Top Items:
Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
THE TALKS THAT MAY SAVE HEALTH CARE REFORM.... Over the last few days, it's become increasingly evident that congressional Democrats aren't sure how, when, or whether to move forward on health care reform. There is an obvious course that would deliver an extraordinary victory …
Discussion:
Riehl World View, The Mahablog, No More Mister Nice Blog, Bob Cesca's Awesome Blog! and PostPartisan
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Chris Cillizza / The Fix:
Plouffe stepping up role as adviser to White House — David Plouffe, the man who managed President Barack Obama's campaign, will be taking on an expanded role as an outside adviser to the White House, according to sources familiar with the plan, a move that comes just days after a stunning defeat …
New York Times:
Obama Calls Team From 2008 for Races in Fall — WASHINGTON — President Obama is reconstituting the team that helped him win the White House to counter Republican challenges in the midterm elections and recalibrate after political setbacks that have narrowed his legislative ambitions.
Chris Frates / The Politico:
Reid, Pelosi work to save reform — Struggling to salvage health reform, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have begun considering a list of changes to the Senate bill in hopes of making it acceptable to liberal House members, according to sources familiar with the situation.
Discussion:
Another Black Conservative, Joust The Facts, The Page, Paul Krugman and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
Brian Beutler / TPMDC:
Sherrod Brown: Still No Health Care Reform Strategy
Sherrod Brown: Still No Health Care Reform Strategy
Discussion:
The Confluence, Taylor Marsh, Firedoglake, Bob Cesca's Awesome Blog!, The Plum Line and TPM LiveWire
Ian Urbina / New York Times:
24 States' Laws Open to Attack After Campaign Finance Ruling — In Wisconsin, conservative and pro-business groups said Friday that they were considering a lawsuit to block a proposed law that would ban corporate spending during political campaigns. — In Kentucky and Colorado …
Discussion:
Rethink Afghanistan War Blog, Eye on 2010, Law Review, Prairie Weather, Opinionator, The Reaction, The Caucus and News Desk
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Lydia Saad / Gallup:
Public Agrees With Court: Campaign Money Is “Free Speech”
Public Agrees With Court: Campaign Money Is “Free Speech”
Discussion:
Wake up America, Outside The Beltway, Gateway Pundit, The Politico, Top of the Ticket and Politics Daily
Jonathan Dee / New York Times:
Right-Wing Flame War! — Charles Johnson has been writing a blog for almost as long as the word “blog” has existed. A bearish, gentle-voiced, ponytailed man who for three decades enjoyed a successful career as a jazz guitarist accompanying the likes of Al Jarreau and Stanley Clarke …
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Scott / Power Line:
Clearing my spindle — I've been saving a number of items to write about that I want to present for your information without further comment. In one way or another, they are interesting and informative. — The people of Israel display adherence to the commandment to repair the world.
Amanda Lee Myers / Arizona Daily Star:
J.D. Hayworth says he'll run against John McCain — Former Arizona Congressman J.D. Hayworth says he is planning to run against John McCain for his U.S. Senate seat. — Hayworth, a Republican, told The Associated Press late Friday he stepped down as host of his radio program on KFYI-AM, a conservative radio talk show in Phoenix.
Discussion:
The Hill, The Lonely Conservative, Scorecard's Blog, Left Coast Rebel, The Page, Riehl World View, Michelle Malkin and RedState
Jim Geraghty / National Review Online:
Obama's Train Wreck of a Town Hall in Ohio — By: Jim Geraghty — Earlier this week, during a radio interview, I had said that Obama's appearance for Martha Coakley on Sunday was the least effective stump appearances I had seen from a president. A lot of factors contributed to that …
Edward Luce / Financial Times:
White House nightmare persists — At the end of Barack Obama's worst week since taking power a year ago, the US president's fortunes look set only to deteriorate over the coming days. Following the shock defeat of the Democratic candidate in Massachusetts on Tuesday, a move that deprived …
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Jules Crittenden:
More Bitter Ironies — Two great reads from two great Boston newspapers, in the post-Brown election era. — Gray ladies* first. Boston Globe: “Liberal bastions lament the blue fades.” … That's a pretty bitter irony. Sounds like those people need to get out more.
Pat G. / Think Progress:
Bayh Claims 'There's A Fighting Chance' Obama Will Call For A Spending Freeze — In an interview yesterday with Bloomberg's Al Hunt, Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) — who met with members of the administration's economic team this week — said that he believes there's a “fighting chance” …
Simon Johnson / The Baseline Scenario:
Paul Krugman For The Fed — The case for Ben Bernanke's reappointment was weak to start with, weakened with his hearings, and is now held together by string and some phone calls from the White House. Bernanke is an airline pilot who pulled off a miraculous landing, but didn't do his preflight checks …
Nicole Belle / Crooks and Liars:
Et Tu, Fox News Channel? — It's a horrible, unspeakable tragedy that gets you right in the core of your humanity. The poorest country in the Western Hemisphere is flattened by a huge earthquake. Hundreds of thousands killed, thousands of children orphaned, more than 1.5 million now homeless.
New York Times:
China Rebuffs Clinton on Internet Warning — WASHINGTON — Tensions between China and the United States over Internet policy deepened Friday, with the Chinese government accusing Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton of jeopardizing relations between the two countries with her criticism of Chinese censorship.
Discussion:
Swampland, opinion.globaltimes.cn, Forbes, ParaPundit, Wall Street Journal and China Digital Times
Washington Post:
Did the Obama administration blow an opportunity in the Flight 253 case? — UMAR FAROUK Abdulmutallab was nabbed in Detroit on board Northwest Flight 253 after trying unsuccessfully to ignite explosives sewn into his underwear. The Obama administration had three options: It could charge him in federal court.
Discussion:
The Politico, Commentary, Hot Air, The Corner on National … and Crime and Consequences Blog