Top Items:
Ben Smith / The Politico:
2 arrests in Obama appointee's office — Federal agents this morning are searching the office Washington, D.C.'s Chief Technology Officer. — The search of the office at 1 Judiciary Square is part of “an ongoing investigation,” said a spokeswoman for the FBI's D.C. Field Office, Lindsay Gotwin, said.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Commentary, Hot Air, Little Green Footballs, TPMMuckraker, RedState, Alarming News and JammieWearingFool
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WTOP.com:
2 arrested in FBI raid at Obama appointee's office — WASHINGTON - Two officials in the D.C.'s Office of the Chief Technology Officer have been arrested in a federal bribery sting, sources tell WTOP. — D.C. Office of the Chief Technology Officer employees Sushil Bansal and 40-year-old Yusuf Acar …
David A Nakamura / D.C. Wire:
Breaking: D.C. Tech Official Busted in Federal Bribery Sting — [Note: For complete story, go here.] — An official in the D.C. government's office of the chief technology officer has been arrested in a federal bribery sting, according to law enforcement sources.
Ben Smith / The Politico:
Steele backs off abortion remarks — RNC Chairman Michael Steele said today that despite telling an interviewer he supports “individual choice” and state-level decisions on abortion, he in fact opposes abortion and supports a Constitutional ban. — Steele said in a statement through an RNC spokesman:
Discussion:
La Shawn Barber's Corner, Huck PAC, The Moderate Voice, Villainous Company, Right Wing News, Daily Kos, Open Left, Gates of Vienna, The Daily Dish, Ben Smith's Blog, Liberal Values, TPMDC, PoliticalBase.com Blog, Liz Mair, Political Machine, Right Wing Watch, AMERICAblog News, Wonkette, Riehl World View, Salon, Taegan Goddard's … and Shakesville
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Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
TIMEBOMB, POSTDATED THREE WEEKS? — Ever since I read Michael Steele's trainwreck interview with GQ that came out yesterday, I've been wondering, he thought this was a good moment to give a let it all hang out interview? — Remember, this is the one where he appeared to forget in real …
Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:
Steele reverses himself on choice
Steele reverses himself on choice
Discussion:
Washington Wire, JustOneMinute, Weekly Standard, MSNBC, DISSENTING JUSTICE, The Fix, Ta-Nehisi Coates, PBD and Say Anything
Domenico Montanaro / MSNBC:
FIRST THOUGHTS: IS THIS WAR? — From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro
FIRST THOUGHTS: IS THIS WAR? — From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, The Daily Dish, Bloomberg, Washington Post, New York Magazine and CBS News
Alexander Mooney / CNN:
Steele forced to clarify abortion stance
Steele forced to clarify abortion stance
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland
David S. Broder / Washington Post:
The Country's Loss — The Obama administration has just suffered an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the lobbyists the president vowed to keep in their place, and their friends on Capitol Hill. The country has lost an able public servant in an area where President Obama has few personal credentials …
Discussion:
Weekly Standard, The Daily Dish, New York Times, Mideast Peace Pulse, Commentary and Yourish.com
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Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
The distorting effect of anonymity — (updated below - Update II) — In response to the criticisms I wrote last week of the widespread and baseless grants of anonymity by journalists, Julian Sanchez responds that, while he largely agrees with the objections I raise, it is a more complicated problem …
Discussion:
The Daily Dish, The Huffington Post, Ben Smith's Blog, Washington Post, Mondoweiss, NPR, Little Green Footballs, TalkLeft and Brian Beutler
Jimmy Orr / Christian Science Monitor:
New Limbaugh billboard slogan announced - creativity was not considered — E-mail a friend - Print this - Letter to the Editor - Republish - - Get e-mail alerts - RSS — Setting a world record today for beating a dead horse, the Democratic National Committee will announce they've selected …
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John / Power Line:
THE WINNING BILLBOARD IS... We ridiculed here the Democratic …
THE WINNING BILLBOARD IS... We ridiculed here the Democratic …
Discussion:
The Corner
New York Times:
Madoff Is Jailed After Pleading Guilty — Bernard L. Madoff pleaded guilty Thursday to all the charges against him and expressed remorse for a vast Ponzi scheme that bilked investors out of billions of dollars. — Standing before Judge Denny Chin in United States District Court in Manhattan …
Discussion:
The Atlantic Business Channel, Firedoglake, New York Post, DealBook, New York Magazine and Runnin' Scared
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Marc Santora / New York Times:
Iraqi Shoe Thrower Gets Three Years — BAGHDAD — An Iraqi journalist who gained widespread acclaim throughout the Arab world for hurling his shoes at President Bush during a visit here in December was sentenced to three years in jail by a court on Thursday.
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George F. Will / Washington Post:
Paved With Magnificent Intentions — Charles Dickens, who visited in 1842, described Washington as a “city of magnificent intentions” because of the incongruity between the city's grand aspirations and muddy, swampy actuality. Today Washington's discrepancy is not architectural but political.
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Lisa Schiffren / The Corner:
Young Miss Palin — A mere ten weeks or so after the birth of their baby, Bristol Palin and her co-parent, Levi Johnston, have split up. There will be no marriage. According to the AP, and Mr. Johnston, it was a mutual decision. The same article manages to note that Bristol is devastated.
Discussion:
Associated Press
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Maria Recio / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Obama: Troop move to Mexican border under consideration — WASHINGTON — President Obama weighed in Wednesday on the escalating drug war on the U.S.-Mexico border, saying that he was looking at possibly deploying National Guard troops to contain the violence but ruled out any immediate military move.
Discussion:
New York Times, CBS News, The Moderate Voice, PoliPundit.com, Fox News, The Impolitic and QandO
Wall Street Journal:
Obama Makes Use of Signing Statements — WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama signed a $410 billion spending bill Wednesday that includes thousands of pet projects inserted by lawmakers, even as he unveiled new rules to restrict such so-called earmarks. — At the same time …
Discussion:
New York Times, The Opinionator, Flopping Aces, The Next Right, McClatchy Washington Bureau, Chicago Tribune, NO QUARTER, QandO and The Note
The Huffington Post:
Citigroup Enters Union Fray With Anti-EFCA Call — Embattled financial giant Citigroup Inc., which has received at least $50 billion in federal bailout funds, hosted a private conference call on Wednesday to build opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act.
MsJoanne / TheZoo:
How DARE you say 9/11 happened on Bush's watch! — Oh boy...popcorn all around! This from the Bush Legacy Revisionism Tour ™. — Chris Matthews asks Ari Fleischer about how Bush left the economy. Fleischer answers 9/11! 9/11! Then the money shot... Priceless!
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Obama's honeymoon bliss fading — President Obama's honeymoon is beginning to fade. — Members of Congress and old political hands say he needs to show substantial progress reviving the economy soon. — Some Democrats have started to worry that voters don't and won't understand …
Discussion:
Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, WillCollier.com, QandO, Wall Street Journal, pandagon.net, AMERICAblog News and The Reaction
TBogg:
The Galt's of Gullible Gulch — Galt Gulch seemed so much bigger in the book — Threatened by “Obama's Thugs” which slims her pickin's mightily, Dr. Mrs Ole Perfesser assembles a crack panel of quarter millionaires (plus one dollar) who describe how they are going to Go John Galt.