Top Items:
The Fix:
Democrats' defection from Pelosi is historic — How divided are Democrats' right now? — With 19 Democrats withholding support from Nancy Pelosi for House speaker on Wednesday, it represented the largest defection from a party's speaker nominee in nearly a century.
Discussion:
The Note, Des Moines Register and Washington Post
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Ezra Klein:
A very smart speech by Speaker Boehner
A very smart speech by Speaker Boehner
Discussion:
TigerHawk, Firedoglake, Taylor Marsh, PostPartisan, National Review, Hot Air, The Gateway Pundit and Prairie Weather
Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
Nancy Pelosi perma-grins and bears it as she hands speaker's gavel to John Boehner
Nancy Pelosi perma-grins and bears it as she hands speaker's gavel to John Boehner
Discussion:
Betsy's Page and Michelle Malkin
Roger L Simon / Pajamas Media:
'It's still just me'—Will Boehner Be the Anti-Obama?
'It's still just me'—Will Boehner Be the Anti-Obama?
Discussion:
Politics Daily, Washington Times, Right Turn and Big Government
Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Dem campaign chief: Goal is making Pelosi Speaker again
CNN:
Retracted autism study an ‘elaborate fraud,’ British journal finds — Editor's note: Watch Anderson Cooper's interview with the author of the discredited study, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, on “AC360°” at 10 p.m. ET tonight. — (CNN) — A now-retracted British study that linked autism …
Discussion:
BMJ, Runnin' Scared, Mediaite, New York Magazine, Boing Boing, iOwnTheWorld.com, AOL News, Gawker and Hit & Run
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Juli Weiner / Vanity Fair:
Republicans to Spend $1.1 Million Reciting Constitution on House Floor — As we reported this morning, House Republicans will kick-start the 112th Congress tomorrow with a spirited recitation of the Constitution, a document whose recent relevance is due largely to the ideological and sartorial interests of the Tea Party.
Discussion:
Don Surber, Outside the Beltway, TPMDC, Raw Story and AMERICAblog News
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Molly K. Hooper / The Hill:
The 'people's House' takes up ‘We the People’ with symbolic reading — Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle will spend Thursday morning in a rare exercise: reading the U.S. Constitution on the House floor. — After holding a 10 a.m. quorum call, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) …
Jake Sherman / The Politico:
GOP bends its own new House rules
GOP bends its own new House rules
Discussion:
Washington Monthly and CNN
Chris Moody / The Daily Caller:
Original U.S. Constitution will not be read in entirety on House floor
Original U.S. Constitution will not be read in entirety on House floor
Discussion:
Bob Goodlatte, Top of the Ticket and Weigel
New York Times:
Obama Turning to Experienced Hands as He Remakes Staff — WASHINGTON — President Obama closed in Wednesday on a decision to fill two top positions and recharge his administration, stopping just short of naming a new chief of staff and a top economic adviser to guide the White House through a new period of divided government.
Discussion:
CNN, The Politico, Economix, The New Republic, The Caucus, The Confluence, Slate and The Page
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Mike Allen / The Politico:
BULLETIN: BILL DALEY ANNOUNCEMENT AS CHIEF OF STAFF EXPECTED SOON — Gibbs to give speeches, consult to reelect - Karen Finney, Josh Earnest in mix to replace — Rick Powell to Bloomberg — Good Thursday morning. A TOP WHITE HOUSE OFFICIAL, on whether Bill Daley will be named chief of staff …
Discussion:
Taegan Goddard's …
Glenn Thrush / The Politico:
W.H. widens search for new Gibbs
W.H. widens search for new Gibbs
Discussion:
Washington Post, Derek Wallbank, Questions and Observations, Commentary, CNN, Weasel Zippers and TPMDC
Jonathan Allen / The Politico:
The Constitution (as amended), The Schumer Model, Fast Break on GOP Backtracking, Crown Shots at Andy's Bar, Pelosi's Historic Loss of Support, Trivia — By Jonathan Allen (with an assist from Jake “Fast Break” Sherman) — THE READING OF THE CONSTITUTION, AS AMENDED …
DealBook:
A Goldman Unit Is Said to Have Rejected Facebook — Before Goldman Sachs bought a stake in Facebook and started offering shares to wealthy clients, a powerful investment group within the firm turned down the chance to buy a piece of the social networking site, according to several people briefed on the internal discussions.
Discussion:
Clusterstock, Fortune, Felix Salmon and Wall Street Journal
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The Hill:
President Obama's motorcade: A seatbelt-free zone? — Does President Obama wear a seatbelt in his presidential limo? He is supposed to, but there are indications that he doesn't. — After then-New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine (D) was seriously injured in a car accident in 2007 …
Discussion:
The Jawa Report and Hot Air
Michael D. Shear / The Caucus:
Democrats Plan Attack on Republican Repeal Effort — Democratic leaders in Washington plan to spend the next week doing what they all but refused to do during the 2010 midterm elections: mount a vigorous defense of President Obama's health care legislation.
Discussion:
The Politico
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Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:
Democratic Party ID Drops in 2010, Tying 22-Year Low
Democratic Party ID Drops in 2010, Tying 22-Year Low
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, CNN, TPMDC, Commentary, The Politico, Ballot Box, Washington Post, Politics Daily, Right Turn and The Atlantic Online
Simmi Aujla / The Politico:
Steve King unveils birthright bill — Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) isn't wasting any time with his immigration agenda, dropping a bill on the first day of Congress that goes after birthright citizenship. — King's measure would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act, ending automatic citizenship for anyone born in the country.
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money, Right Wing News, A plain blog about politics, Weasel Zippers and ACS Blog
Duke Helfand / Los Angeles Times:
Blue Shield of California seeks rate hikes of as much as 59% for individuals — Insurer says the increases result from fast-rising healthcare costs and other expenses resulting from new healthcare laws. The move comes less than a year after Anthem Blue Cross tried and failed to raise rates as much as 39%.
Discussion:
Wonkette
Jeff Poor / The Daily Caller:
Harry Reid: ‘The American people love government’ — Congress has generated its lowest approval rating in decades. President Barack Obama is treading the 50 percent line with his approval ratings. — Yet whether the American people know it or not, they love their government - or so says Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Discussion:
Fox Nation, Betsy's Page, Michelle Malkin, Politics Daily and Weasel Zippers
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Sarah Ellison / Vanity Fair:
The Man Who Spilled the Secrets — The collaboration between WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, the Web's notorious information anarchist, and some of the world's most respected news organizations began at The Guardian, a nearly 200-year-old British paper. What followed was a clash of civilizations …
Discussion:
Guardian, Threat Level, The Nation, Boing Boing and Poynter, more at Mediagazer »
Benedict Carey / New York Times:
Journal's Paper on ESP Expected to Prompt Outrage — One of psychology's most respected journals has agreed to publish a paper presenting what its author describes as strong evidence for extrasensory perception, the ability to sense future events. — The decision may delight believers …
Discussion:
The Agonist
Wall Street Journal:
U.S. Boosts Afghan Surge — Pentagon Plans to Send 1,400 Extra Marines to Supplement Spring Campaign — U.S. and Afghan soldiers prepared for patrol in Kandahar province on Wednesday. — WASHINGTON—Defense Secretary Robert Gates has decided to send an additional 1,400 Marine combat forces …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, News Desk, AOL News and Washington Post
David Ignatius / PostPartisan:
Is Darrell Issa the new Joe McCarthy? — To the victors in the congressional elections goes the power of subpoena, as Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) has been so eager to remind the Democrats. But as the new Congress is seated, Issa and his GOP colleagues should note the difference between investigation and witch-hunt.
Discussion:
Emptywheel, Raw Story and NewsBusters.org blogs