memeorandum: Gates Blindsided by Rahm (William Kristol/Weekly Standard)

8:35 PM ET, October 19, 2009

Top Items:

DeMint watches out for all of us — Recently your newspaper published a letter from state Rep. Bakari Sellers attacking U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint and his opposition to congressional earmarks. — There is a saying that the Jews who are wealthy got that way not by watching dollars …

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, Raw Story, Salon, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Pharyngula, TPM LiveWire and Newsweek Blogs

Rachel Weiner / The Huffington Post:

GOPers: DeMint Like A Jew “Watching Our Nation's Pennies” — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — Two South Carolina County Republican Party chairmen stepped up to rebut criticism of Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) in a newspaper editorial Sunday. But their defense of the senator might be overshadowed …

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The Moderate Voice, Matthew Yglesias, Liberal Values, MyDD and Wonkette

Adam Fogle / The Palmetto Scoop:
Jews, Gentiles and Jim DeMint

Discussion: Think Progress and Real Clear Politics

The Politico:

CNBC, Reuters fall for climate hoax — In a dramatic shift, the Chamber of Commerce announced Monday that it is throwing its support behind climate change legislation making its way through the U.S. Senate. — Only it didn't. — An e-mail press release announcing the change is a hoax, say Chamber officials.

Discussion: San Francisco Chronicle, Left Coast Rebel, JammieWearingFool, Politics Daily, Democracy in America, Money & Politics, Wall Street Journal, Hot Air, The Jawa Report, The Atlantic Politics Channel and Riehl World View

chamber-of-commerce.us:

A Survival Strategy for Free Enterprise Over the Long Term — Address by Thomas J. Donohue — President and CEO, U.S. Chamber of Commerce — U.S. Chamber of Commerce — Washington, D.C. — As Prepared for Delivery — Thank you very much, Sheila, and good day to everyone.

Discussion: Get Energy Smart!, The Atlantic Politics Channel, Guardian, Wonk Room, The Corner on National …, TPMMuckraker and MoJo Blog Posts

Lisa Lerer / The Politico:
White House plan: Neuter the Chamber

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Politics Daily, The Note, AmSpecBlog, Raw Story, Get Energy Smart!, Washington Monthly and Think Progress

Kate Sheppard / MoJo Blog Posts:
The Yes Men Punk the Chamber

Discussion: Ezra Klein, Think Progress, TPMMuckraker, Raw Story, Gawker, EnviroKnow, Talking Points Memo and The Washington Independent

Zachary Roth / TPMMuckraker:
Yes Men, Activist Group, Teamed Up On Chamber Hoax

Discussion: Washington Post, The Huffington Post, The Hill, MoJo Blog Posts, The Plum Line and Boing Boing

David M. Drucker / Roll Call:

GOP Launches Strategy to Trip Up Health Bill — Senate Republicans, acknowledging they lack the votes to block a health care reform bill outright, have implemented a comprehensive political strategy to delay, define and derail. — With Democratic leaders and White House officials holed …

Discussion: Washington Post, New York Times, The Moderate Voice, Washington Monthly, Bloomberg, WhiteHouse.gov Blog, The Politico, Power Line, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Impolitic, AMERICAblog News and Taylor Marsh

Brian Beutler / TPMDC:

Pelosi Aims to Squeeze Skeptics on Public Option With Cheaper Bill Than Senate — The House health care bill is getting cheaper, but Democrats aren't boasting just yet. Because when they ultimately break silence the hope is to present conservative Democrats in both chambers with a bill …

Discussion: Ezra Klein and The Moderate Voice

Washington Post:
Doctor pay, and its cost, are part of health reform

Discussion: CNN, National Review, The New Republic, Liberal Values, Open Congress, Politics Daily, RedState, The Glittering Eye, The Washington Independent, The Hill and AmSpecBlog

The Note:
Finance Bill's Final Language: 1,502 Pages

Discussion: Townhall.com and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Manu Raju / The Politico: Lobbyists' $100K haul for Reid

Emily Cadei / Eye on 2010:
Ensign's Parents Among Reid's Campaign Donors

Discussion: The Hill

Devlin Barrett / Associated Press:

AP Newsbreak: New medical marijuana policy issued — AP Newsbreak: New medical marijuana policy issued by Obama administration — WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration will not seek to arrest medical marijuana users and suppliers as long as they conform to state laws …

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, The Daily Dish, TalkLeft, About.com US Liberal Politics, New York Times, Hit & Run, Left Coast Rebel, Michelle Malkin, The Impolitic, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, HotAirPundit, Donklephant, New York Magazine and Liberal Values

Lydia Saad / Gallup:

U.S. Support for Legalizing Marijuana Reaches New High — Majority in the West favors taxing marijuana sales to boost state revenues — PRINCETON, NJ — Gallup's October Crime poll finds 44% of Americans in favor of making marijuana legal and 54% opposed.

Discussion: Real Clear Politics, The Daily Dish and Politics Daily

Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
Obama's commendable change in federal drug enforcement policy

Discussion: Hit & Run, Washington Monthly, AmSpecBlog, American Prospect, The Corner on National …, Political Byline, Hot Air, The TrogloPundit, The Atlantic Politics Channel, GayPatriot and Cato @ Liberty

David Stout / New York Times:
Justice to Stop Pursuit of Medical Marijuana Use

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Room for Debate, Gawker, Christian Science Monitor, The Greenroom, The Caucus and Above the Law

Nia-Malika Henderson / The Politico:
DOJ shifts medical marijuana strategy

Discussion: Winds of Change.NET

Washington Post:

Poll: majority now supports public health insurance option — As Democratic congressional leaders and White House officials work to shape health care bills that will go to the House and Senate floors, a new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows that support for a government-run health plan …

Discussion: Politics Daily, Firedoglake, The Plum Line, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, AMERICAblog News, Salon, Taegan Goddard's …, Behind the Numbers and Left in the West

Jon Cohen / Behind the Numbers:
Post-ABC poll: few partisan fissures on Iran nukes

Discussion: New York Times, Salon, The Daily Dish, Hot Air and Democratic Strategist

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:
Romney on Iran: “Unalloyed Evil”

Discussion: ABCNEWS and The Atlantic Politics Channel

Tony Romm / The Hill:

Thomas to White House: Stay out of Fox News fight — Veteran White House reporter Helen Thomas on Monday advised the Obama administration to stand down and avoid further fighting with Fox News and its correspondents. — In an interview with MSNBC, the columnist — who is promoting …

Discussion: The Opinionator, Commentary, The New Republic and Hot Air

Mary Katharine Ham / Weekly Standard:

Losing: Helen Thomas, NYT, and The Nation Object to White House Fight With Fox News — Well, it's not the first time the Grande Liberal Dame of the press corps has had words for the Obama White House, but today Helen Thomas is voicing more unlikely sentiments by telling the White House attack dogs to heel in the Fox News fight.

Discussion: Commentary, Fox News and No More Mister Nice Blog

Richard Perez-Pena / Media Decoder:

Times Says It Will Cut 100 Newsroom Jobs — The New York Times plans to eliminate 100 newsroom jobs - about 8 percent of the total - by year's end, offering buyouts to union and non-union employees, and resorting to layoffs if it cannot get enough people to leave voluntarily, the paper announced on Monday.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Silicon Alley Insider, TechCrunch, Gothamist, News Desk and The TrogloPundit

John Koblin / New York Observer:
New York Times Cutting 100 Newsroom Jobs

Discussion: New York Magazine, Michael Calderone's Blog, Silicon Alley Insider, Mediaite and DailyFinance

Rasmussen Reports:

Election 2010: Illinois Senate Election — Illinois 2010 Senate Race Still Neck-and-Neck — The 2010 U.S. Senate race in Illinois is now a dead heat between the top Democratic and Republican contenders. — The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the state finds Republican hopeful Mark Kirk tied …

Discussion: Swing State Project, Real Clear Politics, Taegan Goddard's … and Politics Daily

Rasmussen Reports:
Palin Is Distant Second in GOP Match-Ups with Huckabee, Romney

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Hot Air, Newsweek Blogs, Politics Daily, The Hill and TPMDC

Club for Growth:

New TV Ad in NY-23 — Club and Club PAC Launch TV Ad in NY-23 — Washington - Club for Growth and Club for Growth PAC will launch a $300,000 television ad campaign tomorrow in the special election for New York's 23rd Congressional District. The campaign follows the Club …

Discussion: The Hill, The Other McCain, AmSpecBlog and TPMDC

Erick Erickson / Erick's blog:
Dick Armey Heads to NY-23 for Hoffman

Discussion: The Hill, The Other McCain, Hot Air, Big Government and TPMDC

Marisa Treviño / Latina Lista:

Special Sunday Post: RNC Chairman Michael Steele's bizarre interview with Univision's Jorge Ramos — For months now, I've resisted trying to equate Michael Steele with Sarah Palin — a Republican Party choice (a.k.a. token) to appease a certain demographic. Palin was to appeal to women voters.

Discussion: Think Progress, TPM LiveWire, The Washington Independent, Washington Monthly, Wonkette and Political Byline

CNN:

CNN Poll: Will Afghanistan turn into another Vietnam? — WASHINGTON (CNN) - A slight majority of Americans think that the war in Afghanistan is turning into another Vietnam, according to a new national poll which also indicates that nearly six in 10 oppose sending more U.S. troops to the conflict.

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, The Fix, The Plum Line, Politics Daily, The Atlantic Politics Channel, The Swamp, ATTACKERMAN and NY Daily News

Jamie Fly / Weekly Standard:

Sen. Kerry's Colossal Error of Judgment — Over the weekend, Sen. John Kerry provided some covering fire for President Obama's dithering about his strategy for Afghanistan, telling CBS News that: — “I don't see how President Obama can make a decision about the committing of our additional forces …

Discussion: New York Times and The Moderate Voice

William Kristol / Weekly Standard:

Gates Blindsided by Rahm — Yesterday, in light of Rahm Emanuel's comments on delaying the decision on troops for Afghanistan, I asked: “Are Sunday talk show declarations by Emanuel and political advisor David Axelrod an appropriate way to announce the considered judgment of the president …

US Department of Justice:

Maryland Scientist Charged with Attempted Espionage — A Maryland scientist who once worked in varying capacities for the Department of Energy, the Department of Defense and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration has been arrested for attempted espionage, David Kris …

Discussion: Laura Rozen's Blog, On Deadline and Israel Matzav