memeorandum: In California, Exhibit A in Debate on Insurance (Kevin Sack/New York Times)

1:55 PM ET, February 16, 2010

Top Items:

IN Dem Misses The Deadline — Restaurant owner Tamyra d'Ippolito (D) has enough signatures to make the ballot in the race to replace Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN), she told Hotline OnCall in a brief interview, but an official in a key district says she has failed to reach the threshold.

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog, TPMDC, Hot Air, Liberal Values, Swing State Project, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Washington Independent

The Huffington Post:

Evan Bayh's Retirement Leaves Democrats Scarred And Demanding Aggression — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — Senator Evan Bayh's abrupt announcement on Monday that he will retire at the end of his term has further united disparate voices within the Democratic Party behind the idea that legislative action …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Time, SpeakEasy, The Hill, Commentary, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and AMERICAblog News

ABCNEWS:

Evan Bayh Blasts ‘Brain-Dead Partisanship’ — Indiana Senator Rules Out 2012 Presidential Run, Mum on 2016 Ambitions — Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh, whose retirement announcement Monday stunned the political world, today assailed partisanship in Congress and said he could achieve much more in the private sector than as a senator.

Discussion: Salon, USA Today, Real Clear Politics, The Caucus, Mediaite, The Moderate Voice, The Page, Donklephant, The Eye and The Politico

Marc Ambinder / The Atlantic Politics Channel:

Democrats Polling For Bayh's Replacement — The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee doesn't have a preferred candidate to replace retiring Sen. Evan Bayh just yet. They're in the field with a poll, right now, testing Democrats against likely Republican nominee Dan Coats.

Discussion: FiveThirtyEight, Emptywheel and Eschaton

Gautham Nagesh / The Daily Caller:
Democratic Indiana candidate says White House secretly backing Baron Hill

Discussion: Althouse, The Washington Independent and Open Left

Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:
Indiana Dem: White House is conspiring to put Baron Hill in Bayh's spot

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog, Gateway Pundit, protein wisdom, The Eye and Riehl World View

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Would-Be Dem Replacement For Bayh: The “Machine” Is Out To Get Me!

Discussion: TPMDC, Talking Points Memo, Ben Smith's Blog and Open Left

Eric Kleefeld / TPMDC:
D'Ippolito: I Have Enough Signatures To Get On The Ballot For IN-SEN Dem Primary

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Firedoglake, RedState, Lynn Sweet and The Political Carnival

Erick Erickson / Erick's blog:
Let's help Tamyra D'Ippolito get the 500 votes she needs

Discussion: Real Clear Politics, TPMDC, Ben Smith's Blog, The Washington Independent, Hot Air, Washington Examiner and Firedoglake

New York Times:

Secret Joint Raid Captures Taliban's Top Commander — WASHINGTON — The Taliban's top military commander was captured several days ago in Karachi, Pakistan, in a secret joint operation by Pakistani and American intelligence forces, according to American government officials.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Washington Monthly, The Daily Dish, Associated Press, Informed Comment, Michael Calderone's Blog, Registan.net, democracyarsenal.org, The Long War Journal, The Washington Independent, Michelle Malkin, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, And So it Goes in Shreveport, ABCNEWS, NPR Blogs, Danger Room, Raw Story, Sister Toldjah, Neptunus Lex, Guardian, Betsy's Page, Another Black Conservative, Shakesville, Financial Times, Politics Daily, Scared Monkeys, GayPatriot, Prairie Weather, Daily Kos, MyDD, The Majlis, News Hounds, The Daily Beast, No More Mister Nice Blog, PoliBlog, TigerHawk, Wall Street Journal, Flopping Aces, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Corner on National …, Power Line, The Vail Spot, The Moderate Voice, FP Passport, Political Punch, JustOneMinute, Hot Air, Enduring America, Outside The Beltway, AMERICAblog News, RedState and Taylor Marsh

Spencer Ackerman / ATTACKERMAN:
It's Extremely Important We Don't Torture Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Washington Monthly, democracyarsenal.org, Guardian, DaTechguy's Blog and Wonkette

Rod Nordland / New York Times:
Fighting Slows in Afghan Offensive, Allies Say

Discussion: Washington Post, Danger Room, ATTACKERMAN, The Majlis and Guardian

David Barstow / New York Times:

Tea Party Lights Fuse for Rebellion on Right — SANDPOINT, Idaho — Pam Stout has not always lived in fear of her government. She remembers her years working in federal housing programs, watching government lift struggling families with job training and education.

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, The Moderate Voice, The Mahablog, Hullabaloo, No More Mister Nice Blog, Firedoglake, Think Progress, DailyHowler.com, Right Wing Watch, The Reaction, Gawker, Prairie Weather, First Draft, Los Angeles Times, SONICFROG DOT NET and The Eye

Philip Rucker / Washington Post:

Tea party leaders will meet with Steele and other Republican operatives — About 50 leaders of the grass-roots “tea party” movement will meet in Washington on Tuesday with Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele and other top GOP operatives to discuss campaign strategies and conservative principles.

Discussion: The Atlantic Politics Channel, The Note, Politics Daily, Hotline On Call, Riehl World View, The Page and msnbc.com

Domenico Montanaro / msnbc.com:
FIRST THOUGHTS: BYE, BAYH

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, pa2010.com, Guardian, Shot in the Dark, The Fix, The Caucus, Democratic Strategist and Taegan Goddard's …

Scott Horton / Harper's:

Does Dick Cheney Want to Be Prosecuted? — After he was indicted for the murder of Alexander Hamilton, vice president Aaron Burr fled to South Carolina, to hide out with his daughter. Another vice president, Spiro Agnew, kept completely silent before pleading nolo contendere on corruption charges.

Discussion: Salon, TalkLeft and ABCNEWS

Susie Madrak / Crooks and Liars:

Maybe Eric Holder Should Pay Attention To Dick Cheney's Boasts — Yoo hoo, Mr. Holder! Gee, after reading this post by Scott Horton, it seems like Dick Cheney is just asking to be prosecuted - why not give him what he wants?

Joseph Curl / Washington Times:

Sens. seek Obama boost on campaign trail — GOP hopes to see him on stump — President Obama kicks off what might be called his “Save the Senate” tour this week, heading west to campaign for two embattled Democrats trailing badly against Republican challengers - including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada.

Discussion: The Politico, AmSpecBlog, QandO, The Lonely Conservative, GayPatriot and USA Today

David Catanese / The Politico:
Five ways to lose the Senate majority

Discussion: Don Surber, Scared Monkeys and Blogcritics

Andrew Malcolm / Top of the Ticket:
New poll: Now, signs of real vulnerability for California's Democratic …

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, GayPatriot, The Confluence, Commentary, Daily Kos, Another Black Conservative, The Sundries Shack, Don Surber, Wizbang and Weasel Zippers

Jane Taber / The Globe and Mail:

Romney threatened on flight out of Vancouver — Republican politician Mitt Romney was physically threatened by a violent passenger on an Air Canada flight leaving Vancouver this morning. — Mr. Romney, who has been in Vancouver since Friday for the Olympic Winter Games, did not respond to the attack.

Discussion: CBS News, New York Magazine, Left Coast Rebel, Talking Points Memo, Michelle Malkin, Gateway Pundit and TPMDC

Jake Gibson / Fox News:
Romney Assaulted on Flight Leaving Olympics

Discussion: Indecision Forever and NewsReal Blog

CNN:

CNN Poll: Anti-incumbent fever at record high — Washington (CNN) - Only a third of U.S. voters think that most members of Congress deserve to be re-elected this year, according to a new national poll. That's the lowest number ever recorded for that question in a CNN survey.

Discussion: New York Times and msnbc.com

Jeffrey Young / The Hill:
Most Americans think Congress should start over on healthcare reform, poll says

Discussion: AmSpecBlog

Domenico Montanaro / msnbc.com:

Oh, Canada for HRC if Pres. Palin? — From NBC's Courtney KubeSecretary of State Hillary Clinton could not escape U.S. politics during her trip to Saudi Arabia. Early this morning during a town hall meeting with students at Dar Al Hekma College, a student asked Clinton if she thinks Sarah Palin …

Discussion: CBS News and Real Clear Politics

New York Times:
As Clinton Presses Allies, Sharp Words Traded With Iran

Discussion: niacINsight and The Majlis

Jim Hoft / Gateway Pundit:

FAIL... Just 6% of Americans Believe Obama's $787 Billion Stimulus Created Jobs — In December the Obama Administration announced they had “saved or created” 1.1 million jobs. — In January the Obama Administration announced they had “saved or created” 2 million jobs.

Discussion: Hot Air, The Atlantic Politics Channel, Another Black Conservative, The Hill, Outside The Beltway, Scared Monkeys and protein wisdom

Andrew Orlowski / The Register:

Now IPCC hurricane data is questioned — Open science: Got Excel? Debunk this — More trouble looms for the IPCC. The body may need to revise statements made in its Fourth Assessment Report on hurricanes and global warming. A statistical analysis of the raw data shows that the claims …

Discussion: Mudville Gazette, theblogprof, Hot Air, The Strata-Sphere, Gateway Pundit, EU Referendum, Orange County Register, Weasel Zippers, YID With LID, GayPatriot and Nice Deb

Michael Calderone / Michael Calderone's Blog:

Milbank writing Beck book: ‘Tears of a Clown’ — Dana Milbank recently wrote how a Fox News star has really “captured the moment,” before posing the question: “Is Glenn Beck America?” — Milbank, who only had about 750 words to tackle that question in his Washington Post column …

Discussion: Raw Story, Mediaite, Gawker and Romenesko

Keith Olbermann / msnbc.com:

Beware fear's racist temptation — Don't blame your fear of the future on Obama's skin color — SPECIAL COMMENT — Finally tonight, as promised, a Special Comment on this Presidents' Day celebrating George Washington, and the Founding Fathers he represents and Abraham Lincoln, and the Emancipation he represents.

Discussion: Left Coast Rebel, The Moderate Voice and Raw Story

Sergio Bendixen / The Huffington Post:

Democrats' Chance to Win in Florida in 2010 — Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart's announcement on Thursday that he would not seek re-election this November set off one of the rarest games of musical chairs in American politics. Within minutes of Diaz-Balart's announcement, his brother …

Discussion: Washington Wire

Kevin Sack / New York Times:

In California, Exhibit A in Debate on Insurance — LOS ANGELES — When Bernhard Punzet opened the dreaded envelope from Anthem Blue Cross one recent Saturday, it ruined his weekend. — Although he had no known medical problems, the company was raising the premium on his individual health insurance policy …

Discussion: CBS News, The Huffington Post and The Reality-Based Community

Zaid Jilani / Think Progress:

Conservatives suggest cutting Utah's budget deficit by eliminating mandatory 12th grade. — As states around the country face budget crises, “deficit peacocks” continue to demand cutting social spending while ruling out tax increases on those who have benefited immensely from years of conservative policies.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Mish's Global Economic …, Los Angeles Times and The Moderate Voice