Top Items:
Paul Krugman:
The Rorschach plan (wonkish, or at least hard to read) — An old joke from my younger days: What do you get when you cross a Godfather with a deconstructionist? Someone who makes you an offer you can't understand. — I found myself remembering that joke when trying to make sense of the Geithner financial rescue plan.
RELATED:
Martin Wolf / Financial Times:
Why Obama's new Tarp will fail to rescue the banks — Has Barack Obama's presidency already failed? In normal times, this would be a ludicrous question. But these are not normal times. They are times of great danger. Today, the new US administration can disown responsibility for its inheritance; tomorrow, it will own it.
Deborah Solomon / Wall Street Journal:
Market Pans Bank Rescue Plan
Market Pans Bank Rescue Plan
Discussion:
Megan McArdle, Real Time Economics, Donklephant, Sister Toldjah, TigerHawk and Indecision
The Huffington Post:
Administration Officials Met With Laughter At Bailout Briefing — Administration officials were greeted with sarcasm and laughter Monday night when they briefed lawmakers and congressional staff on Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's new financial-sector bailout project, according to people who were in the room.
Discussion:
The Huffington Post
RELATED:
Haaretz:
Exit polls: Livni's Kadima leads in 2009 elections — Exit polls by Israel's three main television stations on Tuesday night showed Kadima as the leader in the 2009 general elections, with Likud coming a narrow second. — Channel 1, Channel 2 and Channel 10 polling of voters as they left …
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Matthew Yglesias, MyDD, Talking Points Memo, Wonk Room, Israel Matzav, rubber hose, Truthdig, Ben Smith's Blogs and D-Day
RELATED:
Tess Scheflan / Haaretz:
Netanyahu: Right wing, led by Likud, won a clear victory — By Haaretz Service and News Agencies — Likud Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu declared victory in Tuesday's parliamentary election as he addressed supporters in a speech early Wednesday, despite exit polls that predicted …
Jerusalem Post:
Livni may not be able to form gov't due to large right-wing bloc — With voting stations officially closed, exit polls at 10 p.m. suggested that Kadima would win Tuesday's general elections. — However, due to the dramatic rise in support of the Likud and Israel Beiteinu compared …
Discussion:
Power Line, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Townhall.com, Little Green Footballs and Commentary
Media Matters for America:
Fox passes off GOP press release as its own research — typo and all … During the February 10 edition of Fox News' Happening Now, co-host Jon Scott claimed that “the Senate is expected to pass the $838 billion stimulus plan — its version of it, anyway. We thought we'd take a look back at the bill …
Jack Kuenzie / WIS-TV:
Eight arrested in Michael Phelps case — Updated: — COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - New details have emerged about a party where Olympic champion Michael Phelps was spotted. — On Feb. 2, a British tabloid published a picture of the 14-time Olympic gold medalist using a water pipe to smoke marijuana.
ABCNEWS:
Obama: No ‘Easy Out’ for Wall Street — Transcript Excerpts: Terry Moran Interviews President Obama … Watch the exclusive interview tonight on “Nightline” at 11:35 ET. — TERRY MORAN: So, Treasury Secretary Geithner today has laid out the plan for the banks and judging by the reaction in the markets …
RELATED:
Michael Grabell / ProPublica:
The Stimulus Bills: House vs. Senate — If all goes as expected today, the Senate will pass an $838 billion economic stimulus plan that follows a compromise reached over the weekend. But before the package can go to President Obama's desk, the Senate will have to resolve differences with the House and its $819 billion version.
RELATED:
Washington Whispers:
Busy Sarah Palin Backs Out of CPAC; Rush Limbaugh Is Still Speaking — The opening-day headliner for the annual CPAC conservative convention February 26-28, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, has pulled out, citing state business in Juneau. “We're obviously disappointed,” said a CPAC official.
RELATED:
Catherine Philp / Times of London:
Iranian mob attacks moderate ex-president Mohammed Khatami on anniversary — Iran's former president was set upon by an angry stick-wielding mob today amid celebrations of the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution on the streets of Tehran. — The attack on Mohammed Khatami came …
Discussion:
Obsidian Wings
RELATED:
Chris Cillizza / The Fix:
Mr. Franken Comes to Washington — Entertainer Al Franken (D-Minn.) will spend the next two days in Washington readying himself to serve in the Senate, a move that comes even as the contested Minnesota Senate election plods on. — Franken arrives in town tonight and will be here through Thursday …
Discussion:
TIME.com
RELATED:
Kevin Duchschereand Pat Doyle / Minneapolis Star …:
Senate recount trial: Rejected absentee ballots of 23 voters can be counted
Senate recount trial: Rejected absentee ballots of 23 voters can be counted
Discussion:
The Caucus
Tyler Durden / Zero Hedge:
How The World Almost Came To An End At 2PM On September 18 — LiveLeak has caught a scary moment of previously undisclosed insight by Paul Kanjorski where he reveals some facts that have not been captured by the media previously. At 2 minutes and 20 seconds in the video below …
Discussion:
Villainous Company, No More Mister Nice Blog, Portfolio, Boing Boing, Political Machine and Taegan Goddard's …
Paul Krugman:
What happened to Clive Crook? — Clive used to be a reasonable guy; in his mind he probably still is a reasonable guy. But he has misunderstood what it means to be reasonable. He now apparently believes that it means declaring, in all circumstances, that Democrats and Republicans are equally …
RELATED:
Andy Barr / The Politico:
Huckabee: Stimulus is ‘anti-religious’ — Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee warned supporters Tuesday that the $828 billion stimulus package is “anti-religious.” — In an e-mail that was also posted on his blog ahead of the Senate's passage, Huckabee wrote: “The dust is settling …
RELATED:
granma.cu:
Rahm Emanuel — WHAT a strange surname! It appears Spanish, easy to pronounce, but it's not. Never in my life have I heard or read about any student or compatriot with that name, among tens of thousands. — Where does it come from? I wondered. Over and over, the name came to mind …
Domenico Montanaro / MSNBC:
BLAGO, LIBBY PROSECUTOR TO STAY ON — From NBC's Pete Williams — Patrick Fitzgerald, the U.S. attorney in Chicago who brought criminal fraud charges against Rod Blagojevich, will be staying in his job in the Obama administration, even though he was appointed to the position by President George W. Bush.
Kevin Helliker / Wall Street Journal:
You Might as Well Face It: You're Addicted to Success — Forced to take a buyout from the Kansas City Star last summer, Paul Wenske lost his sense of identity. “I'd been an investigative reporter all my life, and then boom,” says Mr. Wenske, an award-winning journalist of 30 years.
Discussion:
Gawker
The Politico:
GOP won't derail Solis on hubby — Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition — Republicans aren't going to derail Labor Secretary-nominee Hilda Solis' nomination over her husband's tax problems, but they still have serious reservations about her ties to labor unions.
Stephen M. Walt:
What do we do if the “two-state” solution collapses? — Lots of smart people have been focusing on the Israeli elections and trying to make sense of their immediate implications for the peace process. I can't improve on the analyses provided by Glenn Greenwald, Yossi Alpher, Bernard Avishai …
PR Newswire:
Public Rejects Obama Stimulus Bill According to New ATI-News/Zogby Poll — 90 Percent of Republicans and 60 Percent of Independents Oppose Obama Economic Recovery Plan — Amidst all the rhetoric surrounding President Barack Obama's first signature piece of legislation, a massive $800 billion economic …
Discussion:
Townhall.com
Quinnipiac University:
Connecticut's Rell Is Queen Of The Hill At Midterm, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Dodd Has Worst Approval Ever — Halfway through her first elected term as Connecticut Governor and one week after a grim budget message, Jodi Rell has a 75 - 19 percent approval rating and tops …
Discussion:
TPMDC, Daily Kos, Swing State Project, Hotline On Call, Scorecard's Blogs, Washington Monthly, The Reaction, MyDD and The Raw Story
Alexia Campbell / Sun-Sentinel:
Bill would drop travel restrictions to Cuba — While most of the nation focused on the stimulus bill winding through Congress, nine representatives introduced a bill calling for an end to the 46-year-old ban on travel to Cuba. — The Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act introduced in the U.S. House …
Discussion:
The Reaction
Zachary Coile / San Francisco Chronicle:
Salazar puts coastal drilling plans on hold — (02-10) 13:30 PST Washington - — President Obama is shelving a plan announced in the final days of the Bush administration to open much of the U.S. coast to oil drilling, including 130 million acres off California's coast from Mendocino to San Diego.
Discussion:
Heritage Foundation, Gateway Pundit, The Foundry, Hot Air and The Washington Independent