Top Items:
Eric Kleefeld / TPM Election Central:
Franken Camp's Claim: We're Now Ahead! — In a briefing going on right now with reporters, Al Franken's lead recount lawyer Marc Elias made a stunning announcement: According to the campaign's methodology of tracking the recount results, they believe Al Franken now leads Norm Coleman by a margin of 22 votes.
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Josh Kraushaar / The Politico:
Franken camp: 'We're winning' — Al Franken's campaign attorney Marc Elias said today that, based on its latest internal tally, Franken has taken the lead over Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) for the first time in the recount process. — In a conference call, Elias said Franken leads Coleman by 22 votes at the end of last night's count.
Discussion:
The Note, McClatchy Washington Bureau, Washington Monthly, Wilshire & Washington, Salon and The Politico
Cal Fussman / Esquire:
Bill Richardson: What I've Learned — The just-tapped Secretary of Commerce shares intimate new stories on how Barack Obama saved his ass before he became his boss, Saddam Hussein's guile, Bush's charm, racial politics and more. — After the campaign, I grew a beard as a rebellion …
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Frank James / The Swamp:
Obama calls on Fox News, mourns beard — At the recently completely press conference at which President-elect Barack Obama officially named Gov. Bill Richardson his choice for Commerce Secretary, Obama called on Fox News's White House reporter. — The interchange was interesting for a few reasons.
The Trail / Washington Post:
Obama or an Obama-Impersonator? Ros-Lehtinen Flubs the Call — Twice on Wednesday, President-elect Barack Obama tried to reach across the partisan divide with a phone call to Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Republican from Florida. — And twice, according to her office, she hung up on him.
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Amie Parnes / The Crypt's Blogs:
Ros-Lehtinen hangs up on Obama. Twice. — Is Ileana Ros-Lehtinen a little paranoid? — Maybe. — On Wednesday, the Republican congresswoman got a call from President-elect Barack Obama, didn't believe it was him, and hung up on him. Twice. — According to Ros-Lehtinen's flack Alex Cruz …
Discussion:
TIME.com
Andy Barr / The Politico:
Chambliss: Palin ‘allowed us to peak’ — Fresh off his runoff victory Tuesday night, Georgia Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss credited Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin with firing up his base. — “I can't overstate the impact she had down here,” Chambliss said during an interview Wednesday morning on Fox News.
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Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight.com:Saxby Shows Republicans The Way Forward?
Discussion:
Open Left, Daily Kos, Democratic Strategist, The Note, The Hill, Hot Air, MyDD, Media Blog and QandO
Domenico Montanaro / MSNBC:
RENDELL APOLOGIZES FOR AZ GOV COMMENT — From NBC's Lauren Appelbaum — During a news conference on budget reductions today, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) apologized for a hot mic statement he made yesterday, saying Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano (D) is perfect for the position …
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John Koblin / New York Observer:
Meet Slate's New Columnist: Eliot Spitzer — Media Mob has learned that former New York governor Eliot Spitzer will write a new column for Slate beginning tomorrow. The column will appear every other week and it'll be about government, regulation and finance.
Cspanjunkie / Crooks and Liars:
The Buck Stops There: Bush Blames Iraq Mess on Bad Intelligence — The Preznit, out working on that Legacy Thing, was on ABC with Charles Gibson last night, and had this revealing exchange: … David N: As always with Bush, the Buck Stops Over There, Or There — Anywhere But Here.
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, I Don't Like You Either, Lawyers, Guns and Money and The Rude Pundit
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In Transition:
Last Call for a Bipartisan Cabinet — Now that President-elect Barack Obama's Cabinet is, by his count, half picked, the odds are fading that he'll have more than one Republican on his team — suggesting that his campaign promise to include Republicans may have meant nothing more than the usual token appointment from the other side.
Discussion:
AMERICAblog News
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Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:NO TRANSITION FROM NONESENSE — Congressional Quarterly bemoans …
Discussion:
TalkLeft
Marc Ambinder:
Discourse Watch: Obama's Citizenship A Legit Topic? — Townhall.com is a mainstream, legitimate, comprehensive, informative, and entertaining conservative news and opinion magazine and website. Disclosure: they've written nice things about me. To liberals and non-conservatives, their content can sometimes be edgy.
David Sirota / Blog entry:
Mandate Watch: Obama Backs Off Promise to Pass Windfall Profits Tax on Big Oil — Good news and bad news in the last day. The good news: Barack Obama has appointed a NAFTA critic, Rep. Xavier Becerra, as the next U.S. Trade Representative (more on that here). The bad news is this just off the Reuters wire:
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Justin / glaadBLOG.org:
The ‘Pulse of Equality’ — Today, GLAAD released a new survey conducted by Harris Interactive in the wake of the passage of and protests against California's Proposition 8. — The survey reveals that majorities of Americans favor a broad range of policies and legal protections for lesbian …
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Access Hollywood:
Access Exclusive: ‘Oprah’ Going To Washington For Inauguration — Ms. Winfrey is going to Washington. — The media mogul (and staunch Barack Obama supporter) will be hosting “The Oprah Winfrey Show” from Washington, D.C. during the week of the presidential inauguration …
Ken Thomas / Associated Press:
Automakers plead for aid, but Senate votes lacking — Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition — WASHINGTON - Imperiled automakers and their union worked feverishly Wednesday to sell a skeptical Congress on a $34 billion aid plan, promising labor concessions and restructuring.
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Kimberly S. Johnson / Associated Press:UAW to renegotiate labor terms, suspend jobs bank
Discussion:
Donklephant
Gstasiewicz / Judicial Watch:
Judicial Watch Announces Hillary Clinton Constitutionally Ineligible to Serve as Secretary of State — Ineligibility Clause of Constitution Prohibits Clinton Appointment — Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption …
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, The Politico, StephenBainbridge.com, Political Machine, The Caucus, Gawker and TPM Election Central
FOX Forum:
Why Is the Left So Threated By My Poll? — Writer/Director/Producer, “Blocking the Path to 9/11″ — It has been quite a strange couple of weeks since I decided to commission a Zogby poll of Obama voters. I chose to do this at great personal expense to determine whether interviews …
Ben Rooney / CNNMoney.com:
Poll: 61% oppose auto bailout — Survey shows that Americans think federal aid for the Big Three is unfair and won't help the economy. — NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — A majority of Americans oppose a bailout of the troubled U.S. auto industry, according to a poll released Wednesday.
Discussion:
Truthdig
The Trail / Washington Post:
Obama Gives Political Ambassadors Their Pink Slips — The incoming Obama administration has notified all politically-appointed ambassadors that they must vacate their posts as of Jan. 20, the day President-elect Barack Obama takes the oath of office, a State Department official said.
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