memeorandum: In Bucks County, a bitter poll for Murphy to swallow (William Bender/Philly.com)

10:10 AM ET, September 23, 2010

Top Items:

“Pledge to America” Unveiled by Republicans (Full Text) — CBS News has obtained a final draft of House Republicans' legislative agenda for the next Congress, a 21-page “Pledge to America” that they will formally unveil Thursday morning at a Virginia hardware store.

Erick Erickson / RedState:

Perhaps the Most Ridiculous Thing to Come Out of Washington Since George McClellan — The House Republicans' “Pledge to America” is out. A thrill will run up the leg of a few Chris Matthews' types on the right. As Dan noted on Twitter, the Contract with America was 869 words and this is 21 pages.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Hill, National Review, The Caucus, Hot Air, Liberty Pundits Blog, NewsBusters.org, Erick's blog, FrumForum, CNN, Left Coast Rebel and Club for Growth

Ezra Klein:

The GOP's bad idea — “America is more than a country,” begins the GOP's ‘Pledge to America.’ America, it turns out, is an “idea,” an “inspiration,” and a “belief.” And the GOP wants to govern it. — Their policy agenda is detailed and specific — a decision they will almost certainly come to regret.

Discussion: Economist's View

The Huffington Post:

GOP ‘Pledge For America’ Director Lobbied For AIG, Exxon, Pfizer, Chamber — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — The Republican Party's 21-page blueprint, “Pledge to America,” was put together with oversight by a House staffer who, up till April 2010, served as a lobbyist for some of the nation's most powerful oil …

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, Think Progress, The Daily Caller, Taylor Marsh, Politerati and Oliver Willis

National Review:

We'll Take the Pledge — All year long, conservatives have been pressuring Republicans to release a Contract with America for 2010 — an updated version of the campaign platform that the party unveiled before its 1994 sweep of Congress. Thursday morning, Republican congressmen are responding …

Discussion: The Hill, Weekly Standard, AmSpecBlog, Riehl World View, Hit & Run, Outside the Beltway, Ben Smith's Blog, Politics Daily and American Spectator

Directorblue / Doug Ross:
A Critique of the GOP's New ‘Pledge to America’: Dudes. …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and iOwnTheWorld.com

David M. Herszenhorn / New York Times:
G.O.P. Cites Tax Cuts and Health Care as Main Focus

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Caucus and Outside the Beltway

Jake Sherman / The Politico:
White House quickly attacks GOP ‘Pledge’

Discussion: Human Events, Weasel Zippers and Michelle Malkin

Dan Pfeiffer / White House.gov Blog Feed:
The Congressional Republican Pledge to Special Interests

Discussion: The Hill, The Fix, Sweetness & Light and Firedoglake

The Politico:
Republican ‘Pledge to America’: Spending caps, tax cuts

Discussion: Washington Post, Washington Wire, Wall Street Journal, The Hill, Political Punch, The Note, The Atlantic Online, Daily Kos, ABCNEWS and FrumForum

Jonathan Allen / The Politico:
GOP agenda to include social issues

Discussion: ABCNEWS, CNN, Liberal Values, Daily Kos and FrumForum

Taegan Goddard's Political Wire:
The Pledge to America — The full text of the House Republicans' …

Discussion: Swampland, Balloon Juice, FrumForum and Weigel

Quinnipiac University:

Little-Known New York Attorney General Candidates Tied, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Gillibrand Up By Only 6 Points — Two little-known candidates for New York State Attorney General, Democratic State Sen. Eric Schneiderman and Republican Staten Island District Attorney Dan Donovan …

Discussion: New York Magazine, Taegan Goddard's …, Capital Tonight, the albany project and Capitol Confidential

Athan Kompos / WGRZ-TV:

Poll Shows NY Governors Race Tighter Between Cuomo And Paladino — BUFFALO, N.Y. - Republican candidate for Governor, Carl Paladino is nine percentage points behind Democrat Andrew Cuomo, according a new scientific poll commissioned by Two On Your Side, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle and the White Plains Journal News.

Discussion: Libertarian Republican, Hot Air, No More Mister Nice Blog, National Review, Ruby Slippers, RedState, USA Today, Salon, ABCNEWS and Washington Wire

John McCormack / Weekly Standard:
Gillibrand Leads by 1 Point in SurveyUSA Poll, 6 Points in Q Poll

Discussion: Power Line

Washington Post:

Two of Obama's closest advisers among those likely to leave in White House shuffle — In his nearly two years in office, President Obama has relied on a very small clique of advisers that serves as his most trusted sounding board on politics and policy. — Members of his staff describe Obama …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Politerati, Prairie Weather and The Page

Bill Plante / CBS News:
Axelrod Leaving WH; Emmanuel Likely Next

Discussion: Sweetness & Light

The Politico:
Administration asks faith groups to do outreach …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

delawareonline:

(2 of 2) — Asked for reasons he was weighing against running, Castle said such a campaign would be “logistically difficult” because voters would have to write in the name. — “I think automatically you have a diminished number of votes you'll get,” Castle said.

Discussion: Ballot Box and TPMDC

Fhardingj / CNN:
CNN/Time poll: Coons up 16 over O'Donnell

Discussion: Democrat And Chronicle, Time, TBogg, Daily Kos, iOwnTheWorld.com, Hot Air, Firedoglake, Dialogue Delaware, TPMDC, The Politico, The Other McCain, National Review, Quinnipiac University, Ballot Box, Liberal Values, The Hill and Outside the Beltway

The Politico:
Castle won't write off write-in bid

Discussion: Hot Air, National Review, The Greenroom and TPMDC

Wcbsmark / CBS New York:

Cuomo Caught Lying About Voting For Bloomberg? — NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — There has been a dramatic development in the race for New York governor. — A new poll has Republican Carl Paladino within striking distance of Democrat Andrew Cuomo as voters say they want to elect someone who will stop the circus in Albany.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, NewsBusters.org, Moe Lane, Liberty Pundits Blog and Babalú Blog

Nicholas Confessore / New York Times:
Cuomo's Image as Unstoppable Suffers a Blow

Discussion: Capitol Confidential, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Bruce Horovitz / USA Today:

KFC pays college women for ad space on buns — KFC wants folks to watch its backside. — Or, more precisely, the backsides of female college students it's recruiting to promote its hot new bunless Double Down sandwiches. — Women on college campuses are being paid $500 each to hand …

Discussion: Telegraph, Grim's Hall, culturekitchen, Weasel Zippers, iOwnTheWorld.com, The Wire, Left Coast Rebel, The Confluence and JammieWearingFool

Doug Powers / Michelle Malkin: KFC Buys Ad Space on College Girls Rumps; NOW Offended — Of Course

Larry O'Connor / Breitbart.tv:

Race-Baiting Dem Congresswoman Pits Latinos Against Asians on Spanish-Language TV — Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez appeared on Spanish-Language Univision to tell Latino voters that their Congressional seat was being taken by the Vietnamese. — Rep. Sanchez is in a hotly contested race …

Discussion: Maggie's Farm, Big Government, Left Coast Rebel, American Power, Gateway Pundit, Bookworm Room, Weasel Zippers, Hot Air, Pajamas Media and The Right Scoop

John / Power Line:
Another Democrat's Shameful Racism

Discussion: AmSpecBlog, protein wisdom and Big Journalism

Keith Bradsher / New York Times:

Amid Tension, China Blocks Vital Exports to Japan — HONG KONG — Sharply raising the stakes in a dispute over Japan's detention of a Chinese fishing trawler captain, the Chinese government has blocked exports to Japan of a crucial category of minerals used in products like hybrid cars, wind turbines and guided missiles.

Discussion: FP Passport, The Oil Drum, Telegraph, Angry Bear, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and naked capitalism

William Bender / Philly.com:

In Bucks County, a bitter poll for Murphy to swallow — U.S. REP. Patrick Murphy's “uh-oh” moment came last month, when his polling firm reported that Republican Mike Fitzpatrick was within striking distance of recapturing his 8th District seat in Bucks County. — This is his “oh, no” moment:

Discussion: Ballot Box, Capitol Ideas … and CNN

Sam Youngman / The Hill:

Republicans seize on comments by Obama in new Woodward book — Republicans on Wednesday blasted President Obama for statements journalist Bob Woodward attributed to him in his new book. — Republicans were particularly incensed about Obama's belief that the U.S. could “absorb” …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, The Politico, American Power, Doug Ross and CNN

Liz Cheney / Keep America Safe:
Liz Cheney Responds To President's “We Can Absorb A Terrorist Attack” Comment

Discussion: Big Hollywood, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Pajamas Media, Think Progress, Wonk Room, New York Magazine, Weekly Standard, NO QUARTER and Washington Monthly

James C. McKinley Jr / New York Times:

A Claim of Pro-Islam Bias in Textbooks — HOUSTON — Some conservative members of the Texas Board of Education assert that the history books used in this state have a pro-Islamic bias, and they are upset about it. — Never shy about wading into the culture wars, they are planning …

Discussion: msnbc.com, Jihad Watch and Ò"

Jonathan Strong / The Daily Caller:

TheDC exclusive: Stephen Colbert to testify before House immigration subcommittee Friday — Comedy Central host Stephen Colbert is slated to testify at a congressional hearing Friday on immigration titled “Protecting America's Harvest,” two sources have told The Daily Caller.

Discussion: newsfeed.time.com, CNN, Hot Air, All American Blogger, Pajamas Media, TPMDC, Betsy's Page, NewsBusters.org and Beltway Confidential

Kevin Sack / New York Times:

For Many, Health Care Relief Begins Today — Sometimes lost in the partisan clamor about the new health care law is the profound relief it is expected to bring to hundreds of thousands of Americans who have been stricken first by disease and then by a Darwinian insurance system.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Wonk Room, Daily Kos and TalkLeft