memeorandum: Liberals Are Useless (Chris Hedges/Truthdig)

3:05 PM ET, December 7, 2009

Top Items:

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 Huffington Post, JustOneMinute, Switchboard, Agence France Presse, The Glittering Eye, Daily Kos, Climate Progress, Beat the Press, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Financial Times and The Awl

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, The Hill, Crooks and Liars, Matthew Yglesias, Michelle Malkin, The Hill, The Washington Independent, The Mahablog, The Corner on National …, AmSpecBlog, Blue Virginia, American Power and Weasel Zippers

Guardian:

'Fourteen days to seal history's judgment on this generation' — This editorial calling for action from world leaders on climate change is published today by 56 newspapers around the world in 20 languages — Copenhagen climate change summit - opening day liveblog

Discussion: Washington Post, The Jawa Report, MyDD, Environmental Capital, RaceWire, Switchboard, QandO, Grist, Biased BBC, TigerHawk, The Impolitic, AMERICAblog News, Pundit & Pundette, The Strata-Sphere, blogs.telegraph.co.uk and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

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: Green Inc., Alan Colmes' Liberaland, New York Times, QandO, Environmental Capital, Grist and The New Republic

Michelle Malkin:

56 Chicken Little newspapers on climate change — Make sure you keep this list of 56 newspapers handy when looking for thorough, fair coverage of the ClimateChange scandal. — These are 56 newspapers that you cannot trust on the issue: — Today, the eco-herd of papers published …

Discussion: Vanity Fair and NewsBusters.org

New York Times:

In Face of Skeptics, Experts Affirm Climate Peril — Just two years ago, a United Nations panel that synthesizes the work of hundreds of climatologists around the world called the evidence for global warming “unequivocal.” — But as representatives of about 200 nations converge in Copenhagen …

Discussion: JustOneMinute, The Politico, Coal Tattoo, EconLog, Climate Progress, Pajamas Media and Dot Earth

Associated Press:
EPA says greenhouse gases are harmful

Discussion: Washington Monthly and RedState

David Derbyshire / Daily Mail:
Copenhagen climate change summit to produce as much CO2 as an African country

Discussion: The Politico, DaTechguy's Blog, Riehl World View, Fausta's Blog, Gateway Pundit, JammieWearingFool and Pajamas Media

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, The Hill, FrumForum, The Other McCain, Scared Monkeys, Tax Day Tea Party, Mouth of the Potomac, Raw Story, The Washington Independent, Townhall.com, The Plum Line, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, TPMDC and The Strata-Sphere

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

Discussion: The Political Carnival

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: Think Progress, Commentary, NewsBusters.org, Townhall.com, Hot Air, The Jawa Report, Power Line, Jules Crittenden, Politics Daily, Sister Toldjah, Villainous Company, Pundit & Pundette, Dependable Renegade, TPM LiveWire, Weasel Zippers and Confederate Yankee

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: The New Republic, Weekly Standard, The Impolitic and The Political Carnival

Ezra Klein:
Two-thirds of Americans don't understand the public option

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Matthew Yglesias, Outside The Beltway and TalkLeft

Victoria McGrane / The Politico:

Strange coalition targets Bernanke — There's a strange political cocktail brewing in Washington, one that mixes top conservative strategist Grover Norquist and tea party organizers at FreedomWorks with democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), progressive activists and public interest advocates.

Discussion: Bloomberg, The New Ledger, The Big Picture, Big Government, The Washington Independent, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/* and LewRockwell.com Blog

Jackie Calmes / New York Times:
U.S. Forecasts Smaller Loss From Bailout of Banks

Discussion: The Business Insider, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, The Caucus, Capital Gains and Games blogs, Gothamist, The Political Carnival and The Page

Jackie Calmes / Boston Globe:
US may recover most TARP loans

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, Financial Times and Plunderbund

Ezra Klein:

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: Wonk Room, Daily Kos and TalkLeft

Ezra Klein:

The not-a-public-option compromise, and beyond — There's a lot left to be decided in health-care reform, or at least there should be. The subsidies could use some help, and the Medicare Commission should be strengthened. The House and Senate need to figure out their revenue measures …

Discussion: The New Republic, Washington Monthly, Open Left, Washington Post, Democratic Strategist, Wonk Room and AMERICAblog News

Brian Beutler / TPMDC:
Checkmate: How Joe Lieberman Turned The Public Option Fight On Its Head

Discussion: Ezra Klein and Democracy in America

David M. Herszenhorn / Prescriptions:
Ad Jabs at Lieberman Over ‘Public Option’

Discussion: Washington Monthly

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: The Political Carnival

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

Discussion: The Swamp

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: AmSpecBlog and Shakesville

Wall Street Journal:
Abortion Emerges as Bill's Top Threat

Discussion: Firedoglake

The Independent:

Home > News > World > Europe — The news that a leaked set of emails appeared to show senior climate scientists had manipulated data was shocking enough. Now the story has become more remarkable still. — The computer hack, said a senior member of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change …

Discussion: Guardian, Times of London, Robert Amsterdam, Raw Story, Informed Comment and Little Green Footballs

Richard Harris / NPR:
For Public, Climate Change Not A Priority Issue

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Gallup, The Corner on National …, Guardian, Dr. Melissa Clouthier, American Power and Hit & Run

CNN:

Senate health care debate focuses on abortion — Washington (CNN) — Senate debate on a sweeping health care bill proceeds to one of the most controversial issues Monday: an amendment to tighten restrictions on federal funding for abortion. — The amendment by moderate Democratic …

Discussion: Truthdig

Wall Street Journal:
New Public-Option Model Eyed

Discussion: Boston Globe, The Politico, Los Angeles Times, New Yorker, The Note, Washington Post and New York Times

Thomas H. Maugh II / Los Angeles Times:

Pearl Harbor mini-submarine mystery solved? — Researchers think they have found the remains of a Japanese mini-submarine that probably fired on U.S. battleships on Dec. 7, 1941. — Japanese warplanes hit, from left, the USS West Virginia, USS Tennessee and USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor.

Discussion: The Confluence, Hot Air and Jules Crittenden

Mary Katharine Ham / Weekly Standard:
Lt. John William Finn: Pearl Harbor's Last Hero, 68 Years Later

Discussion: Star Bulletin and BLACKFIVE

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: GOP 12

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

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, Dr. Melissa Clouthier and Betsy's Page

Spencer S. Hsu / Washington Post:

Secret Service counts 91 breaches — 2003 report has been used as training tool — Long before a pair of gate-crashers penetrated a White House state dinner, the Secret Service had detailed for its internal use a lengthy list of security breaches dating to the Carter administration …

Discussion: Top of the Ticket, NewsBusters.org and The Page

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, Weekly Standard, Atlas Shrugs, The Politico and No More Mister Nice Blog