memeorandum: Fed cuts interest rate (Martin Crutsinger/Associated Press)

10:05 AM ET, January 22, 2008

Top Items:

The Clinton-Obama exchange — CNN is providing transcript, and the full transcript of their first exchange is after the jump. — It began with this line from Obama, on his taxing and spending plans: “What she said wasn't true." — MODERATOR: She says that the new programs that she proposes she essentially

Discussion: The Washington Note, TalkLeft, Blue Crab Boulevard, The Democratic Daily, PoliGazette, Taylor Marsh, The Plank, The RBC, State of the Day, The Daily Dish, Spin Cycle, QandO, Liberal Values, the talking dog and Shakespeare's Sister

Ben Smith / The Politico:

Clinton plan: Let Bill lash out — So maybe Bill Clinton isn't quite so far off-message as we had assumed. — After two weeks of reports on the former president's temper, the former first lady's supposed inability to keep him on script, and the ostensibly dire impact on his legacy …

Discussion: The Hill, The Trail, Wizbang, The State, Houston's Clear Thinkers, The Moderate Voice, American Power, The Belmont Club, Pat Dollard, Taylor Marsh, protein wisdom and The Democratic Daily

Adam Nagourney / New York Times:

Remarks on Reagan Live On — In one of their starkest differences in Monday's debate, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton said that Senator Barack Obama had talked about “admiring Ronald Reagan” and that Mr. Obama “said in the last week that he really liked the ideas of the Republicans over the last 10 …

Discussion: skippy the bush kangaroo and Redstate

CNN:

Part 3 of CNN Democratic presidential debate — Editor's note: This is part three of the transcript for the Democratic presidential debate sponsored by CNN and the Congressional Black Caucus Institute on January 21, 2008. Click here to connect to part one or part two.

Discussion: Dick Polman's American Debate, PSoTD, LiberalOasis and Pajamas Media

New York Times:
The Democratic Debate in South Carolina

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report, The Huffington Post and Extreme Mortman

Washington Post:
Voices Are Raised in Democratic Debate

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, Associated Press, Norwegianity, TIME and New York Times

Walter Shapiro / Salon:
The knives come out in South Carolina

Discussion: Prairie Weather

CNN:
Part 2 of CNN Democratic presidential debate

Discussion: TalkLeft and Associated Press

New York Times:
Obama and Clinton Tangle at Debate

Discussion: The Swamp, Washington Post, Vodkapundit, New York Daily News Blogs, MSNBC, QandO, The Fix, GregsOpinion.com, BAGnewsNotes, The Politico, Liberal Values, Los Angeles Times and Spin Cycle

Michelle Malkin:
SC Democrat debate: Punch, Judy, and Silky; Update: Squabbling …

Discussion: Hot Air, protein wisdom, Right Wing News, TownHall Blog, FOX Embeds, Riehl World View, UrbanGrounds, TVNewser and Sister Toldjah

CNN:
Clinton-Obama barbs dominate S.C. debate

Discussion: Guardian, Open Left, The Nation, Yahoo! News, The Caucus, MyDD, Lonewacko, Vodkapundit, Riehl World View, TigerHawk and Gateway Pundit

Patrick Healy / New York Times:
In S. Carolina, It's Obama vs. Clinton. That's Bill Clinton.

Discussion: Daniel W. Drezner and MSNBC

David Brooks / New York Times:

The Voters Revolt — The Reagan administration had its pragmatists and its so-called ideologues. It had James Baker as well as Ed Meese. Reagan carried moderate states like Connecticut, Wisconsin and Washington, as well as conservative ones like Wyoming and South Carolina.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, No More Mister Nice Blog, Shakespeare's Sister, Eunomia and Publius Pundit

Charles Babington / Associated Press:

Huckabee trims costs, press travel — ORLANDO, Fla. - Battling to stay competitive after his weekend loss in South Carolina, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is taking new steps to save money, including no longer scheduling planes and buses for journalists trying to cover his presidential campaign.

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, Riehl World View and BobKrumm.com

E. J. Dionne Jr / Washington Post:

Crunch Time for McCain — John McCain is feared by Democrats and liked by independents. That, paradoxically, is why he may yet be rejected by Republicans, even though he has bent over backward to satisfy conservative demands. — McCain exorcised the ghosts of South Carolina on Saturday …

Discussion: Captain's Quarters and Heading Right

Michael D. Shear / Washington Post:
Will Thompson Roll the Closing Credits?

Discussion: protein wisdom, TownHall Blog, MiamiHerald.com, The Caucus, The Strata-Sphere, New York Times, Outside The Beltway, The Politico and race42008.com

New York Times:

Fed Makes Emergency 0.75% Rate Cut — The Federal Reserve, responding to an international stock sell-off and the likelihood of a sharp drop in America on Tuesday morning, cut its benchmark interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point. — The Federal Open Market Committee lowered …

Discussion: Seeing the Forest, PointOfLaw Forum, PoliGazette and Rook's Rant

Martin Crutsinger / Associated Press:

Fed cuts interest rate — WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve, confronted with a global stock sell-off fanned by increased fears of a recession, slashed a key interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point on Tuesday and indicated further rate cuts were likely.

Discussion: michellemalkin.com, Captain's Quarters and Blue Crab Boulevard

Larry Kudlow / The Corner:

Take Charge, Central Bankers — There's a global stock market tsunami gathering force. It may hit U.S. shores very hard this morning. — Much of this is panic over a U.S. recession threat that has yet to clearly materialize. The world sell-off also vastly overestimates loan …

Ian Traynor / Guardian:

Pre-emptive nuclear strike ‘an option’ — The west must be ready to resort to a pre-emptive nuclear attack to try to halt the “imminent” spread of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, according to a radical manifesto for a new Nato by five of the west's most senior military officers and strategists.

Discussion: Corrente, Outside The Beltway, Right Wing Nut House, The Belmont Club, Israel Matzav and The Glittering Eye

Manu Raju / The Hill:

Attorneys probe deepens — The federal investigation into the firing of nine U.S. attorneys could jolt the political landscape ahead of the November elections, according to several people close to the inquiry. — Washington's attention has been diverted from the scandal since …

Discussion: Think Progress, Emptywheel and Balkinization

Matthew Yglesias:

Someone Didn't Get The Word — Fareed Zakaria: … Ah, those sad, sad, Democrats. So unaware that the war's over. The dude who killed at least fourteen and wounded seventeen in Tikrit must, like the Democrats, have been wearing partisan blinders when he failed to acknowledge the surge's success in bringing the war to an end.

Stephen Farrell / New York Times:
Hopes for Vehicle Questioned After Iraq Blast

Discussion: toohotfortnr

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System:

For immediate release — The Federal Open Market Committee has decided to lower its target for the federal funds rate 75 basis points to 3-1/2 percent. — The Committee took this action in view of a weakening of the economic outlook and increasing downside risks to growth.

Discussion: Telegraph, On Deadline, Greatscat! and TigerHawk

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:

CONCLUDING THOUGHTS — It's hard for me to think of much good from this debate. If you view debates like a boxing match, I guess it was lively and perhaps entertaining, in the sense that a good boxing match can be, though the fighting was more intense than well executed.

Discussion: Brendan Nyhan, Marc Ambinder, Suburban Guerrilla, The Daily Dish and Middle Earth Journal