Top Items:
Sarah Palin / Facebook:
Humility and Honesty About Iraq Can Inspire Trust — Later today, President Obama will speak to the American people about Iraq. No doubt he will laud the “end of major combat operations” by the date he randomly selected some 18 months ago. His press secretary Robert Gibbs also gave us …
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The Huffington Post, Taylor Marsh, Political Punch and Hot Air
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Michael Memoli / The Swamp:
Oval Office gets a makeover — While President Obama was on vacation, his West Wing office got a bit of a face lift, complete with a new rug, fresh wallpaper and paint, and new furniture — all done at no taxpayer expense, the White House says. — Details of the renovation were released to the pool reporter this morning.
Discussion:
The Politico, CNN, Politics, Althouse, Runnin' Scared, Todd Starnes, Rumproast and D.C. Now
Sam Youngman / The Hill:
Obama declares end to U.S. combat mission in Iraq — President Obama officially declared an end to Operation Iraqi Freedom Tuesday night, saying the time has come to “turn the page” on a war that has lasted almost eight years. — “Tonight, I am announcing that the American combat mission in Iraq has ended,” Obama said.
Discussion:
CNN
Andrew Malcolm / Top of the Ticket:
President Obama's Oval Office speech on Iraq — text — Oval Office Remarks by President Obama, as provided by the White House — Good evening. Tonight, I'd like to talk to you about the end of our combat mission in Iraq, the ongoing security challenges we face, and the need to rebuild our nation here at home.
Discussion:
At War, Cassy Fiano, Associated Press, The Sundries Shack, Politics Daily, Pajamas Media and msnbc.com
Sheryl Gay Stolberg / The Caucus:
A New Look for the Oval Office
A New Look for the Oval Office
Discussion:
Wonkette, Left Coast Rebel, Freedom's Lighthouse, Weasel Zippers and New York Magazine
Marc Ambinder / The Atlantic Online:
15 Minutes: What the President Will Say Tonight
15 Minutes: What the President Will Say Tonight
Discussion:
Democracy in America, Mother Jones, PERRspectives, The Hill, New York Magazine, ATTACKERMAN and Think Progress
Peter Wehner / Commentary:
Gibbs vs. the Historical Record
Gibbs vs. the Historical Record
Discussion:
Power Line, Beltway Confidential and Gateway Pundit
CNN:
Obama to tip his hat to Bush?
Obama to tip his hat to Bush?
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Swamp, Hot Air, Michelle Malkin, Sister Toldjah, Ben Smith's Blog, The Note and The Politico
Meredith Shiner / The Politico:
Mitch McConnell: President Obama should credit Bush on Iraq
Mitch McConnell: President Obama should credit Bush on Iraq
Discussion:
Jay Bookman, The Caucus, The Hill, Mudville Gazette and Democratic Strategist
M. Duss / Wonk Room:
Iraq: What Did We Win, And What Did It Cost?
Iraq: What Did We Win, And What Did It Cost?
Discussion:
Washington Post, Reuters, ATTACKERMAN, Salon and democracyarsenal.org
Matt Negrin / The Politico:
Obama thanks troops, looks to Afghanistan
Obama thanks troops, looks to Afghanistan
Discussion:
CNN, The Note, The Swamp, The Huffington Post and NO QUARTER
CNN:
Murkowski could concede Alaska GOP race as early as Tuesday — Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski is currently trailing political newcomer Joe Miller in the race for the Alaska GOP Senate nomination. — Anchorage, Alaska (CNN) - Sen. Lisa Murkowski could concede the GOP Senate primary as early …
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Publius / Big Government:
Joe Miller Set to Win Alaska Senate Primary — Sources in Alaska have informed Big Government that the trend in the count of absentee ballots makes it virtually impossible that Sen. Murkowski will overtake Joe Miller in the GOP Senate Primary. A trusted and well-placed operative told BG:
Alaska_Politics / Anchorage Daily News:
Counting of absentee ballots begins — From Sean Cockerham at the Alaska Division of Elections office in Anchorage — Joe Miller's lead over Lisa Murkowski just grew slighly with absentee and questioned ballots from the Mat-Su. — Miller now leads Mukowski by 1,460 votes.
Discussion:
Weekly Standard, Swing State Project, NPR Topics, The Other McCain, Hotline On Call, Hot Air, Jumping in Pools, The Politico and Weigel
Robert Stacy McCain / The Other McCain:
ALASKA SENATE COUNTDOWN TODAY UPDATE: MURKOWSKI TO CONCEDE? UPDATE: Miller Margin Now 1,292 Votes With Absentees From Districts 13-16 UPDATE: Miller Campaign Spokesman Expects ‘Good Day at the End of the Day’ — UPDATE 8 p.m. ET (4 p.m. local) — Dan Riehl and Big Government were first to break this …
Reid Wilson / Hotline On Call:
Lisa Murkowski Faces Her Fate
Lisa Murkowski Faces Her Fate
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, Riehl World View and Liberty Pundits Blog
Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
The Democrats' New Normal — I don't usually like to comment on individual polls. Most of the time, when a poll produces an “unusual” result, it simply reflects random noise and the best advice is to wait for the next edition of the poll to come along, when more often than not it will revert to its previous position.
Discussion:
Politics Daily, Jay Bookman, Wake up America, Washington Monthly, The Fix, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Gallup, Mother Jones, TigerHawk, The New Republic, Weekly Standard, Firedoglake, AmSpecBlog, Scared Monkeys, The Huffington Post, The Moderate Voice, Left Coast Rebel, The Plum Line, Political Byline, The Reid Report, New York Magazine, Outside the Beltway, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Prairie Weather and Ballot Box
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Jay Cost / HorseRaceBlog:
Health Care Reform Has Endangered the Democratic Majority — This Politico piece by Jim VandeHei, Alex Isenstadt, and Mike Allen got a lot of play last week: … There is no mention of health care reform in this piece. The economy is referenced several times. So is the President's inability to control the narrative.
Discussion:
FiveThirtyEight, Firedoglake, Don Surber, The Politico, Viking Pundit, Hit & Run, A plain blog about politics, The Hill, Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, The New Republic, The Atlantic Online, Michelle Malkin, Connecting.the.Dots, Wake up America, National Review, TalkLeft, Beltway Confidential and NewsBusters.org
John Whitesides / Reuters:
Republican leads Senate race in Pennsylvania — (Reuters) - Republican Pat Toomey has opened a 10-point lead over Democrat Joe Sestak among likely voters in a Senate race in Pennsylvania dominated by economic worries, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday.
Discussion:
Front Row Washington, Hot Air, Red Dog Report, The Page and NRSC
Jane Hamsher / Firedoglake:
The Health Care Bill Nobody Wants to Talk About
The Health Care Bill Nobody Wants to Talk About
Discussion:
Weigel and National Review
Brian Montopoli / CBS News:
Glenn Beck “Restoring Honor” Rally Crowd Estimate Explained — As part of our coverage of Glenn Beck's “Restoring Honor” rally Saturday, CBS News commissioned the company AirPhotosLive.com to offer an independent estimate of how many people showed up for the event.
Discussion:
Mediaite, The Daily Dish, The Political Carnival, TPMDC, Riehl World View, The Blotter, Glenn Beck, The Atlantic Online and Crooks and Liars
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Michelle Boorstein / Washington Post:
Glenn Beck may be unlikely leader for conservative Christians — A few weeks before organizing a massive rally on the Mall that had the feel of a religious revival, Glenn Beck sought the blessing of some of the country's most prominent conservative Christian leaders.
Adam Serwer / American Prospect:
Glenn Beck Is Not Malcolm X.
Glenn Beck Is Not Malcolm X.
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, Blogcritics and The Daily Beast
ABCNEWS:
Exclusive: Meghan McCain Writes that Palin Brought ‘Drama, Stress ... Panic’ to Campaign — Sen. John McCain's Daughter: Sarah Palin's Rise Was ‘Too Fast,’ ‘Too Easy’ — For the first time since the end of her father's 2008 presidential bid, Meghan McCain, Sen. John McCain's daughter …
Discussion:
Macsmind, Commentary, Political Byline, Outside the Beltway and Riehl World View
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Mark Halperin / The Page:
HALPERIN'S TAKE: Pawlenty's Efforts to “Limit” ObamaCare in Minnesota — This is a classic Pawlenty move that combines.... ...governing principle with clever 2012 positioning. Leaving aside now the substantive merits of the Minnesota governor's executive order, barring some huge development …
Discussion:
Hot Dish Politics, Hit & Run, Ben Smith's Blog, Hot Air and GOP 12
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Andrew Ross Sorkin / New York Times:
Why Wall St. Is Deserting Obama — Daniel S. Loeb, the hedge fund manager, was one of Barack Obama's biggest backers in the 2008 presidential campaign. — A registered Democrat, Mr. Loeb has given and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for Democrats.
Jerusalem Post:
Four killed as terrorists open fire near Kiryat Arba — Victims, shot while driving, include 2 men, 2 women, one reportedly pregnant; attack comes before Netanyahu and Abbas set to meet in Washington for peace talks. — Talkbacks (1) — Iranian Threat — Jewish World — Local Israel
Discussion:
Ynetnews, JOSHUAPUNDIT, Israel Matzav, Commentary, Ben Smith's Blog and The Jawa Report
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Greg Hengler / Townhall.com:
Busted! Fox's Carlson Catches Gibbs In A Naked Lie—Asks 6 Times If Obama Will Credit Bush Tonight — Gibbs's lie was so deep, I had to freeze frame so you could see exactly what Obama said about the surge in 2007. He's one smug, flippant jerk too.
Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
Previewing Ohio — We'll start rolling out our Ohio poll results tomorrow but there's one finding on the poll that pretty much sums it up: by a 50-42 margin voters there say they'd rather have George W. Bush in the White House right now than Barack Obama. — Independents hold that view …
Discussion:
Flopping Aces, Pirate's Cove, Hot Air, RedState, Gawker and Beltway Confidential
The Huffington Post:
Steve Schmidt, Former McCain Campaign Chief, On Mehlman Fundraiser: Same-Sex Marriage Becoming Conservative Cause — What's Your Reaction: … A major same-sex marriage fundraiser hosted by former RNC chairman Ken Mehlman and other Republicans provides one of the sharpest illustrations …
Discussion:
The Daily Dish, Towleroad News #gay, Pam's House Blend, Ben Smith's Blog and Joe. My. God.
Paul Krugman:
Brother, Can You Paradigm? — A few months back one of my original mentors in economics — someone who got his graduate training in the pre-fresh-water era — asked me whether there was anything about the current crisis that required fundamentally new analysis. We agreed that there wasn't.
Discussion:
AMERICAblog News, The Impolitic and Eschaton
The Huffington Post:
Poll: Majority Of GOP Believes Obama Sympathizes With Islamic Fundamentalism, Wants Worldwide Islamic Law — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — A majority of Republicans believe that President Barack Obama “sympathizes with the goals of Islamic fundamentalists who want to impose Islamic law around the world …
William Kristol / Weekly Standard:
What Palin Did Friday Night — Where was Sarah Palin last Friday night, before coming to Washington to speak at the Glenn Beck gathering Saturday? — She was a guest speaker at a Jewish “Shabbaton”—a Sabbath gathering for prayer, meals, songs, study and conversation—in Hershey …
Discussion:
New York Sun, Public Secrets, Eunomia, Ben Smith's Blog, Commentary, Israel Matzav, New York Magazine and Conservatives4Palin.com
Joan McCarter / Daily Kos:
Simpson to disabled vets: You cost too much — Fresh off of being forgiven by the White House, Simpson has a new target. … Just like the irony of millions of Americans paying into Social Security on the promise that they would receive benefits back, while the rich get off the hook …
Discussion:
Associated Press, Hullabaloo, Grasping Reality … and TPMDC