OBAMA AGENDA: Deferring further nuke talks until June
Breaking from the AP: "Wrapping up six days of marathon nuclear talks with mixed results, Iran and six world powers prepared Tuesday to issue a general statement agreeing to continue negotiations in a new phase aimed at reaching a comprehensive accord by the end of June, officials told The Associated Press on Tuesday."
MORE from the New York Times: "Yet any accord that is reached will be, by design, an interim instrument — more an outline of areas of agreement that might be devoid of some specifics that the United States Congress, Israel, Arab states, and Iran’s military and hard-liners have been worried about."
NBC's own Savannah Guthrie talked to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter about ISIS and the Iran talks. All the latest from her interview with him is here.
Writes the Wall Street Journal: "As profound as the disagreement is between Israel and the U.S. over the substance of the nuclear deal being negotiated with Iran, the two countries disagree just as fundamentally over the consequences of failing to complete such a deal."
A majority of Americans supports a nuclear deal with Iran, according to a new ABC/Washington Post poll, but the survey also finds that few are optimistic that the agreement will keep Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
The AP: "The Justice Department urged a federal appeals court Monday to reverse a hold a judge placed on President Barack Obama's immigration executive action."
CONGRESS: Murray backs Schumer – does she want Durbin’s No. 2 job?
Sen. Patty Murray is the latest to back Chuck Schumer for Harry Reid's job.
And/but: POLITICO reports that Murray might run for Dick Durbin's job.
The Hill writes that both sides are pointing fingers about the Senate's punt of the doc fix vote.
OFF TO THE RACES: “Fix This Now”
The cover of the Indy Star is a full-page editorial: "Fix This Now." MORE: "Only bold action — action that sends an unmistakable message to the world that our state will not tolerate discrimination against any of its citizens — will be enough to reverse the damage."
Here's our own Perry Bacon Jr. on the divide the Indiana backlash shows in the GOP.
And here's Mike Pence in the Wall Street Journal: "I abhor discrimination. I believe in the Golden Rule that you should “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” If I saw a restaurant owner refuse to serve a gay couple, I wouldn’t eat there anymore. As governor of Indiana, if I were presented a bill that legalized discrimination against any person or group, I would veto it. "
Indiana legislators say they're going to clarify the law to ensure that it doesn't allow discrimination against gays and lesbians.
What's next in the religious freedom fight: Arkansas.
BUSH: Jeb Bush, on Hillary Clinton: "She can't do the Heisman on the first four years of the Obama foreign policy."
CLINTON: Her top advisors are making the rounds in New Hampshire and Iowa this week.
The AP reports that she used an iPad as well as a BlackBerry to email her staff.
MSNBC's Alex Seitz-Wald: “Another piece of Hillary Clinton’s campaign-in-waiting is falling into place with the addition of Tony Carrk, who is expected to serve as Clinton’s research director, several Democrats familiar with the hire tell msnbc. Carrk, who worked on Clinton’s 2008 presidential bid and led rapid response research efforts at the Democratic National Committee, most recently worked for the political arm of the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank with close ties to Clinton and the Obama White House. He also has an expertise on health care policy, a longtime focus of Clinton’s.”
CRUZ: Here's his statement on the Indiana law: "Governor Pence is holding the line to protect religious liberty in the Hoosier State. Indiana is giving voice to millions of courageous conservatives across this country who are deeply concerned about the ongoing attacks upon our personal liberties. I'm proud to stand with Mike, and I urge Americans to do the same."
O'MALLEY: After his more aggressive stance towards Hillary Clinton on Sunday, he's back in the Granite State.
WALKER: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that he once supported upending the early-state presidential process in favor of a regional primary system.
WARREN: She told Savannah Guthrie on this morning’s Today Show: “No, I am not running and I’m not going to run.”
And around the country...
ILLINOIS: Rahm Emanuel has opened a big lead over Jesus 'Chuy' Garcia in Chicago’s April 7 mayoral runoff.
PROGRAMMING NOTES.
*** Tuesday’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” line-up: NBC’s Andrea Mitchell reports on the Iran Nuclear Negotiations live from Switzerland with National Iranian American Council President Trita Parsi, Ploughshares Fund President Joseph Cirincione, the New York Times’ Michael Gordon, Fmr. Pilot Jim Tilmon, the Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza, the AP’s Julie Pace, NBC’s Peter Alexander, John Yang and Ron Mott and MSNBC’s Kasie Hunt.