Top Items:
David M. Herszenhorn / New York Times:
Stimulus Plan Receives Final Approval in Congress — WASHINGTON — Congress on Friday approved a $787 billion economic stimulus measure, meeting the crushing mid-February deadline that Democrats had set for adopting the centerpiece of President Obama's early agenda but without quelling partisan divisions in Washington.
Discussion:
TalkLeft, Associated Press, CNN, DownWithTyranny!, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The Moderate Voice, American Power, No More Mister Nice Blog, Macsmind, The Politico, The Swamp, Democracy in America, The Democratic Daily, New Orleans Times-Picayune, Towleroad, The Hill, Drudge Report and Hot Air
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Jules Crittenden:
Friday The 13th — AP: “Major victory ... muscled to the brink of final passage.” Sure. He let his own party's Congress go wild with its own bill, and lost virtually every Republican by insulting them when he wasn't ignoring them. I guess that's a big victory if they say it is …
The Politico:
Hardened Obama plans new fights — Emboldened by his victory on the stimulus package — but chastened by the pothole-pocked road that got him there —President Barack Obama and his aides are plunging ahead on a large and expensive agenda that virtually assures 2009 will be marked …
MSNBC:
Congress OKs $787 billion stimulus bill — Passage of $787 billion legislation hands Obama a critical political victory — GOP Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania talks to journalists outside the Senate Chamber before voting for the $787 billion economic stimulus bill on Friday.
Mary Katharine Ham / Weekly Standard:
Caterpillar Workers Oppose Stimulus, Despite Obama's Visit, Implausible Promises
Caterpillar Workers Oppose Stimulus, Despite Obama's Visit, Implausible Promises
Jane Hamsher / Firedoglake:
House Passes Stimulus Package-and Oh, By the Way, Bipartisanship is Dead
House Passes Stimulus Package-and Oh, By the Way, Bipartisanship is Dead
Gene Warner / Buffalo News:
Prominent Orchard Park man charged with beheading his wife — Orchard Park police are investigating a particularly gruesome killing, the beheading of a woman, after her husband — an influential member of the local Muslim community — reported her death to police Thursday.
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Greg Mitchell / Editor and Publisher:
Buffalo Man Who Launched TV Network to Show Muslims in Positive …
Buffalo Man Who Launched TV Network to Show Muslims in Positive …
Discussion:
NewsBusters.org
Robert / Jihad Watch:
New York: Founder and CEO of Muslim TV channel beheads wife
New York: Founder and CEO of Muslim TV channel beheads wife
Discussion:
Ace of Spades HQ
The Huffington Post:
Specter: Republicans Support Stimulus, Don't Want ‘Fingerprints’ On It — Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), who broke with his party to support President Obama's stimulus package last week, said before the final vote Friday that more of his colleagues would have joined were they not afraid of the political consequences.
Brad Friedman / The BRAD BLOG:
BREAKING: Court Excludes ‘Huge Number’ of Ballots in MN's U.S. Senate Election Contest — [Updated several times at bottom of article.] — A late Friday finding from the 3-judge panel presiding over the Coleman/Franken U.S. Senate election contest in Minnesota, has limited the number …
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Eric Kleefeld / TPMDC:
In New Opinion, Minnesota Election Court Seriously Damages Coleman's Chances — The Minnesota election court has just handed down a very important ruling that will determine the entire course of the rest of this trial — and it's very bad news for Norm Coleman, cutting off multiple avenues …
Peter Baker / New York Times:
Bipartisanship Isn't So Easy, Obama Discovers — WASHINGTON — On the day before the big vote, President Obama took a freshman Republican member of Congress aboard Air Force One to visit Illinois. Before an audience in Representative Aaron Schock's district, Mr. Obama praised him as …
Discussion:
Think Progress
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Chuck Todd / MSNBC:
THE WHITE HOUSE BUBBLE — From NBC's Chuck Todd — Obviously, I'm one of the newbies here in the White House press corps, so maybe I'm unfamiliar with the ways of how this place works. I have to say, nothing is more frustrating than covering an actual event here at the White House …
San Francisco Chronicle:
Addicted to fake outrage — I'm not sure if it's because we're strung out on “Lost” episodes, or if it's because we're still suffering from a post-9/11 stress disorder that makes us crave “breaking news” alerts, or if it's because the economy has turned us into distraction junkies.
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Texas Rainmaker:
Borders Bookstore in Dallas Praises Saint Obama — A reader sent me this picture taken at a Borders Bookstore in Dallas. He says the picture was taken in the Kids section. I guess Borders understands that it's never too early to indoctrinate the younguns. — Welcome to the Obamanation.
Andrew Malcolm / Top of the Ticket:
Afghan President Karzai hopes Obama will “settle down,” show “better judgment” — President Barack Obama is moving up in the world in terms of picking fights. Or walking into them. — First came a disagreement over the impact of the administration's economic stimulus package in East Peoria …
Josh / Right Wing Watch:
Virginia GOP Chair goes all Cro-Magnon on Darwin, on his birthday — Yesterday was the birthday of Lincoln and Darwin, and Virginia GOP chairman Jeff Frederick couldn't pass up the opportunity to go all Cro-Magnon on the father of modern biology. — Frederick obviously put a lot of thought …
Ross Douthat:
Authoritarianism Just Around the Corner — It's possible you've also already been following the debate prompted by Damon Linker's attack on Andrew Bacevich's vision of conservatism; if not, go here and here and here; here for Linker's response to his critics; and here and here for more.
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Damon Linker / The New Republic:
Lessons in Blogging — I avoided blogging for a long time.
Lessons in Blogging — I avoided blogging for a long time.
Discussion:
Upturned Earth
Glenn Thrush / Glenn Thrush's Blogs:
White House books Brown's flight to D.C. — Sarah Abruzzese reports: — A government plane will ferry Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) back to Washington from his mother's wake in Ohio in time to vote tonight, courtesy of the White House. — Brown won't even be leaving until viewing hours end …
Washington Post:
‘My Mistake’ — Commerce secretary? Never mind. — ON A DAY when President Obama hoped to bask in the glow of an agreement in Congress on the massive economic stimulus bill, he had to contend with yet another high-profile withdrawal from his Cabinet. Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) …
Discussion:
Commentary, Lynn Sweet, Hot Air, Federal Eye, MSNBC, Pajamas Media, Fausta's Blog, Balloon Juice and Ben Smith's Blogs
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CNN:
Dems target right-wing talk radio — WASHINGTON (CNN) — More and More Democrats in Congress are calling for action that Republicans warn could muzzle right-wing talk radio. — Representative Maurice Hinchey, a Democrat from New York is the latest to say he wants to bring back the …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, TigerHawk, Shakesville, QandO, American Power, Michelle Malkin, NewsBusters.org, Sister Toldjah and The Impolitic
Eric Lipton / New York Times:
Failed Banks Pose a Big Test for Regulators — WASHINGTON — When regulators took over the First National Bank of Nevada last year, they faced a showdown with the Terrible Herbst, the mustachioed cowboy who boasts of being the “best bad man in the West.” — This was no real gunslinger …
Dengre / Daily Kos:
Judd Gregg & his Abramoff Problem — We were lucky. — A few weeks ago on a Friday, Todd Boulanger pleaded guilty for his role in the ongoing Abramoff corruption scandal. He was a key member of Team Abramoff and before that he worked for former NH Senator Bob Smith (one of Jack's go-to Senators).
Nick Spinetto / Local & Florida:
Henrietta Hughes says she's not milking the system — SOUTHWEST FLORIDA - A woman making national headlines after a tearful moment with President Obama has a new home. — Thursday morning, Chene Thompson handed Henrietta Hughes the keys to her home in Hendry County.