memeorandum: Nice Work... New Coakley Attack Ad Misspells Massachusetts (Jim Hoft/Gateway Pundit)

3:35 PM ET, January 12, 2010

Top Items:

Desperate Dems try to Palinize Massachusetts Senate race — Frantic over the possibility that a Democrat might lose the race to replace Sen. Ted Kennedy in Massachusetts, the Democratic National Committee has sent its top spinner, Hari Sevugan, to the aid of Democratic candidate Martha Coakley …

Discussion: Left Coast Rebel, The Other McCain, Another Black Conservative, TPMDC, Boston Globe, Jules Crittenden, AmSpecBlog, Commentary, Fausta's Blog, DaTechguy's Blog, The Corner on National …, The Plum Line, Power Line and Riehl World View

Jim Hoft / Gateway Pundit:

Martha Coakley Is Not Just Wrong on Terror War - She's Dangerous (Must-See Video) — There are no terrorists in Afghanistan? — On Wednesday December 30 Jordanian doctor and Al-Qaeda blogger Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi killed 7 CIA officers in a suicide bomb attack at an outpost in southeastern Afghanistan.

Discussion: Nice Deb, Flopping Aces, The Lonely Conservative, democracyarsenal.org, NO QUARTER, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Moonbattery, Riehl World View and Boston Globe

Erik Gallant / The Fray:

New Martha Coakley ad attacking Scott Brown misspells ‘Massachusetts’ … On the heels of last night's final debate between Martha Coakley, Scott Brown and Joseph L. Kennedy, Coakley released a new ad attacking Scott Brown — an aggressive turn that many observers have thought was long overdue.

Discussion: Lone Republican, Hot Air, Yahoo! News, The Corner on National …, Politics Daily, Wake up America, Media Nation, The Lonely Conservative and Unreported

Reid Wilson / Hotline On Call:

DSCC Launches First MA Ad Buy — The DSCC will launch ads on behalf of AG Martha Coakley (D) as she battles to preserve Dems' 60-seat majority in the Senate. — The DSCC has purchased $567K in ads in the Boston and Springfield markets, a source tells Hotline OnCall.

Discussion: Hot Air

Pete Abel / The Moderate Voice:
Brown, Coakley, and a Confession

Discussion: Time, Boston Globe and msnbc.com

John McCormack / Weekly Standard:
Brown and Coakley Debate in Massachusetts

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

Breitbart.tv:
THE LAST TIME A WHITE DEMOCRAT COMMENTED ON OBAMA'S CAMPAIGN AND RACE...

Discussion: Gateway Pundit, Pundit & Pundette, The Daily Caller and Moonbattery

Boston Globe:
Coakley, Brown in bitter debate

Discussion: The Fix, Campaign Diaries, Boston Herald, The Politico, msnbc.com, Maggie's Notebook, The Note, Townhall.com, Red Mass Group, The Washington Independent, Don Surber, Flopping Aces, NO QUARTER and Daily Kos

Michelle Malkin:
Big Biz/Big Guv luv: Look who's coming to Martha Coakley's aid now …

Discussion: Hotline On Call, The Radio Equalizer, The Corner on National … and Riehl World View

neo-neocon:
Can Mr. Brown go to Washington?

Discussion: The Corner on National …, Instapundit, The Politico, The Other McCain, Riehl World View, Boston Globe, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Strata-Sphere, Sister Toldjah, RedState, PoliBlog, And So it Goes in Shreveport, Nice Deb, sisu, Weasel Zippers, No More Mister Nice Blog and Althouse

Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:
Coakley misspells name of state she wants to represent

Discussion: neo-neocon, JammieWearingFool, Pajamas Media and Moonbattery

Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:
Coakley says no more terrorists in Afghanistan

Discussion: TD Blog

Michael Graham / Boston Herald: Rage against machine — If Scott Brown wins, Harry Reid loses.

Harold Ford Jr / New York Post:

Ford: I'm gearing up for Senate race — It's true: I am strongly considering running for the United States Senate. — I do so because our best as a nation has always come when we test our ideas and ourselves, and when we trust competition to refine the steel of our convictions and the truth of our arguments.

Discussion: The Caucus, Gawker, New York Times, Open Left, Ben Smith's Blog, JoeTrippi.com, The Hill, Commentary, Taylor Marsh, Hotline On Call, The Corner on National …, Top of the Ticket, ATTACKERMAN, The Page, SENATUS, Clusterstock, JammieWearingFool and TPM LiveWire

Richard M. Benjamin / The Huffington Post:

The Real Harold Ford: Why I Support the White Woman Over the Black Dude — Harold Ford presents a formidable challenge to New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand in the 2010 Democratic primary. — Why? The former Tennessee congressman is a light-skinned African American with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one.

Discussion: Post Politics and New York Times

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:
Can Harold Ford win?

Discussion: NY Daily News, The White House and City Room

Ann Gerhart / Washington Post:

Sen. Reid and son Rory each considered a burden for the other's campaign in Nevada — LAS VEGAS — As if Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) didn't have enough problems, say hello to Rory Reid, his eldest son. Looks just like him. He's running for governor of Nevada.

Discussion: skippy the bush kangaroo, Politics Daily, Gawker, Another Black Conservative, Commentary, National Review Online and The Page

Peter Hamby / CNN:

Ensign: Lay off Reid — Washington (CNN) - Sen. John Ensign, himself no stranger to controversy, is breaking with other Republicans to defend his fellow Nevada Sen. Harry Reid for describing President Obama as “light skinned” and “with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one.”

Discussion: Riehl World View and TPM LiveWire

CBS News:

Racism Doesn't Always have a Southern Drawl — Posted by Jan Crawford Trent Lott was forced out as Senate majority leader for making racially charged remarks, with few rallying to his defense. But Harry Reid's explosive comment's about Barack Obama's “light skin” and “no Negro dialect” …

Discussion: Neptunus Lex and AmSpecBlog

John Stanton / Roll Call:
Feingold Criticizes Reid, Declines to Endorse Him as Leader

Discussion: Gateway Pundit, Think Progress, TPMDC, The Daily Caller, The Hill, Wake up America and TPM LiveWire

Manu Raju / The Politico:
Coburn bucks party, backs Reid

Discussion: WISN Milwaukee's Channel 12, Albany Times Union, Wall Street Journal, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Top of the Ticket, Washington Monthly, ABCNEWS, Glenn Thrush's Blog and TPM LiveWire

Kevin Diaz / Hot Dish Politics:

Palin, Bachmann Tea Party sessions closed to press — It looks like the revolution will not be televised, after all. — At least not the Tea Party's revolution. — Word from Nashville on Monday was that the First National Tea Party Convention next month will be closed to the press …

Discussion: Firedoglake, Little Green Footballs, The Hill, Erick's blog, The Washington Independent, The Daily Caller and GOP 12

David Weigel / The Washington Independent:

Reporters (Mostly) Barred From Tea Party Convention — For a while, I've been calling and emailing the organizers of the National Tea Party Convention with some basic logistical questions, to no avail. Kevin Diaz explains why: the convention, held in Nashville next month, will be closed to all but “selected” members of the press.

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Democratic Strategist

Armstrong Williams / Pundits Blog:
Palin positioning herself for presidential bid?

Discussion: The Politico

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:

Divorce Rates Higher in States with Gay Marriage Bans — Over the past decade or so, divorce has gradually become more uncommon in the United States. Since 2003, however, the decline in divorce rates has been largely confined to states which have not passed a state constitutional ban on gay marriage.

Discussion: Ezra Klein, JustOneMinute, The League of Ordinary …, Matthew Yglesias, Newshoggers.com, Prairie Weather, AMERICAblog Gay, The Mahablog and Joe. My. God.

Neil Irwin / Washington Post:

Federal Reserve earned $45 billion in 2009 — Wall Street firms aren't the only banks that had a banner year. The Federal Reserve made record profits in 2009, as its unconventional efforts to prop up the economy created a windfall for the government. — The Fed will return about $45 billion …

Discussion: Ezra Klein, Felix Salmon, Beat the Press, Open Left, Newsweek Blogs, The Big Picture, Wonk Room, The BLT, Free exchange, The Hill, The Impolitic, AMERICAblog News, The Corner on National … and New York Times

CNN:

CNN Poll: Americans split on success of Obama presidency — Washington (CNN) - Americans are giving Barack Obama a split decision on his first year in office, according to a new national poll. — Forty-eight percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Tuesday …

Discussion: The Swamp, Commentary, Hot Air, The Page, The Plum Line and Flopping Aces

Wall Street Journal:

Tax on Investment Income Is Weighed — Health-Bill Negotiators Consider Extending Medicare Levy as They Face Pressure to Ease Proposed Hit on Generous Insurance Plans — WASHINGTON — House and Senate negotiators are considering applying for the first time the Medicare payroll tax …

Discussion: Townhall.com, Michelle Malkin, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Associated Press, TalkLeft, The New Republic, Wonk Room and The Politico

Ezra Klein:
House and Senate negotiators considering new Medicare tax

Discussion: Townhall.com, Washington Post and The Politico

Denver Post:

Sources: Hickenlooper intends to enter guv's race — Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper has told top Democrats he intends to run for governor, sources tell The Denver Post. — Hickenlooper has been meeting with key advisers since Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter last week unexpectedly announced he was dropping his re-election bid.

Discussion: Politics Daily, Scorecard's Blog, The Latest Word, Swing State Project, Hotline On Call, TPMDC, The Page and Daily Kos

Bloomberg:

Iran Says U.S., Israel May Be Behind Killing of Nuclear Expert — Jan. 12 (Bloomberg) — Iran said U.S. and Israeli spy agencies may have conspired with dissident Iranians to kill a nuclear scientist in a bomb attack today in Tehran. — Massoud Ali-Mohammadi, a professor of nuclear physics …

Discussion: New York Times and Neptunus Lex

Fox News:
Iran Nuke Physicist, Opposition Supporter Killed in Motorcycle Bomb

Discussion: The Jawa Report and The Daily Caller

Chris Good / The Atlantic Politics Channel:

McCain: “I Wouldn't Know” About Palin Vetting Process — John McCain does not want to talk about the 2008 presidential election, or any of the intrigue that's followed—a fact he made clear in an interview with Matt Lauer this morning on “Today,” in which he said he “wouldn't know” …

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Breitbart.tv, GOP 12 and Top of the Ticket

Mark Silva / The Swamp:
McCain on Palin, Reid: No ‘looking back’

Discussion: The Politico, The Note, Nice Deb, CBS News and Guardian

Caitlin Flanagan / The Atlantic Online:

Cultivating Failure — IMAGINE THAT AS a young and desperately poor Mexican man, you had made the dangerous and illegal journey to California to work in the fields with other migrants. There, you performed stoop labor, picking lettuce and bell peppers and table grapes …

Discussion: The Huffington Post