New health care poll shows broad confusion on eve of rollout

The new figures come as the Obama administration begins an outreach effort to promote enrollment in the insurance exchanges, where people can shop for individual insurance plans and apply for subsidies toward the costs of their premiums. Enrollment begins Oct. 1, and administration officials view the next six months as critical to raising awareness about the benefits of the law. Actual participation in the insurance exchanges starts Jan. 1.

About 46 million Americans don’t have health insurance through their employer or a government program such as Medicare and Medicaid.

The new health care overhaul hinges on signing up enough healthy young people to balance the expense of seniors and others who have preexisting conditions and are guaranteed coverage under the new law.

But the poll found that among the uninsured, 76 percent of respondents said they didn’t understand the law and how it would affect them. Only 32 percent of the uninsured reported that they were “fairly” or “very” likely to use the exchanges. That portion dwindled when it comes to those who already have insurance on the individual market with only 23 percent saying they would use the exchanges.

The survey of 1,000 adults was carried out Sept. 5-8 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

– Susan Crabtree, White House Correspondent

TOP HOUSE REPUBLICAN WRITES MOSCOW TIMES REBUTTAL TO PUTIN OP-ED

House Armed Services Committee Chairman Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Calif., wrote a scathing retort in the Moscow Times to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Sept. 11 New York Times op-ed on Syria that claimed America wasn’t exceptional.

McKeon’s op-ed accuses Putin of making false conclusions about the war in Syria and the decision by the United States to consider, then reject, air strikes in retaliation for the Syrian government’s use of chemical weapons against its own people.

“The Americans who read Putin’s op-ed are not dupes,” McKeon wrote. “They are aware of the suppression of the Russian people, the intimidation of journalists and the wanton disregard for basic human rights. In addition, they are able to identify irony when they see it, particularly when it is Putin who is making a spontaneous appeal for humanitarianism and the observance of rule of law.”

McKeon’s op-ed does not directly criticize President Obama, but he suggested Obama’s handling of Syria marked a “temporary failure in leadership” after the president indicated he was ready to strike Syria but then unexpectedly put off any action until Congress agreed to authorize military intervention.

McKeon said that when vital American interests are clearly at stake, “We will act decisively.”

Putin’s op-ed questioned the notion of American exceptionalism and suggested U.S. intervention in Syria would only lead to the deaths of more innocent civilians.

He also accused the U.S. of habitually using military force to intervene in other countries’ internal conflicts.

“I acknowledge that U.S. humanitarian interventions are controversial and often unpopular,” McKeon responded. “We have seen successes and failures. With that said, I welcome any humanitarian comparisons between the Western intervention in Libya and Putin’s intervention in Chechnya.”

– Susan Ferrechio, Chief Congressional Correspondent

OBAMA TO HOST NETANYAHU AT WHITE HOUSE

President Obama will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House later this month.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said Netanyahu would meet with Obama on Sept. 30 while he is in the U.S. for the United Nations’ General Assembly meeting.

Netanyahu said Iran would be at the top of his agenda.

“I intend to focus on the question of stopping Iran’s nuclear program, an actual halt to the nuclear program,” the Israeli leader said. “And until this is achieved, the pressure on Iran should be intensified and not eased.”

Netanyahu also pressed the U.S. to strike Syria after an August chemical weapons attack attributed to strongman Bashar Assad’s regime. Obama delayed a vote on using force in Syria, instead backing a diplomatic solution that calls for Assad to turn over his stockpile of chemical weapons to the international community.

Netanyahu has expressed growing concerns that an Iranian nuclear program would further destabilize the Middle East.

However, Obama recently warned that Iran should not be emboldened by his decision to call off a strike on Syria.

“What the Iranians understand is that the nuclear issue is a far larger issue for us than the chemical weapons issue,” Obama said during an interview this week with ABC. “The threat against Iran — against Israel — that a nuclear Iran poses, is much closer to our core interests. A nuclear arms race in the region is something that would be profoundly destabilizing.”

The two leaders are also likely to discuss the revived Israeli-Palestinian peace process, which Secretary of State John Kerry has said is a top priority.

– Brian Hughes, White House Correspondent

OBAMA WAIVES BAN ON ARMING TERRORISTS TO ALLOW AID TO SYRIAN OPPOSITION

President Obama waived a provision of federal law designed to prevent the supply of arms to terrorist groups to clear the way for the U.S. to provide military assistance to “vetted” opposition groups fighting Syrian dictator Bashar Assad.

Some elements of the Syrian opposition are associated with radical Islamic terrorist groups, including al Qaeda, which was responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks in New York, Washington and Shanksville, Pa. Assad’s regime is backed by Iran and Hezbollah.

The president, citing his authority under the Arms Export Control Act, announced he would “waive the prohibitions in sections 40 and 40A of the AECA related to such a transaction.”

The law allows the president to waive the prohibitions if he “determines that the transaction is essential to the national security interests of the United States.”

– Joel Gehrke, Commentary Writer

SNOWDEN NOMINATED FOR PRESTIGIOUS HUMAN RIGHTS AWARD

National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden, now a fugitive in Russia, has been nominated for the prestigious Sakharov Prize, an award for contributions to human rights.

The left-leaning Greens Party in the European Union parliament nominated Snowden, saying he had done an “enormous service” by disclosing the NSA surveillance programs.

“Edward Snowden has risked his freedom to help us protect ours and he deserves to be honored for shedding light on the systematic infringements of civil liberties by U.S. and European secret services,” said Rebecca Harms and Dany Cohn-Bendit, leaders of the Greens.

Other nominees include Malala Yousufzai, the teenage Pakistani school girl who was shot by the Taliban on her way to class for promoting the education of young women, and Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a former Russian oil tycoon who criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin and was subsequently jailed for a host of supposed crimes.

Past winners include Nelson Mandela and Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burma opposition leader.

The Greens Party nomination of Snowden is not his first for an award. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, which critics at the time called “absurd.”

The winner of the Sakharov Prize will be chosen Oct. 10.

– Ashe Schow, Commentary Writer

CENSUS: POVERTY STILL AT RECORD HIGH WHILE INCOME STAGNATES

Five years after the financial crisis, data shows stagnant income growth and poverty levels stuck at a record high.

The Census Bureau reported that the median household income was $51,017 in 2012, statistically indistinguishable from the 2011 median of $51,100.

The good news is that incomes appear to have leveled off following two consecutive years of clearly declining.

The bad news is that incomes remain 8.3 percent lower than they were in real terms before the start of the recession in 2007, 9.0 percent lower than they were at their peak in 1999, even though the economy has grown by nearly a third since then.

The Census report shows that the ongoing, weak economic recovery had not yet begun to reverse the trend of soaring poverty that began with the recession.

The official poverty rate remained at 15 percent in 2012 for a second consecutive year. That means that 46.5 million Americans are impoverished, a record-high number that is unchanged from 2011’s estimate. Since the beginning of the recession, poverty is up 2.5 percentage points.

The poverty line in 2012 was $23,283 for a two-parent family with two children, meaning that if the total household income for that family fell below $23,283, it was counted among the poor. For a single, non-elderly person without any children, the line was $11,945.

The Census data were taken from the 2013 Current Population Survey, a household survey of about 100,000 addresses that is also used to create employment statistics.

– Joseph Lawler, Economics Writer

MCAULIFFE LEADS CUCCINELLI IN VA. FUNDRAISING HEADING INTO FINAL 50 DAYS

Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe raised $1.7 million more than Republican opponent Ken Cuccinelli in fundraising over the summer, according to new campaign finance reports.

McAuliffe hauled in $7.4 million during July and August compared with Cuccinelli’s $5.7 million. McAuliffe also has more than twice as much cash on hand heading into the final two months of the bruising battle for the governor’s mansion — $5 million in the bank versus $2.2 million for Cuccinelli.

Both candidates received significant financial support from their respective parties. As much as two-thirds of Cuccinelli’s reported donations came from the Republican Governors Association, which pitched in $3.7 million.

The Democratic Governors Association gave McAuliffe $2.7 million.

The average poll in Virginia shows McAuliffe with a seven-point lead, according to Real Clear Politics, with just 50 days to go. The former Democratic National Committee chairman scored the endorsement of Will Sessoms, the Republican mayor of Virginia Beach, the largest city in the state.

Much of McAuliffe’s help has come from organized labor, which pitched in another $425,000 on top of $1.8 million in previous donations. While McAuliffe says he supports Virginia’s right-to-work laws, a Cuccinelli governorship would give Republicans a greater shot at further restricting union power in the state.

Cuccinelli, meanwhile, continues to garner financial support from energy groups. Organizations with ties to energy companies gave Cuccinelli well over $160,000 in recent months on top of the nearly $570,000 contributed through June. The Republican has faced a backlash for his office’s role in a land royalties dispute between homeowners and companies looking to extract natural gas in southwest Virginia.

– Steve Contorno, Congressional Correspondent

HARKIN’S STEAK FRY: WHAT’S IN A NAME?

The first Harkin steak fry was held in 1972 when Tom Harkin was in his initial race for the House. Just 20 people showed up to talk politics.

About 10 years later, the steak fry became a regular political extravaganza, serving up beef and potential presidential candidates in what has become a required stop leading to the Iowa presidential caucuses. In 1991, Harkin used it to announce his own (short-lived) candidacy.

And Vice President Joe Biden showed up at the 36th steak fry, raising well-orchestrated expectations that he will run for president in 2016.

But about that name. While it suggests the steaks are fried, the cooking team actually uses gas grills, not fryers.

Even Harkin confessed that he doesn’t know why his signature event is called a steak fry.

“Welcome to the 36th Harkin steak fry,” Harkins said at the event. Then: “I don’t know where the heck that name ever came from.”

– Paul Bedard, Washington Secrets Columnist

BIDEN MOCKS REPUBLICAN ‘NEANDERTHAL CROWD’

Vice President Joe Biden ripped Republicans who opposed reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, mocking them as a “Neanderthal crowd.”

“I’m going to say something outrageous,” Biden told attendees at a dinner reception hosted at his residence celebrating the 19th anniversary of the legislation. “I think I understand the Senate better than any man or woman who’s ever served in there, and I think I understand the House … I was surprised this last time … The idea we still had to fight? We had to fight to reauthorize?”

“Constitutional violation?” Biden added sarcastically, dismissing GOP opposition. “Yeah, come on!”

Biden, who crusaded against domestic violence during his lengthy career in the Senate, said the legislation had saved countless lives.

The law stiffened penalties for domestic violence and increased federal support for organizations that help victims.

Some Republicans balked at Democratic attempts to offer additional protections for Native Americans, lesbians and transgendered women.

Ultimately, 87 Republicans in the House joined their Democratic colleagues to pass the Senate version of the bill earlier this year.

– Brian Hughes, White House Correspondent

CHRISTIE DEEPLY UPSET BY SEASIDE FIRE: ‘I FEEL LIKE I WANT TO THROW UP’

Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J., was quick to react to the boardwalk fire in Seaside that destroyed nearly 50 businesses — at an area that was still rebuilding after the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

“I feel like I want to throw up, and that’s me,” Christie said during press conference. “After all the effort and time and resources that we put in to help the folks in Seaside Park and Seaside Heights rebuild, to see this going on as I said at the top is just unthinkable.”

Christie reminded the residents and business owners that they would rebuild again.

“Listen, this is us, so as soon as this is over, we’ll pick ourselves up we’ll dust ourselves off and we’ll get back to work,” Christie added.

– Charlie Spiering, Commentary Writer

ENERGY DEPT. SPENDS $603M TO FAIL ITS OWN BIOFUEL GOALS

Department of Energy officials have spent seven years and $603 million to prove the commercial viability of biofuels, a major focus of the Obama administration’s energy plan, but instead have missed their own goals and failed to make biorefineries commercially viable.

“We found that the department had not successfully achieved commercial-scale operations even though the FOAs (Funding Opportunity Announcements) issued in 2006 and 2007 indicated that the proposed projects should be operational at the commercial scale within three to four years,” the DOE inspector general said in a new report.

“Additionally, we found that the department was not on target for achieving its 2014 production capacity goal of 100 million gallons of advanced biofuels.”

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 required the DOE to demonstrate that advanced fuels like cellulosic biofuel, made from wood, grasses and other plants, are ready for the market and should be incorporated into energy strategies. The DOE’s goal was to have three biorefineries running commercially by 2012 and produce 100 million gallons of advanced biofuels by 2014.

But the largely stimulus-funded $929 million program has been troubled from the start. Six of the 15 projects given taxpayer dollars to make biofuels have been canceled after spending $75 million, according to the IG. The rest have encountered technical and financing problems and long environmental reviews.

DOE officials blamed the financial crisis and poor market conditions, but the IG identified another significant flaw: Officials awarded loans to projects they knew were not ready to produce biofuels commercially.

Not only did they move ahead with high-risk projects, but DOE officials more than doubled spending on the projects, despite being aware of their potential failure. The DOE increased funding from $160 million to $385 million in 2006, even though the projects had been identified as risky.

– Michal Conger, Staff Writer

SENATORS PUSH TO DECLARE FORT HOOD SHOOTING TERRORISM, NOT WORKPLACE VIOLENCE

The two U.S. senators from Texas, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, have introduced a bill to declare the 2009 Fort Hood shooting an act of terror instead of “workplace violence.”

The distinction might not seem important, but it is critical for the victims of the Fort Hood shootings and their families.

Because the shooting took place on U.S. soil, the victims are not receiving the same medical benefits as their fellow soldiers who are injured in a combat zone.

The bill argues that shooter Nidal M. Hasan was motivated by Islamic extremism and proved to be a terrorist, a traitor and an enemy of the United States.

“The wheels of justice have turned too slowly for the victims of the terrorist attack at Fort Hood four years ago,” said Cornyn, the author of the bill. “We must direct our attention to the people who deserve it, and that is the victims and their families. As a nation, we have a sacred obligation to take care of them.”

U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Jerry Moran, R-Kan., are co-sponsors.

The bill would require Purple Heart awards to the soldiers killed or wounded in the attack and make the victims of the attack and their families eligible for combat-related compensation and benefits.

Thirteen people were killed and 32 others wounded in the shooting. Hasan received a death sentence from a military court last month.

– Charlie Spiering, Commentary Writer

HHS AWARDS $1,5000 TO INJURED ‘INVINCIBLE’

A video of a college student wearing a bad superhero costume to promote Obamacare won the “early bird winner prize” in the Department of Health and Human Service’s Healthy Young America contest.

Massachusetts college student Jason Girouard won $1,500 for the video.

“Young people need health insurance,” the costumed Girouard announces after falling on the ground and breaking his arm. “Because even though we feel invincible, doesn’t mean we are.”

HHS is awarding $30,000 in prizes for contestants in the video contest.

– Charlie Spiering, Commentary Writer