The stories that drive the day August, 1st 2013

• The House on Wednesday passed legislation to create "a new set of rates for federal student loans ... by an overwhelming bipartisan margin." The bill now goes to Pres.Obama for his signature (New York Times).
• "Five hours after the vote opened, the Senate ended" a GOP filbuster against ATF Dir.-designate B. Todd Jones, then quickly confirmed him, in "a rare congressional victory for gun-control forces. ... For most of Wednesday afternoon, the Senate idled in neutral," waiting for Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) "to fly back from her home state, where aides said she had taken ill" (AP).
• DSCC Chair Michael Bennet said Wednesday the cmte "already is gearing up" to help KY Sec/State Alison Lundergan Grimes (D) in KY SEN before the Dem primary. Bennet: "We are certainly not going to wait until next May" (LouisvilleCourier-Journal).
• Bennet on Wednesday also "said the DSCC is still recruiting" in SD SEN (Washington Post).
• WY SEN candidate Liz Cheney (R) "and her husband were more than two months late paying property taxes" on a $1.6M home "they bought last year in the tony community of Jackson Hole," according to Teton Co. records (AP).
• VA GOV candidate/AG Ken Cuccinelli (R) "said he has no plans to repay the more than" $18K in gifts "he received" from Star Scientific CEO Jonnie Williams Sr.. Meanwhile, Gov. Bob McDonnell's daughter has repaid the $15K wedding gift Williams gave her (Richmond Times-Dispatch).
• A PAC "featuring at least three former aides to" ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) "has formed to promote the candidacy" of NYC mayoral candidate/ex-MTA Chair Joe Lhota (R). Giuliani is "not going to be involved," and the amount the PAC plans "to spend remains unclear" (Crain's New York   Business).
• CA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) raised $2.8M in the first half of '13 and has "more than" $10M CoH. "The records show the notoriously thrifty Brown does not have any political consultants on payroll" (Los Angeles Times).
• OH Gov. John Kasich (R) "raised nearly" $2.6M "through the first six months" and has "more than" $4.4M CoH. Cuyahoga Co. Exec. Ed FitzGerald (D) "raised about" $600K, but that "includes donations that were received after the ... reporting period had closed" on 6/30 "but were reported voluntarily." FitzGerald has $544K CoH (Cleveland Plain Dealer).
• OK Gov. Mary Fallin (R) raised $548K in the second quarter and has $971K CoH (Oklahoman).
• RI Gov. Lincoln Chafee (D) raised nearly $70K in the second quarter and had $377K CoH. Gen. Treas. Gina Raimondo (D) raised nearly $400K and had $2.06M CoH. Providence Mayor Angel Taveras (D), who disclosed his fundraising "last week," raised "roughly" $158K and had "about" $690K CoH (WPRI-TV).
• Ex-KS Ag. Sec. Josh Svaty (D) "says he's not thinking about running" for KS GOV next year (AP).
• MN State Sen. Julianne Ortman (R) will announce a bid against Sen. Al Franken(D) at Saturday campaign event. She's being advised by ex-Michele BachmannCoS/strategist Andy Parrish (Minneapolis Star-Tribune).
• Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) gave $30K to Senate Conservatives Action, a super PAC affiliated with the Senate Conservatives Fund and ex-Sen. Jim DeMint, on March 28, "ahead of a push to court conservative support of his contentious immigration reform proposal" (Center for Public Integrity)