Top Items:
Robert Costa / The Corner on National Review Online:
‘They Just Want This Over’ — By: Robert Costa — Sitting in an airport, on his way home to Michigan, Rep. Bart Stupak, a pro-life Democrat, is chagrined. “They're ignoring me,” he says, in a phone interview with National Review Online. “That's their strategy now.
Discussion:
Power Line, Hit & Run, Hot Air, Confederate Yankee, The New Republic, AmSpecBlog, CatholicVoteAction.org, First Thoughts and Riehl World View
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Carrie Budoff Brown / The Politico:
An option still on table? — Senate Republicans caused a major stir Thursday when they told reporters that the parliamentarian had informed them that the Senate bill needed to be signed into law before lawmakers took up a sidecar bill to fix it. — And Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad …
Discussion:
CNN, The Corner on National …, The Foundry, The Swamp, Riehl World View, QandO, Washington Monthly, Open Congress and The Plum Line
New York Times:
Top Obama Priorities Collide as Student Loan Legislation May Be Attached to Health Care — WASHINGTON — Democratic Congressional leaders struck a tentative agreement on Thursday that breathes new life into President Obama's proposed overhaul of federal student loan programs.
Discussion:
New York Times, The Politico, Wonk Room, Washington Monthly, CNN, The Caucus, Matthew Yglesias, AmSpecBlog, The Foundry, A plain blog about politics, Townhall.com, RedState, The Washington Independent, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, No More Mister Nice Blog, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Confederate Yankee, Cato @ Liberty, Student Lending Analytics Blog, The Reality-Based Community and Washington Post
Jonathan Cohn / The New Republic:
Two Major Developments. Or Not. — If you were following the news on Thursday, you probably heard about one if not both of these developments: — 1) The Senate Parliamentarian issued a ruling, effectively forcing the House to pass the Senate health care bill before the Senate could consider amendments to it.
Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
After WH postpones trip, Gibbs won't commit to new deadline
After WH postpones trip, Gibbs won't commit to new deadline
Discussion:
The Politico
Howell Raines / Washington Post:
Why don't honest journalists take on Roger Ailes and Fox News? — One question has tugged at my professional conscience throughout the year-long congressional debate over health-care reform, and it has nothing to do with the public option, portability or medical malpractice.
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Eric Boehlert / Media Matters for America:
Three cheers for Howell Raines (but he didn't go far enough)
Three cheers for Howell Raines (but he didn't go far enough)
Discussion:
Eschaton
Ben Smith / The Politico:
Tea parties stir evangelicals' fears — The rise of a new conservative grass roots fueled by a secular revulsion at government spending is stirring fears among leaders of the old conservative grass roots, the evangelical Christian right. — A reeling economy and the massive bank bailout …
Discussion:
Ben Smith's Blog, Firedoglake, No More Mister Nice Blog, alicublog, AmSpecBlog and LewRockwell.com Blog
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Jessica Ravitz / CNN:
Coffee Party brewing — Atlanta, Georgia (CNN) — In one chair sits a rural retiree, his financial security shot in the slump, a humble Southerner who's never thought much about politics. In another seat is a born Northerner, an inner-city native, a relative of a civil rights giant.
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
Health Reform Myths — Health reform is back from the dead. Many Democrats have realized that their electoral prospects will be better if they can point to a real accomplishment. Polling on reform — which was never as negative as portrayed — shows signs of improving.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, The Note, About.com US Liberal Politics and ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*
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Washington Post:
If Democrats ignore health-care polls, midterms will be costly — In “The March of Folly,” Barbara Tuchman asked, “Why do holders of high office so often act contrary to the way reason points and enlightened self-interest suggests?” Her assessment of self-deception …
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, The Note, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Think Progress, The New Republic, Newsweek Blogs, Commentary, JOSHUAPUNDIT, Another Black Conservative, The Lonely Conservative, New York Times, No More Mister Nice Blog, Political Byline, Liberal Values, Pundit & Pundette, The Politico, Donklephant, Moonbattery, The Daily Dish, Scared Monkeys, Democratic Strategist, GOP Leader Blog, AmSpecBlog, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, msnbc.com, Michelle Malkin, The Strata-Sphere, WSJ.com, Wake up America, neo-neocon, Left Coast Rebel and Townhall.com
Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
The Democrats' scam becomes more transparent — A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about what seemed to be a glaring (and quite typical) scam perpetrated by Congressional Democrats: all year long, they insisted that the White House and a majority of Democratic Senators vigorously supported a public option …
Discussion:
Open Left, The Huffington Post, Corrente, Outside The Beltway, TPMDC, Daily Kos and The Huffington Post
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David Brooks / New York Times:
Op-Ed Columnist: What Obama Stands For — Who is Barack Obama? — If you ask a conservative Republican, you are likely to hear that Obama is a skilled politician who campaigned as a centrist but is governing as a big-government liberal. He plays by ruthless, Chicago politics rules.
Discussion:
The Corner on National …, Commentary, Hit & Run, TPMCafe, Daily Kos, Pajamas Media, Sister Toldjah, The New Republic and The Moderate Voice
Peter Baker / New York Times:
Obama Social Secretary Ran Into Sharp Elbows — WASHINGTON — Long before the State Dinner party crashers and the tension with her White House colleagues and the strain in her relationship with the first lady, Desirée Rogers began to understand she was in trouble when David Axelrod summoned …
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, Gawker, Michelle Malkin, Mediaite, Politics Daily, Washington Post and The Page
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Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
SEIU Warns Dems: If You Don't Back Reform, We Won't Back You — Hardball time. — In what seems intended as a shot across the bow of House Dems wavering on health reform, top officials with the labor powerhouse SEIU have bluntly told a Democratic member that they will pull their support for him …
Shannanb / CNN:
Truck driver in Reid accident twice cited for speeding — Harry Reid's wife and daughter were injured in a car crash Thursday in Washington. — Washington (CNN) - The Ohio truck driver charged with reckless driving in an accident that injured Sen. Harry Reid's wife and daughter has twice …
Discussion:
The Politico
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Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
DNC writes Fox, asserting fair use — The Democratic National Committee has dispatched a letter to Fox News, demanding that it stop asserting copyright on a video using the channel's footage to promote a feud between Charlie Crist and Marco Rubio on the subject of whether Rubio waxes his back.
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Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Beck vs Social Justice — I'm surprised there hasn't been more attention paid lately to Glenn Beck's attacks on the idea of social justice: … If this is meant seriously—and Beck's sounded the theme in three consecutive shows so I think it is—this seems to me like when McCarthy decided to go after the Army.
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Laurie Goodstein / New York Times:
Outraged by Glenn Beck's Salvo, Christians Fire Back
Outraged by Glenn Beck's Salvo, Christians Fire Back
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, The Raw Story, Mediaite, Think Progress, The Caucus, Newsweek Blogs, CNET News and Politics Daily
James C. McKinley Jr / New York Times:
Texas Conservatives Win Vote on Textbook Standards — AUSTIN, Tex. — After three days of turbulent meetings, the Texas Board of Education on Friday voted to approve a social studies curriculum that will put a conservative stamp on history and economics textbooks, stressing the role …
Washington Examiner:
Yeas & Nays reporter booted from Sean Penn event — A Yeas & Nays reporter was publicly berated and threatened to be escorted out by police on Thursday night when the reporter asked actor Sean Penn a controversial question about his humanitarian work in Haiti.
The Atlantic Online:
Birther Non-Denial Denials from Republican Senate Candidates — Et tu, Rob Portman? Ye of sensibility and rectitude? Ye of maturity and political resolve? Despite inquires from the Cincinnati Enquirer and Plain Dealer, Portman's campaign won't directly answer the question of whether …
Discussion:
Daily Kos
Chris Frates / The Politico:
Van Hollen memo lays out time line and messaging — The office of Rep. Chris Van Hollen, who is the assistant to Speaker Pelosi, sent a memo to Democratic staffers today telling them to clear members' schedule for next weekend, saying a vote could come as early as Friday or Saturday …
Aaron Blake / The Hill:
Democratic candidates distance themselves from healthcare reform — Hardly any Democrat running for Congress seems to want to talk about healthcare. — Of the 26 leading Democratic House candidates contacted by The Hill, only one would commit to voting for the Senate healthcare bill if and when it comes to the House floor.