memeorandum: Senate Debate on Health Bill Set to Begin Monday (Naftali Bendavid/Wall Street Journal)

9:20 AM ET, November 30, 2009

Top Items:

Maurice Clemmons, man wanted for questioning, has troubling criminal history — Maurice Clemmons, the 37-year-old Tacoma man being sought for questioning in the killing this morning of four Lakewood police officers, has a long criminal record punctuated by violence, erratic behavior and concerns about his mental health.

Michelle Malkin:

Violent felon granted clemency by Huckabee now sought in Lakewood, WA police ambush; Update: Huck PAC posts statement; Update: SWAT team surrounds Clemmons' family home — Scroll for updates...SWAT team reportedly surrounded a Clemmons family home late Sunday...KIRO TV in Seattle has details …

Discussion: Leader, KIRO-TV, KOMO, The Other McCain, The Greenroom, Seattle Times, Gateway Pundit, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Little Green Footballs

Huck PAC:

STATEMENT REGARDING WASHINGTON STATE SLAYINGS — The senseless and savage execution of police officers in Washington State has saddened the nation, and early reports indicate that a person of interest is a repeat offender who once lived in Arkansas and was wanted on outstanding warrants here and in Washington State.

Discussion: Riehl World View

New York Times:

Man Said to Be Cornered in Tacoma Shooting — LAKEWOOD, Wash. — The police cornered a man suspected of gunning down four uniformed officers in a Seattle home early Monday and said he might have died from a gunshot wound, according to news reports. — Ed Troyer, a spokesman …

Discussion: Politics Daily

Seattle Times:
4 Lakewood officers slain; ex-con sought for questioning

Discussion: ArkansasTimes and Gawker

msnbc.com:
Cops: Suspect in officer killings may be dead

Discussion: Seattle Times, Confederate Yankee, TBogg and AmSpecBlog

New York Times:

Obama's Speech on Afghanistan to Envision Exit — WASHINGTON — President Obama plans to lay out a timeframe for ultimately winding down the American involvement in the war in Afghanistan when he announces his decision this week to send more forces, senior administration officials said Sunday.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Think Progress, The Politico, Boston Globe, Connecting.the.Dots, Jules Crittenden, Left Foot Forward, The Note and Guardian

Karen DeYoung / Washington Post:
Obama offers new role for Pakistan

Discussion: New York Times, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Associated Press, Prairie Weather, Wall Street Journal, Agence France Presse, Laura Rozen's Blog and The Page

Marc Ambinder / The Atlantic Politics Channel:
A Last-Minute Meeting On Afghanistan

Discussion: James Fallows

Naftali Bendavid / Wall Street Journal:

Senate Debate on Health Bill Set to Begin Monday — WASHINGTON — The Senate is set to begin debate on its health-overhaul bill Monday, with Democrats and Republicans planning to offer amendments on divisive subjects such as abortion and taxes that could hamper passage of the bill.

Discussion: Washington Wire, The New Republic, Commentary, The Page, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Washington Post, Pundit & Pundette and New York Times

Lori Montgomery / Washington Post:
Health-care bill's ability to reduce deficits debated

Discussion: American Power and Greg's Opinion

Carrie Budoff Brown / The Politico:
Dems seek deal as Sen. debate begins

Discussion: The Note, Washington Monthly, Bloomberg, Prescriptions and The Page

Jeffrey Young / The Hill:
Seven issues to watch as the Senate begins amending the healthcare bill

Discussion: The Greenroom

Mike Allen / The Politico:
MIT analysis backs Obama

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, snooperreport.com, Hullabaloo, White House.gov Blog Feed and The Political Carnival

John Mark Reynolds / Evangel:

Done at Last: Ten Final Thoughts on Palin and “Going Rogue” — This was a bad and unhelpful book. — It was not bad because it was simple. Goldwater (or his ghost) used fewer pages in Conscience of a Conservative and said more. It was not bad because it was autobiographical.

Discussion: The Political Carnival

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:

A Theocon On “Going Rogue” — Here's an interesting and intellectually honest book review from a Sarah Palin fan, writing in the theocon journal. First Things: … Indeed we are. But this is a more salient question for Adam Bellow at Harper Collins, the person who allegedly edited this book:

Discussion: And So it Goes in Shreveport and Evangel

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

The Jobs Imperative — If you're looking for a job right now, your prospects are terrible. There are six times as many Americans seeking work as there are job openings, and the average duration of unemployment — the time the average job-seeker has spent looking for work — is more than six months, the highest level since the 1930s.

Discussion: Daily Kos and Outside The Beltway

Wall Street Journal:

In Elections, Honduras Defeats Chávez — The tiny country beats back the colonial aspirations of its neighbors. — Printer — Friendly — Unless something monumental happens in the Western Hemisphere in the next 31 days, the big regional story for 2009 will be how tiny Honduras managed …

Discussion: Commentary, Wake up America, Hot Air, Gateway Pundit and Atlas Shrugs

BBC:
Zelaya rival wins Honduran poll

Discussion: QandO, The Moderate Voice and PoliBlog

John F. Harris / The Politico:

7 stories Obama doesn't want told — Presidential politics is about storytelling. Presented with a vivid storyline, voters naturally tend to fit every new event or piece of information into a picture that is already neatly framed in their minds. — No one understands this better …

Discussion: The Corner on National …

Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:

Americans Still Leaning Against Healthcare Legislation — Majority disapprove of Obama's handling of the issue — PRINCETON, NJ — Americans currently tilt against Congress' passing healthcare legislation, with 49% saying they would advise their member to vote against a bill …

Discussion: The Swamp, Hot Air, The Hill and Political Punch

Tiger Woods:

Statement from Tiger Woods — As you all know, I had a single-car accident earlier this week, and sustained some injuries. I have some cuts, bruising and right now I'm pretty sore. — This situation is my fault, and it's obviously embarrassing to my family and me. I'm human and I'm not perfect.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Coop's Corner, Gawker, Lawyers, Guns and Money, Associated Press, Left Coast Rebel, The Political Carnival, Jules Crittenden, TalkLeft, Scared Monkeys, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Mediaite, The Other McCain and TPM LiveWire

Kenneth Harney / San Francisco Chronicle:

Break chains of mortgage morality, lawyer says — (11-29) 04:00 PST WASHINGTON — Go ahead. Break the chains. Stop paying on your mortgage if you owe more than the house is worth. And most important: Don't feel guilty about it. Don't think you're doing something morally wrong.

Cynthia Kouril / Firedoglake:
Predatory lending has an ugly tail end

Discussion: The Confluence and New York Times

Washington Post:

Today's GOP is both united and divided — Opposition to Obama is strong, but Republicans are split on GOP's direction and leaders — The Republican rank and file is largely in sync with GOP lawmakers in their staunch opposition to efforts by President Obama and Democrats …

Discussion: The Caucus, The Page and Gawker

New York Times:

Swiss Ban Building of Minarets on Mosques — GENEVA — In a vote that displayed a widespread anxiety about Islam and undermined the country's reputation for religious tolerance, the Swiss on Sunday overwhelmingly imposed a national ban on the construction of minarets, the prayer towers of mosques …

Discussion: Pajamas Media, Moonbattery, Balkinization, Latest Open Salon Blog, Crooked Timber, Althouse, normblog and Times of London

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty:
Switzerland Approves Minaret Ban In Referendum

Discussion: Wake up America, The Daily Dish, Atlas Shrugs and The Jawa Report

Thomas Erdbrink / Washington Post:

Ahmadinejad vows dramatic expansion of Iran's nuclear program — 10 uranium-enrichment sites announced after international rebuke — TEHRAN — Iran's government will build 10 new sites to enrich uranium, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Sunday, a dramatic expansion of the country's nuclear program …

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, The Washington Independent, Times of London, QandO and Wake up America

New York Times:
A Defiant Iran Details Plan for 10 Enrichment Plants

Discussion: Los Angeles Times and The Daily Dish

Willem Buiter / Willem Buiter's Maverecon:

The intrinsic unimportance of Dubai World and the important wider message it conveys — Dubai is not systemically significant. If its troubles open our eyes to the likely imminence of the start of the final leg of the journey from household default through bank default to sovereign default …

Discussion: Felix Salmon, Clive Crook, FT Alphaville and Guardian