Top Items:
John Heilemann / New York Magazine:
The West Wing, Season II — Almost overnight, Barack Obama overhauled his White House and rewrote much of the script. Now all he needs is a happy ending. — David Axelrod awoke at three in the morning and checked his BlackBerry. It was January 12, a few hours before Barack Obama …
Discussion:
Ben Smith's Blog, Ezra Klein, Marbury and Booman Tribune
RELATED:
Carol E. Lee / The Politico:
State of the union forecast: Atmospherics over policy — When President Barack Obama steps into the House chamber Tuesday to deliver his second State of the Union address, ambience will trump substance. — In his speech, the president will talk about jobs, the deficit and the future …
Discussion:
CNN, Fox Nation, Right Wing News and The Hill
Sam Youngman / The Hill:
Obama's transformation culminates in State of the Union — When President Obama delivers his State of the Union address to Congress, it will mark the culmination of a transformation the White House hopes will lead to a second term in 2012. — Obama and his aides began positioning the president …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Prairie Weather and AMERICAblog News
Bob Cusack / The Hill:
Seven reasons why GOP faces an uphill battle to defeat Obama
Seven reasons why GOP faces an uphill battle to defeat Obama
Discussion:
Booman Tribune and The Political Carnival
BBC:
Domodedovo blast: Explosion rocks Moscow's main airport — Moscow's Domodedovo airport - the busiest in the Russian capital - has been rocked by an explosion that has reportedly killed 31 people. — More than 100 more are thought to have been injured in the blast, which reports suggest may have been the work of a suicide bomber.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Firedoglake, Hot Air, This Just In, Guardian, Outside the Beltway, HillBuzz.org, msnbc.com, New York Magazine and FrumForum
RELATED:
Amie Ferris-Rotman / Reuters:
Suicide bomber kills 31 at Russian airport: reports — (Reuters) - At least 31 people were killed and more than 100 injured on Monday in a suicide bombing at Russia's biggest airport, Russian news agencies reported. — Russia's ruble-dominated stock market MICEX fell by nearly …
New York Times:
Deadly Blast Strikes in Moscow's Main Airport — MOSCOW — An explosion rocked an international terminal of Moscow's busiest airport on Monday afternoon. There were conflicting reports on the number of dead and injured, but the toll appeared to be rising rapidly.
Discussion:
Atlas Shrugs, The Lede and Sweetness & Light
Jennifer Epstein / The Politico:
Tea time for Antonin Scalia — Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia will speak on Monday on the separation of powers at an event organized by Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) and her Tea Party Caucus. — Though the Tea Party Caucus is a conservative group, Bachmann's office confirmed …
Discussion:
CNN, The Caucus and Althouse
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Javier Manjarres / The Shark Tank:
Senator Rubio Questions Need for the Senate Tea Party Caucus (VIDEO)
Senator Rubio Questions Need for the Senate Tea Party Caucus (VIDEO)
Discussion:
CNN, The Hill and The Daily Caller
Sarah Palin / USA Today:
'America's lifeguard' — I had the privilege of coming of age during the era of Ronald Reagan. I like to think of him as America's lifeguard. As a teenager, Ronald Reagan saved 77 lives as a lifeguard on the Rock River, which ran through his hometown of Dixon, Ill. The day he was inaugurated in 1981 …
Discussion:
Hot Air, HillBuzz.org, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Conservatives4Palin
RELATED:
Barack Obama / USA Today:
Reagan saw that ‘we are all patriots’
Reagan saw that ‘we are all patriots’
Discussion:
The Politico and Weasel Zippers
Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
GOP SCRAMBLES FOR CREDIT ON ECONOMY.... A couple of news items this morning suggest Americans should see meaningful economic progress in 2011. USA Today reported this morning, “Economists are more optimistic about the recovery than they were just a few months ago, significantly upgrading …
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Luca Di Leo / Dow Jones Newswires:
US Companies To Hire More As Economic Optimism Grows -NABE Survey
US Companies To Hire More As Economic Optimism Grows -NABE Survey
Discussion:
TPMDC and Outside the Beltway
Fred Lucas / CNSNews:
Three SEIU Locals—Including Chicago Chapter—Waived From Obamacare Requirement — (CNSNews.com) - Three local chapters of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), whose political action committee spent $27 million supporting Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election …
Discussion:
Michelle Malkin, Weasel Zippers, HillBuzz.org, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit and The Politico
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
The Competition Myth — Meet the new buzzword, same as the old buzzword. In advance of the State of the Union, President Obama has telegraphed his main theme: competitiveness. The President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board has been renamed the President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness.
Discussion:
The Confluence, Brilliant at Breakfast, Prairie Weather, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/* and Daily Kos
Guardian:
Secret papers reveal slow death of Middle East peace process — • Massive new leak lifts lid on negotiations — • PLO offered up key settlements in East Jerusalem — • Concessions made on refugees and Holy sites — The biggest leak of confidential documents in the history …
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the CNN Wires / CNN:
Fitness guru Jack LaLanne dies at 96 — (CNN) — American fitness guru Jack LaLanne died Sunday afternoon at his home in Morro Bay, California, according to his long-time agent, Rick Hersh. He was 96. — The cause, said Hersh, was respiratory failure due to pneumonia. LaLanne had been ill for the past week.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, The Huffington Post, This Just In, New York Magazine and Scared Monkeys
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Richard Goldstein / New York Times:
Jack LaLanne, Founder of Modern Fitness Movement, Dies at 96
Jack LaLanne, Founder of Modern Fitness Movement, Dies at 96
Discussion:
Guardian, nancynall.com, JustOneMinute, ABCNEWS and The Awl
New York Times:
Olbermann Split Came After Years of Tension — MSNBC never had any doubt about what it was getting when it made Keith Olbermann the face of the network in 2003: a highly talented broadcaster, a distinctive and outspoken voice and a mercurial personality with a track record of attacking his superiors and making early exits.
Discussion:
Runnin' Scared, USA Today, Mediaite, Raw Story and Shakesville
Bridget Johnson / The Hill:
The World from The Hill: U.N. funding an early target for House Republicans — A key House Republican is quickly pressing forward with her goals to scale back U.S. funding for the United Nations. — Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee …
Discussion:
Raw Story, Commentary, YID With LID, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers and FrumForum
Gretchen Morgenson / New York Times:
Mortgage Giants Leave Legal Bills to the Taxpayers — Since the government took over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, taxpayers have spent more than $160 million defending the mortgage finance companies and their former top executives in civil lawsuits accusing them of fraud.
Discussion:
The Foundry, Sweetness & Light, New York Magazine and FrumForum
John Hawkins / Right Wing News:
Interviewing Thomas Sowell On Basic Economics — Interviewing Thomas Sowell On Basic Economics — Late last year, I wrote a column for Townhall called, 10 Life Changing Books To Give This Christmas. One of those book was Thomas Sowell's Basic Economics 4th Ed: A Common Sense Guide to the Economy.
Discussion:
Hit & Run and YID With LID
David Catanese / The Politico:
Rendell to MSNBC, declares Casey “unassailable” — One of the country's most plain-spoken, media-friendly politicians is about to get paid for his punditry. — Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell is close to signing a deal with MSNBC to become a regular political contributor for the 2012 campaign cycle, POLITICO has learned.
Discussion:
New York Magazine, NewsBusters.org blogs and Mediaite