memeorandum: Fred Hiatt on parallels between the Iraq, Afghanistan troop surges (Fred Hiatt/Washington Post)

5:50 PM ET, December 7, 2009

Top Items:

Exclusive: Medicare buy-in attracting interest in the public option negotiations — Sources who have been briefed on the negotiations say that Medicare buy-in is attracting the most interest. Expanding Medicaid is running into more problems, though there's some appeal because …

Discussion: The Plum Line, Talking Points Memo, Wonk Room, Daily Kos and TalkLeft

IdeaScale / The Huffington Post:

Senate Dems May Open Up Medicare To Pacify Progressives — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — Senate Democrats are discussing the idea of expanding Medicare by lowering the age at which the elderly could enter the government-run insurance program, Democratic sources on the Hill tell the Huffington Post.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Weekly Standard, The Nation, AmSpecBlog, TPMDC and The Huffington Post

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:

In Polls, Much Opposition to Health Care Plan Is From Left — Don't know why I didn't catch this earlier, but it strikes me as fairly important. — Ipsos/McClatchy put out a health care poll two weeks ago. The topline results were nothing special: 34 percent favored …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Matthew Yglesias and The New Republic

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:

GOP senators rebuke Reid's slavery remarks — Three Republican senators on Monday condemned Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-Nev.) comments that Republicans who oppose healthcare reform are akin to the opponents of abolition and women's suffrage. — “Folks tend to crack under pressure …

Discussion: The Note, Townhall.com, Glenn Thrush's Blog, Washington Monthly, Michelle Malkin, Hot Air and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Digby / Hullabaloo:
Yes We Should — From a personal perspective, this would be a godsend:

Discussion: Eschaton

Ezra Klein:
Five compromises beyond the public option

Discussion: The New Republic, Open Congress, Wonk Room and Bob Cesca's Awesome Blog!

Carrie Budoff Brown / The Politico:
Officials: Medicare buy-in on table

Discussion: Raw Story and AMERICAblog News

Juliet Eilperin / Washington Post:

Obama administration will formally declare danger of carbon emissions — The Obama administration will formally declare Monday that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions pose a danger to the public's health and welfare, a move that lays the groundwork for an economy-wide carbon cap …

Discussion: New York Times, Associated Press, Michelle Malkin, Crooks and Liars, The Hill, Matthew Yglesias, Riehl World View, Washington Monthly, The Corner on National …, The Mahablog, Blue Virginia, American Power, msnbc.com, The Hill, The Washington Independent, AmSpecBlog and Weasel Zippers

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

An Affordable Truth — Maybe I'm naïve, but I'm feeling optimistic about the climate talks starting in Copenhagen on Monday. President Obama now plans to address the conference on its last day, which suggests that the White House expects real progress.

Discussion: The Hill, Los Angeles Times, Agence France Presse, The Glittering Eye, The Huffington Post, SEIU, JustOneMinute, Switchboard, Weekly Standard, Daily Kos, Climate Progress, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, The Confluence and Beat the Press

Wall Street Journal:

Business Fumes Over EPA Rule — Carbon-Dioxide Emissions to Face Curbs — Officials gather in Copenhagen this week for an international climate summit, but business leaders are focusing even more on Washington, where the Obama administration is expected as early as Monday to formally declare carbon dioxide a dangerous pollutant.

Discussion: Townhall.com, Green Inc., Associated Press, The Foundry, Environmental Capital, QandO, Grist, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and The New Republic

yosemite.epa.gov:

EPA: Greenhouse Gases Threaten Public Health and the Environment — Science overwhelmingly shows greenhouse gas concentrations at unprecedented levels due to human activity — WASHINGTON - After a thorough examination of the scientific evidence and careful consideration of public comments …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Green Energy Reporter, Politics Daily, BBC and Truthdig

Guardian:
'Fourteen days to seal history's judgment on this generation'

Discussion: The Atlantic Business Channel, Washington Post, RaceWire, Environmental Capital, MyDD, Grist, Switchboard, The Jawa Report and QandO

New York Times:
In Face of Skeptics, Experts Affirm Climate Peril

Discussion: The Politico, EconLog, Coal Tattoo and JustOneMinute

Michelle Malkin:
56 Chicken Little newspapers on climate change

Discussion: Vanity Fair and NewsBusters.org

Rasmussen Reports:

Tea Party Tops GOP on Three-Way Generic Ballot — Running under the Tea Party brand may be better in congressional races than being a Republican. — In a three-way Generic Ballot test, the latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds Democrats attracting 36% of the vote.

Discussion: Politics Daily, Hot Air, DownWithTyranny!, Hit & Run, The Hill, FrumForum, The Other McCain, Scared Monkeys, Tax Day Tea Party, Raw Story, Townhall.com, Mouth of the Potomac, The Plum Line, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and TPMDC

Andy Barr / The Politico:
‘Tea party’ polls better than GOP

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Little Green Footballs

Ed Hornick / CNN: Born in anger, Tea Party could split in anger

Josh Gerstein / The Politico:

NPR reporter pressured over Fox role — Executives at National Public Radio recently asked the network's top political correspondent, Mara Liasson, to reconsider her regular appearances on Fox News because of what they perceived as the network's political bias, two sources familiar with the effort said.

Discussion: Michael Calderone's Blog, Crooks and Liars, Don Surber, NewsBusters.org, Think Progress, Cato @ Liberty, Commentary, Hot Air, Jules Crittenden, Politics Daily, Power Line, Sister Toldjah, Townhall.com, Villainous Company, The Jawa Report and Pundit & Pundette

Paul Krugman:

Unhelpful Hansen — James Hansen is a great climate scientist. He was the first to warn about the climate crisis; I take what he says about coal, in particular, very seriously. — Unfortunately, while I defer to him on all matters climate, today's op-ed article suggests …

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, Ezra Klein and FrumForum

James Hansen / New York Times:
Cap and Fade — AT the international climate talks in Copenhagen …

Discussion: Megan McArdle, Open Left, TPMCafe and Switchboard

Washington Times:

Justice thwarts Black Panther subpoenas — The Obama team is covering up voter-intimidation evidence — Could it be that President Obama's legal team is imploding due to a voter intimidation case involving the New Black Panther Party? So many new developments regarding the Black Panther case occurred …

Discussion: Neptunus Lex and Main Justice

Michael Goldfarb / Weekly Standard:
The Twilight Zone

Discussion: Word on the Street, The Washington Independent, Commentary and Ben Smith's Blog

Trita Parsi / The Huffington Post:
Obama Should End Silence on Human Rights Abuses in Iran

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Taylor Marsh and Laura Rozen's Blog

Jake Sherman / The Politico:

ACORN review: No illegality — An outside review of the beleaguered community group ACORN has found “serious management challenges,” but no pattern of illegal activity. — The review, commissioned by ACORN in the wake of a hidden video expose that showed a few of its employees appearing …

Discussion: Little Green Footballs and The Political Carnival

Tony Romm / The Hill:
ACORN: Employees caught on tape violated no laws

Discussion: The Swamp

Brian Beutler / TPMDC:

Checkmate: How Joe Lieberman Turned The Public Option Fight On Its Head — After Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) threw down the gauntlet on the public option, political observers and liberal critics had no shortage of theories. Lieberman was rebelling against the liberal base. Lieberman harbors animosity about 2006.

Discussion: Ezra Klein and Democracy in America

The Note:

Santorum: ‘Absolutely Taking a Look’ at Running in '12; Palin Will ‘Have to Do Some Explaining if She Runs’ — ABC News' Rick Klein reports: — Former Sen. Rick Santorum has some more political travel on tap this week, with a trip scheduled for South Carolina to follow recent visits to Iowa …

Discussion: Think Progress, The Politico, The Atlantic Politics Channel, No More Mister Nice Blog, CBS News and GOP 12

CNN:

President Obama to propose $200 billion for jobs creation — Washington (CNN) - President Obama will propose using $200 billion from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to support creating jobs, White House officials confirmed Monda — The president, in an economic speech …

Discussion: Open Left and The Page

Jim Hoft / Big Government:

Fistgate: Barack Obama's Safe Schools Czar's 2000 Conference Promoted ‘Fisting’ to 14 Year-Olds — Barack Obama's Safe Schools Czar Kevin Jennings founded the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in 1990. In 2007 Kevin Jennings was paid $273,573.96 as the executive director of GLSEN.

Discussion: Founding Bloggers, The Jawa Report, The Other McCain, Gateway Pundit and Weasel Zippers

Chris Frates / The Politico:

Nelson files his abortion amendment — Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson and Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch today filed their amendment to tighten restrictions on federal funding for abortion. The amendment is likely to be debated on the floor tomorrow. Most observers expect it to fail …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, TPMDC, Feministing, Ben Smith's Blog, Open Congress and AmSpecBlog

CNN:

CNN Poll: Palin's popularity on the rise — Washington (CNN) - Sarah Palin has erased her drop in the polls that followed her resignation as Alaska governor, according to new national survey. — But when it comes to opinions of Palin, a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released Monday suggests …

Discussion: Hot Air and Conservatives4Palin.com

Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:

After Brief Uptick, Obama Approval Slips to 47% — New low follows slight increase after announcement of Afghanistan policy — PRINCETON, NJ — Barack Obama's presidential job approval rating is 47% in the latest Gallup Poll Daily tracking update, a new low for his administration to date.

Discussion: The Swamp, Political Byline, Hot Air, Politics Daily, National Review Online and The Atlantic Politics Channel

Wall Street Journal:

Girlfriends and Double Standards — Before Max Baucus there was Paul Wolfowitz. Will the ethical uproar be the same? — Printer — Friendly — Here's a poser: Suppose a public official is accused of recommending his girlfriend for a promotion, though he was the one who first flagged …

Discussion: Accuracy in Media, Betsy's Page and Dr. Melissa Clouthier

Chris Hedges / Truthdig:

Liberals Are Useless — Liberals are a useless lot. They talk about peace and do nothing to challenge our permanent war economy. They claim to support the working class, and vote for candidates that glibly defend the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Discussion: Firedoglake

Sarah Palin / To The Point News Syndicated:

SARAH AT THE GRIDIRON — [The Gridiron Club, founded in 1865, is the oldest and most prestigious journalist organization in Washington DC. The annual Gridiron Dinner is attended by the media elite, at which the president is traditionally the speaker. This year, President Zero …

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, Atlas Shrugs and The Politico

Tim Pugmire / Minnesota Public Radio:

Bachmann wants a Palin book — Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann says she's not yet ready to back a 2012 presidential candidate. — Bachmann briefly talked politics with reporters this morning following a GOP State Capitol rally in support of a proposed constitutional amendment to cap state spending.

Discussion: TPMDC and Talking Points Memo