Top Items:
John O'Sullivan / Chicago Sun Times:
Dems off to bad start at Alito hearings — If the Democrats seriously wish to secure the rejection of Judge Samuel Alito's nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, then they made a very bad start with Monday's hearings. Only by making Alito deeply unpopular with the American people …
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Dan Balz / Washington Post:
Despite Advocacy, Alito Is Not on Public's Radar Screen — Until Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) gaveled the confirmation hearings for Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. to order yesterday, the battle over Alito's nomination had been a shouting match between partisans.
Discussion:
New York Times, The RCP Blog, The Heretik, Althouse, Betsy's Page, Middle Earth Journal, The Strata-Sphere and How Appealing
William Branigin / Washington Post:
Alito Seeks to Distance Himself From Previous Abortion Statements — Nominee Faces Senators in Second Day of Hearing — Supreme Court nominee Samuel A. Alito Jr., facing tough questioning on the second day of his Senate confirmation hearings, distanced himself today from a statement …
Jonathan Turley / USA Today:Troubling times, a troubling nominee
Discussion:
New York Times, Washington Post, Power Line, Campaign for the Supreme Court and Bench Memos …
Bob Fertik / Democrats.com:Bush Wired for Alito Remarks
Discussion:
THE BRAD BLOG, The Sideshow, AMERICAblog, Unclaimed Territory, Daily Kos and Confirm Them
Sam Rosenfeld / TAPPED:ALITO FATALISM. The Sam Alito hearings begin today …
Discussion:
firedoglake, Lawyers, Guns and Money, tpmcafe.com, Hullabaloo, The Fix and No More Mister Nice Blog
USA Today:
Most consider lobbying scandal a big deal, poll shows — WASHINGTON — Americans are paying close attention to the lobbying scandal in the Capitol and say corruption in government will play a big role in their vote for Congress in November — more important than Social Security, taxes, abortion or immigration.
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National Review:
The Abramoff Scandal (R., Beltway) — Republicans are looking for "their" John McCain. The popular Arizona maverick is already a Republican, of course. But the GOP needs a McCain in the "Keating Five" sense. Back in 1990, Senate Democrats roped McCain into the scandal over savings …
George F. Will / Washington Post:
For the House GOP, A Belated Evolution — Before evolution produced creatures of our perfection, there was a three-ton dinosaur, the stegosaurus, so neurologically sluggish that when its tail was injured, significant time elapsed before news of the trauma meandered up its long spine to its walnut-size brain.
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Bloomberg:
Blunt, Boehner Share Broad Network of Lobbyist Ties With DeLay — Jan. 10 (Bloomberg) — Representatives Roy Blunt of Missouri and John Boehner of Ohio have been among the key intermediaries between Republican lawmakers and lobbyists since their party took control of the U.S. Congress in 1995.
Discussion:
THE DAILY DELAY, Taegan Goddard's …, Fired Up! America, Hotline On Call and The Rude Pundit
Carol D. Leonnig / Washington Post:
Russert Resisted Testifying on Leak — Lawyers for NBC News reporter Tim Russert suspected in the spring of 2004 that his testimony could snare Vice President Cheney's top aide, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, in a lie and Russert resisted testifying at the time about private conversations with Libby …
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Ellen Knickmeyer / Washington Post:
In Ambush Lasting Seconds, U.S. Reporter in Iraq Becomes Hostage — BAGHDAD, Jan. 9 — The call came from reporter Jill Carroll's cell phone, from a young, wary-sounding Iraqi man who said he had just picked up the phone from a sprawled body on a Baghdad street.
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Roger Alford / Opinio Juris:
Most Popular Law Blogs — There is great commentary today at Prawfsblawg, Concurring Opinions, and Tax Prof Blog on the topic of law blogging. In light of that discussion, I thought it might be interesting to know what are the most popular law blogs based on traffic reports available here.
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New York Times:
Ignoring Protests, Iran Resumes Nuclear Program — Defying its European partners and the United States, Iran reopened its vast uranium enrichment complex today, resuming nuclear activities that it suspended 14 months ago, according to the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency.
Michael J. Totten:
Send Me to Iraq — It's time for me to go to Iraq. — I am not going to embed with the military. While it sounds exciting (as well as terrifying), I'm only going to be there a few weeks. War correspondence isn't something a person does for two weeks. — Instead I'm going to the part of Iraq most journalists ignore: the North.
Discussion:
chicagoboyz.net
Washington Post:
Record Share Of Economy Is Spent on Health Care — Rising health care costs, already threatening many basic industries, now consume 16 percent of the nation's economic output — the highest proportion ever, the government said yesterday in its latest calculation.
Peter S. Goodman / Washington Post:
China Set To Reduce Exposure To Dollar — SHANGHAI, Jan. 9 — China has resolved to shift some of its foreign exchange reserves — now in excess of $800 billion — away from the U.S. dollar and into other world currencies in a move likely to push down the value of the greenback …
Washington Post:
Lobby Firm Is Scandal Casualty — Abramoff, DeLay Publicity Blamed For Shutdown — One of Washington's top lobbying operations will shut down at the end of the month because of its ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff and former House majority leader Tom DeLay.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, The Left Coaster, Daily Kos, Wonkette, The All Spin Zone and Air America Radio
Fred Kaplan / Slate:
GI Schmo — How low can Army recruiters go? — Three months ago, I wrote that the war in Iraq was wrecking the U.S. Army, and since then the evidence has only mounted, steeply. Faced with repeated failures to meet its recruitment targets, the Army has had to lower its standards dramatically.
