Top Items:
Michael Gerson / Washington Post:
Obama's health reform gamble raises questions of judgment — On health-care reform, the strategy of President Obama and Democratic congressional leaders is psychologically understandable — as well as delusional. — It is easy to imagine the internal dialogue: “Well, they voted for me, overwhelmingly.
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Ben Pershing / Washington Post:
Senate passes $15 billion jobs bill on bipartisan vote — The Senate easily passed a $15 billion jobs bill on Wednesday morning amid hope that the measure could provide a blueprint for other items on President Obama's agenda. — The measure passed 70 to 28, with 13 Republicans joining 57 Democrats in support of the package.
Carrie Budoff Brown / The Politico:
Conrad: Reform “dead” unless House passes Senate bill first — If congressional Democrats decide to pass fixes to the Senate health care bill through reconciliation, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) is one of the most important people to bring on board with the plan.
Ezra Klein:
The Fox News/David Brooks tag team — Jon Chait points out an important dynamic here: … To make a related point, this is one of those legislative problems that ending the filibuster won't fix. Neither party is really able to vote for the other party's major initiatives.
Ruth Marcus / Washington Post:
Obama's continued audaciousness on health reform could backfire — The White House description of President Obama's health-care proposal as his “opening bid” raises the question: With whom is he bidding? The public dance is with Republicans, but this is hardly serious.
Mike Allen / The Politico:
Exclusive: W.H. privately plots 2012 campaign run — President Barack Obama's top advisers are quietly laying the groundwork for the 2012 reelection campaign, which is likely to be run out of Chicago and managed by White House deputy chief of staff Jim Messina, according to Democrats familiar with the discussions.
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James Wolcott / Vanity Fair:
The Lunatics Have Taken Over the Salon — Vanity Fair colleague Michael Wolff, though not a licensed clinician or chiropodist, renders what seems to me an inarguable diagnosis of the current conservative condition, i.e., they've gone loco: — Having whipped themselves into dishrag fatigue …
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Gawker:
Which Enraged Scott Brown Facebook Fan Comment Is Your Favorite?
Which Enraged Scott Brown Facebook Fan Comment Is Your Favorite?
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, Guardian, DISSENTING JUSTICE, Mediaite, skippy the bush kangaroo and Wonkette
Gail Russell Chaddock / Christian Science Monitor:
With jobs bill, Democrats' new strategy: piecemeal legislation
With jobs bill, Democrats' new strategy: piecemeal legislation
Discussion:
Firedoglake, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, National Journal Online, Washington Post and Wonk Room
John Yoo / Wall Street Journal:
My Gift to the Obama Presidency — Though the White House won't want to admit it, Bush lawyers were protecting the executive's power to fight a vigorous war on terror. — Barack Obama may not realize it, but I may have just helped save his presidency. How?
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Buford T Justice / Breitbart.tv:
OBAMA & DEMS IN ‘05: 51 VOTE ‘NUCLEAR OPTION’ IS ‘ARROGANT’ POWER GRAB AGAINST THE FOUNDERS’ INTENT — Biden: “I pray God when the Democrats take back control we don't make the kind of naked power grab you are doing.”
Zaid Jilani / Think Progress:
Miss Beverly Hills tries to one-up Carrie Prejean, says it's divine law that gays be put to death. — Last year, Miss California Carrie Prejean endeared herself to the right wing when she answered a question about same-sex marriage by saying that she believes marriage “should be between a man and a woman.”
Discussion:
Fox News, Lean Left, Towleroad News #gay, Feministing, Pam's House Blend and New York Magazine
Andy Barr / The Politico:
Top Palin aide resigns — Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's senior adviser and spokeswoman Meghan Stapleton has resigned, POLITICO has learned. — Stapleton has been a Palin confidant since December 2006 and one of the governor's most trusted aides since she was vaulted onto …
Tom Maguire / JustOneMinute:
One Of Obama's Great Achievements May Be Unraveling — Was it only two weeks ago that Joe Biden explained that Iraq was on track to become “one of the great achievements” of the Obama Administration? Now Thomas Ricks, author of “Fiasco” and “The Gamble”, warns us of the fragile stability …
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CNN:
Contractors outnumber full-time workers at DHS; lawmakers ‘astounded’ — Sens. Joseph Lieberman and Susan Collins call the hiring situation at the Department of Homeland Security ‘unacceptable.’. — Washington (CNN) - The Department of Homeland Security has more contractors working …
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Chairman Ben S. Bernanke / Board of Governors …:
Testimony — Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress — Before the Committee on Financial Services, U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. — Chairman Frank, Ranking Member Bachus, and other members of the Committee, I am pleased to present the Federal Reserve's …
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Catherine Philp / Times of London:
US diplomats add a moat to their expenses at $1bn London embassy — The United States has unveiled plans for its new $1 billion high-security embassy in London — the most expensive it has ever built. — The proposals were met with relief from both the present embassy's Mayfair neighbours …
Igor / Think Progress:
REPORT: WellPoint Raising Premium Rates By Double Digits In At Least 11 States — If Democrats move to pass health care reform after tomorrow's summit, their newfound momentum can be at least partly attributed to WellPoint's decision to drastically increase premiums in California's individual health insurance market.
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Patrick O'Connor / The Politico:
Boehner makes his summit picks, awaiting word whether he can bring a governor — House Minority Leader John Boehner is ready with four fellow Republicans to join his delegation at Blair House on Thursday for the president's health care summit, but first he wants to hear from the White House about whether he can include a governor.
Discussion:
CNN
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CNN:
Poll: Americans place blame for partisanship — Washington (CNN) — Two-thirds of Americans think that the Republicans in Congress are not doing enough to cooperate with President Obama, according to a new national poll. — But a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey, released Wednesday …
Matt Sucherman / The Official Google Blog:
Serious threat to the web in Italy — In late 2006, students at a school in Turin, Italy filmed and then uploaded a video to Google Video that showed them bullying an autistic schoolmate. The video was totally reprehensible and we took it down within hours of being notified by the Italian police.
Discussion:
Guardian, BBC, Cato @ Liberty, BuzzMachine, Engadget, ReadWriteWeb, Mashable!, NewTeeVee, TechCrunch and Gawker
James Hider / Times of London:
Son of Hamas founder spied for Israel for more than a decade — The son of one of Hamas's founding members was a spy in the service of Israel for more than a decade, helping prevent dozens of Islamist suicide bombers from finding their targets, it emerged today.
R. H. Potfry / The Nose On Your Face:
Harry Reid Launches New “Vote For Me Or The Wife Gets It” Campaign — Just hours after revealing that unemployed men in Nevada “tend to be abusive” toward their wives and facing the prospect of joblessness himself with an election this fall, Harry Reid has launched a bold new …
Julie Rovner / NPR:
Health Care No Stranger To Reconciliation Process … text sizeAAA — To reconcile or not to reconcile — when it comes to a health overhaul bill, that seems to be the biggest argument of the moment. — At issue is a process called budget reconciliation.
Alexander Burns / The Politico:
Bush: Crist ‘unforgivable’ on stimulus support — Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush made his strongest statement to date on the Republican Senate primary unfolding in his state, telling the conservative publication NewsMax in an on-camera interview that he considers Gov. Charlie Crist's support for last year's stimulus bill “unforgivable.”
Discussion:
Politics Daily