Top Items:


Sarah Palin Is Right About ‘Blood Libel’ — Judaism rejects the idea of collective responsibility for murder. — The term “blood libel”—which Sarah Palin invoked this week to describe the suggestions by journalists and politicians that conservative figures like herself are responsible …
Discussion:
No More Mister Nice Blog, Power Line, GayPatriot, Sheya, Israel Matzav, Althouse, American Power and National Review
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Some say ‘blood libel’ signaled base
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and Conservatives4Palin

Palin to deliver address at gun convention — Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will deliver a keynote address to a gun convention later this month. — Palin (R) will speak to the Safari International Club (SCI) in Reno, Nev. on Saturday, Jan. 29, according to the group's website.
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Sarah Palin to speak in Nevada — Sarah Palin isn't retreating on guns. Instead, she's reloading. — The former vice presidential candidate and possible 2012 presidential hopeful is headed to Safari Club International's convention later this month in Reno, Nev. - one of the key early presidential primary states.
Discussion:
CNN, Reuters and The Daily Caller

A Tale of Two Moralities — On Wednesday, President Obama called on Americans to “expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully, to sharpen our instincts for empathy, and remind ourselves of all the ways our hopes and dreams are bound together.”
Discussion:
protein wisdom, TalkLeft, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Paul Krugman, Althouse, The Mahablog and Patterico's Pontifications

House GOP to resume health-care repeal effort, but with more civil tone — House Republican leaders said Thursday that they will begin their effort to repeal the new health-care law next week, a return to normal legislative business after the shootings in Arizona suspended activity on Capitol Hill.
Discussion:
Ezra Klein, Wonk Room, The Politico, Prairie Weather, Parker Spitzer, Shakesville and The Plum Line
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House Republicans Edge Back to Business as Usual
Discussion:
The Hill and Sweetness & Light

TEAM OBAMA BEGINS PLANNING $1 BILLION REELECTION CAMPAIGN - Party members may mix across aisle for State of the Union - Au revoir, Chairman Steele — Taylor and Amy Gross have #3, a girl — Good Friday morning. TOP TALKER - DNC BRAINSTORMS 2012 WITH BUNDLERS — Jeanne Cummings …
Discussion:
Associated Press, Commentary and Runnin' Scared


Drifter Naeem Ahmed accused of stalking Caroline Kennedy's 20-year-old daughter Tatiana Schlossberg — Tatiana Schlossberg, with mom Caroline Kennedy, has been fending off stalker Naeem Ahmed (below) for 2-1/2 years. He even tried twice to visit her Manhattan home.
Discussion:
New York Magazine, City Room, msnbc.com and JammieWearingFool

An Open Letter to Parents Following the Tragedy in Tucson — Like so many Americans all across the country, Barack and I were shocked and heartbroken by the horrific act of violence committed in Arizona this past weekend. Yesterday, we had the chance to attend a memorial service and meet …
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Michelle Obama's lesson from the Tucson massacre: Teach your children …
Discussion:
Wizbang, TPM LiveWire and Lynn Sweet

Tree of Failure — President Obama gave a wonderful speech in Tucson on Wednesday night. He didn't try to explain the rampage that occurred there. Instead, he used the occasion as a national Sabbath — as a chance to step out of the torrent of events and reflect. He did it with an uplifting spirit.
Discussion:
The Huffington Post and The Moderate Voice

Mark Levin's $100,000 Challenge to Chris Matthews — Conservative radio talk show host Mark Levin has put out a stunning challenge to those left-wing media personalities accusing conservative talk radio stars and Sarah Palin of encouraging murder. — First, he offered $100,000 to Chris Matthews …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Breitbart.tv, NewsBusters.org blogs, RealClearPolitics Video Log and RADAMISTO

Steele's rocky tenure at RNC expected to end Friday — Washington (CNN) - It's anybody's guess which candidate will emerge as the next chairman of the Republican National Committee after Friday's election, but RNC watchers largely agree on one thing: the reign of Michael Steele has come to an end.
Discussion:
Ben Smith's Blog, This Just In, The Politico, News Desk, Wall Street Journal, TPMDC and Taegan Goddard's …
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What to Watch in the RNC Chair Election
Discussion:
NationalJournal.com, Riehl World View and TPMDC


The debt ceiling and default — ALMOST everyone takes it for granted that a failure to raise the debt ceiling will eventually force the United States to default on its Treasury debt. This notion is superficially puzzling. The question is addressed in this week's issue of The Economist.
Discussion:
Ezra Klein and The Glittering Eye
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DOJ Files DOMA Defense in First Circuit Cases — Today, the Department of Justice filed its defense of the Defense of Marriage Act in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in a single filing for both Gill v. Office of Personnel Management and Massachusetts v. United States.
Discussion:
Wonk Room, Joe. My. God., Towleroad News #gay, The Confluence, TPMMuckraker and Pam's House Blend
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Gay groups criticize Justice Department brief
Discussion:
AMERICAblog News and FrumForum

Palin's biggest problem — Sarah Palin's biggest obstacle to the White House may not be her remarkable level of unpopularity with Democrats and independents. Her more immediate problem is that she simply doesn't have much support in the vital early Republican states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and Florida.
Discussion:
GOP 12

Poll: Obama and Lame-Duck Congress Popular - But Will it Quack Again? — 77% Welcome the Lame-Duck Cooperation Between Obama and Congress — Americans overwhelmingly welcomed the flurry of lawmaking between the lame-duck Congress and President Obama last month — but they're hedging their bets on whether the duck keeps quacking.
Discussion:
Mediaite and Sweetness & Light


Sen. Mike Lee Calls Child Labor Laws Unconstitutional — Last week, Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) posted a lecture on his YouTube channel where he explains in great detail his views on the Constitution. As part of the lecture, which is essentially a lengthy defense of his radical tenther interpretation …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly and The Maddow Blog

Opinion: Elected Officials Flunk Constitution Quiz … When the Republican House leadership decided to start the 112th Congress with a reading of the U.S. Constitution, the decision raised complaints in some quarters that it was little more than a political stunt.
Discussion:
Patterico's Pontifications and Pajamas Media


Tax cuts hinder Obama's plans to overhaul tax code, reduce deficit — President Obama's refusal to raise taxes for the vast majority of Americans will prevent him from pursuing a broad overhaul of the tax code and is making it difficult for him to achieve his goals for reducing the budget deficit …
Discussion:
Yglesias, Wall Street Journal and The New Republic

Citigroup Was On The Verge Of Failure, New Report Finds; Rescue Was Based On ‘Gut Instinct’ — What's Your Reaction: … Citigroup, the nation's third-largest bank by assets, was on the verge of being closed by regulators the week of Nov. 24, 2008 as depositors rapidly withdrew money …
Discussion:
Firedoglake and The Big Picture


Gov. Christie won't share opinion on concealed weapon licenses — PARAMUS — Gov. Chris Christie isn't going to share his position on allowing licensed concealed weapons in New Jersey, he said this morning. — At a town hall meeting in Paramus, Christie was asked about his views on creating …
Discussion:
GOP 12

GOP gears up again to strip NPR of federal funds — TAGS: - Byron York - Congressional Research Service - Corporation for Public Broadcasting - doug lamborn - Juan Williams - Muslim garb - national endowment for the arts - National Public Radio - npr - Republicans - vivian schiller
Discussion:
Hot Air


Wisconsin 1, Illinois 0 — With Springfield raising taxes amidst its fiscal disaster, the new Republican governor of the Badger State is telling Illinoisans, “Escape to Wisconsin.” — Illinois this week earned the honor of becoming the first state in 2011 to sock it to taxpayers, passing a tax hike the size of Lake Michigan.
Discussion:
RedState, The Glittering Eye, Shot in the Dark and Betsy's Page