PUNDIT PREP -- A senior Democratic official, ahead of the House stimulus vote, with House Republican leaders urging their members to vote 'no': 'THIS ISSUE OF BIPARTISANSHIP IS A TWO-WAY STREET. The President is doing everything he can to reach out to Republicans, brought them to the White House, WENT TO THEM ON CAPITOL HILL AT A TIME WHEN WE DON'T NEED IT, and also made concessions ... . If the president does all that, and Democrats do all that, and the Republicans are unwilling to bend at all, THEY NEED TO CONSIDER THE PRICE TO PAY IN PLACES LIKE OHIO AND PENNSYLVANIA that are hurting. People will be judged on whether they did everything they could in this time of economic crisis. IT'S A CHOICE BETWEEN THE PARTY LEADERSHIP AND WHAT THEIR VOTERS WANT.'
And a White House aide quite familiar with the politics of House districts' e-mails: 'A vote against the economic recovery is no free vote for congressional Republicans. That's a very dangerous vote. They are going to have to think long and hard about voting with their leadership vs. voting with their district. In Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, Midwest, etc., Republicans' constituents expect them to take action on the economy.'