Top Items:
Erick Erickson / Erick's blog:
In NY-23, Conservatives Win — The race has now been called for Democrat Bill Owens. — This is a huge win for conservatives. — “Whaaaa. . . ?” you say. — There are two big victories at work in New York's 23rd Congressional District. — First, the GOP now must recognize …
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Watertown Daily Times:
HOFFMAN CLOSING ON OWENS — Democrat ahead of Conservative by 2,512 votes — Democrat Bill Owens is leading in the 23rd Congressional District race. — The Plattsburgh attorney has 50,884 votes compared to Conservative Doug Hoffman, a Lake Placid CPA, with 47,166 votes.
Discussion:
TCOT REPORT 2009©, The Daily Politics, The Other McCain, the albany project, DaTechguy's Blog, Open Left and PoliBlog
Michelle Malkin:
The GOP elite's $1 million object lesson — and the message of NY-23 — Conservatives owe NY-23 candidate Doug Hoffman immeasurable gratitude. He overcame impossible odds (single digits just a month ago) to come within two points of defeating Democrat Bill Owens. Hoffman had zero name recognition.
Glenn Harlan Reynolds / New York Post:
The Obama magic has faded — All politics is local, they say, and Tuesday's off-off-year elections certainly had their local angles. Jon Corzine has been a terrible governor even by the undemanding standards of terribly governed New Jersey. Creigh Deeds, though he looked …
Jeremy W. Peters / New York Times:
Conservative Loses Upstate House Race in Blow to Right — SARANAC LAKE, N.Y. — Democrats won a special election in New York State's northernmost Congressional district Tuesday, a setback for national conservatives who heavily promoted a third candidate in what became an intense debate over the direction of the Republican Party.
Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:
Lessons from Election Night — Republicans had their best night in five years yesterday, winning two governorships in states that went big for Barack Obama last year. They came closer than some would have guessed in holding a California district while running a no-name against the state's Lieutenant Governor.
Elizabeth Benjamin / NY Daily News:
Democrat Owens beats Conservative Hoffman who Sarah Palin …
Democrat Owens beats Conservative Hoffman who Sarah Palin …
Discussion:
The Latest Word
Dan Balz / Washington Post:
Gubernatorial contests serve as warning to Democrats — Off-year elections can be notoriously unreliable as predictors of the future, but as a window on how the political landscape may have changed in the year since President Obama won the White House, Tuesday's Republican victories in Virginia …
Discussion:
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New York Times:
G.O.P. Wins Two Key Governors' Races; Bloomberg Prevails in a Close Contest — Republicans swept contests for governor in New Jersey and Virginia on Tuesday as voters went to the polls filled with economic uncertainty, dealing President Obama a setback and building momentum …
Discussion:
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The Politico:
Dems, incumbents get wake-up call
Dems, incumbents get wake-up call
Discussion:
Townhall.com, ABCNEWS, The Swamp, The Sarah Palin Blog, Wall Street Journal, CNN and The Nation
Ruth Marcus / Washington Post:
Ruth Marcus on empty harbingers in Virginia and New Jersey
Ruth Marcus on empty harbingers in Virginia and New Jersey
Discussion:
Slate, Time, Washington Wire, Newsweek Blogs, Economist, PostPartisan and NewsBusters.org
Abby Goodnough / New York Times:
Maine Voters Repeal Law Allowing Gay Marriage — In a stinging setback for the national gay-rights movement, Maine voters narrowly decided to repeal the state's new law allowing same-sex marriage. — With 87 percent of precincts reporting early this morning, 53 percent of voters had approved the repeal …
Discussion:
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Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
What Happened and Why? — The outcome of all seven contests that we were tracking tonight appears settled, or very nearly so: — Virginia Governor: Republican Bob McDonnell wins by 17 points, toward the upper end of the range predicted by the pollsters, although not to anybody's great surprise.
Discussion:
Boston Globe, The Fix, The Moderate Voice, Left in the West, Right Wing Nut House, The Mahablog and Top of the Ticket
Carly Fiorina / Orange County Register:
Why I'm running for Senate — Our most pressing problems today are too few jobs for Americans and too much spending in Washington. — CANDIDATE FOR U.S. SENATE FROM CALIFORNIA — Recommend — Admittedly, I have not always been engaged in the electoral process, and I should have been.
Discussion:
The Fix, The Caucus, TPMDC, Eye on 2010, Politics Nation, Townhall.com, The Hill, National Review Online and Gawker
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Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
Extreme unintended irony from a WH official — An Obama aide anonymously accuses Anthony Weiner of being a coward and not “manning-up.” — From Ben Smith's Politico article on the surprisingly narrow victory by Michael Bloomberg in the New York mayoral race:
Discussion:
Eschaton
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Ben Smith / The Politico:
Bloomberg survives scare
Bloomberg survives scare
Discussion:
NY Daily News, Matthew Yglesias, Hot Air, Moe_Lane's blog, JammieWearingFool, Swampland, Runnin' Scared and Taegan Goddard's …
Joe Sudbay / AMERICAblog News:
White House official slams Democratic Cong. Anthony Weiner …
White House official slams Democratic Cong. Anthony Weiner …
Discussion:
The Hill
Brian Beutler / TPMDC:
Yesterday's Overwhelming Historic Republican Victory Makes Democratic Health Care Reform Just A Bit Easier — Most of the commentary about last night's elections has centered around Republican pickups in the New Jersey and Virginia statehouses. But what's gone largely unnoticed …
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John Nolte / Big Hollywood:
ELEMENTARY EPIDEMIC: 11 Uncovered Videos Show School Children Performing Praises to Obama — Big Hollywood has already posted a couple disturbing videos of young school children singing/speaking praises to President Obama, but when eleven more dropped in our email box it came as quite a shock.
Cory Doctorow / Boing Boing:
Secret copyright treaty leaks. It's bad. Very bad. — The internet chapter of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, a secret copyright treaty whose text Obama's administration refused to disclose due to “national security” concerns, has leaked. It's bad. It says:
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Johnny Dollar / Olbermann Watch:
Where in the World Was Keith Olbermann? — MSNBC boasted that on election night they would present a “special live edition of Countdown” at 10:00 pm. But with bad news for the Democrats in Virginia and New Jersey, a funny thing happened on the way to the bonus Hour of Spin. Keith wasn't there!
Mark Silva / The Swamp:
Bush, Clinton debate: Radio City — Suffice it to say that an entertainment company is in charge of this show: — Former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush in debate. — The two former presidents have have agreed to meet at Radio City Music Hall on Feb. 25, according to MSG Entertainment …
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Craig Whitlock / Washington Post:
Italian court convicts 23 Americans in CIA rendition case — MILAN — An Italian court on Wednesday convicted 22 CIA operatives and a U.S. Air Force colonel of orchestrating the kidnapping of a Muslim cleric in Milan in 2003 and flying him to Egypt, where he said he was later tortured.
Associated Press:
STIMULUS WATCH: Salary raise counted as saved job — WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama's economic recovery program saved 935 jobs at the Southwest Georgia Community Action Council, an impressive success story for the stimulus plan. Trouble is, only 508 people work there.
Maureen Dowd / New York Times:
Who Are You Calling a Narcissist, Rush? — I had a four-hour dinner once with Rush Limbaugh at the “21” Club in Manhattan, back in the days when I was still writing profiles as a “reporterette,” to use a Limbaugh coinage. — He was charming, in a shy, awkward, lonely-guy way. Not a man of the people.
Discussion:
JammieWearingFool
Chris Kelly / The Huffington Post:
Dud, Baby, Dud: The Lesson of Doug Hoffman — “I believe America is turning the page to a new dawn.” ~ Doug Hoffman, Concession Speech — Doug Hoffman lost his election last night. He was supported by a plurality of talk radio entertainers, and a majority of former half-term governors of Alaska, but it wasn't enough.
Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Congress Shifts Left — I've been feeling sick and wasn't up for waiting for the NY-23 returns. But now that we're in we know that the CA-10 vacancy created by Ellen Tauscher becoming an Undersecretary of State has resulted in a moderate Democrat being replaced by a progressive Democratic …
Discussion:
Ezra Klein
New York Post:
Crabby cabby boots same-sex lovebirds — An overzealous cabby allegedly booted a gay couple when he spotted the duo sharing a warm embrace in the back of his cold car. — Paul Bruno and his partner hailed the yellow cab Monday night at 13th Street and First Avenue and sat close, Bruno told The Post.
Molly K. Hooper / The Hill:
‘Very, very close to zero’ GOPers will vote for House health bill — Republicans will overwhelmingly reject the Democrats' healthcare reform measure when it is reaches the House floor, according to a key lawmaker. — Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who serves as deputy GOP whip …