American Security Council Foundation (ASCF)

1. Marco Rubio (R) of Florida

Will he stay or will he go? The Florida Republican was a pivotal piece of the Senate Gang of Eight. His status as a GOP 2016 presidential contender with tea party chops and a powerful personal story about the American immigrant experience has made him the bill's key emissary to the GOP base and conservative lawmakers alike.

Each of the gang’s other Republican members – Sens. Jeff Flake and John McCain of Arizona and Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina – have long been advocates of comprehensive immigration reform. Senator Rubio’s addition to the club appeals to the most energetic wing of the party, the conservative grass-roots that powered Rubio to office in 2010 and keep him among the brightest stars in the Republican presidential firmament.

Gun control is back – at least as a White House topic.  

On Tuesday, while President Obama is off in Europe, Vice President Joe Biden will hold an event at the White House focused on executive branch actions taken to reduce gun violence and a renewed effort to get Congress to expand background checks on gun buyers.

“Yes, he will make that push, as well as pointing out that the administration will continue to do everything in its own power to advance this debate,” a senior administration official told reporters on a conference call Monday previewing the event.

The United States says it is open to North Korea's offer of direct talks, but only after Pyongyang takes concrete action to end its nuclear weapons program.

North Korea says it is offering direct talks to ease tensions on the Korean peninsula. The United States says North Korea must first meet its international obligations to end its nuclear program.

"North Korea must engage in authentic and credible negotiations that produce concrete denuclearization actions. So is it different than that? No. We haven't seen evidence of that, and that is what we are waiting for," said U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki.

 

North Korea's top nuclear negotiator is in Beijing for talks with Chinese officials, the latest in a series of diplomatic moves involving Pyongyang following months of tensions.

First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan is expected to hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Wednesday. Beijing says bilateral relations and the situation on the Korean peninsula will be discussed.

 

President Barack Obama says the United States is open to holding new talks with Iran about its controversial nuclear program.

But in an interview broadcast late Monday, Obama said Iran must recognize that international sanctions will remain until the country dispels concerns that it is developing a nuclear weapon.  Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful.

 

Afghan President Hamid Karzai says Afghan forces are taking over responsibility for security for the entire country from the international military coalition.  

Karzai said Tuesday at a security handover ceremony on the outskirts of the capital, Kabul, that Afghan forces would take the lead in all security efforts, a major milestone of the 12-year-old war.