Top Items:
Patrick O'Connor / The Politico:
Boehner to GOP: Vote against stimulus — President Barack Obama is coming to the Capitol later today in a bid to curry favor with congressional Republicans. But it appears GOP leaders have already made up their minds to oppose his $825 billion stimulus plan.
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Chris Cillizza / The Fix:
Is Rush Limbaugh the New Face of the GOP? — Conservative talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh. AP Photo/Ron Edmonds — It's one week into President Obama's term and his arch nemesis isn't Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), House Minority Leader John Boehner (Ohio) …
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, MyDD, The Democratic Daily, American Power, Taylor Marsh and Hullabaloo
The Politico:
Obama won't compromise on tax cuts — President Barack Obama rolled into the Capitol with a clear message for Republicans Tuesday afternoon: He's happy to talk, but he's not compromising on his tax rebates for lower income households. — Obama was ready for the House Republicans to pounce …
Discussion:
Ben Smith's Blogs, Yahoo! News, Liberty Street, The Field on the Narcosphere, TIME.com, The Confabulum, D-Day, Washington Monthly and Hot Air
Jonathan Martin / The Politico:
House GOP member to Rush: Back off — Rush Limbaugh may command a large following, but his caustic comments Monday about the GOP's congressional leadership have at least one Republican House member defending his colleagues and offering an unusually candid critique of the talk radio powerhouse and his fellow commentators.
The Politico:
Republicans find their voice — Congressional Republicans, who only weeks ago were sheepish about their own electoral failures and cowed by Obama's polish and popularity, are suddenly punching back — hard — on both sides of the Capitol. — The Senate GOP surprised the administration Monday evening …
Howard Fineman / MSNBC:
Fineman: Honeymoon that ended before it began — For Obama, an early start, and promises things will get worse — WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama is launching his first diplomatic mission. — It's not overseas; it's local, 1.6 miles east of the White House.
Steven Thomma / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Obama drops family-planning from stimulus as GOP concession
Obama drops family-planning from stimulus as GOP concession
Discussion:
Reuters, Weekly Standard, RHRealityCheck.org blogs, TPMDC, Associated Press and The Huffington Post
Greg Gutfeld / Fox News:
Obama Urges GOP to Keep Politics to a Minimum on Stimulus
Obama Urges GOP to Keep Politics to a Minimum on Stimulus
Discussion:
Sister Toldjah
New York Post:
PALIN'S GOT PAC AND VIP STATUS — ASK not what Sarah Palin can do for your country, ask only what you can do for Sarah Palin. And the answer is, pay attention. Trust me, Alaska's governor is moving faster than those glaciers. — Traveling with one of her ladies-in-waiting and invited by a rich GOPnik …
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Kate Klonick / CJR:
Q & A: Former McCain Blogger Michael Goldfarb — “I was a cudgel. I pissed off the media.” … Kate Klonick: You spent the last six months as the official campaign blogger for the McCain campaign, taking leave from your position as Web editor at The Weekly Standard. What were you expecting when you made the switch?
Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blogs:
SarahPAC — First reported (natch?) by Cindy Adams …
SarahPAC — First reported (natch?) by Cindy Adams …
Discussion:
The Caucus
Sonny Bunch / Washington Times:
‘Che’ spurs debate, Del Toro walkout — UPDATED: — A controversial new biopic about Cuban revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara is awakening old passions and provoking vigorous defenses and denunciations of the iconic revolutionary and - in the case of an interview with The Washington Times - a dramatic walkout.
The Huffington Post:
Bailout Recipients Hosted Call To Defeat Key Labor Bill — Three days after receiving $25 billion in federal bailout funds, Bank of America Corp. hosted a conference call with conservative activists and business officials to organize opposition to the U.S. labor community's top legislative priority.
Rod Blagojevich / The Huffington Post:
OBAMA AL-ARABIYA INTERVIEW: FULL TEXT — Here is the full text of President Obama's interview with Al-Arabiya Arab TV Network: — INTERVIEW OF THE PRESIDENT BY HISHAM MELHEM, AL ARABIYA — Map Room — Q Mr. President, thank you for this opportunity, we really appreciate it.
Discussion:
Think Progress, Weekly Standard, Marc Lynch, Associated Press, New York Times, Macsmind, The Daily Dish, Balloon Juice, JustOneMinute, Commentary, Liberty Street, D-Day, Gotomario.com, The Opinionator, theheretik.us, The Campaign Spot, Crooks and Liars, progressiverealist.org … and Guardian
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Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:
Kristol Severs Ties With the N.Y. Times — Bill Kristol and the New York Times parted company yesterday, one year after he began writing a weekly opinion column that became a high-profile target for his detractors on the left. — But the conservative commentator, who edits the Weekly Standard …
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Jonathan Stray:
Social Network of US Counterinsurgency Policy Authors — Who is writing the major policies of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and what is the Obama administration likely to do? There have been many analyses and news reports of individual policies and events, but it's hard to wade …
Jake Tapper / ABCNEWS:
High-Flying Citigroup Grounds Plans for $50M Jet — Obama Aide Called Citigroup to Complain About Jet — The high-flying execs at Citigroup caved under pressure from President Obama and decided today to abandon plans for a luxurious new $50 million corporate jet from France.
Discussion:
Associated Press, Spot-On, The Moderate Voice, The Politico, Political Punch and Think Progress
David Lightman / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Congressional Budget Office compares downturn to Great Depression — The nation's current recession is likely to be the longest since World War II, and by some measures could be the worst since the Great Depression, a new Congressional Budget Office forecast said Tuesday.
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
STATING THE OBVIOUS — I hear a lot of talk about whether Obama's governing approach can be ‘bipartisan’ if a good number of Republicans don't vote for his Stimulus Bill. But that dubious point seems to be obscuring a more obvious and telling reality: the Republican leadership in both houses …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice
Pamela Hess / Associated Press:
US official: Intelligence director resigns — WASHINGTON (AP) — National Intelligence Director Michael McConnell resigned his post effective Tuesday. — Spokesman Ross Feinstein said Lt. Gen. Ronald L. Burgess, Jr. is temporarily serving as acting national intelligence director.
Domenico Montanaro / MSNBC:
INSIDE OBAMA'S MEETING WITH HOUSE GOP — From NBC's Mike Viqueira — This is a sort of a live blog from a member and aide inside the room with President Obama, via e-mail: — Obama speaking now.... Talking about how bad the economy is and that it is deteriorating rapidly
Discussion:
USA Today
Associated Press:
Swedish city cancels Holocaust event — A northern Swedish city has decided to cancel a planned Holocaust Memorial Day torchlight procession due to the recent IDF offensive in Gaza, it was reported Tuesday. — The official reason given for the decision, made by the municipal board …
Jessica Holzer / Wall Street Journal:
House Panel Approves Mortgage Measure — WASHINGTON — A measure to allow judges to reduce the principal amounts of mortgages for troubled borrowers in bankruptcy cleared a key hurdle Tuesday when it was approved by a U.S. House panel. — The legislation, which is progressing quickly in Congress …
Sue Pleming / Reuters:
Clinton says world “exhaling” with Obama at top — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton suggested on Tuesday the world was breathing a sigh of relief that President Barack Obama had replaced George W. Bush and was working to fix the damage he had caused.
Washington Whispers:
Tales From The Inside: What Obama Told Republicans — President Barack Obama went to Capitol Hill today to push Republicans to back his $825 billion stimulus plan. While they probably won't, he won points for reaching out to the minority, making good on campaign promises.
Discussion:
Top of the Ticket
Capital Commerce:
10 Reasons to Whack Obama's Stimulus Plan — Some people are going to oppose President Obama's ginormous stimulus package just because they're on a different political team. But when you look at the economic evidence, it sure seems like an economic recovery package that's heavy …
Halimah Abdullah / Bluegrass Politics:
Bunning takes aim at McConnell — U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., lashed out at the Bluegrass State's senior senator, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, in a teleconference with reporters Tuesday morning. — Bunning expressed frustration that McConnell hasn't publicly backed …
Randyj / TIME.com:
CELEBRITY — A GOP source to TIME's Jay Newton-Small: Nearly as many House Republicans sought to get their photos taken with Obama as questioned him about the stimulus during their meeting.
Discussion:
Marc Ambinder
Elana Schor / TPMDC:
Specter: Psych! I'll Back Holder — It may be time to coin the phrase “pulling a Specter,” because Sen. Arlen Specter (PA), the senior Republican on the Judiciary Committee, just did it again. After making a huge fuss questioning the independence of Eric Holder, Specter just caved …