Top Items:
Deb Riechmann / Associated Press:
Bush commutes sentences of former US border agents … WASHINGTON (AP) - In his final acts of clemency, President George W. Bush on Monday commuted the prison sentences of two former U.S. Border Patrol agents whose convictions for shooting a Mexican drug dealer ignited fierce debate about illegal immigration.
Discussion:
CNN, TalkLeft, Buck Naked Politics, Washington Monthly, Breitbart.tv, 24Ahead and Fausta's Blog
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Fox News:
Bush Commutes Sentences for Two Former Border Patrol Agents — President Bush commutes the sentences of Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean, convicted of shooting a Mexican drug runner in 2005. — FOXNews.com — On his last full day in office, President Bush commuted the controversial sentences …
David Stout / New York Times:
Bush Commutes Agents' Sentences — WASHINGTON — President Bush on Monday commuted the sentences of two former border patrol agents who had been sentenced to more than a decade in prison for shooting a suspected Mexican drug dealer in Texas in 2005. — With a day left in his presidency …
Michael Jensen / AfterElton.com blogs:
Developing: HBO says they aren't to blame for not including Gene Robinson in concert special — Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson (AFP/Robyn Beck) — Sunday afternoon, HBO televised the Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial — a concert planned by the Presidential Inauguration Committee …
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Sarah Pulliam / Christianity Today:
Gay Bishop Kicks off Celebrity-filled Event — WASHINGTON — Gene Robinson, the divisive figure who was the first openly Episcopal gay bishop, led the invocation at today's inaugural kickoff. — Robinson prayed for God to “bless this nation with anger - anger at discrimination …
Discussion:
Ben Smith's Blogs, MoJoBlog, Boston Globe, La Figa, TIME.com, American Power, Taylor Marsh, Hot Air, Pam's House Blend, USA Today, pandagon.net, The Lead, Rumproast, Washington Monthly, Salon and MSNBC
John Aravosis / AMERICAblog News:
Obama: We'd always intended for HBO to broadcast Robinson — HBO says it was Obama. Obama throws it back at HBO in this statement I just received: … At least the Obama people think it important enough to weigh in, and that's a good thing. A lot of good people were disappointed by this.
Leah McElrath Renna / The Huffington Post:
HBO Blames Obama Team for Omission of Gay Bishop from Concert Broadcast
HBO Blames Obama Team for Omission of Gay Bishop from Concert Broadcast
Discussion:
Pam's House Blend
Debra Black / Toronto Star:
William Ayers turned back at Canadian border — An American education professor, one of the founders of a radical 1960s group known as the Weather Underground, which was responsible for a number of bombings in the United States in the early 1970s, was turned back at the Canadian border last night.
CNN:
Most blacks say MLK's vision fulfilled, poll finds — WASHINGTON (CNN) — More than two-thirds of African-Americans believe Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision for race relations has been fulfilled, a CNN poll found — a figure up sharply from a survey in early 2008.
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Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
TPM LAUNCHES TPMDC — Today, on the eve of the inaugural, TPM is launching a new politics blog, TPMDC.com. It's the successor to TPM Election Central. Our team covering the Capital under the new administration will be Elana Schor, who joined our team earlier this month, covering Capitol Hill …
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Matthew Cooper / TPMDC:
A New Day — I'm delighted to be helping out with TPMDC …
A New Day — I'm delighted to be helping out with TPMDC …
Discussion:
Matthew Yglesias
Gil Hoffman / Jerusalem Post:
Likud, Kadima escalate mutual attacks — The Likud and Kadima parties intensified their attacks against each other on Sunday after the cease-fire took effect in the Gaza Strip, formally ending Operation Cast Lead and restarting the election campaign. — The first polls taken …
Discussion:
Power Line, Commentary, PoliGazette, Soccer Dad, Israel Matzav and Lawyers, Guns and Money
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Ethan Bronner / New York Times:
Parsing Gains of Gaza War
Parsing Gains of Gaza War
Discussion:
Buck Naked Politics, Israel Matzav, Jerusalem Post, Yourish.com, BBC, Tikun Olam, The Muqata and abu muqawama
Josh Gerstein / The Politico:
10 Bush pardons to watch for — As the clock ticks down on his presidency, George W. Bush has shown few signs he plans to indulge in the frenzy of last-minute pardons that marked Bill Clinton's final hours in the Oval Office. — But Bush could quickly leap back into the spotlight in the next …
Discussion:
Anchorage Daily News, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, theheretik.us, On Deadline, The Raw Story and TigerHawk
Fredric U. Dicker / New York Post:
CAROLINE THE ‘CERTAIN’ PICK FOR DAVE: RIVALS — DESPITE claims that he's still undecided, Gov. Paterson is “certain” to pick Caroline Kennedy to replace Hillary Rodham Clinton in the US Senate, several unhappy contenders for the job have told friends and associates in recent days.
Scott Mayerowitz / ABCNEWS:
What Recession? The $170 Million Inauguration — Obama's Inauguration Has Been Financed Partially by Bailed-Out Wall Street Executives — ABC NEWS Business Unit — The country is in the middle of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, which isn't stopping rich donors …
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CNN:
No Bush moving trucks needed Inauguration Day — WASHINGTON (CNN) - On Inauguration day, there's one scene at the White House that won't be playing out exactly as it has during past transitions: the traditional moving of the outgoing First Family's belongings.
Discussion:
TalkLeft
Blogs and Stories:
Cindy Speaks — A Daily Beast Debate: Crouch v. Touré on Obama's MLK Legacy — Blogs and Stories — In a conversation with her daughter (and blogger) Meghan, Cindy McCain opens up about subjects she couldn't discuss before: anger at the New York Times, wardrobe malfunctions, and Obama's inauguration.
Luigi Zingales / voxeu.org:
Yes we can, Mr Geithner — This Wednesday Mr Geithner will be confirmed as the new Secretary of Treasury. Never before in US history has this position been so important. Mr Geithner's decisions in the next few weeks will have a dramatic impact on the length and the depth of this recession …
Discussion:
EconLog
Jacque Wilson / CNN:
Chris Rock on making fun of Barack Obama — (CNN) — Chris Rock is best known for two things: being funny and being crass. — “This is what people come to see. I'm just doing my show,” the comedian said with a laugh. — He's also known for his political commentary …
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice
William Kristol / New York Times:
The Next War President — In synagogue on Saturday, before saying the customary prayer for our country, the rabbi asked us to reflect on the fact that a new president would be inaugurated on Tuesday, and urged us to focus a little more intently than usual on the prayer.
Discussion:
The Washington Independent, The Reaction, Eunomia, TPMCafe, Gateway Pundit and Connecting.the.Dots
New York Magazine:
Christopher Hitchens Blames Torture on Common Americans, Demands ‘Tongue’ From Andrew Sullivan — A gaggle of prominent scribes including Tina Brown, Harold Evans, and Politico's Mike Allen got a scare Saturday night when they found themselves briefly trapped in an elevator struggling …