Top Items:
Glenn Thrush / Newsday:
Clinton insiders question top aide's approach — Presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton speaks at a "town hall meeting" in San Francisco December 11. (McClatchy-Tribune / December 11, 2007) — DES MOINES - On the eve of the final Iowa debate before the Jan. 3 caucuses …
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Salon, Taegan Goddard's …, RealClearPolitics, TIME, Telegraph Blogs, AMERICAblog and TPM Election Central
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Robert D. Novak / Washington Post:
A Dud From Team Clinton — David Axelrod, the seasoned Chicago Democratic operative who is chief strategist for Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign, was taken by surprise in the last minute of CBS's "Face the Nation" on Dec. 2. Howard Wolfson, Sen. Hillary Clinton's spokesman, accused Obama of running a "slush fund."
Discussion:
Captain's Quarters, Connecting.the.Dots, Reason Magazine, Hot Air and Real Clear Politics
Anne E. Kornblut / Washington Post:
In Iowa, a Scrambling Lesson for Clinton — When senior advisers to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton awakened to the fact that they faced a serious problem in Iowa, they knew they needed a summit. For the divided staff, the question was where. — It made sense to fly to Iowa, where support for Clinton …
Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blogs:
Clinton: 'Dorothy' — Hillary's mom makes the most political …
Clinton: 'Dorothy' — Hillary's mom makes the most political …
Discussion:
The Swamp
Jeff Zeleny / New York Times:
Clinton Aide Sees Problem for Obama
Clinton Aide Sees Problem for Obama
Discussion:
Firedoglake, michellemalkin.com, USA Today, New York Post, MSNBC, Bark Bark Woof Woof, PoliBlog (TM), Ace of Spades HQ, Hot Air and The Newshoggers
John Distaso / New Hampshire Union Leader:
John DiStaso's Granite Status: No firewall in NH for Hillary
John DiStaso's Granite Status: No firewall in NH for Hillary
Discussion:
Boston Globe
John Bresnahan / The Politico:
Judiciary approves contempt resolutions — The Senate Judiciary Committee has approved contempt resolutions against Karl Rove, the former top aide to President Bush, and Joshua Bolten, the current White House chief of staff. The vote was 12-8. — The criminal contempt resolutions now move …
Discussion:
Think Progress
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Jonathan Weisman / Washington Post:
Democrats Bow to Bush's Demands in House Spending Bill — House Democratic leaders yesterday agreed to meet President Bush's bottom-line spending limit on a sprawling, half-trillion-dollar domestic spending bill, dropping their demands for as much as $22 billion in additional spending …
Discussion:
The Newshoggers, Captain's Quarters, The Hill, CNN, Dr. Sanity, Right Voices and New York Times
Matthew Yglesias:
Feeling Depressed — New Democratic congress, massively unpopular president, total surrender on budget negotiations. Why not? … The whole thing actually gets more depressing in the details. But to make a long story short, a combination of Senate filibusters, White House veto threats …
NY Daily News:
Subpoenas for Al Sharpton's aides — Teams of federal agents swooped down on up to 10 close associates of the Rev. Al Sharpton Wednesday, demanding the flamboyant clergyman's financial records since 2001. — Sharpton's former chief of staff said he was roused at his Harlem home about 6:30 …
Discussion:
New York Post, michellemalkin.com, NYT, Betsy's Page, Big Head DC, Spin Cycle and Attytood
Dean Barnett / Weekly Standard:
Fred Wins, Iowa Loses — Why Carolyn Washburn should keep her day job. — HERE WE WERE on Wednesday, a nation of political junkies gathered around our televisions to watch the candidates debate each other one last time, and we had as a moderator one Carolyn Washburn, the editor of the Des Moines Register.
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Tapscott's Copy Desk:
A dream comes true: USASpending.gov goes live today — Nearly eight years ago, Bill Beach, director of The Heritage Foundation's Center for Data Analysis, and I invited Gary Bass of OMB Watch over for a chat about the possibility of our two organizations collaborating in an effort to put all federal spending on the Internet.
Discussion:
Heritage Foundation
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Henry Kissinger / Washington Post:
Misreading the Iran Report — The extraordinary spectacle of the president's national security adviser obliged to defend the president's Iran policy against a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) raises two core issues: How are we now to judge the nuclear threat posed by Iran?
Discussion:
Power Line, Commentary, NO QUARTER, Jules Crittenden, The American Street and Outside The Beltway
Scott Shane / New York Times:
C.I.A. Agents Sense Shifting Support for Methods — WASHINGTON — For six years, Central Intelligence Agency officers have worried that someday the tide of post-Sept. 11 opinion would turn, and their harsh treatment of prisoners from Al Qaeda would be subjected to hostile scrutiny and possible criminal prosecution.
Marc Ambinder:
Minutemen Bash Founder Over Huckabee Endorsement — Jim Gilchrist likes Mike Huckabee, but the organization he founded sent a "special message" to members blasting Huckabee. The headline: "Real Minutemen Do Not Endorse Huckabee." — Here's the full text:
Russ Vought / RSC Blog:
Reported Omnibus is Way Above President's Level — By now many of you have probably read numerous stories describing the latest Democrat omnibus package. As reported, it would result in a topline discretionary level of $936.5 billion—$3.7 billion above the President's request.
Washington Post:
Democrats Blaming Each Other For Failures — When Democrats took control of Congress in January, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) pledged to jointly push an ambitious agenda to counter 12 years of Republican control.
Domenico Montanaro / MSNBC:
Romney's (almost) Dean Scream speech — From NBC/NJ's Erin McPike — If anything is certain about the GOP presidential primary, it's that Romney really, really wants to win Iowa. Desperately. — After hitting a post-debate party around Des Moines on Wednesday, he flew to Cedar Rapids …