Top Items:
Edward M. Liddy / Washington Post:
Repairing AIG and Repaying the Public — The government rescue of American International Group (AIG) and other financial firms has produced a palpable wave of anger on the part of Americans and a rising public demand for accountability from corporate and government leaders.
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Ian Swanson / The Hill:
AIG staff: We deserve this money — AIG's new management team last year proposed that its employees give up their “retention” bonuses, or at least reduce them. The response from the 370 or so employees set to rake in $450 million in bonuses through 2010? — Take a hike.
Maureen Dowd / New York Times:
No Boiled Carrots — Barack Obama even needs a teleprompter to get mad. — On St. Patrick's Day, the president spoke a bit of Gaelic, dyed the White House fountains green and talked about his distant relatives in the tiny Irish town of Moneygall, aptly named since money and gall are the two topics now consuming him.
Matt Lira / Office of the Republican Whip:
House Democrats Vote to Let AIG Keep Bonuses — Moments ago on the House floor, Democrats did something truly remarkable - they voted to let AIG executives keep their taxpayer-financed bonuses. As you know, this week, $165 million was awarded to 73 AIG employees primarily …
Discussion:
RedState
New York Times:
A.I.G. Chief Expected to Offer Bonus Compromise — Edward M. Liddy, the embattled chief of American International Group, is expected to ask employees who received lucrative bonuses to give half the money back. — According to a person briefed on Mr. Liddy's plans, the A.I.G. chief …
Jonathan Karl / ABCNEWS:
Will Obama, McCain, Dodd Return Contributions From AIG Employees? — AIG Gave More Than $630,000 During the 2008 Political Cycle — AIG employees kept doling out donations to politicians, including presidential candidate Barack Obama, after getting bailed out with federal funds last year …
Julie Hirschfeld Davis / Associated Press:
Washington knew AIG was preparing to pay bonuses
Washington knew AIG was preparing to pay bonuses
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Huffington Post, QandO, The Huffington Post, CNN, The Smirking Chimp, Associated Press, Power Line and DISSENTING JUSTICE
David Espo / Associated Press:
Analysis: White House, Dems backpedaling on AIG — Analysis: AIG bonuses have Democrats reeling, unable to blame Bush; Republicans go on offense — WASHINGTON (AP) — For the first time since last fall's election, Democrats and the Obama administration are backpedaling furiously …
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Newt Gingrich / Human Events:
BREAKING: Gingrich Calls on Obama to End Bailouts
BREAKING: Gingrich Calls on Obama to End Bailouts
Discussion:
Think Progress
Harold Meyerson / Washington Post:
The Nationalization Option — You might think that having anted …
The Nationalization Option — You might think that having anted …
Discussion:
Open Left
Wall Street Journal:
Financial Journalists Fail Upward — “Listen, you knew what the banks were doing and yet were touting it for months and months,” said “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart to CNBC superstar Jim Cramer in their much-discussed confrontation last week. “The entire network was, and so now to pretend …
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Andy Katz / ESPN:
Presidential pick 'em at the White House — ESPN.com takes an exclusive look at President Obama's bracket — WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Barack Obama has studied Lincoln and FDR to help guide him through the early stages of his presidency. — But he is very much a modern man …
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Rob Gillies / Associated Press:
Bush says it's ‘essential’ to help Obama — CALGARY, Alberta - Former President George W. Bush, making his first public speech since leaving office in January, says he wants Barack Obama to succeed and that it's “essential” to support the new leader. — Bush declined to critique …
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Adam Levine / CNN:
Pentagon to phase out unpopular ‘stop-loss’ program — WASHINGTON (CNN) — The military will phase out its “stop loss” program, the contentious practice of holding troops beyond the end of their enlistments, for all but extraordinary situations, Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced Wednesday.
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Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
In Bid To Grab Control Of Story, Obama Takes Responsibility For AIG Mess — This morning I noted that Rahm Emanuel had sounded a bit of a false note, saying that Obama viewed the AIG mess as a “big distraction” from his efforts to fix the financial system overall. — Maybe not so much.
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Noemie Emery / www.dcexaminer.com:
Palinphobes and the audacity of type — Now that the Obama presidency is nearing the 60-day mark, it's time to thank those fastidious scribes on the left and the right who worked so hard to warn us against Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, and the dire things that would surely occur if she ever got close to executive power.
Pete Winn / CNSNews:
Army Investigating How and Why Troops Were Sent Into Alabama Town After Murder Spree — (CNSNews.com) - The U.S. Army has launched an inquiry into how and why active duty troops from Fort Rucker, Ala., came to be placed on the streets of Samson, Ala., during last week's murder spree in that tiny South Alabama community.
Matt Corley / Think Progress:
The Husband Of Fox News' Greta Van Susteren Is A ‘Protector Of The Palin Brand’ — During the presidential campaign, Fox News's Greta Van Susteren had perhaps the best access to Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin of any journalist. In September, she hosted a one-hour “documentary” …
Tom Gross Mideast Media Analysis:
Exclusive: This is CNN (& BBC-UNRWA connection revealed) — * CNN Jerusalem producer's shocking public outburst against Israel (see video below) — * Revealed: UNRWA spokesman who lied about Israel's shelling of a school previously worked at the BBC with Jeremy Bowen
Ben Katcher / The Washington Note:
Guest Post by Lawrence Wilkerson: Some Truths About Guantanamo Bay — Lawrence B. Wilkerson was chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell and is chairman of the New America Foundation/U.S.-Cuba 21st Century Policy Initiative. — There are several dimensions to the debate …
Jonathan Cohn / The New Republic:
Stayin' Alive — The inside story of health care reform's near-death experience. — In early January, most of Barack Obama's senior staff assembled with the president-elect for a meeting inside a windowless, eighth-floor office at the transition headquarters in Washington.
Tim / Sky News:
The Obama 100 — Earlier in the day, the president claimed an Irish ancestry, saying his mother's family could be traced back to Ireland. — He joked to Cowen: “We may be cousins. We haven't sorted that through yet.” — Speaking in the Oval Office, he told the Irish premier …
Lori Montgomery / Washington Post:
President's Budget Strategy Under Fire — Tactic May Break Obama's Bipartisan Pledge, GOP Says — Senior members of the Obama administration are pressing lawmakers to use a shortcut to drive the president's signature initiatives on health care and energy through Congress without Republican votes …