From this morning's Earlybird:

• "Members of the U.S. financial industry and the National Rifle Association, two of the most influential lobbying forces on Capitol Hill, are trying to head off legislation in Congress that some say is needed to fight Mexican drug cartels and the threats they pose across the U.S. border," CongressDailyAM (subscription) reports. "In separate efforts, the groups are building support on the Hill to oppose what they contend is unnecessary legislation to help prevent the drug cartels from obtaining illicit cash and weapons."

• "The health reform debate may be focused in Washington, D.C. -- but it's an obscure group in Seattle, with a top political operative in Vermont, that is shaping how Democrats try to win the fight," Politico reports. "Herndon Alliance is the most influential group in the health arena that the public has never heard of. Its work has flowed through the three major Democratic presidential campaigns and built a following among senior administration officials who receive its daily e-mail analysis of news clips."

• "Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is under increasing pressure from conservative Democrats to provide political cover from GOP calls for an investigation into PMA Group, a now-defunct defense lobby under firm scrutiny for questionable campaign donations and earmarks," The Hill reports. "Members of the conservative Blue Dog and centrist New Democrat coalitions are calling on Pelosi to fulfill her promise to set a new standard for congressional ethics by either shaking the ethics committee into action on the PMA controversy or providing an alternative resolution to the one offered repeatedly by Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.)."

• "America's Health Insurance Plans has approached physicians' groups in its effort to drum up congressional support to pressure the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to change payment rates it is poised to set for next year and that AHIP says will lead to higher premiums and reduced benefits for seniors," CongressDailyAM (subscription) reports.