Top Items:
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.
RELATED:
Byron York / Washington Examiner:
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 …
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.
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
John McCormack / Weekly Standard:
Brown and Coakley Debate in Massachusetts
Brown and Coakley Debate in Massachusetts
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers
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.
RELATED:
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.
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.
RELATED:
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.”
John Stanton / Roll Call:
Feingold Criticizes Reid, Declines to Endorse Him as Leader
Feingold Criticizes Reid, Declines to Endorse Him as Leader
Discussion:
Gateway Pundit, Think Progress, TPMDC, The Hill, The Daily Caller, Wake up America and TPM LiveWire
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, Matthew Yglesias, Newshoggers.com, Prairie Weather, AMERICAblog Gay, The Mahablog and Joe. My. God.
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 …
RELATED:
Kevin Hechtkopf / CBS News:
Obama's Approval Rating Dips to New Low
Obama's Approval Rating Dips to New Low
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Left Coast Rebel, Commentary, Outside The Beltway, Scared Monkeys, Washington Monthly, The Page, Coop's Corner, Mouth of the Potomac, Hot Air, The Confluence, Wake up America, Dan_Perrin's blog, Gateway Pundit, Flopping Aces, Pollster.com All Content and Conservatives4Palin.com
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 and The Daily Caller
RELATED:
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.
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 …
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:
Neptunus Lex
RELATED:
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
RELATED:
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
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” …
RELATED:
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