Top Items:
The Politico:
Right rallies to McCain's side — Conservative media outlets rushed with surprising vehemence to defend Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Thursday against a critical article in The New York Times, embracing a maverick they have often attacked. — Rush Limbaugh calls it “the drive-by media ... trying to take him out.”
Discussion:
MSNBC, CBN.com, The New Republic, Taylor Marsh, The Corner, The Sundries Shack, American Spectator and IntoxiNation
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New York Times:
For McCain, Self-Confidence on Ethics Poses Its Own Risk — WASHINGTON — Early in Senator John McCain's first run for the White House eight years ago, waves of anxiety swept through his small circle of advisers. — A female lobbyist had been turning up with him at fund-raisers, in his offices and aboard a client's corporate jet.
Discussion:
Firedoglake, The Huffington Post, MoJoBlog, Jonathan Martin's Blogs, The Politico, Power Line, PressThink, TownHall Blog, The Swamp, New York Times, CNN, Redstate, Washington Wire, Marc Ambinder, The Daily Dish, Daily Kos, Weekly Standard, American Spectator, Fausta's blog, StephenBainbridge.com, The Jawa Report, Middle Earth Journal, Newsweek Blogs, Trailhead, Commentary, NY Daily News, Salon, Political Machine, David Corn, Don Surber, Blue Gal, PoliGazette, The Huffington Post, PoliBlog (TM), protein wisdom, The Carpetbagger Report, BuzzFlash.org, Hot Air, Hullabaloo, Washington Post, Obsidian Wings, Outside The Beltway, Anne Schroeder's Blogs, New York Magazine, The Trail, GregsOpinion.com, Crooks and Liars, The Raw Story, Gothamist, LewRockwell.com Blog, The People's Republic …, TIME: Swampland, culturekitchen, Fraters Libertas, NewsBusters.org, Prairie Weather, Comments from Left Field, QandO, TIME, At-Largely, RealClearPolitics, About.com Conservative …, On Deadline, RADAR, The Campaign Spot, AMERICAblog, Confederate Yankee, First Draft, Ankle Biting Pundits, Dean's World, Sweetness & Light, Jules Crittenden, NewsMax.com, After W, Faithful Progressive, Betsy's Page, US Elections, Grammar.police, Roger L. Simon and Big Head DC
Ed OKeefe / Political Radar:
Romney Camp Laments — ABC News' John Berman Reports: The remnants of the Romney campaign are shaking their heads this morning. — For months they were whispering about a New York Times investigation into John McCain's ties to a certain lobbyist. — They would poke and prod reporters …
Greg Sargent / Horses Mouth:
About That Times Story On McCain's Relationship — Let's try a little experiment. Let's take the meat of the big New York Times story and substitute the words “Dem Presidential Hopeful” for “John McCain”: … If these words had appeared on the front page of The New York Times …
Gabriel Sherman / The New Republic:
The Long Run-Up — Behind the Bombshell in ‘The New York Times.’ — RELATED CONTENT — 'Charlie's Horse,' by S.V. Date (2/6/08) — Last night, around dinnertime, The New York Times posted on its website a 3,000-word investigation detailing Senator John McCain's connections to a telecommunications lobbyist named Vicki Iseman.
Washington Post:
McCain's Ties To Lobbyist Worried Aides — Aides to Sen. John McCain confronted a telecommunications lobbyist in late 1999 and asked her to distance herself from the senator during the presidential campaign he was about to launch, according to one of McCain's longest-serving political strategists.
Byron York / The Corner:
McCain Adviser: Iseman's Claims Were “Alarming” — I just got off the phone with John Weaver, the former top McCain campaign official who is now an informal adviser to the campaign. I asked him about his 1999 meeting on the campaign's behalf with lobbyist Vicki Iseman.
Matthew Yglesias:
A Real Story — Mark Kleiman points out that the AP's version of the of the Vicky Iseman story has less innuendo, but a clearer explanation of actual misconduct: … Basically, in exchange for money and freebies, McCain sought to intervene in a federal regulatory process in favor of a company …
Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:
Slimes At The Times — The New York Times launches …
Slimes At The Times — The New York Times launches …
Discussion:
Jonathan Martin's Blogs, MoJoBlog, The Huffington Post, Salon and The Carpetbagger Report
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
THE MCCAIN STORY — This afternoon, before the Times story came out …
THE MCCAIN STORY — This afternoon, before the Times story came out …
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, TalkLeft, The RBC, Donklephant, TIME: Swampland and Political Machine
Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:
The Times Already Into Stonewall Mode? (Update: A Few Points Left Out)
The Times Already Into Stonewall Mode? (Update: A Few Points Left Out)
Discussion:
The Politico
Noam Scheiber / The New Republic:
Bonus TNR Angle on the McCain Story
Bonus TNR Angle on the McCain Story
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, TIME: Swampland, Marc Ambinder, Hot Air, FishBowlDC and Taegan Goddard's …
Peter Nicholas / Los Angeles Times:
Clinton camp splits on message — A strategist who favors emphasizing strength and experience prevails over advisors who think she should show warmth and empathy. — WASHINGTON — Before the Iowa caucuses, senior aides to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton fell into a heated argument during …
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Ezra Klein / American Prospect:
HOW WE LIVE NOW. — a great essay on the need to think about the impacts of driving far beyond the simple fact of tailpipe exhaust. I was particularly struck by this: … And denser areas are also more livable. They're more walkable, which is shown to make people healthier, and more social, which is shown to make them happier.
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Jesus Diaz / Gizmodo:
Video of Spy Satellite Getting Shot Down — Watch as General Cartwright, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (and apparently Jack Bauer's older brother) shows how the Aegis missile launches and successfully destroys the rogue spy satellite. This is a huge success for the Pentagon …
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Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:
‘What Is There To Debate?’ — Every time we suggested dropping Ron Paul from the national debates, his supporters would go nuts. They claimed in the one instance where he did get dropped, the January 3rd debate just before Iowa, that a grand conspiracy existed to keep his message from the people and to stop the 4% revolution.
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Karl Rove / Wall Street Journal:
Obama's New Vulnerability — In campaigns, there are sometimes moments when candidates shift ground, causing the race to change dramatically. Tuesday night was one of those moments. — Hammered for the 10th contest in a row, Hillary Clinton toughened her attacks on Barack Obama …
John McCormick / Baltimore Sun:
Even blowing his nose, Obama gets applause — DALLAS - It's probably safe to say that you have arrived as a politician when your audience applauds when you blow your nose. — Yes, just a day before a debate in Texas, Sen. Barack Obama has a head cold. — And about a half-hour into a speech here …
Robert Winnett / Telegraph:
Biggest brain drain from UK in 50 years — Britain is experiencing the worst “brain drain” of any country as highly qualified professionals settle abroad, an authoritative international study showed yesterday. — Record numbers of Britons are leaving - many of them doctors …
George F. Will / Washington Post:
Playing the ‘Fair’ Card — Judging from complaints by her minions, Hillary Clinton considers it unfair that Barack Obama has been wafted close to the pinnacle of politics by an updraft from the continent-wide swoon of millions of Democrats and much of the media brought on by his Delphic utterances such as “we are the change.”
Stephanie Rosenbloom / New York Times:
Sorry, Boys, This Is Our Domain — THE prototypical computer whiz of popular imagination — pasty, geeky, male — has failed to live up to his reputation. — Research shows that among the youngest Internet users, the primary creators of Web content (blogs, graphics, photographs, Web sites) …
Stephen Ohlemacher / Associated Press:
Obama Wins Democrats Abroad Primary — WASHINGTON (AP) — Barack Obama won the Democrats Abroad global primary in results announced Thursday, giving him 11 straight victories in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. — The Illinois senator won the primary in which Democrats living …