Top Items:
John Shadegg / Opinion Journal:
The Spirit of 1994 — Republicans need to look again to the examples of Goldwater and Reagan. — WASHINGTON—Ten years ago, the American people put Republicans in control of the House of Representatives for the first time in more than 40 years. It was a historic achievement …
Discussion:
Below The Beltway
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Carl Hulse / New York Times:
2 Parties Rush to Offer Curbs for Lobbying — WASHINGTON, Jan. 17 - House Republican leaders laid out a proposal on Tuesday to rewrite House rules governing lobbying as they moved to contain the political damage from an election-year scandal over undue influence and access afforded to lobbyists.
Eric Lichtblau / New York Times:
2002 Memo Doubted Uranium Sale Claim — WASHINGTON, Jan. 17 - A high-level intelligence assessment by the Bush administration concluded in early 2002 that the sale of uranium from Niger to Iraq was "unlikely" because of a host of economic, diplomatic and logistical obstacles …
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Manuel Roig-Franzia / Washington Post:
New Orleans Mayor Apologizes for Remarks About God's Wrath — NEW ORLEANS, Jan. 17 — An avalanche of criticism, stoked by heated talk-radio rants, forced Mayor C. Ray Nagin to apologize Tuesday for declaring that God wants New Orleans to be a "chocolate city."
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Dahlia Lithwick / Slate:
Swing Time — Anthony Kennedy—the new Sandra Day O'Connor. — Lost in last week's cacophony about the critical role of Sandra Day O'Connor as sole and exclusive swing voter on the U.S. Supreme Court was any sign of respect for the other sole and exclusive swing voter on the U.S. Supreme Court: Anthony M. Kennedy.
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Jeffrey H. Birnbaum / Washington Post:
Loophole in Lobbying Bill Leaves Wiggle Room — Lawmakers are about to bombard the American public with proposals that would crack down on lobbyists. Several prominent plans, including one outlined yesterday by House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), would specifically ban meals and privately paid travel for lawmakers.
Discussion:
Captain's Quarters, Norwegianity, Charging RINO, Independent Christian Voice and AMERICAblog
Washington Post:
U.S. Journalist Shown as Hostage — Kidnappers in Iraq Threaten to Kill Her, Demanding Female Prisoners Be Freed — BAGHDAD, Jan. 17 — The captors of an American journalist kidnapped in Baghdad 10 days ago threatened to kill her in three days unless authorities freed all female prisoners in Iraq …
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Charles Krauthammer / Washington Post:
The Iran Charade, Part II — "It was what made this E.U. Three approach so successful. They [Britain, France and Germany] stood together and they had one uniform position." — German Chancellor — Angela Merkel, Jan. 13 — Makes you want to weep.
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Christopher Hitchens / The Huffington Post:
What Reason Do We Have to Trust the State to Know Best? — Although I am named in this suit in my own behalf, I am motivated to join it by concerns well beyond my own. I have been frankly appalled by the discrepant and contradictory positions taken by the Administration in this matter.
Discussion:
ACLU, Decision '08, Sisyphus Shrugged, BrothersJudd Blog, Begging to Differ, The Poor Man Institute and Booman Tribune
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Nedra Pickler / Associated Press:
Update 15: White House Lobs Accusations at Gore — Former Vice President Al Gore and the White House traded accusations over national security Tuesday in a dispute that also pulled in President Bush's other presidential election rival, John Kerry. — At issue was Bush's secret domestic …
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Darrell Bricker / ipsos-na.com:
As Final Week Of 2006 Election Begins, Tories Within Close Striking Distance Of Winning Majority Government — Tories (38%, +1 Point) Have 12-Point Lead Over Grits (26%, Unchanged) — NDP (19%, +1 Point) And Green (5%, Unchanged) — In Quebec: Bloc Quebecois (48%, -5 points) Vs. Tories (25%, +5 Points) And Liberals (13%, -2 Points)
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U.S. Newswire:
Leading Conservatives Call for Extensive Hearings on NSA Surveillance; Checks on Invasive Federal Powers Essential — Contact: Laura Brinker, 202-715-1540, for Patriots to Restore Checks and Balances, laura.brinker@dittus.com — WASHINGTON, Jan. 17 /U.S. Newswire …
Newsday:
Hillary's hardball — In MLK day speech, Sen. Clinton slams the Bush team, saying GOP Congress is 'run like a plantation' — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton sparked a Martin Luther King Day political firestorm yesterday by describing the GOP-controlled Congress as a "plantation" …
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Arianna Huffington / The Huffington Post:A Sneak Peek at "Al vs. Hillary"
Discussion:
The Left Coaster, Talking Points Memo, TalkLeft, Comments From Left Field, In the Bullpen and Generation Why?
James Webb / New York Times:
Purple Heartbreakers — IT should come as no surprise that an arch-conservative Web site is questioning whether Representative John Murtha, the Pennsylvania Democrat who has been critical of the war in Iraq, deserved the combat awards he received in Vietnam.
This Is London:
Leo Blair kidnap plot foiled — Extremist fathers' rights campaigners discussed snatching Tony Blair's youngest son for a publicity stunt. — Police foiled the plan at an early stage and it was unclear whether the people involved had the capability to carry it through or how far the scheme had progressed.
AJStrata / The Strata-Sphere:
ACLU Case Is Weak — The case being brought by the ACLU and CCR against the administration is obviously weak. People communicating with suspected terrorists are taking on a risk that they should understand. Here are some initial assessments of the claims:
Thomas Ferraro / Reuters:
Senate Democrat backs Alito for US Supreme Court — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ben Nelson of Nebraska, a moderate voice in the U.S. Congress, on Tuesday became the first Senate Democrat to announce his support for conservative Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito, who is expected to be confirmed later …
MEMRI:
Iran TV Discussion on the Myth of the Gas Chambers and the Truth of Protocols of the Elders of Zion; "The Only Solution for This Cancerous Tumor [Israel] is Surgery" — The following are excerpts from an Iranian television discussion on the Holocaust, which was aired on Iran's Channel 2 on January 5, 2006.
Rebecca Traister / Salon:
My lunch with an antifeminist pundit — My lunch interview with Kate O'Beirne, Washington editor of National Review and author of the new antifeminist book "Women Who Make the World Worse," was on a Friday. I had stayed up Thursday night reading the 200-page galley copy of the book and taken copious notes.
