Top Items:
John M. Broder / New York Times:
Obama to Open Offshore Areas to Oil Drilling for First Time — WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is proposing to open vast expanses of water along the Atlantic coastline, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and the north coast of Alaska to oil and natural gas drilling, much of it for the first time, officials said Tuesday.
Discussion:
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Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Boehner rebukes Obama offshore drilling plan — President Barack Obama's plan to allow expanded offshore oil and gas exploration won rebuke from the top House Republican on Wednesday. — House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) dismissed the president's plan as not going far enough in opening up U.S. waters for exploration.
Discussion:
The Hill, Firedoglake, Guardian, TPM LiveWire, Little Green Footballs, Grist, The Washington Independent and The New Republic
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Drill, Baby, Drill — Welcome to the coastal drilling era: … I don't understand this at all. Increased coastal drilling would be a small price to pay in exchange for actual congressional votes for an overall energy package that shifts us to a low-carbon economy over time.
Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
ALL PART OF THE PLAN.... We talked earlier about the Obama administration's apparent intention to allow new oil and natural gas drilling along the Atlantic coastline, the eastern Gulf of Mexico, and the north coast of Alaska. Given that this move could be used as a bargaining chip …
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Of pipelines and pipedreams: Obama's drilling deception — He was against it: — Before he was for it: … If this were a sincere change of heart and an honest, stand-alone effort to wean America off foreign oil, it would be worth heralding. — But as always with this administration …
Zaid Jilani / Think Progress:
Bush Official Dan Bartlett Admits Authorizing Offshore Oil Drilling Will Be Unlikely To Win Over Any GOP Votes — The Obama administration announced today that it will be approving “significant oil and gas exploration off America's coasts.” One possible reason for the administration's policy shift …
Discussion:
Climate Progress, GOP.gov, The Political Carnival, Townhall.com and The Washington Independent
Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
IN EXCHANGE FOR WHAT?.... That the Obama administration would agree …
IN EXCHANGE FOR WHAT?.... That the Obama administration would agree …
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Obama's drilling proposal sparks battle among Senate Dems
Obama's drilling proposal sparks battle among Senate Dems
Discussion:
CNN
Juliet Eilperin / Washington Post:
Obama to clear way for offshore drilling for oil and gas …
Obama to clear way for offshore drilling for oil and gas …
Discussion:
Politics Daily, Hot Air, The Politico, Salon, Gothamist, Virginia Politics Blog and Think Progress
Morgan / It's Getting Hot In Here:
Our Generation Screwed Over by Obama's Offshore Drilling Plan
Our Generation Screwed Over by Obama's Offshore Drilling Plan
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal
Raymond J. Learsy / The Huffington Post:
Obama's Brave Decison to Drill Offshore
Obama's Brave Decison to Drill Offshore
Discussion:
Atlas Shrugs
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Private Sector Sheds Jobs — Private-sector jobs in the U.S. dropped by 23,000 this month. Above, unemployed Americans line up as they wait to gain entry to meet employers at the Los Angeles Career Fair in March. — Private-sector jobs in the U.S. dropped by 23,000 this month …
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Memo to Paul Krugman and Rep. Van Hollen: My Search Was Not in Vain — In last Thursday's column, Paul Krugman admitted to having fun watching “right-wingers go wild.” One of the things that apparently delighted him was this map which Sarah Palin posted on her Facebook page:
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Evan Coyne Maloney remembers — Evan Coyne Maloney is the documentary filmmaker and proprietor of Brain Terminal. During the Bush administration, Evan was out in the field with his camera observing protests and interviewing protesters. He is therefore in a good position to recall the signs …
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LL Cool J upset with Palin, Fox — LL Cool J is taking aim at Fox and Sarah Palin. — (CNN) - Rapper LL Cool J appears to be upset with Sarah Palin and Fox news for using footage of a 2008 interview in its promotion for the former Alaska governor's upcoming television special.
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Reid Wilson / Hotline On Call:
Hutchison Will Serve Out Term — Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) will announce today she has decided to serve out the remainder of her term, according to a source familiar with Hutchison's plans. — The move is a reversal of a pledge Hutchison made to step down as she challenged Gov. Rick Perry (R) earlier this year.
Discussion:
Austin American-Statesman, Swampland, The Page, Hot Air, Weekly Standard, TPMDC and Ben Smith's Blog
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GOP Wary of Health Law Repeal Push in Fall Races — GOP leaders temper call for repealing health law, saying jobs, economy are key to fall races — Top Republicans are increasingly worried that GOP candidates this fall might be burned by a fire that's roaring through the conservative base …
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Clinton Pollster: If Election Were Today, It Would Be Like '94 — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — The pollster manning the ship for President Bill Clinton during the disastrous 1994 congressional elections is experiencing some déjà vu as the Democratic Party approaches this off-year contest.
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Aaron Blake / The Hill:
Clinton pollster says if election were held today, 1994 would repeat
Clinton pollster says if election were held today, 1994 would repeat
Discussion:
Firedoglake
Quinnipiac University:
Democrats On Top In Ohio Senate, Governor Races, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Obama Bounces Back From Big Negative To A Split — Democrats are having a mini-surge in Ohio as two possible candidates for the open U.S. Senate seat have come from behind to pass the Republican contender …
Discussion:
Real Clear Politics, Politics Daily, TPMDC, Swing State Project, Taegan Goddard's …, MyDD and The Eye
Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Gallup: Majority Says Dem Health Reform Tactics Were “Abuse Of Power” — Yesterday I noted the seemingly odd finding by Gallup that more Americans blame Democrats than Republicans or conservatives for the rash of violence that greeted the passage of the reform law.
Discussion:
Gateway Pundit
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Shelby Steele / Wall Street Journal:
Barack The Good — The big government liberalism that Mr. Obama uses to make himself history-making also alienates him in the center-right America of today. — It has to be acknowledged that, in his battle for health-care reform, President Obama has shown real presidential mettle.
Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Sec. Salazar: Cap-and-trade ‘is not in the lexicon anymore’ — “Cap-and-trade” isn't part of the Obama administration's lexicon anymore when it comes to addressing climate change, a top cabinet secretary said Wednesday. — Interior Secretary Ken Salazar sent signals that the White House believes …
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Bill Donohue: Child Molesting Priests Weren't Pedophiles Because Most Boys Were Post Pubescent — Bill Donohue seemed very proud of the fact that most child molesting priests weren't actually pedophiles in his words, but only guilty of abusing children who had achieved puberty.
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One Man's Quest to Catalog Presidential Minutiae — Radio Reporter Keeps Tabs on Vacations, Dinners, Phrases; a 60,000-Word Summit — WASHINGTON—When President Barack Obama told a gathering of the nation's governors last month that he was “not going to rest” until each state's economy improves, Mark Knoller was counting.
Megan McArdle / The Atlantic Online:
Excessive Outrage on Retiree Subsidy Accounting — So as blogged yesterday, the new health care plan changed the tax treatment of a subsidy for retiree prescription drug benefits, which caused those companies who had received the subsidy to announce a charge against their deferred tax assets.
Discussion:
Grasping Reality …
Wall Street Journal:
The ObamaCare Writedowns—II — Democrats blame a vast CEO conspiracy. — So the wave of corporate writedowns—led by AT&T's $1 billion—isn't caused by ObamaCare after all. The White House claims CEOs are reducing the value of their companies and returns for shareholders merely out of political pique.
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House Flippers in U.S. Crowd Courthouse Steps in Hunt for Deals — During the U.S. housing boom, even amateur investors could buy and sell a property within a couple of months and turn a profit. Today there's nothing amateur about house flipping. — Homes with punctured walls …
Sarah Palin / Facebook:
Peace Not Possible if Iran Escapes Real Sanctions — This is a meaningful week for so many of us. As millions of Christians and Jews celebrate this Holy Week, it's appropriate to reflect on developments in the Holy Land. Israel faces a nuclear threat from Iran that grows every day.
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, Eunomia, The Washington Independent, New York Times, Weasel Zippers, The Page and The Politico