Top Items:
Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Robert Gibbs: Public Option Via Reconciliation Can't Pass Congress — Hmm. At the press briefing just now, Robert Gibbs made the White House's most expansive comments yet about the push for a reconciliation vote on the public option — and, to put it mildly, supporters won't find them encouraging.
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Carrie Budoff Brown / The Politico:
Senate Dems warm to reconciliation — An idea that seemed toxic only weeks ago — using a parliamentary tactic to ram health reform through the Senate — is gaining acceptance among moderate Democrats who have resisted the strategy but now say GOP opposition may force their hands.
Discussion:
CentristNet
Christina Bellantoni / TPMDC:
From Nearly Dead To Nearly Done: How The White House Refocused On Health Care To Finish It Off — Congressional Democrats say Thursday's health care summit is likely to clear final hurdles to passing health care reform - and say President Obama returning to the issue with a clear focus …
Erica Werner / Associated Press:
Hoyer: Comprehensive health bill may be no go
Hoyer: Comprehensive health bill may be no go
Discussion:
NO QUARTER, About.com US Liberal Politics, Commentary, Dennis the Peasant, Hot Air, Bloomberg and The Hill
Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:
Gentle White House Nudges Test the Power of Persuasion
Gentle White House Nudges Test the Power of Persuasion
Discussion:
The Page
The Huffington Post:
Gibbs: The Public Plan Doesn't Have The Votes
Gibbs: The Public Plan Doesn't Have The Votes
Discussion:
Open Left, NY Daily News Blogs, TPMDC, Wonk Room, Firedoglake, Hullabaloo, The Politico, Politics Daily, TalkLeft, Raw Story, Ezra Klein, AMERICAblog News, Taylor Marsh and Margin of Error
Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
Stupak: ‘Unacceptable’
Stupak: ‘Unacceptable’
Discussion:
Dennis the Peasant, TalkLeft, CNN, Firedoglake, CentristNet, The Hill and Lawyers, Guns and Money
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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Michelle Malkin:
The old “coconut” smear: Another white liberal bigmouth with race issues — A few readers asked me why I hadn't commented on MSNBC's latest attack on the Tea Party as RAAAAACIST. Been there, done that. Over and over and over again. (The Dallas Tea Party posted an excellent rejoinder video here.)
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Scott Whitlock / NewsBusters.org:
MSNBC Regular Donny Deutsch Slams Marco Rubio With Racially Charged Attack: He's a ‘Coconut’ — MSNBC and CNBC contributor — and professed Charlie Crist admirer — Donny Deutsch used racially charged language on Monday night, smearing Republican senatorial candidate Marco Rubio as a “coconut.”
RushLimbaugh.com:
Thoughts on Mitt Romney, Scott Brown and the State of the GOP — BEGIN TRANSCRIPT — RUSH: To the phones. We go to Chicago. This is Ed. Nice to have you with us, sir, hello. — CALLER: Hi how you doing, Rush? — RUSH: Very well thank you. — CALLER: I just called to make a quick comment about Glenn Beck.
Discussion:
Hotline On Call
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Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
‘Suicide Tuesday’: Limbaugh blasts Romney — Rush Limbaugh today opened up on Scott Brown for his deviation from the party line and on Mitt Romney for the former Governor's endorsement of John McCain. — Limbaugh attacked Romney at some length, returning to the subject through his show. One riff:
Washington Post:
Wall Street shifting political contributions to Republicans — Commercial banks and high-flying investment firms have shifted their political contributions toward Republicans in recent months amid harsh rhetoric from Democrats about fat bank profits, generous bonuses and stingy lending policies on Wall Street.
Discussion:
The Confluence
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Molly Hooper / The Hill:
Boehner: GOP will ‘crash’ WH ‘infomercial’ on healthcare reform
Boehner: GOP will ‘crash’ WH ‘infomercial’ on healthcare reform
Discussion:
The Politico, Think Progress, Rumproast, Firedoglake, Newsweek Blogs, The Hill, Hot Air and The Political Carnival
Andy Sullivan / Reuters:
US stimulus added up to 2.1 mln jobs in Q4 2009-CBO — * It lowered jobless rate by up to 2.1 pct (Adds detail, background) — The massive stimulus package passed last year to blunt the impact of the worst U.S. recession in 70 years created up to 2.1 million jobs in the last three months of 2009 …
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Douglas Elmendorf / Director's Blog:
Estimated Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act …
Estimated Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act …
Matt Pressman / Vanity Fair:
Hate Sells: Why Liberal Magazines Are Suffering Under Obama — The George W. Bush years were good for more than just oilfield-services companies and waterboard manufacturers. They were also a boon for liberal political magazines, whose circulation soared on the wings of the Bush hatred that swept much of the country.
Mark Steyn / The Corner on National Review Online:
Politician Makes Controversial Statement — By: Mark Steyn — If I were minded to make a health care TV ad, I'd rustle up the Premier of Newfoundland's interview on NTV last night. Justifying his decision to eschew the pleasures of the monopoly government health care system he presides …
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Kelley Shannon / Raleigh News & Observer:
Hutchison: Perry's tactics tough on her campaign — JUSTIN, Texas — Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison acknowledged Tuesday that Republican Gov. Rick Perry has succeeded at casting her as a Washington insider, hindering her effort to kick him out of the Texas governor's mansion.
Thomas E. Ricks / Foreign Policy:
Nir Rosen: Stop the Iraq madness! — This blog knows all too well that no one is right all the time, and that it is important to listen to people who know their stuff and disagree with you. So when I saw Nir Rosen, a fellow at the NYU Center on Law and Security, make some comments …
William Booth / Washington Post:
U.S. to embed agents in Mexican law enforcement units battling cartels in Juarez — CIUDAD JUAREZ, MEXICO — For the first time, U.S. officials plan to embed American intelligence agents in Mexican law enforcement units to help pursue drug cartel leaders and their hit men operating …
Discussion:
Fausta's Blog
Robert B. Reich / New York Times:
Bust the Health Care Trusts — MY health insurer here in California is Anthem Blue Cross. So far, my group policy hasn't been affected by Anthem's planned rate increase of as much as 39 percent for its customers with individual policies — but the trend worries me, as it should everyone.
Avi Issacharoff / Haaretz:
Haaretz exclusive: Hamas founder's son worked for Shin Bet for years — The son of a leading Hamas figure, who famously converted to Christianity, served for over a decade as the Shin Bet security service's most valuable source in the militant organization's leadership, Haaretz has learned.
Discussion:
Power Line
Steven Erlanger / New York Times:
French Ad Shocks, but Will It Stop Young Smokers? — PARIS — A new French anti-smoking ad aimed at the young that plays off a pornographic stereotype has gotten more attention than even its creators intended, with critics suggesting that it offends common decency and creates a false analogy between oral sex and smoking.