After previously scheduling a procedural vote for this morning, the Senate has again pushed back a vote to take up legislation to allow a path to U.S. citizenship for some foreign-born young adults who came to the country illegally as children.

Instead, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called a vote at the last minute to “table” or kill the Senate version of the vote Thursday, with the intention of taking up the House version of similar legislation later this month. That motion passed, setting the bill aside.

The bill narrowly passed the House last night, 216-198, but Democrats face a difficult challenge to overcome a GOP filibuster in the Senate. A similar test vote in the Senate in September failed 52-44. (Democrats need 60 votes to move the legislation forward.)

The DREAM (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors) Act would allow those with a high school diploma or a GED to apply for conditional U.S. status if they are under the age of 30 and arrived the U.S. before the age of 16. After a long process -- including two years of service in the military or enrollment in college -- they would then be eligible to apply for legal immigrant status.

Republican critics call the measure “amnesty.” Speaking on the Senate floor earlier this week, GOP Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama branded the bill “an immediate reward for the illegal entry, and there is no serious plan to stop the illegal flow—indeed, the legislation incentivizes it.” Sessions notes that the bill would allow some illegal immigrants with criminal records to gain citizenship and that it would offer job and educational opportunities not available to citizens who have always followed the law. “In short, this bill would be a disaster,” he said.

But many Democrats say that the law would be good for the country as a whole. In a statement after the bill passed the House, President Barack Obama called it “the right thing for the United States of America” as well as for “talented young people who seek to serve a country they know as their own.”

“The rule of law must be conditioned by justice and fairness and compassion,” said Rep. Luis Gutierrez of Illinois, the chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’s task force on immigration and a key backer of the DREAM act. He urged his colleagues to change current immigration rules that are “unfair” to young foreign-born adults living in this country.

Despite its challenges in the upper chamber, the debate on the DREAM Act allows Democrats to vocally back a proposal favored by a fast-growing block of Hispanic voters. Last year, census data showed that number of Hispanic voters surged 28 percent between the 2004 and 2008 election. Barack Obama won two-thirds of Latino voters in the 2008 election.

From NBC's Chuck Todd and Domenico Montanaro
The Senate will not vote on the DREAM act today. Instead, they'll vote next week on the version the House passed last night, according a Senate leadership aide.

That doesn't mean the bill is dead. It actually means this won't just be a symbolic vote. Democrats don't have the votes yet, but they think they might -- might -- have a chance to corral enough votes for passage.

Democrats need 60 votes to overcome a filibuster.

From NBC's Luke Russert
In a non-binding vote Thursday, the House Democratic Caucus voted to reject the president's tax compromise.

This is significant in the sense that it shows how many House Democrats are angry about the compromise with Republicans to temporarily extend the cuts for the highest earners, but it is not binding in regards to legislation that goes to the floor.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland, who controls how legislation comes to the House floor, said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" today that Democrats need to back the president's deal. appeared to be more supportive than other Democrats of the plan on "MSNBC's Morning Joe."

Here's what Hoyer said:

“The President and the Congress are confronted with an increase in middle class taxes if we continue to have gridlock and no extension of unemployment insurance. Both of those will undermine the economy. The President made a judgment and we’re going to determine whether we’ll make a similar judgment as to whether putting the economy at risk and putting millions of Americans at risk and their homes and their families and surviving or whether we’re going to play a game of political chicken. Unfortunately the Republicans have been prepared to play that game in protecting the wealthiest in our country, we don’t want to put the non wealthy at such risk so we’ll see what we can do.”

But sources tell NBC News that with enough GOP support, there are enough moderate Democrats and rank and file Democrats to reach 218 in the House.

UPDATE: NBC's Chuck Todd reports that House leaders still intend to bring the tax bill up for a vote as long as the Senate passes the legislation.

*** UPDATE 2 *** Hoyer's office sends along this response:

"There is an AP article with a headline claiming that Mr. Hoyer said on Morning Joe this morning that Democrats must accept the tax deal. That is not what he said - we provided the video of the interview earlier, here it is again. He made it clear that he does not want to see middle class tax cuts expire on January 1, and that UI needs to be extended. He noted that he understood the tough spot the President was in because Republicans are not budging. But he said we have to determine "whether we're going to make a similar judgment" and that he hopes changes are made. So clearly not an endorsement."

*** UPDATE 3 *** Here's outgoing Speaker and soon-to-be Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's statement:

“House Democrats share the President's commitment to providing the middle class with a tax cut to grow the economy and create jobs. The House passed a bill last week to provide tax cuts for all Americans but not a bonus tax cut to millionaires and billionaires. The extra tax cut for the top 3 percent does not create jobs and increases the deficit. Unfortunately, Senate Republicans blocked the bill from being approved by the Senate.

“In the Caucus today, House Democrats supported a resolution to reject the Senate Republican tax provisions as currently written. We will continue discussions with the President and our Democratic and Republican colleagues in the days ahead to improve the proposal before it comes to the House floor for a vote. Democratic priorities remain clear: to provide a tax cut for working families, to create jobs and economic growth, to assist millions of our fellow Americans who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own, and to do this in a fiscally sound way.”

After meeting today with Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and OMB Director Jack Lew, deficit-reduction commission co-chairs Erskine Bowles (D) and Alan Simpson (R) released a statement calling on President Obama to launch negotiations with Congress earlier next year to consider ways to reduce the deficit/debt.

They also want Obama to issue his own ideas for deficit reduction in his upcoming State of the Union address.

The commission's final proposal won support from more than majority of members, but not the supermajority (14 of 18 votes) needed to force Congress to consider it.

Their statement:

While Congress and the administration decide how to temporarily address the lagging economy, we call on the President to launch negotiations with congressional leaders from both parties when Congress returns in January on the critical next step of establishing a serious fiscal responsibility plan to strengthen our economy for the long term. Our country needs a comprehensive plan to restrain spending across the federal budget, enact broad-based tax reform that lowers rates and reduces the deficit, take steps to bring down health care costs, and make Social Security solvent for the next 75 years and beyond.

We believe the Fiscal Commission's plan provides a serious and substantive starting point for the tough choices Washington cannot afford to put off any longer. We urge the President to build on these bipartisan ideas by putting forward his own plan in his State of the Union address and budget. We further call on him to bring key congressional leaders together with administration officials to negotiate and reach conclusion on a specific deficit reduction agreement that would be enacted. We believe a bipartisan agreement should be reached before any long-term increase in the debt limit is approved.

While no Commissioner supports every element of the Commission plan, the nation desperately needs a broad, bipartisan agreement on a plan that would get our debt under control and safeguard our economic future. Our businesses will not be able to grow and create jobs and our workers will not be able to compete without a strategy to get this crushing debt burden off our backs. If we fail to act today, we will be forcing far more difficult choices on the next generation.

Neither party can fix this problem on its own, and both parties have a responsibility to do their part. Americans are counting on us to put politics aside, pull together not pull apart, and agree on a plan to live within our means and make America strong for the long haul.

White House uses scare tactics to sell the tax deal… Related or not, this has been the White House’s most vigorous (and best?) sales job in months… Memo to reporters and pundits: Obama is unlikely to receive a serious primary challenge, so let’s stop writing about it (at least until we have some real evidence, OK?)… Senate takes up DREAM Act -- and also maybe DADT -- today… Bush 41 backs new START… Bloomberg = Obama?... And Bloomberg’s (unfair) jab at the Obama administration.

From NBC's Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** Scare tactics: It’s far from the previous administration’s warnings of a “mushroom cloud,” or the inaccurate statement that Saddam Hussein “sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.” But yesterday, the Obama administration began to use a little fear to sell its tax-cut agreement. “Failure to pass this bill in the next couple weeks would materially increase the risk that the economy would stall out and we would have a double-dip” recession predicted outgoing chief White House economic adviser Larry Summers. And on an OFA conference call yesterday, President Obama said that not passing the agreement would mean that “two million folks would have seen their unemployment insurance run out” and that it would be “damaging to the economy." And the president went even further, suggesting that a million jobs could be lost if no agreement was reached by the end of the year -- something administration officials have said economists have been warning them of privately.

*** A more vigorous sales job: Related or not, this has been the Obama White House’s most vigorous and dynamic sales job we’ve seen in months. For instance, the White House -- from Tuesday to Wednesday night -- blasted out 26 e-mails in 27 hours touting endorsements for the tax compromise, mostly from officials who do not have votes in Congress. As mentioned above, it’s stressing what COULD happen if the deal doesn’t go through (which sounds to us like Hank Paulson’s selling of TARP in ’08). And economic adviser Austan Goolsbee is now featured on a “white board” video arguing that the president’s priorities in the tax agreement (jobless benefits, payroll-tax holiday, and other targeted tax cuts) are a larger part than extending the Bush tax cuts. Of course, this sales job has to be really frustrating to left, which legitimately can ask: “Where was this during the fight over the public option or getting energy/climate change through the Senate”? By the way, Goolsbee appears on MSNBC’s “Daily Rundown,” and the show also will interview Sen. Patty Murray in her first TV interview since becoming DSCC chair.

*** Forget about a serious Obama primary challenge: Memo to pundits and political reporters: President Obama is highly unlikely to receive a legitimate primary challenge. Oh, someone out there might challenge him (to get a book deal or a TV show), but right now there’s no evidence that the person will be a serious threat. As Politico’s Martin and Smith write, “Some angry liberals may want to see President Barack Obama face a primary from his left in 2012, but they have no answer to a basic question: Who? Two of the Democratic Party's most well-known progressives – Howard Dean and Russ Feingold - have both indicated that they won't take on Obama and there are few others who have the stature and willingness to mount a credible campaign against the president.” Our guess why this “Is Obama going to get a primary challenge?” talk is gaining traction: Because with the GOP presidential contest getting a late start (compared with 2007-2008), there’s a void of other political stories to write about. That said, the more people write about this, the more likely it could become self-fulfilling, serious challenge or not. Remember this: If the two weakest incumbent presidents in modern history, Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford, would win primary challenges against a Kennedy and a Reagan, it's proof that defeating an incumbent president in a primary is not NEARLY impossible; it IS impossible.

*** Today on Capitol Hill: NBC’s Ken Strickland reports that the Senate is scheduled to take a procedural vote to start debate on the DREAM Act today at about 11:00 am ET. Because 60 votes are required to break the filibuster on the bill, it's expected to fail. The legislation passed the House last night by a 216-198 vote. Strick also notes that Senate Majority Leader Reid said he may also call for vote today to start debate on the defense bill which includes the repeal of “Don't Ask, Don't Tell.” No time has been set as Reid continues to negotiate with Susan Collins (R) and Joe Lieberman (I-D).

*** Bush 41 backs START: Look at the latest Republican to support ratification of New START: George H.W. Bush. The New York Times’ Baker: “Former President George H.W. Bush, who signed and won Senate approval of the original Start arms control treaty with the Soviet Union in 1991, endorsed the proposed follow-up treaty with Russia on Wednesday, lending another well-known Republican voice to the White House campaign for approval. ‘I urge the United States Senate to ratify the Start treaty,’ Mr. Bush said in a one-line statement that offered no elaboration.”

*** Bloomberg = Obama? One man is a Democrat and former community organizer who’s the country’s first African-American president. The other is a Jewish billionaire businessman who’s now New York City’s independent mayor. But beyond those differences, it’s striking how much Michael Bloomberg sounded like Barack Obama, per the big political speech Bloomberg delivered yesterday. In it, the New York City mayor railed against the partisanship in Washington and stressed that economic solutions don’t exist solely on the right or the left -- which are exactly two of the messages that Obama campaigned on in 2008 (and still talks about today, e.g.: the tax-cut debate). So if -- and it’s still a big if -- Bloomberg runs for president in 2012 in a third-party bid, it’s likely he’d occupy the same ground as Obama: the pragmatic center. Bloomberg appears on “Meet the Press” this Sunday.

*** Bloomberg’s one jab at Obama: By the way, Bloomberg’s speech did criticize Obama, at least implicitly. Example, according to his prepared remarks: “Unfortunately, very little of the stimulus package passed in Washington promotes innovation. Very little of the health care bill passed in Washington promotes innovation. And the Obama administration will have to be very careful to make sure that the financial services bill passed this year doesn’t hinder innovation.” But that’s an unfair charge. For starters, the stimulus contained what many experts say is one the most innovative federal education programs ever, “Race to the Top” (which, as it turns out, New York is benefiting from). Also, the health-care law contains numerous pilot programs intended to reduce health costs and efforts to streamline medical technology and paperwork. and

Click here to sign up for First Read emails.
Text FIRST to 622639, to sign up for First Read alerts to your mobile phone.
Check us out on Facebook and also on Twitter.

"With the Senate steadily falling in line behind President Obama's deal to extend Bush-era tax cuts, the White House yesterday played hardball in the House, where Vice President Joe Biden warned Democrats last night that 'this is the deal, take it or leave it,'" The New York Post writes.

"Divided Democrats hurled more insults at each other on Wednesday as the White House warned of a possible double-dip recession if the tax deal falls apart," the New York Daily News writes.

The New York Times adds, “One of President Obama’s top economic advisers warned on Wednesday that the nation could slip back into recession if Congress did not pass the administration’s tax cut deal with Republicans, as the White House sought to press Democrats into backing the plan.”

The Boston Globe: "Democrats rip Obama, look to alter tax cut deal."

“The White House said Wednesday that Capitol Hill Democrats are partly to blame for the tax-cut deal they have criticized the president for negotiating,” The Hill writes. Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer said on liberal radio host’s Bill Press’ show: "He and the White House, frankly, urged the House and Senate to hold votes on this before the election. But they didn't do that, in part because there's not unanimity in the Democratic Caucus on this."

Politico’s Jonathan Martin and Ben Smith look at some liberals’ angst and desire for a primary to President Obama. but there’s a problem, they write: “Some angry liberals may want to see President Barack Obama face a primary from his left in 2012, but they have no answer to a basic question: Who?”

The New York Times says that Obama is trying to reclaim the middle. “As Mr. Obama defends the tax accord, the nation is witnessing a pivot point in his presidency. Gone is the leader who, during a tussle with Republicans over his stimulus package in the earliest days of his administration, boldly declared that ‘elections have consequences’ and ‘I won.’ In his place is the post-shellacking, pragmatic Mr. Obama, willing to anger his party’s liberal base by joining hands with Republicans and cutting out Congressional Democrats in service of his own legislative goals — not to mention his electoral ambitions.”

In addition to the tax questions, we wrote about yesterday, there’s more from a new Bloomberg/Selzer poll out today: More than half say they are worse off than they were two year ago (35/51); Two-thirds think the country is on the wrong track (27%/66%). There’s this small glimmer for Obama: “By age group, only the young -- those under 35, a core constituency for Obama in his presidential bid -- consider themselves better off than they were two years ago,” according to the poll release. The public is also skeptical of the Federal Reserve (54% say the Fed’s move to buy $600 billion of longer-term federal debt won’t help the economy). and (For more poll data.)

Politifact gives President Obama a “false” for saying at his press conference that When Social Security started “it only affected widows and orphans,” and that when Medicare began, ‘it was a small program.” “Obama had a point that Social Security started small and expanded slowly, but he was clearly incorrect that the first groups to be covered were widows and orphans,” the site writes. “On Medicare, it's not accurate to say, as the president did, that the program started "small." It was up and running for elderly Americans within one year -- four years faster than it will take the health care exchanges created in Obama's own health care bill. On balance, we rate the item False.”

“Corporate chief executives who have been disappointed in the Obama administration are suddenly singing a different tune,” The Hill writes. “Ivan Seidenberg, the Verizon CEO who just months ago criticized President Obama’s policies as a threat to business, on Wednesday said Obama ‘has shown a willingness to learn.’”

Womp, womp: “A provision in President Obama’s tax proposal to reinstate the estate tax next year is dividing some conservative groups, throwing another wrinkle into the contentious debate,” The Hill reports. “The proposal has enraged Democrats, who believe the estate tax should be significantly higher than Obama agreed to, but a parallel debate has erupted among conservatives, who have long pushed for the estate tax -- which they refer to as the ‘death tax’ -- to be abolished completely.”

"The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday gave the green light to a bill giving green cards to undocumented kids who go to college or join the military," the New York Daily News writes. "The Senate is slated to take up the DREAM Act on Thursday, but backers on Wednesday couldn't guarantee the 60 votes they need to pass the immigration bill. The House's narrow tally was 216 to 198."

“House Democrats outraged by the $900 billion tax cut deal President Barack Obama negotiated with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) are trying to build momentum to amend it, but they appear to lack the leverage they need to get very far,” Roll Call writes.

“The White House-negotiated tax package could result in thousands of job losses in the wind industry because it does not include the extension of a Treasury Department grant program, Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) said Wednesday,” The Hill writes.

“The Senate passed on Wednesday night a one-year, fully paid-for fix to Medicare rates that would avoid a scheduled 25 percent cut to physician payments on Jan. 1,” The Hill writes.

Here’s the 2011 congressional calendar.

Newsweek writes in its “Looking for Mr. or Mrs. Right” piece: “Surveying the crop of would-be Republican presidential contenders in 2012, some Christian leaders can’t muster much enthusiasm.” GOP 12 picks up on Richard Land telling Newsweek about Romney: “He put ‘Obamacare Light’ in place in Massachusetts. It’s going to be awfully difficult for him to surmount that.” And the hits kept on coming: On Palin: "Her problem is her very high negatives. Evangelicals want somebody they like, but they also want somebody who can beat Barack Obama.” On Gingrich: “Two ex-wives is one ex-wife too many for most evangelicals.” On Huckabee: "The problem Mike’s got is that he and Sarah Palin are appealing to the same base, and Sarah has stronger appeal to that base.”

BLOOMBERG: The New York Post's cover on Bloomberg's speech yesterday: "State of the Union."

GINGRICH: He said he’s in favor of the tax deal, separating him from the likes of Sarah Palin and Jim DeMint who are against it.

HUCKABEE: Huckabee was in The Villages in Florida selling his book.

PALIN: Drawing her with a Pinocchio nose, the Alaska Dispatch fact-checks several of Sarah Palin’s claims about her gubernatorial record that she makes on her Facebook page, finding many of them misleading or inaccurate.

Palin, by the way, came out against the tax cuts deal. “Obviously Obama is so very, very wrong on the economy & spins GOP tax cut goals; so fiscal conservatives: we expect you to fight for us & America’s solvency,” Palin wrote in a series of tweets, per The Hill. She cast her lot with Jim DeMint, who’s opposed to it because of the estate tax, and said he would vote against it.

Time magazine on Palin: What does she want?

PENCE: In voicing his support for a presidential bid by Indiana Rep. Mike Pence, Washington Post columnist George Will compares him to Sen-elect Pat Toomey and Sen. Jim DeMint, two Republicans who “stuck to their conviction that America had quite enough unfunded entitlements” and voted against President George W. Bush’s Medicare prescription drug benefit in 2003.

ROMNEY: “Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has tentative trips planned early next year to the Middle East and to Europe. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is trying to schedule visits to Israel and to the United Kingdom, primarily to visit former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who is one of her political idols. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee will make his 15th voyage to Israel in January.

“Most of the likely contenders for the Republican presidential nomination are planning later entries than are typical in the off year, giving them some extra time to burnish their foreign credentials,” Real Clear Politics writes. “The overseas trips are attempts to bone up on their knowledge of American interests abroad and project a strong grasp on foreign affairs as they gear up to launch potential campaigns.”

NEW HAMPSHIRE: “Inside the state GOP, there's a melodrama developing over who wants to take over for outgoing Chairman John H. Sununu, who has the credentials and, who may have -- or not have -- Sununu's blessing,” the Manchester Union-Leader says. He said Cheshire County GOP chair Juliana Bergeron meets the “criteria” he laid out this week but stopped short of endorsing her. “Veteran GOP operative and former congressional staffer David Tille has become active on behalf of conservative author and potential presidential hopeful Herman Cain,” the Union-Leader adds.

ALASKA: “An Alaska judge will rule by Friday on Republican candidate Joe Miller’s lawsuit concerning the counting of write-in ballots for his Senate race, the Associated Press reported Wednesday,” per Roll Call.

MINNESOTA: “'Now the real work begins.’ So said Democrat Mark Dayton during his first public appearance Wednesday after the Minnesota canvassing board certified him the winner of the 2010 election for governor,” the Pioneer Press writes.

From NBC's Ken Strickland
After threatening this morning to hold a procedural vote on the bill containing repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s office confirmed late Wednesday that he will postpone the vote as negotiations continue with Republicans who support lifting the ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military.

The Senate will also not hold a test vote on the DREAM Act tonight.

The delay will allow more time for Reid to negotiate with Republican Sen. Susan Collins, who supports repeal but has demanded a "fair and open" process on debate and amendments to the Defense Authorization bill that contains the DADT repeal.

Shortly before the postponement was made public, Republican Sen. Susan Collins said she would not vote to bring the bill containing Don't Ask, Don't Tell to the floor if it the vote happened tonight.

"Everyone on the Republican side wants to see the tax package completed first," Collins said in a nod to the GOP caucus's promise to block legislation until the Senate addresses the Bush-era tax cuts or government spending. "So I have urged the Majority Leader to postpone the vote ... which he is threatening to hold tonight so we could get the tax bill considered first."

"Why not take the path that would lead to 60 votes?” Collins asked.

During negotiations Wednesday, Reid made an offer to address Collins' concerns, proposing to allow Republicans votes on 10 amendments and up to 17 hours of debate on the bill.

Collins rejected that deal.

Collins said she made a counter offer, requesting double the time for debate and more freedom for Republicans to choose the amendments they address.

But when asked what Reid's response was, Collins said "he does not seem interested at this point."

"There are many people in my caucus who disagree with my position [to repeal DADT],” Collins told reporters. “They deserve an opportunity to offer amendments to strike that provision, to modify it, and also to address other important controversial issues in the bill."

Msnbc.com's Carrie Dann contributed

From NBC's Pete Williams
Arizona seemed headed for victory in the U.S. Supreme Court after the justices heard a challenge Wednesday to the state's law providing harsh penalties for businesses that knowingly hire illegal immigrants.

If the state does carry the day, the absence of Justice Elena Kagan -- who recused herself from hearing the case -- may be the key factor. Based on the oral argument in the courtroom, the legal battle seemed likely to result in a 4-4 tie, with the court's liberal and conservative justices evenly divided. Had Kagan participated, she might have tipped the balance, and Arizona might have lost. But a tie vote would leave the lower court ruling, which favored Arizona, undisturbed.

Kagan has declined to sit in on cases which her office handled when she was solicitor general at the Justice Department. The federal government filed briefs opposing the state.

This was not the showdown over Arizona's controversial law requiring police to detain suspected illegal aliens -- the case which is now on appeal and has not yet reached the Supreme Court. Instead, the justices today heard a challenge to a law passed three years ago that gives the state authority to revoke a company's license to do business if it knowingly hires illegal workers. Opponents call that sanction as "the death penalty for business."

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups claim the Arizona statute is preempted by federal immigration law, which sets out the procedures employers must follow to verify a job applicant's legal status and the punishments for knowingly hiring illegal immigrants. The federal law says it preempts any state or local laws that impose punishments "other than through licensing or similar laws."

Arizona's law gives the state the power to revoke a business license for employees who fail to use the federal database, a system known as E-Verify, and knowingly hire illegal workers.

"This is not a licensing law. This is a worker authorization sanctioning law," said Carter Phillips, a D.C. lawyer representing the Chamber of Commerce.

But Justice Antonin Scalia, whose comments seemed most forcefully to support the state, said Arizona was forced into adopting its own system because the federal government has failed to adequately police the hiring of illegal workers.

"I agree this step is massive, and one wouldn't have expected it to occur under this statute, but expectations change when the federal government has simply not enforced the immigration restrictions," he said.

From NBC's Ken Strickland
After a meeting just off the Senate floor with Majority Leader Harry Reid and Sen. Joe Lieberman, Republican Sen. Susan Collins said she would NOT vote to bring the bill containing Don't Ask, Don't Tell to the floor if it the vote happens tonight.

The three lawmakers have been working on an agreement to meet Collins' requirements for an open amendment process in considering the bill.

From NBC's Mark Murray
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg today gave a major speech that's drawing plenty of political attention about Bloomberg's 2012 prospects, even though he's said he won't run.

The crux of Bloomberg's speech was about curbing partisanship in politics, acknowlegding that pragmatic solutions don't exist solely on the left or the right, and promoting economic innovation.

Even though parts of the speech criticized President Obama and Democrats -- as well as Republicans -- much of it sounded a lot like Obama's famous speeches.

This means one of two things if -- and it's a big if -- Bloomberg makes a third-party bid in 2012: He either runs on the same ground covered by Obama, or he tries to make the case that the president wasn't able to live up to his promises, but that he can deliver them.

Here's Bloomberg today:

Despite what ideologues on the left believe, government cannot tax and spend its way back to prosperity, especially when that spending is driven by pork barrel politics... At the same time, despite what ideologues on the right believe, government should not stand aside and wait for the business cycle to run its natural course.

Obama's inaugural address:

The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works -- whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end... Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched. But this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control.

Bloomberg today:

Both parties follow the mood of the moment – instead of leading from the front. They incite anger instead of addressing it – for their own partisan interests. They tell the world about every real or imagined problem in America – and not what is right with America. Especially in these tough times, we need our leaders to inspire the whole country – not criticize half of it... This can’t go on. We’ve got to pull together, and focus on what’s important for America – and then roll up our sleeves and fix the things that need fixing.

Obama announcing his presidential bid in 2009:

What's stopped us from meeting these challenges is not the absence of sound policies and sensible plans. What's stopped us is the failure of leadership, the smallness of our politics - the ease with which we're distracted by the petty and trivial, our chronic avoidance of tough decisions, our preference for scoring cheap political points instead of rolling up our sleeves and building a working consensus to tackle big problems.

Bloomberg today:

Throughout American history, innovations combined with government investment have created fundamental and lasting structural changes to the economy that spurred new private sector investment, new jobs, and new prosperity for the country. For instance, after the financial panic of 1819, it was New York Gov. DeWitt Clinton who built the Erie Canal – ushering in a new era of westward development and growth. In the 1860s, with the Civil War tearing the country in two, Lincoln’s transcontinental railroad set the stage for America to fulfill its manifest destiny, by opening new markets and allowing private sector innovations – in industries like steel and oil – to drive a new era of national growth.

Obama's inaugural:

The state of our economy calls for action, bold and swift. And we will act, not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We'll restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age.

From NBC’s Pete Williams and Ken Strickland
The Obama administration has come out strongly against a provision in a House bill that would block any further detainees from Guantanamo Bay from standing trial in the United States.

The omnibus spending bill, which is backed by House Democrats, includes a provision to cut off funding for the transfer of any Gitmo detainees to U.S. soil.

"We strongly oppose this provision,” said DOJ spokesman Matt Miller. “Congress should not limit the tools available to the executive branch in bringing terrorists to justice and advancing our national security interests.”

Current law allows the Justice Department to bring detainees to the U.S. for trial as long as DOJ gives Congress 45 days notice before the transfer.

The spending bill will be addressed on the House floor tonight and is expected to pass, but it would face another major hurdle before final approval. While Senate Democrats support passage of a catchall spending bill, Senate Republicans oppose that plan, preferring to pass a short-term “continuing resolution” that would punt the issue of funding the government until next year.

Msnbc.com's Carrie Dann contributed.

In a wide-ranging interview with Yahoo, Baltimore Orioles outfielder Luke Scott rails against President Obama and argues -- falsely -- that he wasn't born in the United States.

Obama does not represent America. Nor does he represent anything what our forefathers stood for. This country is basically built on an attitude. It's a way of life. It's not because you're born here. It's not that you're supposed to take from those who have and give to those who haven't. That kills a country. It killed Russia.

[snip]

Yahoo: You don't think that Obama wasn't born in the United States, do you?

Scott: He was not born here.

Yahoo: [Sighs].

Scott: That's my belief. I was born here. If someone accuses me of not being born here, I can go — within 10 minutes — to my filing cabinet and I can pick up my real birth certificate and I can go, "See? Look! Here it is. Here it is." The man has dodged everything. He dodges questions, he doesn't answer anything. And why? Because he's hiding something.

You know what? People who have bad intentions, people that are deceivers or are not of honor and integrity — that's how they act. I've seen it in every — it doesn't matter what level. It can be in politics, it can be in business, it can be in sports, it can be in the construction field. Doesn't matter. It's all the same attitude. It's the same thing.

People who tell the truth, they're very easy to ... their actions prove it. Something as simple providing a birth certificate. Come on. If you're born here, there's plenty of documents. But you know what? There's no documentation of him. No legal documentation of him. There's been lie after lie after lie exposed, but people put it under the carpet. Hence, the problem we have in this country.

Here's Obama's birth certificate, via Politifact.

From NBC's Ken Strickland
The fight to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell is getting a bit nasty between the Senate offices of Majority Leader Harry Reid, Joe Lieberman and Republican Susan Collins, all of whom support ending the ban.

It's gotten so contentious that Lieberman released a written statement defending Collins against "baseless allegations" from Democratic aides that Collins is blocking the bill.

"Senator Collins has been working in good faith to achieve an agreement on the process to move forward with the defense bill that contains the repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,'" he said.

Collins received a call from the president yesterday on the matter, according to sources with knowledge about the conversation.

In remarks to reporters on Wednesday afternoon, Lieberman called on Reid not to hold a vote to bring the bill to the floor this evening -- which Reid indicated was "likely" earlier today -- until Collins and Reid reach an agreement.

What's the deal?

While Collins strongly supports repeal, she is reluctant to bring the larger defense bill that includes the DADT provision to the floor without being given assurances that there is a "fair and open" process. In other words, she wants to make sure that senators have to opportunities to debate and vote on several amendments to the sweeping legislation.

Lieberman says he and Collins have been working with Reid's office to negotiate an agreement to bring the bill to the floor in the fast-waning days of the session.

As details of the talks have emerged, however, it's evident that those negotiations haven't been going well.

Democratic aides say Reid has made a reasonable offer that Collins won't accept: 15 amendments, 17 hours of debate, and room to negotiate more.

Sources close to Collins dispute that claim, suggesting that the Maine senator's discussion with Reid was not that cut and dry.

And Lieberman says the Democrats blaming Collins don't know what they're talking about.

"I categorically reject reports by uninformed staffers who have suggested" Collins is not working in 'good faith,'" Lieberman said. "I call on those responsible for such baseless allegations to stop immediately and instead work to get to an agreement to bring this critical bill to the floor for Senate action."

Lieberman says if an agreement can be reached to get the defense bill on the floor, he's confident the votes are there to repeal the ban.

"It is now more clear than ever that we have 60 or more votes in support of repealing 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' so it is vitally important to reach agreement on the right process to move forward," he said in his statement.

Reaching a so-called "time agreement" with Collins and Lieberman isn't Reid's only obstacle to getting the bill to the floor. Last week, Republicans told Reid in a letter that they are collectively committed to blocking any bill from coming to the floor that doesn't address extension of the Bush tax cuts or funding of the government.

Reid said earlier Wednesday it was "likely" he would call for a vote to bring the defense bill to the floor tonight. That would happen after series of votes currently scheduled to begin at 4pm ET.

From NBC's Athena Jones
Touting good reviews the tax deal announced this week received from economists, the president again called on Congress today to pass the bill.

President Obama also expressed confidence the Senate would ratify the New START arms control treaty with Russia before leaving for the holidays.

He made the remarks after a meeting with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski during which the conversation touched on subjects ranging from the NATO alliance, to visa issues, to energy independence and the economy.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Despite clear unease on the part of many Democrats on the Hill with an agreement that would extend the Bush era tax rates for all income levels, the president said it was "inaccurate to characterize Democrats writ large as feeling quote unquote betrayed" and asked members of Congress to closely study the bill but to "get this done."

"I think Democrats are looking at this bill, and you've already had a whole bunch of them who've said this makes sense, and I think the more they look at it, the more of them are going to say this makes sense," the president said. "You've just had economists over the last 24, 48 hours examine this and say this is going to boost the economy; it is going to grow the economy; it is going to increase the likelihood that we can drive down the unemployment rate."

Obama pointed to analysis from economists who have upwardly revised their forecasts for economic growth and predicted more job growth in 2011 and 2012 than originally anticipated. The president said the deal was "the right thing to do" and warned Congress that the American people were watching and expecting lawmakers to take action.

The plan has not yet been scheduled for a vote in either house. Under the deal, the Bush-era tax rates would be extended for two years for people at all income levels and unemployment insurance would be extended for 13 months. It includes a one-year payroll tax holiday, an extension of other tax credits for working families and students and other tax breaks for businesses.

Saying the START treaty with Russia was important not just to America but also to allies like Poland, which has had a long, uneasy history with its neighbor, Obama noted the support the agreement has received from "the entire national security apparatus of previous Democratic and Republican administrations" and said it was something that on its merit needed to get passed.

"I have discussed it with Senate Republican Leader [Mitch] McConnell," he said. "I am confident that we are going to be able to get the START treaty on the floor, debated and completed before we break for the holidays."

Democrat Rep. Barney Frank, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said Wednesday that he will not support the White House’s compromise with Republicans on tax cuts but predicted that the economic package will pass.

“No, I won’t vote for it. I don’t think that I should be coerced,” Frank said on MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Reports.

When asked if the deal is going to pass, Frank replied “I’m afraid that it is, yes”

The Massachusetts Democrat also dinged the White House for implying that progressive Democrats who are resisting the compromise have been engaging in “political theater” over an unviable position. “We ought to be able to have honest differences of opinion without those kinds of characterizations,” he said.

Watch the full interview here:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

From NBC's Andrea Mitchell
Special Mideast representative Tony Blair, in Jerusalem today, endorsed last night's U.S. decision to stop opposing Israeli settlement expansion.

After taking a hard line on settlements for three years, the Obama White House gave up, seeing no chance that Israel's cabinet would go along with a settlement freeze.

Blair’s statement, which he gave in East Jerusalem:

"In respect of the peace process overall, let me again first of all say that I think that the decision that was announced last night is a sensible decision in light of the impasse that we reached and I just want to make two points on it.

"The first is that, despite this decision, there is no doubt at all in my mind that there remains a fixed determination, on behalf of the United States, the Quartet, and most important of all, in respect of the Israeli Government and the Palestinian leadership to make sure that we find a way to get a credible and serious negotiation back on track again.

"I think the decision to step back from a way of proceeding based around the moratorium is a sensible decision in light of what has happened. But I would not take that as a diminution in any way of people's determination to get this process going. It remains there and it remains the fixed resolution of everyone to make sure that we put this back together again in a way that is going to allow us to succeed.

"And secondly, this underscores and underlines once again the cardinal importance of the state building exercise of the Palestinian Authority, of the need to support that, of the need to get real change on the ground, because it is that change both in the West Bank and Gaza that gives us the best prospect of supporting a credible, negotiated peace.

"So I hope very much as well as the attempts to put this negotiation back together in a credible way over the coming weeks, we will see real change on the ground, and that's why incidentally the announcement today by the Israeli Cabinet on Gaza is also important."

According to the AP, U.S. officials insist that the administration is not giving up efforts to broker an Israeli/Palestinian peace deal, noting that negotiators from both ides will visit Washington next week for consultations.

We're going to shoot another edition of Inside the Boiler Room, but we need your questions! Submit them in comments below, write them on our Facebook page or tweet us: @NBCFirstRead, @mmurraypolitics or @DomenicoNBC.

From NBC's Kelly O'Donnell
New Orleans based, U.S. District Court Judge G. Thomas Porteous, Jr. was convicted of various acts of corruption. The case was prosecuted by members of the House who argued the judge accepted cash and favors from parties with business before his court after the judge developed a gambling problem.

They also found that Porteous lied to federal investigators during his nomination process about his background. He also was accused of lying to Congress and filing for bankruptcy under a false name.

Porteous presented a defense and his lawyers argued that some allegations were false and his improper actions occurred before he was a member of the federal bench and therefore did not rise to impeachment. Porteous has continued to receive his $174,000 annual federal salary since 2008 when the misconduct issued were raised and he stopped hearing cases.

It is just the eighth time in U.S. history a federal judge has been impeached by the Senate and removed from office. It's the first Senate impeachment trial since the 1999 trial of former President Bill Clinton.

Nearly all senators were seated at their desks which is rare in itself as they rendered judgment.

Here are how the votes broke down (Two-thirds required):

Verdict on Article I, 96 Senators voted guilty. None voted not guilty.
On Article II, 69 guilty, 27 not guilty.
On Article III, 88 guilty, 8 not guilty.
On Article IV, 90 guilty, 6 not guilty.

From NBC's Ken Strickland and Carrie Dann
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will “likely” force a procedural vote late this afternoon to take up a bill that contains the repeal of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

But Democrats are unlikely to get the 60 votes they need to start debate on the Defense Authorization measure that addresses the 17-year old ban on gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military.

“It won't happen,” a Republican leadership aide flatly told NBC News.

This morning on the Senate floor, Reid said, "I'm likely going to move to my motion to reconsider on the Defense Authorization Act this evening." If the vote happens, it would follow a series of votes currently scheduled to begin at 4pm ET.

But Republicans, who have vowed to block any bill except legislation to extend the Bush era tax cuts or fund government operations from coming to the floor, are expected to filibuster the measure.

In a letter last week signed by all 42 Republicans, GOP leader Mitch McConnell wrote that his caucus “will not agree to [allow debate on] any legislative item until the Senate has acted to fund the government and we have prevented the tax increase that is currently awaiting all American taxpayers.”

Following two days of hearings in the Senate Armed Services Committee last week, it appears that there may be bipartisan support to repeal the ban. Republican Scott Brown announced his support after the hearing. Democrat Mark Pryor, who previously opposed repeal, announced Wednesday that he will support the measure now.

But until the Senate disposes of the tax cut bill and government spending bill, it's highly unlikely the defense bill will make it onto the floor. And it is unclear that there would be enough time to finish the large and complex authorization bill and other legislative Democratic priorities before Congress adjourns for the holiday.

Also Wednesday night, the Senate is expected to hold “cloture votes” – requiring 60 yea votes – on a measure regarding 9/11 firefighters and an immigration bill that would provide a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who attend college or serve in the military.

Those votes are also expected to fail.

From NBC's Kelly O'Donnell
Arkansas Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor says he will no longer oppose the repeal of the ban on gays serving openly in the military.

Pryor told NBC today he has come to accept this is a military policy and while not setting aside the "moral aspects" believes the Pentagon is prepared to make the transition. He acknowledges support for the repeal is not particularly popular in his home state.

Pryor also said he is unsure the repeal as part of a large Defense Authorization bill will actually make it to the Senate floor before the end of the year. He said regardless he wanted his constituents to know he is prepared to support it now.

Here's his written statement:

"On many previous occasions, I have said that I would oppose repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell until I had heard from our servicemen and women regarding this policy. I have now carefully reviewed all of the findings, reports, and testimony from our armed forces on this matter and I accept the Pentagon's recommendations to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell. I also accept the Secretary of Defense and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs' commitment that this policy can be implemented in a manner that does not harm our military's readiness, recruitment, or retention. We have the strongest military in the world and we will continue to do so by ensuring our troops have the resources necessary to carry out their missions. Therefore, I support the 2011 Defense Authorization Act that passed the Senate Armed Services Committee and will support procedural measures to bring it to a vote this year."

Today is the day the 2010 elections finally ended.

Tom Emmer (R) is reportedly set to concede in the Minnesota gubernatorial race to former Sen. Mark Dayton (D).

And Newsday reports that in the lone remaining uncalled House race, Randy Altschuler (R) has conceded to incumbent Rep. Tim Bishop (D).

That means the official number of Republican net-gains in the House for this cycle is +63.

For the full list of GOP and Dem House picks ups, click here for the full list begun on Election Night. Overall, 55 incumbents lost, including 53 Democrats.

Did the White House get its “West Wing” moment from yesterday’s presser?... Liberal House Dems still in revolt over the tax-cut compromise… But will they end up accepting the deal?... Polling the tax deal… White House has been working primarily with McConnell, with McConnell then working Boehner… Is there still enough time to get START done?... To DREAM, the impossible DREAM [Act]… And Emmer expected to concede in Minnesota.

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg
*** A “West Wing” moment? Did the White House get its -- take your pop culture pick -- Sorkin-like “West Wing” moment/“Sister Souljah” moment/”Dave” moment from President Obama’s news conference yesterday? “This notion that somehow we are willing to compromise too much reminds me of the debate that we had during health care,” Obama said regarding complaints over the tax-cut compromise he cut with Republicans. “This is the public-option debate all over again. So I pass a signature piece of legislation where we finally get health care for all Americans... But because there was a provision in there that they didn't get that would have affected maybe a couple of million people, even though we got health insurance for 30 million people and the potential for lower premiums for 100 million people, that somehow that was a sign of weakness and compromise.” He continued, “Now, if that's the standard by which we are measuring success or core principles, then let's face it, we will never get anything done. People will have the satisfaction of having a purist position and no victories for the American people.”

*** Liberal revolt: Of course, some House Dems viewed the compromise -- as well as yesterday’s presser -- as Obama throwing them under the bus. "The last person that said we didn't matter was Newt Gingrich,” one rank-and-file House Dem told NBC’s Luke Russert after Obama’s press conference yesterday. “I don't like seeing that message from my president." Per NBC's Shawna Thomas, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Sander Levin (D-MI) said, "We expressed very serious concerns, very serious" at last night's House Dem caucus meeting. Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT): "Where we are today ... is just not acceptable to people." And Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), who represented House Dems in the bipartisan tax negotiations, added: "I have very serious reservations about this package primarily because of the [estate-tax] provision." What should make congressional Democrats truly nervous is that maybe the president doesn't hold them in high regard, and there's an argument to be made that he NEVER has. He holds their ideology and their beliefs in high regard, but NOT their tactics. The disdain for the Washington way of doing business came through big time yesterday.

*** Denial, anger, bargaining, and acceptance: This anger from liberal House Democrats is more than understandable. Over the past two years, they’ve had to accept the Senate watering down legislation (stimulus, health care). What’s more, they lost 63 seats in last month’s elections -- the most by one party since the 1940s -- which will relegate them to minority status come January. So in the stages of grief, we’ve seen House Dems experience denial (keeping Pelosi as their leader), anger (see above), and bargaining (hoping for a better deal). And at some point, we’ll see acceptance. The reason: With the tax cuts set to expire at the end of the month, and with Republicans set to take over the House, the deal in front of Democrats is likely the best one they’ll get. And that will probably be the message that Vice President Biden will try to get across when he speaks to the House Dem caucus today.

*** Mixed polling results: Per a Gallup poll, conducted Dec. 3-6, 66% support extending the Bush tax cuts for all income levels for two years, and another 66% support extending unemployment benefits. But a Bloomberg poll has different results: "The survey, conducted before, during and after the tax negotiations, shows that only a third support keeping the lower rates for the highest earners, and less than half of those respondents say the breaks for the wealthy should last for a shorter period than cuts for the middle class. Overall, two- thirds of those polled favor a permanent extension of the lower rates for the middle class. More than a fourth say all the tax cuts should be allowed to expire Dec. 31, as scheduled."

*** Breaking the ice: The Washington Post’s Steven Pearlstein makes an interesting point today: After the White House and Republicans -- for the first time -- compromised where both sides had to give up something, the next time might be easier. “Now that the ice has been broken,” he writes, “maybe the next one will come a little easier.” Speaking of the White House-GOP negotiations, we can report that the White House has been dealing mainly with GOP Senate leader Mitch McConnell (who has guaranteed at least half of his caucus to vote on the tax deal), and then McConnell is dealing with incoming Speaker John Boehner (who has yet to guarantee any votes from his caucus).

*** The clock is ticking: By the way, this tax-cut deal was announced on Monday. It’s now Wednesday. And -- at the earliest -- Congress won’t begin to work on the deal until tomorrow. What has this done to New START, plus other agenda items (like repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”)? The Senate probably can ratify the treaty in a week. But what about less than a week? Congress is supposed to adjourn after next week (though it could keep its doors open up until Christmas).

*** To DREAM the impossible DREAM [Act]: Speaking of other agenda items, Congress today is expected to take up the DREAM Act, which would provide a citizenship pathway for illegal immigrants who attend college or who serve in the U.S. military. “Votes on the measure were expected in the Senate and the House on Wednesday, Congressional leaders said,” the New York Times notes. “It stands a slim chance of passage in the House, where Democrats are in the final days of their majority. In the Senate, although its champion is the Democratic majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, the bill appears unlikely to succeed.”

*** Emmer is expected to concede: Well, it appears the Minnesota gubernatorial recount won’t last as long as the Franken-Coleman one did. The Minneapolis Star Tribune: “Republican Tom Emmer is expected to concede the Minnesota governor's race to DFLer Mark Dayton Wednesday, a GOP source with knowledge of Emmer's plans said late Tuesday. Emmer's campaign issued a news release early Wednesday saying the candidate would make a "major announcement" about the recount at a 10:30 a.m. event at his Delano home. The planned concession clears the way for Dayton, a former U.S. senator, to become the first Democratic governor in Minnesota in two decades." Dayton has enjoyed a nearly 9,000-vote lead over Emmer, a difficult margin for Emmer to close.

Click here to sign up for First Read emails.
Text FIRST to 622639, to sign up for First Read alerts to your mobile phone.
Check us out on Facebook and also on Twitter.