Daily Political Wire

George Wenschhof

Obama To Use Executive Action on Gun Control - the President is likely to use the powers of his office as part of a comprehensive effort to impose new controls on guns. 

The comprehensive plan to reduce gun violence will call for major legislation to expand background checks for gun purchases and lay out 19 separate actions the president could take by invoking the power of his office, lawmakers who were briefed on the plan said Monday.  Obama is expected to make an announcement on Wednesday.  The NY Times has more here.

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New York Passes New Gun Law - Pushed by Governor Andrew Cuomo, one of a handful of Democrats considering a run for the White House in 2016, state lawmakers agreed on Monday to a broad package of changes to gun laws that would expand the state’s ban on assault weapons and would include new measures to keep guns away from the mentally ill. You can read more here.

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58% Support Assault Weapon Ban - in a poll taken by The Washington Post/ABCNews, 52% support new gun control measures.  The findings, also show broad bipartisan support for mandatory background checks to purchase firearms at gun shows.  The Wsahington Post has more here.

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Clinton To Give Testimony on Benghazi January 23 - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will testify Jan. 23 before the House Foreign Affairs Committee about the deadly Sept. 11 assault on the US mission in Libya.

Clinton had been scheduled to testify last month but she suffered a concussion when she fell during an illness. She was later hospitalized with a blood clot in her head.  You can read more here.

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Hagel Receives Support From Schumer - the embattled nominee for Defense Secretary, received support from Democratic Senator Charles Schumer (NY) this morning.

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on Tuesday said his concerns about Chuck Hagel becoming the next defense secretary have been addressed and he is prepared to support his confirmation. "In a meeting Monday, Senator Hagel spent approximately 90 minutes addressing my concerns one by one. It was a very constructive session," Schumer said in a statement. "Senator Hagel could not have been more forthcoming and sincere."  TPM.com has more here.

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Obama Campaign Field Organizers Start Firm - Mitch Stewart, former Obama for America battleground states director, and Jeremy Bird, former Obama for America national field director, are starting a new grassroots organizing firm -- called 270 Strategies [270 electoral votes to win] -- to help clients build people-centered, data-driven, digitally-sophisticated campaigns by applying the historic Obama organizing model to campaigns of any kind...

...Marlon Marshall, Bird's deputy on the campaign; Mark Beatty, Stewart's deputy; and Meg Ansara and Lauren Kidwell, former OFA regional directors, also will join the firm as partners. Together, this team has played a multitude of roles in building the Obama grassroots organization since the 2007 Iowa caucuses. 270 Strategies is founded on the belief that grassroots campaigns can change the world.  Politico.com has more here.

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Five Races To Watch in 2013 - RollCall.com has a good read here on five off year elections to watch.

Virginia Gubernatorial Race - Republican state Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, left, and former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe.

Massachusetts Senate Special - National Democrats are keen to avoid a repeat of 2010, and Kerry, along with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, is backing Rep. Edward J. Markey. Scott Brown has not yet made an announcement about whether he is running, but insiders in Massachusetts expect him to pull the trigger. If he doesn’t, there’s really not much of a Republican bench in the Bay State.

South Carolina’s 1st District Special - The immediate front-runner is former Palmetto State Gov. Mark Sanford (R), who looks poised to announce a bid to return to his old congressional seat.

Illinois’ 2nd District Special - 2nd District voters have many choices for Jesse Jackson Jr.’s successor. The better-known roster of candidates includes Alderman Anthony Beale, former Rep. Debbie Halvorson (pictured above), former NFL linebacker Napoleon Harris, state Sen. Toi Hutchinson, Cook County Chief Administrative Officer Robin Kelly, former Rep. Mel Reynolds and health care administrator Joyce Washington.

New Jersey Gubernatorial Race - New Jersey is a solidly Democratic state, so anything is possible. Democrats have the will to win. They just may not have the candidate. 

At this point, it is Republican Governor Chris Christie, who is heavily favored.

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