memeorandum: Bush says US economy is safe and sound (Ben Feller/Associated Press)

4:45 AM ET, December 18, 2007

Top Items:

Dodd's Filibuster Threat Stalls Wiretap Bill — Senator Chris Dodd won a temporary victory today after his threats of a filibuster forced Democratic leadership to push back consideration of a measure that would grant immunity to telecom companies that were complicit in warrantless surveillance.

Discussion: feingold.senate.gov, Middle Earth Journal, Buck Naked Politics, The Anonymous Liberal, Salon, Comments from Left Field, The Sideshow, Unqualified Offerings, All Spin Zone, Blue Girl, Red State, Democrats.com, Emptywheel and Macsmind

Think Progress:

Dodd filibuster threat causes Reid to withdraw FISA bill. — "Senator Chris Dodd won a temporary victory today after his threats of a filibuster forced Democratic leadership to push back consideration of a measure that would grant immunity to telecom companies that were complicit in warrantless surveillance."

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Threat Level, TPM Election Central, Washington Monthly, protein wisdom, Daily Kos, SteveAudio, Oliver Willis, Unqualified Offerings and Matthew Yglesias

Jane Hamsher / Firedoglake:

BREAKING: REID PULLED TELECOM BILL — Harry Reid just pulled the telecom bill. The Senate will take it up again after the first of the year, but for now there will be no retroactive telecom immunity. — Karen Tumulty wrote over at Swampland earlier in the day: … I guess he did.

Discussion: Iowa Politics, Group News Blog, Burnt Orange Report, Mercury Rising, Ben Smith's Blogs, Hullabaloo, TIME: Swampland, The Garlic, skippy the bush kangaroo and The Impolitic

Matt Browner-Hamlin / Chris Dodd National Blog:

Constitution Protected...For Now — Majority Leader Harry Reid has just pulled the FISA bill from consideration in this session. It will be brought up at some point next month. — Without Senator Dodd's leadership today, it is safe to assume that retroactive immunity would have passed.

Matt Browner-Hamlin / Chris Dodd National Blog:
Dodd, Blogs Celebrate FISA Victory

Discussion: the talking dog, Blue Mass. Group and AMERICAblog

John Amato / Crooks and Liars:
Chris Dodd Does It. Reid pulls Telecom Immunity bill off the table

Discussion: DownWithTyranny!, Blue Girl, Red State, The Garlic, The Carpetbagger Report and Open Left

Senator Edward M. Kennedy / kennedy.senate.gov: KENNEDY ON FISA

Eric Lichtblau / New York Times:
Democrats Delay a Vote on Immunity for Wiretaps

Discussion: ACLU and TalkLeft

David Stout / New York Times:
Telecom Industry Wins a Round on Eavesdropping

Discussion: Washington Post, The Politico, Chris Dodd National Blog, The Swamp, CNN Political Ticker, Sister Toldjah, The Plank and Prairie Weather

Michelle Malkin:
Blue-on-blue catfight: Kos turns on Harry Reid; Update: Dodd …

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, Reuters, CBS News, CQ Politics, Liberty Street and Right Voices

Jane Hamsher / Firedoglake:
Obama's Statement on Dodd and Filibuster

Discussion: First Draft, SteveAudio, TPM Election Central and TPMCafe blogs

Seattle Times:

"Muslim" issue resurfaces for Obama — COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Former Nebraska Sen. Bob Kerrey endorsed Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton for president Sunday but stirred a continuing controversy by noting her chief rival's name is "Barack Hussein Obama" and that Obama had Muslim ancestors.

Discussion: NewsBusters.org, USS Neverdock and L.A. Times

Tom Curry / MSNBC:

Obama racial subtext surfaces in Iowa — Edwards parries a voter's question about Obama and the O.J. verdict — Presidential hopefuls former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., await the start of last Thursday's Des Moines Register Presidential Debate in Iowa.

Discussion: NewsBusters.org, PoliGazette and Wonkette

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blogs:

Kerrey digs a little deeper — Bob Kerrey, talking on CNN earlier today, dropped the observation that Obama had spent time in a "secular madrassa" ([which I'm not sure is a term that makes sense])*, which seems to play into critics' notion that he's trying to subtly raise questions about Obama:

Discussion: CNN Political Ticker, Taylor Marsh, Political Punch and Hot Air

Think Progress:
Bob Kerrey: Barack Obama 'Spent A Little Bit Of Time In A Secular Madrassa'

Discussion: Brave New Films blog, AMERICAblog, Comments from Left Field and MoJoBlog

Alec MacGillis / The Trail:

Fresh Doubts About Clinton in N.H. — CONCORD, N.H. — Jim Splaine, a veteran Democrat in the New Hampshire legislature and author of the 1976 law that helped solidify the state's first-in-the-nation primary status, is worried. He is a strong supporter of Hillary Clinton and he does …

Discussion: Blue Hampshire and New York Observer

Ruben Navarrette Jr / CNN:
Navarrette: Attempts to destroy Obama backfire

Discussion: San Diego Union-Tribune, Horses Mouth, Captain's Quarters and Right Voices

Ben Smith / The Politico:
New HRC ads follow long internal struggle

Discussion: New York Times, MyDD, The Plank, Political Machine, Blue Crab Boulevard and New York Daily News Blogs

Spectator:

The blood runs cold — The lights are going out on liberal society - and it is the most liberal societies with their fingers on the 'off' switch. The thesis of Mark Steyn's book America Alone, that Europe was succumbing to an Islamist takeover, has been proved spectacularly correct …

Discussion: Sweetness & Light, Blue Crab Boulevard, Atlas Shrugs, New York Post and The Corner

The Corner:
Re: Mark Steyn is losing

Discussion: Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog

Peterhamby / CNN Political Ticker:

Bill Clinton: George H.W. Bush will help President Hillary — ORANGEBURG, South Carolina (CNN) - Former President Bill Clinton said Monday that the first thing his wife Hillary will do when she reaches the White House is dispatch him and his predecessor, President George H.W. Bush …

Discussion: TPM Election Central and Gateway Pundit

Ann Althouse / Althouse:

That picture of Hillary on Drudge right now. — Have you seen it? — Caption: "The Toll of a Campaign." It seems so cruel. Immodest Proposals writes: … My first reaction to that picture is simple disbelief. How can she suddenly look that much older?

Discussion: Immodest Proposals, The Sundries Shack, The Anchoress, Right Wing News, Dr. Helen, The Volokh Conspiracy, Little Miss Attila, Taylor Marsh, The Heretik, Wizbang, Transterrestrial Musings, Dean's World and CALIFORNIA YANKEE

Christopher Hitchens / Slate:

IT'S PERFECTLY REASONABLE TO REJECT A CANDIDATE BECAUSE OF HIS RELIGIOUS VIEWS. — Just before this gets completely out of hand and becomes a mantralike repetition, let us please recall what the careful phrases of Article VI of the U.S. Constitution actually and very carefully and deliberately say:

Discussion: Hot Air, Gothamist, Jonathan Martin's Blogs, Reason Magazine and slacktivist

Anthony Boadle / Reuters:

Castro hints he will not hold on to power — HAVANA (Reuters) - Ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who has not been seen in public for 16 months, suggested on Monday he might give up his formal leadership posts — the first time he has spoken of his possible retirement.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

Sadly, No!:

A tantalizing peek at history's greatest book — Thanks to a certain Christmas elf who sent us this early present: — Personally, I think the chapter about liberals being seKKKret racists will be the most LOL-worthy, although "The 1960s: Fascism Takes to the Streets" should be good for giggles as well.

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, Left in the West, Lawyers, Guns and Money, Brendan Nyhan, Discourse.net and The Sundries Shack

Matthew Flamm / Crain's New York Business.com:

Slow going for Rove memoir auction — Early reports had predicted a $3 million sale, but an auction for the Republican strategist's memoir has dragged on for a month. — December 17. — The auction for Karl Rove's memoir drags on a month after the Republican strategist made the rounds …

Discussion: SteveAudio and Corrente