Top Items:
Emily Pierce / Roll Call:
Collins Tries to Stop Bunning Filibuster — Senate Republicans sought Tuesday to insulate themselves from the damage caused by Sen. Jim Bunning's (R-Ky.) filibuster of a bill that would extend unemployment and health benefits and highway programs. — Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) …
Discussion:
The Politico, NPR Blogs, Wall Street Journal, Top of the Ticket, Swampland, pandagon.net, The Washington Independent and Erick's blog
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Hogan / hogan's Diary:
It's Not a Filibuster You Freaking Idiots — Dennis Miller once joked about those who would mispronounce certain words on the Senate floor, “now color me reactionary, but I don't think you should vote on this sh*t unless you know how to pronounce it.” Well, I think we should amend …
The Note:
Bunning Blinks? — ABC's Jonathan Karl reports: — In another interview at the Senators-only elevator near his office, Senator Jim Bunning, R-Ky., said he is working on a deal to pass the unemployment extension bill he has been blocking since last Wednesday. — “We're working on it,” Bunning told ABC News.
Discussion:
The Corner on National …
The Huffington Post:
GOP Sen. Kyl: Unemployment Benefits Make People Not Want To Get A Job — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — A debate on the Senate floor Monday over unemployment compensation crystallized, at least for a moment, the divide between the two parties in Washington. — Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona …
Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
Collins joins Dems in urging Bunning to drop benefits objection — Republican Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) took to the Senate floor Tuesday to try to advance stalled unemployment and COBRA healthcare benefit extensions, but Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) objected again.
McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Who really gets hurt when GOP's Bunning blocks this bill?
Who really gets hurt when GOP's Bunning blocks this bill?
Discussion:
Washington Post, Democracy in America, Right Pundits, Bluegrass Politics, Hotline On Call, Gateway Pundit, New York Times, Right Wing Nut House, The Sundries Shack, The Humble Libertarian, The Hill, CBS News, DownWithTyranny!, The Impolitic, PERRspectives, Left Coast Rebel, Think Progress, Prairie Weather, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Washington Monthly, The Lonely Conservative and WLKY-TV
Jason Horowitz / Washington Post:
Hotheaded Emanuel may be White House voice of reason — Rahm Emanuel is officially a Washington caricature. He's the town's resident leviathan, a bullying, bruising White House chief of staff who is a prime target for the failings of the Obama administration.
Discussion:
AMERICAblog News, msnbc.com, The Atlantic Online, Ezra Klein, Matthew Yglesias, Hot Air, New York Magazine, Guardian, Firedoglake, The Confluence, Prairie Weather, ATTACKERMAN, Commentary, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Fix, Taylor Marsh, Grasping Reality …, Emptywheel, DISSENTING JUSTICE, Wonk Room, PostPartisan, The Washington Independent, The Page, Ben Smith's Blog, Althouse, Gawker and Jules Crittenden
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New York Times:
Obama to Highlight Cost in New Health Bill Push — WASHINGTON — President Obama this week will begin a climactic push to rally restive Congressional Democrats to pass major health care legislation by hammering the argument that the costs of failure will be higher insurance premiums and lost coverage for individuals and businesses.
Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Feel the Kausmentum — With the valuable Glenn Reynolds and Jonah Goldberg endorsements in hand, Mickey Kaus' bid for a Democratic Party primary win is looking more solid than ever. — That said, I'm going to go counter-counterintuitive here and say that if some weird process put Mickey Kaus …
Discussion:
Winds of Change.NET
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William A. Jacobson / Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion:
Coffee Party Parasites — The New York Times and Washington Post are promoting a group called the “Coffee Party” organized by filmmaker Annabel Park. — The Coffee Party is a political parasite which presents itself as something it is not. As reported in the NY Times [see update below] …
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Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
THE RESULTS OF THE HCR SUMMIT.... President Obama is scheduled to outline his vision on moving forward with health care reform tomorrow, but today the president wrote to congressional leaders from both parties, explaining several areas of agreement with Republicans.
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The Huffington Post:
Obama Wants Comprehensive Bill, GOP Ideas; READ His Letter To Congress
Obama Wants Comprehensive Bill, GOP Ideas; READ His Letter To Congress
Discussion:
Bob Cesca's Awesome Blog!
Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
Health care by Easter? — With AP suggesting that nine “no” Democrats in the House could switch to “yes,” Inside Health Policy has a timeline: — According to [a] Democratic memo, the timeline may be: Step one: The House passes the Senate's health reform bill by March 19.
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Orrin Hatch / Washington Post:
Reconciliation on health care would be an assault to the democratic process — America's Founders gave us a system of governance designed to limit government power and maximize liberty. The legislative branch is different from the executive, and the Senate is different from the House.
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Ed O'Keefe / Washington Post:
Postal Service expected to announce ‘significant changes’ — The U.S. Postal Service will release projections Tuesday that confirm for the first time the suspicion that mail volume will never return to pre-recession levels. In response, the agency is pushing anew for a dramatic reshaping …
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Scott Collins / Los Angeles Times:
Roger Ebert takes to Twitter to give tea party followers a thumb's down — The film reviewer is aiming barbs at Sarah Palin and other conservatives. — Who's the biggest scourge of the tea party movement these days? It might be film critic Roger Ebert, who lately has been tossing brickbats …
William Wan / Washington Post:
Same-sex marriage leads Catholic Charities to adjust benefits — Employees at Catholic Charities were told Monday that the social services organization is changing its health coverage to avoid offering benefits to same-sex partners of its workers — the latest fallout from a bitter debate …
Patterico's Pontifications:
Debunking Some Emerging ACORN Liberal Myths — This post debunks several liberal myths about ACORN that have emerged in recent weeks — many from Eric Boehlert of Media Matters and Brad Friedman. — POSING AS PIMP AT ACORN — Liberal Myth: James O'Keefe did not pretend to be a pimp inside ACORN.
Discussion:
Media Matters for America, StarkReports.com, pandagon.net, The Jawa Report and The BRAD BLOG
Ben Smith / The Politico:
Ford bolts; Zuckerman rises — Harold Ford gave many reasons for his decision not to launch a primary challenge against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, but he didn't mention a decisive one: The emergence of a richer, stronger center-right challenger whom many of Ford's potential supporters …
Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
Cheney group questions loyalty of Justice lawyers — Liz Cheney's group Keep America Safe, which has led the resurgent Republican attacks on President Obama's national security policies, is releasing a video this morning that questions the loyalties of Justice Department lawyers who advocated …
Discussion:
The Daily Dish, Think Progress, The Washington Independent, TPMMuckraker, The Daily Caller, Main Justice and ATTACKERMAN