Top Items:
Camille Paglia / Salon:
Heads should roll — President Obama's clumsy, smirky staff is sinking him — and resurrecting a deflated GOP! Plus: Lay off Rush! And a Brazilian diva, up close and electric — View a slide show of Daniela Mercury at the 2009 carnival in Salvador da Bahia, Brazil. — Free Barack!
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Salon:
Heads should roll — Oh, the incestuous mediocrity of American politics and media — compared to the splendors of Brazil! As a direct result of the two articles I wrote about superstar singer Daniela Mercury in Salon in June and August of last year, I was invited by the publisher Editora Abril …
Laura Rozen / The Cable:
Freeman speaks out on his exit — Retired Amb. Chas Freeman, who said today that he no longer accepts an offer to chair the National Intelligence Council, has just sent this message: … More to come.
Discussion:
JTA, Democracy in America, Hot Air, The American Scene, Commentary, CANNONFIRE, James Fallows, Media Blog, The Reaction, Real Clear Politics, Israel Matzav, Fox News, MyDD, The Corner, Salon, Macsmind, Power Line, Swampland, Capital J | JTA, Eunomia, Political Punch, The Daily Dish, The Volokh Conspiracy, Consortiumnews.com, Sandbox, The Peking Duck, The New Republic, Ben Smith's Blogs, Needlenose and Winds of Change.NET
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Mark Mazzetti / New York Times:
Nominee Ends Bid for Key Job in Intelligence
Nominee Ends Bid for Key Job in Intelligence
Discussion:
Consortiumnews.com, Mondoweiss, The Plum Line, Commentary, Capital J | JTA, The New Republic and Power Line
Mike Allen / The Politico:
No quit: the campaign to boost Bush — The defense never rests. When President Barack Obama released his own policy this week on former President George W. Bush's practice of attaching controversial signing statements to legislation, a reporter quickly got a tip from a Bush loyalist …
Alan Greenspan / Wall Street Journal:
The Fed Didn't Cause the Housing Bubble — Any new regulations should help direct savings toward productive investments. — We are in the midst of a global crisis that will unquestionably rank as the most virulent since the 1930s. It will eventually subside and pass into history.
Shailagh Murray / Washington Post:
Senate Approves $410 Billion Bill to Fund Federal Government — The Senate gave final approval last night to a $410 billion spending bill to fund most of the federal government for the remainder of the year after overcoming a resilient Republican opposition and several Democratic defections.
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Howard Fineman / Newsweek:
A Turning Tide? — Obama still has the approval of the people, but the establishment is beginning to mumble that the president may not have what it takes. — Surfer that he is, President Obama should know a riptide when he's in one. The center usually is the safest, most productive place in politics …
Discussion:
Open Left, Hot Air, Buck Naked Politics, Macsmind, NewsBusters.org, Babalú Blog, Whiskey Fire, Firedoglake and Jules Crittenden
Ezra Klein / American Prospect:
ZOMBIE LIES THAT WILL NOT DIE. — We're not even going to talk about the tendentious Matrix analogy laced into this column Amity Shlaes wrote for Bloomberg. Not. Even. Going. To. Talk. About. It. I already read the thing for you. I refuse to relive it.
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Roll Call:
Heard on the Hill: Vitter Goes From Hookergate to Gate-Crashing — Among Members of Congress, there's a long-standing, proud tradition of the Airport Freakout. Add to the list of those who've indulged in meltdowns and temper tantrums while traveling one Sen. David Vitter …
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Stephen Labaton / New York Times:
Some Banks, Citing Strings, Want to Return Aid — WASHINGTON — The list of demands keeps getting longer. — Financial institutions that are getting government bailout funds have been told to put off evictions and modify mortgages for distressed homeowners. They must let shareholders vote on executive pay packages.
Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:
Approval of Congress Hits Four-Year High, Fueled by Dems — PRINCETON, NJ — Americans' job approval rating of Congress is up an additional 8 points this month, after a 12-point increase last month, and now stands at 39% — the most positive assessment of Congress since February 2005.
Martina Stewart / CNN:
S.C. gov wants to use some stimulus funds to pay down debt — (CNN) - South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford plans to ask President Obama for permission to use part of his state's stimulus money to pay down its debt, not on new spending, according to a letter he sent state legislators Tuesday.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly
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Barbara Barrett / Raleigh News & Observer:
Edwards talks about poverty, stays silent on paternity — PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Former U.S. Sen. John Edwards took another tentative step into the public spotlight tonight, speaking at Brown University about extreme poverty around the world and urging Americans to get involved in what he called a “fundamental moral issue.”
Discussion:
MSNBC
Bruce Kesler / Maggie's Farm:
Top Ten Reasons For ObamaCare Are Based On False Information — George Bernard Shaw warned “Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.” The major overhaul of American health care pursued by President Obama and his supporters is based on many false premises and is excessive and likely to do more harm than good.
John Bresnahan / The Politico:
Inside Murtha's ‘earmark factory’ — Over the course of the past decade, Rep. John P. Murtha has earmarked millions of dollars for the Electro-Optics Center at Penn State University — money that has, in turn, gone to clients of the PMA Group, the Murtha-linked lobbying shop that was raided …
Capital Commerce:
Putting Obama on the Couch — “So, like, do you think Obama is just mean or something?” That is how a twentysomething television booker recently responded to my critique to her of the president's stimulus package and banking bailout plans. Actually, I think Team Obama is filled with dedicated …
José M. Guardia / Barcepundit:
IN MEMORIAM, 5 YEARS AFTER — Eva Belén Abad Quijada, Spain, 30 years old — Óscar Abril Alegre, Spain, 19 years old — Liliana Guillermina Acero Ushiña, Ecuador, 26 years old — Florencio Aguado Rojano, Spain, 60 years old — Juan Alberto Alonso Rodríguez, Spain, 38 years old
Seeking Alpha:
Warren Buffett Calls on President, Lead Democrats to Focus on Economy — Warren Buffett joined another investment guru, Mort Zuckerman, and many economists in calling on President Obama and Congress to focus on fixing the economy. Zuckerman is a real estate guru and publisher of U.S. News & World Report and the New York Daily news.
Discussion:
Townhall.com
Telegraph:
Muslim extremists shout abuse at British soldiers during homecoming march — Muslim extremists shouted abuse at British soldiers during a home-coming march by the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Anglian Regiment. — A group of around 20 men in traditional Islamic dress held up banners and placards that read …
Greg B. Smith / NY Daily News:
Conflict-of-interest issues grow for Carrion — President Obama's new urban czar, Adolfo Carrión, admitted Tuesday he has not paid an architect who designed a renovation of his Bronx home two years ago. — That presents conflict-of-interest issues because at the time the architect …
David Leonhardt / New York Times:
Banks Counted on Looting America's Coffers — Sixteen years ago, two economists published a research paper with a delightfully simple title: “Looting.” — The economists were George Akerlof, who would later win a Nobel Prize, and Paul Romer, the renowned expert on economic growth.
Binyamin Appelbaum / Washington Post:
Citi's Long History of Overreach, Then Rescue — When Citicorp and Travelers Group agreed on a historic merger in 1998, the heads of the two companies placed a courtesy call to inform the Treasury Department. Then they held a news conference to suggest that Congress change the law to allow their union.
Discussion:
The Hill's Blog Briefing Room