memeorandum: Senior benefit costs rise 24% since 2000 (USA Today)

3:35 PM ET, February 14, 2008

Top Items:

John Aravosis / AMERICAblog:

Republicans disrupt Lantos memorial service — Even the dead are political pawns to the Republicans (then again, we already knew that post-September 11). House Republicans, at the bidding of the Bush White House, are upset that House Democrats are voting on contempt citations for Harriet Miers and Josh Bolton today.

Discussion: The Crypt's Blogs, Daily Kos, Sister Toldjah, The Raw Story, Emptywheel and The Gavel

Martin Kady II / The Crypt's Blogs:

House in chaos: GOP calls vote during Lantos memorial — During what was supposed to be a somber memorial service in Statuary Hall for Rep. Tom Lantos, who died Monday, the House chamber became mired in chaos over procedural votes. — Democrats angrily denounced the GOP as insensitive for calling a …

Discussion: Macsmind and Outside The Beltway

Deb Riechmann / Associated Press:

Bush criticizes Congress on terror bill — WASHINGTON - In a day of political brinkmanship, President Bush pressured the House on Thursday to finish a bill giving the government more leeway to eavesdrop on phone calls and e-mails of suspected terrorists. House Democrats didn't budge …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos, The Gavel and Muckraker

Domenico Montanaro / MSNBC:
THE HILL'S SHORT-LIVED LOVE

Discussion: Daily Kos, Balloon Juice and SamSederShow.com

Think Progress:
House Republicans Stage Walkout, Refuse To Vote On Contempt Charges

Discussion: Salon, The Carpetbagger Report and Muckraker

Eric Lichtblau / New York Times:
Eavesdropping Law Is Likely to Lapse

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, Weekly Standard, Hold Fast and The Gavel

Jonathan Stein / MoJoBlog:
To Protect White House, GOP Disrupts Congressman's Memorial Service

Discussion: HorsesAss.Org

Adam Nagourney / New York Times:

Obama's Lead in Delegates Shifts Focus of Campaign — WASHINGTON — Senator Barack Obama emerged from Tuesday's primaries leading Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton by more than 100 delegates, a small but significant advantage that Democrats said would be difficult for Mrs. Clinton …

Wall Street Journal:

Clinton Team Seeks to Calm Turmoil — MCALLEN, Texas — With Spanish music blaring, Sen. Hillary Clinton campaigned across South Texas yesterday with a more populist message, as her new campaign manager sought to reshape a campaign that has lost eight straight primaries in a week.

Discussion: The Swamp, The New Republic, Political Machine, Wonkette, TIME, NewsBusters.org and Political Punch

New York Times:

Knocked Off Balance, Clinton Campaign Tries to Regain Its Stride — SAN ANTONIO — The Texas and Ohio presidential primaries, on March 4, have become must-win contests for Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, her advisers say. So why is she just opening campaign field offices across those states?

Discussion: Washington Post, MSNBC, The Corner, Commentary, Blue Crab Boulevard, The Nation, State of the Day and TIME

Ezra Klein / American Prospect:

OUT FOR THEMSELVES. — The New York Times reports: … Put another way: If Hillary Clinton does not win delegates out of a majority of contested primaries and caucuses, her aides are willing to rip the party apart to secure the nomination, to cheat in a way that will rend the Democratic coalition …

Discussion: Washington Post and American Spectator

CNN:

Romney to endorse McCain — CNN's Dana Bash reports that former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will endorse senator John McCain. The endorsement is expected to happen at a Boston event at 3:30 p.m. ET today. — Two sources familiar with the decision confirmed the news …

Discussion: Political Radar, Comments from Left Field, TIME and The Page

CNN:

Romney to endorse McCain for GOP nomination — (CNN) — Former Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney plans to announce Thursday that he is backing Sen. John McCain in his bid for the Oval Office, two sources familiar with the decision said. — A source familiar with the decision …

Discussion: You Decide 08!, PoliBlog (TM) and American Spectator

Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Breaking: Romney to endorse McCain; Update: Romney for VP?

Discussion: MSNBC and The Campaign Spot

Rasmussen Reports:

Wisconsin Democratic Presidential Primary — Wisconsin: Obama 47% Clinton 43% — The Democratic Presidential Primary in Wisconsin may be the most competitive contest between Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton since Super Tuesday. — The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey shows Obama …

Discussion: The Daily Dish, The New Republic, Comments from Left Field, Ross Douthat, TalkLeft, Open Left, MyDD, Los Angeles Times and Prairie Weather

Reuters:
Clinton leading Obama in Ohio, Pennsylvania

Discussion: TownHall Blog

Rasmussen Reports: Ohio Democratic Presidential Primary

Elizabeth Rhodes / Seattle Times:

UW study: Rules add $200,000 to Seattle house price — Backed by studies showing that middle-class Seattle residents can no longer afford the city's middle-class homes, consensus is growing that prices are too darned high. But why are they so high? — An intriguing new analysis …

Discussion: HorsesAss.Org and Sound Politics

Ben Smith / The Politico:

Obama camp splits public-financing hairs — Obama's campaign is backing away from suggestions that the Illinois senator would publicly finance his campaign in the general election, if he's the nominee, and referring to public financing as an “option” — not as the “pledge” McCain's campaign claims Obama made.

Discussion: MSNBC, MyDD, Financial Times, Trailhead, TIME: Swampland and NPR

Jonathan Chait / The New Republic:
McCain Aiding Clinton?

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias and The Carpetbagger Report

Andy McCarthy / The Corner:

FISA: High Noon at Midnight Friday — In today's article, I catalogue some of the problems with the Senate bill which would overhaul FISA — while explaining that the bill absolutely must be passed by the House or our foreign intelligence collection is going to collapse.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Wake up America and ShopFloor.org

Andrew C. McCarthy / National Review:
FISA Reform: The Bad Bill that Beats No Bill

Discussion: Commentary

Josh Patashnik / The New Republic:

Bush's Waterboarding Stance Is Hurting McCain — As you probably heard, the Senate voted 51-45 yesterday to ban any government agency from any using interrogation tactic not authorized by the Army Field Manual (including waterboarding, sleep deprivation, exposure to extreme cold, etc.).

Discussion: The Lede and The Gate

Michael O'Hanlon / Wall Street Journal:

Obama as Diplomat in Chief — A central element of Barack Obama's plan to change American foreign policy is his intention, upon becoming president, to meet with foreign leaders of extremist regimes — the type of rogue-state dictators that George W. Bush has generally shunned during his time as president.

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, democracyarsenal.org, Commentary and The Agonist

Robert A. Levy / Washington Times:

Promises breached — If you think the District of Columbia's ban on all functional firearms in all homes is a reasonable regulation under the Second Amendment, you'll love the friend-of-the-court brief filed by the Bush administration in D.C. v. Heller, now before the Supreme Court.

Discussion: Reason Magazine

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:

Should Hillary Go Negative? — Amid all of the armchair quarterbacking that has gone on over the past eight days about what Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) should do to turn around her campaign, one solution that doesn't seem to come up much is perhaps the simplest — and most dangerous: going negative.

Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:

House GOP Walk Out Over FISA — House Republican Whip Eric Cantor blogged about the walkout here: … I'll be talking with Andrew McCarthy about the FISA issue on today's Heading Right Radio. Be sure to catch it live.

Discussion: michellemalkin.com