New Jersey: Steven Rothman Notes Past Loyalty to President Bill Clinton

(Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

WOOD-RIDGE, N.J. —Rep. Steven Rothman isn’t losing sleep over President Bill Clinton and the possibility that he might endorse Rep. Bill Pascrell in the contentious Democratic primary.

It has been widely noted that the 2008 Democratic presidential primary has come back to haunt several House candidates who backed now-President Barack Obama over then-Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, as did Rothman. The former president, in some cases to devastating effect, has waded into redistricting-generated Member-vs.-Member Democratic primaries on behalf of the individual who backed his wife for president in 2008.

But Rothman, now embroiled in a bitter primary with 2008 Clinton-backer Pascrell, points to a loyalty to the former president that goes back a decade before 2008, when his political survival was on the line. Rothman emphasized his ”very strong defense of him when I was on the House Judiciary Committee during the impeachment proceedings” in explaining why he doesn’t fear Clinton or expect him to get involved in this race.

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Biden Back to Iowa on Wednesday

(Chris Maddaloni/CQ Roll Call File Photo)

Vice President Joseph Biden will deliver remarks in Iowa on Wednesday for the second time this month.

Biden will speak at PCT Engineered Systems in Davenport about the administration’s efforts to improve the economy and the importance of manufacturing. It’s the third in a series of speeches Biden is delivering on the economy, which kicked off two weeks ago in Toledo, Ohio. Full story

Maryland: Democratic Primary to Face Bartlett Heats Up

Maryland state Sen. Rob Garagiola (right) makes a point at Saturday's forum in Hagerstown. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

With the April 3 primary only two weeks away, Maryland’s 6th district race has become one of the most heated in the country.

Democratic candidates are busy campaigning across the district — which covers western Maryland and stretches all the way to the Washington, D.C., suburbs — in hopes of challenging Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, the likely Republican nominee, in the fall.

The top two Democratic contenders, state Senate Majority Leader Rob Garagiola and businessman John Delaney, participated in a candidate forum on Saturday sponsored by the Washington County Democratic Central Committee. The event was held at the UAW Hall in Hagerstown. Garagiola and Delaney, along with the other three Democrats running, also participated in a debate Sunday in Gaithersburg to discuss issues ranging from Iran to women’s contraception. Full story