the Tea Party movement in 2010, the DREAM Act failed in the Senate because it couldn’t overcome a Republican filibuster.

It’s a point the L.A. Times alludes to: “Two years ago, House Republicans would not hear of the Dream Act, rejecting as a ‘nightmare’ the legislation to provide a path to citizenship for immigrants who were brought to the country as children and were here illegally as young adults. Now, they’re taking a second look.”

More than a month after leaker Edward Snowden revealed information about the National Security Agency’s surveillance and data-gathering programs, 55 percent of Americans say they’re more worried the United States will go too far in violating privacy rights, according to the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.

Click here for full poll results (pdf)

That’s a significant shift from the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, when an equal number in the Dec. 2001 NBC/WSJ poll — 55 percent — worried more that the United States wouldn’t go far enough in monitoring potential terrorists who live in the U.S.

The last time the poll asked this question, in July 2006, Americans were split, with 45 percent worried that this surveillance would violate privacy rights and with 43 percent worried it wouldn’t go far enough to pursue potential terrorists.

These new numbers come as the House of Representatives is considering an amendment that would defund the NSA’s data-collection program.

As for Snowden, the NBC/WSJ poll finds that 11 percent of Americans view him positively, versus 35 percent who view him negatively.

That opinion is shared by Democrats (10 percent positive vs. 33 percent negative), Republicans (11 percent vs. 39 percent) and independents (11 percent vs. 33 percent).

The one demographic group most sympathetic toward Snowden? Respondents ages 18-34 (15 percent positive vs. 20 percent negative).

The NBC/WSJ poll was conducted July 17-21 of 1,000 adults (including 300 cell phone-only respondents), and it has an overall margin of error of plus-minus 3.1 percentage points.