memeorandum: Too tough to be a centrist? (Ed Hornick/CNN)

8:25 PM ET, February 15, 2010

Top Items:

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:

Evan Bayh won't seek re-election, Senate majority in play? — Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh will not seek re-election this year, he announce Monday, a decision that hands Republicans a prime pickup opportunity in the middle of the country. — “After all these years, my passion for service …

Rich V. / The Vail Spot:

Senator Mikulski of Maryland to Retire — I've just heard from an impeccable source that Barbara Mikulski, the Democratic Senator who is up for reelection this November, will choose to retire. Mrs. Mikulski is expected to make her formal announcement in the next few days.

Discussion: National Review Online, DownWithTyranny!, Open Left and The Lonely Conservative

Charles Lane / PostPartisan:

Bayh to Obama: take this job and shove it — Millions of Americans long to tell their bosses “take this job and shove it.” Hardly any have the power and money to do so, especially in these recessionary times. Sen. Evan Bayh (D) of Indiana, however, is the exception.

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, MyDD, Althouse, Eunomia, Blue Crab Boulevard, Lawyers, Guns and Money and Ruby Slippers

Eric Zimmermann / The Hill:

Bayh to retire in huge blow to Dems — Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) will announce this afternoon that he will not seek re-election in 2010. — The news is a big loss for Democrats, opening up a very competitive seat in what's shaping up to be a tough cycle for Democrats.

Discussion: CNN, ABCNEWS, Ben Smith's Blog, Blue Indiana, Moonbattery, The Washington Independent, The Swamp, USA Today, The Moderate Voice, Gawker and NPR Blogs

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:

WHAT BAYH IS THINKING.... Sen. Evan Bayh's (D-Ind.) retirement is a shocker, leading many to wonder what on earth a popular incumbent with plenty of money and a big lead in the polls is thinking. Bayh alluded to his frustrations on the Hill as part of his rationale.

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, Firedoglake, The Impolitic, Democratic Strategist, PostPartisan and Ben Smith's Blog

ABCNEWS:

Evan Bayh Disses Washington on Way Out — Two-term Senator from Indiana Says He Will Not Seek Re-election, Pans Partisanship in U.S. Congress — Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh announced today that will not seek a third term — a huge blow to Democrats and an opportunity for Republicans to pick up another Senate seat in 2010.

Discussion: The Politico, CNN, Wizbang, Blogcritics, Mediaite, The Note, Truthdig and Wonkette

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

Thoughts on Bayh — I can't believe I'm saying this but I really think Republicans have a chance to win back the Senate this fall now. — Let's be realistic- there was a Rasmussen view of Indiana that showed Evan Bayh down to Mike Pence and barely up on John Hostettler and a Research 2000 view that showed him safe for reelection.

Discussion: The Corner on National …, CNN, msnbc.com, Hot Air and The Washington Independent

Jonathan Martin / The Politico:

Challenger adds to post-Bayh chaos — A Bloomington, Ind., restaurant owner who had been running an obscure and uphill challenge against Sen. Evan Bayh for the Democratic nomination claimed Monday that she's just 1,000 signatures short of qualifying for the ballot.

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog, Washington Examiner, CNN, Hot Air and The Washington Independent

Hotline On Call:

Explaining The IN Filing Process — Sen. Evan Bayh's (D-IN) decision to retire has sent Dems scrambling to figure out who will carry the party's standard — and how to go about getting that person on the ballot in the first place. — Candidates running for statewide office …

Discussion: TPMDC, Firedoglake, The Plum Line, Commentary, Open Left, Daily Kos and Riehl World View

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Is Bayh Running for President

Discussion: Lean Left

Ed Hornick / CNN: Too tough to be a centrist?

Reid Wilson / Hotline On Call:
Bayh To Retire In Face Of Challenge

Discussion: AmSpecBlog, The Politico, The Huffington Post, Michelle Malkin, Firedoglake, Swing State Project and The Political Carnival

David Dayen / Firedoglake:
Senate Candidate Tamyra D'Ippolito: “Politics in Indiana is the Old Boy's School.”

Discussion: RedState, Open Left, Angry Bear, The Moderate Voice and The Washington Independent

Eric Kleefeld / TPMDC:
Another Dem Already In Race For Bayh's Seat …

Discussion: Guardian, Swing State Project, RedState and Talking Points Memo

Jim Geraghty / National Review Online:
Evan Bayh to Retire... The Deluge Continues — By: Jim Geraghty

Discussion: The Washington Independent, Wizbang and Betsy's Page

Peter Wehner / Commentary:
Barack Millstone Obama

Discussion: The New Republic

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Evan Bayh — Obviously, Evan Bayh's never been my favorite Senator.

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

The Caucus:
Bayh Decides Against Re-election Bid

Discussion: msnbc.com, New York Magazine, Think Progress, The Reality-Based Community, Newsweek Blogs, Balkinization, Prairie Weather, CANNONFIRE and The Political Carnival

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
Bayh, Relative to His State, Was Valuable to Democrats

Discussion: The Daily Dish

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Holy Crap — Evan Bayh will announce today he's retiring from Congress.

Discussion: TPMDC, The Page and MyDD

The Cook Political Report:
2010 SENATE RACE RATINGS

Discussion: RedState

Ezra Klein:

Democrats released a compromise health-care reform proposal — On Friday, I posted about the guest list for the White House's health-care summit, but I missed the big news in the accompanying invitation (mostly because I didn't notice that there was an accompanying invitation). Here's the money bit:

Discussion: The New Republic, Hit & Run, Democratic Strategist, TalkLeft, Daily Kos, SpeakEasy, DISSENTING JUSTICE, Washington Monthly, Bob Cesca's Awesome Blog!, Grasping Reality … and The Reality-Based Community

Chris Bowers / Open Left:

GOP demands White House post health care proposal online, then attacks WH for doing exactly that — Here is one from the “negotiating in good faith” files. — On February 8th, Republican House leader John Beohner sent a letter to the White House, demanding that the White House post online …

Discussion: TPMDC, The Moderate Voice, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, thedanashow.wordpress.com and Daily Kos

Michael D. Shear / Washington Post:
White House revamps communications strategy

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Times, The Corner on National …, The Plum Line, Hot Air, Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler, JustOneMinute, GayPatriot, The Caucus, protein wisdom, Dennis the Peasant, NewsReal Blog, And So it Goes in Shreveport and The Hill

Josh Gerstein / The Politico:
Graham: W.H. mulls indefinite detention

Discussion: TalkLeft and Emptywheel

Carol E. Lee / The Politico:

Senator: VP comments ‘insulting’ — Joe Biden shakes hands with Scott Brown. AP — Sen. Scott Brown thinks Vice President Joe Biden was “off base” when he suggested Sunday that the Massachusetts Republican get his facts straight on the legal procedures for military tribunals.

Discussion: Josh Gerstein's Blog, The Lonely Conservative, JammieWearingFool and Sister Toldjah

Washington Post:

Series of missteps by climate scientists threatens climate-change agenda — With its 2007 report declaring that the “warming of the climate system is unequivocal,” the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change won a Nobel Prize — and a new degree of public trust in the controversial science of global warming.

Discussion: Hot Air, AMERICAN DIGEST, The Moderate Voice, Times of London, The Strata-Sphere, JustOneMinute, FP Passport, dallasmorningviewsblog …, NewsBusters.org, The Anchoress, Walter Russell Mead's Blog and Fausta's Blog

RealClimate:
IPCC errors: facts and spin

Discussion: Little Green Footballs and The New Republic

Heidi Blake / Telegraph:
UN global warming data skewed by heat from planes and buildings

Discussion: Jay Currie

Boston Herald:

‘Oddball’ protrait emerges — Suspect's family, pals offer clues — As authorities searched for clues into what could have sent a University of Alabama neurobiology professor on an alleged killing spree, friends and family yesterday described Braintree native Amy Bishop as an awkward introvert …

Discussion: New York Times, Michelle Malkin, theblogprof, PoliBlog, Jules Crittenden, Don Surber, No More Mister Nice Blog and POWIP

Boston Herald:
Quincy man recalls Amy Bishop holdup

Discussion: American Power, ABCNEWS, TPMMuckraker, Jules Crittenden, The Confluence, Gateway Pundit and Breaking News …

Andrea Adelson / Sun-Sentinel:

Sarah Palin Mania takes over Daytona — DAYTONA BEACH - Palin-mania easily surpassed Danica-mania at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday. — While Patrick got all the headlines for the better part of two weeks, she had no stake in the Daytona 500. Palin did, and as a VIP guest for the race, she ate up all the attention.

Discussion: Conservatives4Palin.com and Gateway Pundit

New York Times:

Corrections — EDITORS' NOTE — In a number of business articles in The Times over the past year, and in posts on the DealBook blog on NYTimes.com, a Times reporter appears to have improperly appropriated wording and passages published by other news organizations.

Discussion: New York Magazine, The Huffington Post, Don Surber, Gawker, Silicon Alley Insider and TPM LiveWire