OVERNIGHT FINANCE: Dems blast classified trade meeting; GOP readies budgets

TOMORROW STARTS TONIGHT: HOUSE DEMS ATTACK WHITE HOUSE ON TRADE DEAL TRANSPARENCY. My latest for the hometown paper: “House Democrats are criticizing President Obama’s administration for holding a classified briefing on trade with top administration officials, saying it’s an attempt to push a trade program in secrecy. Labor Secretary Thomas Perez and U.S. Trade Ambassador Michael Froman will meet with House Democrats on Wednesday in a classified briefing to discuss the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). Members will be allowed to attend the briefing on the proposed trade pact with 12 Latin American and Asian countries with one staff member who possesses an ‘active Secret-level or high clearance’ compliant with House security rules.”

{mosads}– REP. ROSA DELAURO (D-Conn.) told me that the administration is being “needlessly secretive.” “Even now, when they are finally beginning to share details of the proposed deal with Members of Congress, they are denying us the ability to consult with our staff or discuss details of the agreement with experts,” DeLauro told The Hill.

— REP. LLOYD DOGGETT (D-Texas) told me: “Making it classified further ensures that even if we accidentally learn something, we cannot share it. What is USTR working so hard to hide? What is the specific legal basis for all this senseless secrecy? …Open trade should begin with open access… Members expected to vote on trade deals should be able to read the un-redacted negotiating text.”

— PRO-TRADE SENIOR DEM AIDE on progressives’ attack on trade transparency: “Bizarre… For some inexplicable reason, they seem to think that by shutting down the only chance Congress has to shape the contours of trade agreements, that’ll lead to greater transparency.”

— USTR SPOKESMAN MATT MCALVANAH tells me: “The Administration has made and continues to make classified documents available to any Member of Congress who is interested in reviewing them, we have released public summaries of our negotiating objectives, and we are now embarking on a new series of briefings for Members and their staffs that go above and beyond past practices.” Read this to preview the storm ahead: http://bit.ly/1HW0k7w

THIS IS OVERNIGHT FINANCE.  And this Tim Tebow to the Philadelphia Eagles news is nonsense. NONSENSE. In every form of the word. Tweet: @kevcirilli; email: kcirilli@digital-release.thehill.com; and subscribe: http://digital-release.thehill.com/signup/48. Move faster, it’s only Monday and this week is jam-packed…

RT The Washington Post’s @PostPolitics: Hillary Clinton’s debate opponents are set: Trey Gowdy, the GOP House and the media http://wapo.st/1DtwVTp

BUDGET BATTLE – – > BRACE YOURSELF. Rebecca Shabad for The Hill: “The unity of the new Republican Congress will be put to the test this week as leaders in the House and Senate unveil budget blueprints that are expected to slash trillions of dollars from federal spending. Republicans on the House Budget Committee will release their budget blueprint on Tuesday morning, followed by their Senate counterparts on Wednesday.

“The release of the two budgets will be the starting pistol for a frenzied lap of legislative work, with GOP leaders aiming to move budget resolutions through both chambers of Congress before the Easter recess.

“Thanks to their new majorities, Republican budget leaders are under enormous pressure to pass a fiscally conservative resolution that balances the books, perhaps within a decade. But they are also facing a counter push from defense hawks who say increasing military spending is a national security imperative that cannot be ignored. http://bit.ly/1LklEcy

Also, Shabad on the 5 big hurdles for the GOP’s budget blueprint: http://bit.ly/1MDXAyt

— REACTION FROM BOBBY JINDAL, via Jonathan Easley for The Hill: “Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) is calling on Congress to increase spending on defense in forthcoming budget proposals, highlighting a rift between defense and fiscal hawks within the Republican Party.” http://bit.ly/18yTU21

TAX REFORM ‘PURGATORY’ – – THE LATEST FROM BERNIE BECKER: “Lawmakers and lobbyists are starting to feel burnt out by tax reform talks that have been stalled for years, and appear unlikely to bear fruit anytime soon. Serious tax reform discussions are now into their fifth year. With a presidential race already heating up, many say those talks will likely spill into at least year seven before the tax code can be overhauled.” http://bit.ly/1EWgS0S

FIDUCIARY FIGHT – – SIFMA BLASTS WHITE HOUSE, via Peter Schroeder: “The financial industry is firing back on White House claims that retirement investment advisers need to be subjected to tougher rules. A new study commissioned by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) challenges administration claims that serve as the foundation for a renewed White House push to impose new regulations on investment advisers.” http://bit.ly/1Ft9dWV

ON-TAP FOR TOMORROW: Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) and his panel will hear testimony from Treasury Secretary Jack Lew on Tuesday. He will surely face tough questions from Republicans on the panel. For more of what’s on-tap for the week, here is my exclusive preview: http://bit.ly/1APhIoS

RISING STAR: Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Wis.) and his wife were on the Fox News couch out of New York City for a full hour earlier today, talking about politics and parenting and their seven kids.

FED WATCH – – > YELLEN PRESSER WEDNESDAY. WILL SHE RAISE RATES IN JUNE? Steve Mufson for The Washington Post has a primer: “There is little doubt that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this year, either in June or soon afterwards. Now the question is: How much and what impact will it have? In December, the Federal Reserve’s open market committee revealed that nine of its 17 members expected to raise the federal funds rate to 1.125 percent by the end of 2015. Yet just three months later, the crumbling in the value of the euro, persistently low inflation, and modest economic growth in the United States have convinced most analysts that the Fed will not come close to hitting those numbers.” http://wapo.st/1HVModM

— WALL STREET REACTION, via MarketWatch: “U.S. stocks kicked off the week on a high note, posting solid gains on Monday, as international markets rallied and investors looked toward the Federal Open Market Committee’s meeting and policy statement on Wednesday.” http://on.mktw.net/1MGtVmc

More trade talk…

OBAMA COURTING DEMOCRATS ON TRADE PUSH, via me from Sunday: President Obama is courting Democrats to build support for his trade agenda in what has become a divisive fight with his own party. Obama’s goal is to build a bipartisan coalition in Congress to pass trade promotion authority (TPA) or ‘fast-track’ legislation that would prevent Congress from amending trade deals.

— Obama met with Reps. Charlie Rangel (N.Y.), Sandy Levin (Mich.), Ron Kind (Wis.) and other House Democrats at the White House last month in an effort to win support for his proposals.

— Obama and his senior adviser, Valerie Jarrett, also recently met with International Brotherhood of Teamsters leader James Hoffa and Communications Workers of America President Larry Cohen.

“‘It was a frank conversation,’ said one source familiar with the meeting who disagrees with Obama’s trade pitch. ‘The bottom line was: We’re not throwing out everything else you’ve done — but we think this is way off.’ Story: http://bit.ly/1Gdco3b

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