Top Items:
Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
SEIU Chief: If Dems Pass Scaled-Down Health Bill, Labor Will Have Trouble Staying “Focused On National Politics” — SEIU chief Andy Stern took a hard shot at Dem leaders just now for considering a scaled-down health care bill, strongly hinting that labor might not work as hard for Dem candidates …
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Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Van Hollen: Senate Bill's Brand May Be Irrevocably Tarnished, So We May Go Reconciliation Instead — In a candid assessment of the politics of health care, DCCC chief Chris Van Hollen said in an interview that the Senate bill's brand may be irrevocably tarnished, particularly among independents …
Discussion:
TPMDC, Firedoglake, Taylor Marsh, Emptywheel, The Page, Talking Points Memo and Ben Smith's Blog
Ezra Klein:
Is it time to break up? — I should say, at the outset, that I'm not a fan of this idea. But there's no denying that breaking the health-care bill into different pieces is receiving serious consideration. Nothing is decided, but according to House aides, there would be at least four bills …
Discussion:
Firedoglake
E.J. Dionne / PostPartisan:
How the Democrats may solve their health-care problem — There is no question that Democrats have looked weak in responding to the Massachusetts election. The notion that they would just shelve health care after all they have put into it — the message they have gotten across …
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Fix, Ezra Klein, Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos, Hullabaloo and TalkLeft
Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Galston: Onward! — Bill Galston, as best I can tell …
Galston: Onward! — Bill Galston, as best I can tell …
Discussion:
The Politico, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Dish, The New Republic and Democratic Strategist
Tim F. / Balloon Juice:
Reminder — Phone your Representative. It feels better …
Reminder — Phone your Representative. It feels better …
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Sadly, No!, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Mother Jones
Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:
In U.S., Majority Favors Suspending Work on Healthcare Bill — Seven in 10 say Massachusetts election result reflects frustrations shared by Americans — PRINCETON, NJ — In the wake of Republican Scott Brown's victory in Tuesday's U.S. Senate election in Massachusetts, the majority of Americans …
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Michael Barone / Washington Examiner:
If Republicans run as strongly as Brown, only 103 House Dems are safe. — Senior Political Analyst — Republican Scott Brown won 52%-47% in Massachusetts, which voted 62%-36% for Barack Obama in 2008. How did he do in each of Massachusetts's 10 congressional districts …
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
Do the Right Thing — A message to House Democrats: This is your moment of truth. You can do the right thing and pass the Senate health care bill. Or you can look for an easy way out, make excuses and fail the test of history. — Tuesday's Republican victory in the Massachusetts special election means …
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Washington Post, Washington Monthly, The Politico, Wall Street Journal, Newsweek Blogs, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Left Coast Rebel, TalkLeft, Firedoglake, The Greenroom, Daily Kos, American Power, Kausfiles, Wonk Room, The Moderate Voice, TPMDC, EconLog, USA Today, Prairie Weather, Calitics, The Plum Line and TPM LiveWire
Keith Olbermann / msnbc.com:
U.S. government for sale — With no limits on campaign financing, corporations will take over the government — SPECIAL COMMENT — Finally tonight, as promised, a Special Comment on the Supreme Court's ruling today in the case titled “Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.”
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, Mediaite, Riehl World View, Media Research Center and skippy the bush kangaroo
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New York Times:
The Court's Blow to Democracy
The Court's Blow to Democracy
Discussion:
Opinionator, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Hit & Run, SCOTUSblog, News Desk, Joust The Facts, DailyHowler.com, Cato @ Liberty, RaceWire, The Caucus, Left in the West, The Politico, The Huffington Post, SEIU, Sunlight Foundation …, Althouse, Neptunus Lex, Outside The Beltway, The Moderate Voice, The BLT, QandO, PoliBlog, Mediaite, The Washington Independent, Big Journalism, USA Today and New York Times
Lawrence Lessig / The Huffington Post:
Institutional Integrity: Citizens United and the Path to a Better Democracy
Institutional Integrity: Citizens United and the Path to a Better Democracy
Ben Craw / TPM LiveWire:
Getting It Done: The Year In Obama-Led Health Care Reform (VIDEO) — Well folks, it's been one year since President Barack Obama took office. And he spent a lot of that year working on health care reform. — But with the future of reform uncertain at best in the wake of the special election …
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Sabrina Eaton / Plain Dealer:
Obama has suspicious number of letter-writing fans named ‘Ellie Light’ — Ellie Light sure gets around. — In recent weeks, Light has published virtually identical “Letters to the Editor” in support of President Barack Obama in more than a dozen newspapers.Every letter claimed …
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BBC:
UK terror threat level ‘severe’ — The UK terror threat level is being raised from “substantial” to “severe”, the Home Office has said. — The new alert level means a terrorist attack is considered “highly likely”. It had stood at substantial since July.
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NECN:
Ayla Brown acknowledges it: She voted for Kerry — (NECN: Boston) - Her father is the talk of Washington Republicans, but Ayla Brown says she has an independent streak - and a voting record to prove it. In an interview with Beth Shelburne of New England Cable News Friday, Ayla Brown …
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USA Today
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Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
2012 Presidential Poll — For the first time in one of our monthly polls looking ahead to the 2012 Presidential election Barack Obama trails one of his hypothetical opponents, albeit by the smallest of margins. — Mike Huckabee has a 45-44 advantage over Obama, aided largely by a 44-38 lead with independents.
J. Taylor Rushing / The Hill:
Filibuster reform bill headed for Senate floor, faces uphill battle — Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) intends to introduce legislation that would take away the minority's power to filibuster legislation. — Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) intends in the next few weeks to introduce legislation …
Heidi Przybyla / Bloomberg:
Obama Seen as Anti-Business by 77% of U.S. Investors — Buzz up! — Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) — U.S. investors overwhelmingly see President Barack Obama as anti-business and question his ability to manage a financial crisis, according to a Bloomberg survey. — The global quarterly poll …
RealClearPolitics Video Log:
Jon Stewart Mocks Keith Olbermann Over Scott Brown Attacks — Jon Stewart mocks Keith Olbermann for his attacks on Scott Brown and other conservatives, including Rush Limbaugh and Michelle Malkin. — To comment on this video or click the “Comments” link below.
Elise Hu / The Texas Tribune:
No Love Lost — At 9:45 this morning, George H.W. Bush will open up his West Houston home to the press to make what is, for the octogenarian former president, a rare overtly political announcement: In the intra-Republican party fight for Texas governor, 41 has chosen U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison over Gov. Rick Perry.
Sahil Kapur / The Raw Story:
NOW: ‘Kill the Senate health bill entirely’ — Share on Facebook Stumble This! — Group laments ‘fierce anti-abortion language,’ cites ‘male-dominated’ Democratic Party in Coakley loss — WASHINGTON — As Democrats weigh options for health reform following a major setback …
Erin McPike / Hotline On Call:
Boozman Making Calls For Senate Bid — For Rep. John Boozman (R-AR), consideration of a bid against Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D) is anything but idle. — Boozman has begun calling other GOP candidates in the race to gauge whether they would stay in the contest if he made a late entry, according to a top aide.
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Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
Senate Rankings: Post-Masspocalypse Edition — We are transitioning, a little earlier than I'd planned, into a more or less fully automated version of our Senate race rankings. From now until November, our rankings will be based entirely on polling and other objective variables …
Jeremy Page / Times of London:
UN climate change expert: there could be more errors in report — The Indian head of the UN climate change panel defended his position yesterday even as further errors were identified in the panel's assessment of Himalayan glaciers. — Dr Rajendra Pachauri dismissed calls for him to resign …
Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
Now Fight! — The seismic events of the last few days ends, in some respects, the phony war of the first year of Obama's presidency. As is the case in truly fracturing democracies, the opposition simply does not and cannot accept the fact that it is out of power.
Discussion:
The Reality-Based Community
Sewell Chan / New York Times:
Opposition Grows Against Second Term for Bernanke — The confirmation of Ben S. Bernanke to a second four-year term as chairman of the Federal Reserve ran into further trouble on Friday as two more Democratic senators said they would vote against him. — The White House came to Mr. Bernanke's defense …
ABCNEWS:
Alert: Female Suicide Bombers May Be Heading Here from Yemen — U.S. Agents Told Women Believed Connected to al Qaeda, May Have Western Appearance and Passports — American law enforcement officials have been told to be on the lookout for female suicide bombers who may attempt to enter the United States …