memeorandum: Confidence Fairies Have Infiltrated The White House (Paul Krugman)

3:45 PM ET, July 6, 2010

Top Items:

Obama's worst foreign-policy mistake — Given President Obama's glaring domestic policy missteps, it is understandable that the public has largely been blinded to his foreign policy failings. In fact, these may have been even more damaging to America's future.

Discussion: Wonk Room, CNN, Newshoggers.com, Gawker, Eunomia, The Caucus, Conservatives4Palin.com, The Foundry, The Hill, Taylor Marsh, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog and New York Times

Zombie / Pajamas Media:

Did Huffington Post crop AP photo to give Netanyahu devil horns? — Photo of Netanyahu as it appeared on Huffington Post. — The picture of Benjamin Netanyahu shown to the left appears on the front page of today's Huffington Post, illustrating a story about Israel easing its blockade of Gaza.

Discussion: The Jawa Report, Wonkette and Gateway Pundit

Mike Allen / The Politico:

Biden, on President's Iraq policy: ‘We told you what we were going to do, and we did it’ - VP re Dems in Nov.: ‘I do not see this grand debacle’ — Mrs. Reagan b'day — Introducing Peter Bradley — DRIVING THE DAY — AFP: “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived early Tuesday in the US capital …

Discussion: MyDD, iOwnTheWorld.com and White House.gov Blog Feed

Sam Youngman / The Hill:
As Netanyahu visits, White House insists ‘no rift’ between Israel, U.S.

Discussion: The Swamp, Politics Daily, Los Angeles Times, CNN, Washington Post, Jerusalem Post, The Politico, Wall Street Journal, Yourish.com, Online NewsHour and Taylor Marsh

David Brooks / New York Times:

A Little Economic Realism — Let's say you're the leader of the free world. The economy is stuck in the doldrums. Naturally, you want to do something. — Many economists say we need another stimulus bill. They debate about whether the stimulus should take the form of tax cuts or spending increases …

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, The New Republic, Washington Monthly, Balloon Juice, Swampland, The Moderate Voice and Vox Popoli

Paul Krugman:

Arguments From Authority — A quick note on David Brooks's column today. I have no idea what he's talking about when he says, … Funny, I thought we had a perfectly good explanation: severe downturn in demand from the financial crisis, and a stimulus which we warned from the beginning wasn't nearly big enough.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and driftglass

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Productivity and the Recession — David Brooks, writing skeptically …

Discussion: The American Scene and Econbrowser

CEPR:
The Arrogant David Brooks Tells Readers That Stimulus Will Risk National Insolvency

Discussion: Firedoglake, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Hullabaloo and ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*

Jerry Markon / Washington Post:

Justice Dept. expected to sue Ariz. on immigration, citing ‘preemption’ grounds — The Justice Department has decided to file suit against Arizona on the grounds that the state's new immigration law illegally intrudes on federal prerogatives, law enforcement sources said Monday.

Josh Gerstein / The Politico:
DoJ sues over Ariz. immigration law

Discussion: TalkLeft and The Washington Independent

Bob Christie / Associated Press:
Feds sue to block Arizona illegal immigrant law

Discussion: The Hill, Weasel Zippers and The Page

Fhardingj / CNN: Feds to challenge Arizona law

Paul Krugman:

Confidence Fairies Have Infiltrated The White House — I was on Good Morning America this not-so-good morning, doing what I could. But I was struck by something that George Stephanopoulos said: he claimed to have been speaking to an administration official who asserted that what we need …

Discussion: TalkLeft, Shakesville, The Moderate Voice, Grasping Reality …, AMERICAblog News and Eschaton

Thomas M. Defrank / NY Daily News:

Bad news for Obama: Conservative Justice Kennedy tells pals he's in no rush to leave Supreme Court — WASHINGTON - President Obama may get liberal Elena Kagan on the Supreme Court, but conservative swing-voter Anthony Kennedy says he's not going anywhere anytime soon.

Discussion: Weekly Standard, Left Coast Rebel, Wonkette, Sister Toldjah, Hot Air, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Hill, The Political Carnival, New York Magazine, Outside the Beltway, Wake up America and JammieWearingFool

David G. Savage / Los Angeles Times:
Obama and Supreme Court may be on collision course

Discussion: Questions and Observations, SCOTUSblog, Patterico's Pontifications, Washington Post and New York Times

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

Kentucky Senate race knotted — Kentucky voters don't think much of Rand Paul and as a result the race to replace Jim Bunning in the Senate is tied. Paul and Jack Conway are getting 43% each. — The more Kentucky voters get to know Rand Paul, the less they like him.

Discussion: TPMDC, Ballot Box and RedState

Mike Allen / The Politico:
Biden: No Dem ‘debacle’ in November

Discussion: CNN, Questions and Observations and Beltway Confidential

Washington Post:

Democratic campaign committees losing big Wall Street donors — A revolt among big donors on Wall Street is hurting fundraising for the Democrats' two congressional campaign committees, with contributions from the world's financial capital down 65 percent from two years ago.

Discussion: msnbc.com, Power Line, The Moderate Voice, Daniel W. Drezner, Open Left, Washington Wire, Don Surber, TRAIL BLAZERS, Grim's Hall, Corrente, Neptunus Lex, Suburban Guerrilla, Beltway Confidential, The Eye, Booman Tribune and New Yorker

Ben White / The Politico:
Wall St. plans payback for reg reform

Discussion: New York Magazine, OpenSecrets.org and Outside the Beltway

Fox News:

NASA Official Softens Claim Muslim Outreach Is ‘Foremost’ Mission — NASA Administrator Charles Bolden testifies before the House Science and Technology committee on Capitol Hill in Washington May 26. (Reuters Photo) — A NASA official on Tuesday stood by Administrator Charles Bolden's statement …

Discussion: The Corner on National …, NASA Watch and Washington Examiner

Jim Hoft / Gateway Pundit:
Krauthammer Bashes Obama's Infantile NASA Muslim Outreach Program

Discussion: Weekly Standard, NASA Watch, The Foundry, NewsBusters.org, This Just In, Moonbattery, Fausta's Blog and Wizbang

John Derbyshire / The Corner on National Review Online:
NASA's True Mission — By: John Derbyshire

Discussion: Cold Fury, Grim's Hall, ParaPundit and The TrogloPundit

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:

McCain favors immigration reform that would deport ‘many’ illegals — Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said on Tuesday he would favor immigration reform that would deport most of the residents of the U.S. who are here illegally. — McCain, who at one point had been the top Republican advocate …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Gawker, Pat Dollard, Weasel Zippers and TPMDC

New York Times:

Are Profits Hurting Capitalism? — A STREAM of disheartening economic news last week, including flagging consumer confidence and meager private-sector job growth, is leading experts to worry that the recession is coming back. At the same time, many policymakers, particularly in Europe …

Discussion: MyDD, The Glittering Eye and EconLog

Yves Smith / naked capitalism:
Our New York Times Op Ed on the Corporate Savings Glut

Discussion: Rortybomb

Brian Moylan / Gawker:

Priest Stole $1.3 Million to Spend on Male Escorts, Designer Clothes, Other Stereotypically Gay Things — Kevin Gray, a priest at Sacred Heart Church in Waterbury, Connecticut, is expected to turn himself in after being charged with siphoning $1.3 million from church coffers to pay for his secret gay lifestyle.

Discussion: The Other McCain

Jonathan Shugarts / Waterbury Republican American:
Gray accused of stealing from church to pay for male escorts

Discussion: New York Magazine

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:

A Hypothetical — David Carr makes an excellent point about the departure of my friend Dave Weigel from The Washington Post: … And if I may say so, the Post handled the “Mouthpiece Theater” fiasco more-or-less correctly. The concept was bad and the execution terrible, so they called it off.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Balloon Juice

David Carr / New York Times:
Outspoken Is Great, Till It's Not

Discussion: FAIR Blog, The Daily Dish, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Hullabaloo

Metro.co.uk:

Rare 1970s BP board game promises oil ‘thrills’ comes back to haunt them — A rare 1970s BP game - yes, that's the company badge on the box - promises all the ‘thrills of drilling’ offshore, with the first player to earn $120million being crowned the winner. — BP - Beyond Parody: The game's cover has an ‘overall sense of doom’.

Discussion: Think Progress, Climate Progress, Swampland and JammieWearingFool

Rep. Barney Frank / The Huffington Post:

Why We Must Reduce Military Spending — As members of opposing political parties, we disagree on a number of important issues. But we must not allow honest disagreement over some issues interfere with our ability to work together when we do agree. — By far the single most important …

Discussion: The Glittering Eye and TPMCafe

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:

Will Michael Steele stay or go? — 1. Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele's most recent gaffe — this one about the war in Afghanistan — has effectively eliminated any chance he might have had to return to his post after the 2010 election, according to a number of individuals close to the committee.

Discussion: CNN, The Daily Dish, No More Mister Nice Blog, Ballot Box, NO QUARTER, Daily Kos and Outside the Beltway

Michael Memoli / The Swamp:
Steele hangs on despite resignation calls

Discussion: Los Angeles Times and D.C. Now

Kimberly Kindy / Washington Post:

Recovery effort falls vastly short of BP's promises — In the 77 days since oil from the ruptured Deepwater Horizon began to gush into the Gulf of Mexico, BP has skimmed or burned about 60 percent of the amount it promised regulators it could remove in a single day.