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politico.com — Senate Democrats on Tuesday punted their oil spill response bill to next month, but the extra time doesn’t guarantee the measure will pass — far from it.

The delay virtually ensures that strategists from both parties will use the congressional recess to hone their plans, talking points and poison-pill amendments for any floor debate, all with an eye toward the midterm elections.

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politico.com — The $26.1 billion package will likely rise or fall on the vote of Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins but the spending cuts are also a big part of the story as Majority Leader Harry Reid (D—Nev.) tries to unite his caucus and take away the “deficit and debt” arguments of the GOP.

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voices.washingtonpost.com — The issue isn't that conservatives don't care about the deficit. We don't really know whether Republicans care about the deficit. They say they do, and they would certainly prefer to reduce the deficit than give people health-care coverage or keep states from firing 500,000 employees. The issue is that they care about tax cuts and defense spending more. If they weren't interested in cutting taxes or purchasing lots of tanks, their deficit record might be quite good. But as it is, every time they get power, they focus on tax cuts and defense spending, and because you can cut a lot more taxes and spend a lot more on defense if you don't have to pay for any of it, they add both of them to the deficit.

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washingtonpost.com — Timothy F. Geithner, traveling salesman, swept through Manhattan on Monday making a pitch to skeptical bankers, business leaders and even the mayor.

His central message: Far-reaching financial regulations signed into law by President Obama last month aren't something to fear. Rather, they are the foundation of a stronger economy for the months and years ahead.

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bloomberg.com — Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair has taken herself out of the running to lead the new U.S. consumer-protection agency after her name was put forward by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said.

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washingtonpost.com — The United States assured international negotiators Monday that it remains committed to reducing carbon emissions over the next 10 years, despite the collapse of efforts to legislate a climate bill.

U.S. delegate Jonathan Pershing told a climate conference in Bonn, Germany, that Washington is not backing away from President Obama's pledge to cut emissions 17 percent from 2005 levels.

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propublica.org — BP appears to be delaying decisions about the validity of many claims for damages from the Gulf oil spill, leaving claimants frustrated by bureaucratic obstacles and confusing requests for more documentation.

The company's claims process is guided by the Oil Pollution Act, a 1990 federal law that holds oil companies responsible for repaying direct "removal costs and damages [1]" caused by a spill. But many claims are for damages that are not explicitly covered by the law -- such as ruined start-up companies and lost income from commission payments -- and many of those are in limbo.

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nytimes.com — When it comes to getting information about the BP oil spill, Gulf Coast residents trust Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana more than Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi, and they trust Mr. Barbour more than President Obama. Most of them do not think it is safe to eat local seafood.

More than a third report children with new rashes or breathing problems, or who are nervous, fearful or “very sad” since the spill began. And even though the gusher of oil has been stanched, almost a quarter of residents still fear that they will have to move.

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huffingtonpost.com — The combination of oil and dispersants is no more toxic to sea life than oil alone, the Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday after conducting a new, but very limited, round of tests.

The EPA was responding in part to concerns raised by some scientists that adding dispersant to oil has actually made the resulting mix more toxic than oil alone. BP applied almost 2 million gallons of dispersant to the oil its blown-out well spewed into the Gulf of Mexico.

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thehill.com — The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday defended BP’s widespread use of an oil dispersing chemical in the Gulf of Mexico, releasing test results that show mixtures of dispersants and oil are generally no more toxic to two aquatic species than oil alone.

BP’s use of the dispersant Corexit 9500A with federal approval is a politically charged issue. Environmentalists and some lawmakers allege officials allowed massive applications despite unknown risks to marine life and cleanup workers.

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