memeorandum: Exclusive | Biden: Mubarak Is Not a Dictator, But People Have a Right to Protest (Online NewsHour)

12:40 PM ET, January 28, 2011

Top Items:

James Cowie / Renesys Blog:

Egypt Leaves the Internet — Confirming what a few have reported this evening: in an action unprecedented in Internet history, the Egyptian government appears to have ordered service providers to shut down all international connections to the Internet. Critical European-Asian fiber-optic …

Guardian:

Egyptian government on last legs, says Mohamed ElBaradei — Exclusive: Mohamed ElBaradei says he is sending a message ‘to the Guardian and to the world’ — The Egyptian dissident Mohamed ElBaradei warned President Hosni Mubarak today that his regime is on its last legs …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, The Daily Dish, Fausta's Blog, ThinkProgress, Washington Post, Verum Serum, Confederate Yankee, The Awl and Hot Air

Dan Murphy / Christian Science Monitor:

Joe Biden says Egypt's Mubarak no dictator, he shouldn't step down... ... and wonders what the Egyptian protesters want. — Vice President Joe Biden spoke to the PBS NewsHour tonight with the most direct US governent comments yet about the gathering Egypt protests against President Hosni Mubarak's 29-year reign.

Discussion: Foreign Policy, Don Surber, BBC, Guardian, Sense of Events, No More Mister Nice Blog, Wonkette, Weasel Zippers, zunguzungu, Taylor Marsh, Firedoglake, Unqualified Offerings, American Power, Hot Air, FP Passport, AmSpecBlog and POMED

wikileaks.ch:

VZCZCXYZ0003 RR RUEHWEB DE RUEHEG #0079/01 0151524 ZNY CCCCC ZZH R 151524Z JAN 09 FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1372 INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC — C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 000079 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ELA, DRL/NESCA …

Discussion: Political Punch, Guardian and Runnin' Scared

New York Times:

Cables Show Delicate U.S. Dealings With Egypt's Leaders — WASHINGTON — It was Hillary Rodham Clinton's first meeting as secretary of state with President Hosni Mubarak, in March 2009, and the Egyptians had an odd request: Mrs. Clinton should not thank Mr. Mubarak for releasing an opposition leader from prison because he was ill.

Discussion: Guardian, Firedoglake, Salon, Wonkette, Informed Comment, Pajamas Media, Associated Press, msnbc.com, Runnin' Scared, Washington Post, White House Dossier and Taylor Marsh

msnbc.com:

Egypt sends in army to quell ‘open revolt’ — Central areas of Suez and Alexandria reportedly in protesters' control; Nobel Prize winner under house arrest; ruling party HQ ablaze — Below: — on msnbc.com -

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, The Gateway Pundit and FrumForum

New York Times:
Police Battle Huge Protests Across Egypt

Discussion: The Lede, The Daily Dish, The Politico, Guardian, nancynall.com, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Wonk Room, Jihad Watch, Weasel Zippers, FrumForum, Swampland and The Maddow Blog

Wall Street Journal:
Egypt Deploys Military On Cairo's Streets

Discussion: Hot Air, Time and The BLT

Associated Press:
Egypt Nobel laureate ElBaradei under house arrest

Discussion: CNN, The Huffington Post, iOwnTheWorld.com and Guardian

Guardian:
Egyptians defy curfew as army moves in

Discussion: Washington Wire, The Jawa Report, almasryalyoum.com, Firedoglake, The Daily Dish, Reuters, The Agonist, Global Voices in English, New York Times and Hullabaloo

Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Biden: Hey, Mubarak's not a dictator

Discussion: Reuters, Political Punch, Time, CBS News, Crooks and Liars and National Review

Online NewsHour:
Exclusive | Biden: Mubarak Is Not a Dictator, But People Have a Right to Protest

Discussion: The Hill, Right Turn, Raw Story and FP Passport

Aljazeera:
Fresh protests erupt in Egypt

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, New York Times, White House Dossier, POMED and Pajamas Media

Linda Feldmann / Christian Science Monitor:
At last, Obama addresses Egypt protests - on YouTube

Discussion: Pajamas Media and The Gateway Pundit

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:

THE ODIOUS GOP PLAN TO REDEFINE RAPE.... Last week, after a rather pointless vote to repeal the entirety of the Affordable Care Act, House Republicans announced their second major initiative: the “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act.” — It was additional evidence that the new House GOP majority …

Discussion: Balloon Juice

Nick Baumann / Mother Jones:

The House GOP's Plan to Redefine Rape — Drugged, raped, and pregnant? Too bad. Republicans are pushing to limit rape and incest cases eligible for government abortion funding. — Post Comment — Rape is only really rape if it involves force. So says the new House Republican majority as it now moves to change abortion law.

Discussion: Shakesville, Democratic Strategist and Daily Kos

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
HOUSE GOP WEIGHS MEDICARE PRIVATIZATION.... To help finance …

Discussion: Associated Press, Raw Story and ThinkProgress

Elizabethe Holland / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

Furor at Washington U. nixes Bristol Palin appearance — Anger over a decision to pay Bristol Palin several thousand dollars in student fees to talk to Washington University students about abstinence led to a decision Thursday night to nix Palin's appearance on a panel here next month.

Discussion: Right Wing News, Wonkette, The Gateway Pundit and GOP 12

Student Life:
Bristol Palin will not speak at Washington University; SHAC says decision mutual

Discussion: Daily RFT

USA Today:

TNT apologizes for Tracy Morgan's suggestive comments on Palin — TNT wasted no time apologizing for Tracy Morgan's suggestive comments about Sarah Palin on Thursday night. — Morgan, star of NBC's 30 Rock sitcom, said during TNT's nationally televised Inside the NBA that he fantasized …

Discussion: PopEater, iOwnTheWorld.com, Salon, AOL News and JammieWearingFool

Patrick Hynes / New Hampshire Journal:

Top Dem: We will ‘hang’ Republicans — Amidst a national dialogue about softening political rhetoric, members of an Obama-affiliated organization are threatening to hang Granite State Republicans in the New Hampshire House of Representatives, according to a news story in the Citizen of Laconia.

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Weasel Zippers and The Gateway Pundit

John Koziol / Citizen.com:
Area Democrats look ahead to 2012, regrouping efforts

Discussion: iOwnTheWorld.com and Right Wing News

Jonathan Allen / The Politico:

Republicans terrified of tea — When Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann was named to the House Intelligence Committee earlier this year, one of her Republican colleagues responded this way: “Is that a punchline?” Another simply said, “Jumbo shrimp. Oxymoron.” — Neither dared to attach his name to his comment.

Discussion: Grim's Hall, The Blotter, The New Republic and FrumForum

Rick Maze / Air Force Times HOME:

Bachmann plan would cut veterans benefits — Tea party favorite Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., has unveiled a plan for cutting $400 billion in federal spending that includes freezing Veterans Affairs Department health care spending and cutting veterans' disability benefits.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Raw Story, TPMDC and Minnesota Independent

Charles Lane / Washington Post:

Cold truths about electric cars' cold-weather shortcomings — Count me among the many thousands of Washington area residents who spent Wednesday night stuck in traffic as a snowstorm sowed chaos all around us. Being car-bound in sub-freezing weather for six hours can make a guy think.

Discussion: Right Turn and Betsy's Page

Aleister / American Glob:

PROPAGANDA: Reagan And Obama On The Cover Of TIME — TIME Magazine's new February 2011 issue has a cover that features Ronald Reagan with his arm around a jovial Barack Obama. You can see the image below. This is propaganda. Plain and simple. — Anyone who knows anything …

Discussion: Big Government, No Sheeples Here, Wonkette, Reuters, PR Newswire, The Gateway Pundit, sisu, CNN and Fox Nation

Jason Millman / The Hill:

Some healthcare waiver requests denied even as HHS approves 500 others — While some 500 groups got waivers for a healthcare reform provision setting annual coverage requirements, about 50 requests for such exemptions were denied, the Department of Health and Human Services told The Hill Thursday.

Discussion: protein wisdom

Michael Stott / Reuters:

Rich corporations “must share wealth” to avoid unrest — (Reuters) - Poverty and unemployment reared their heads at the World Economic Forum on Thursday, with speakers urging the elite audience to bridge a growing gap between booming multinationals and the jobless poor.

Discussion: Questions and Observations and Suburban Guerrilla

Jeff Coen / Chicago Tribune:

Emanuel on Chicago mayoral ballot — Illinois Supreme Court rejects challenge to his residency — The ballot roller coaster for Rahm Emanuel finally stopped Thursday with the former White House chief of staff very much in the race for mayor and the Illinois Supreme Court emphatically rejecting …

Discussion: The Caucus, New York Times, Indecision Forever and White House Dossier

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

Their Own Private Europe — President Obama's State of the Union address was a ho-hum affair. But the official Republican response, from Representative Paul Ryan, was really interesting. And I don't mean that in a good way. — Mr. Ryan made highly dubious assertions about employment, health care and more.

Discussion: Prairie Weather

Ezra Klein:

Wonkbook: Filibuster reform dead — So why did Senate Democrats agree, in principle, that simple majorities can't change the Senate's rules, and even exceedingly modest changes to the filibuster are out-of-bounds? Easy: They're a simple majority now, but someday soon, they'll be a simple minority.

Discussion: Associated Press, The Plum Line, Mother Jones, RedState and The Politico

Vicki Needham / The Hill:

Johanns bill to repeal healthcare law's 1099 provision reaches 60 co-sponsors — A bipartisan bill in the Senate that would repeal the unpopular 1099 provision in the healthcare law garnered 60 co-sponsors on Thursday, giving the legislation its best chance at passage so far.

Discussion: Right Turn

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:

Former Rep. Hoekstra weighing 2012 run against Sen. Debbie Stabenow — Former Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.) said Friday that he's considering challenging Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) in 2012. — Hoekstra, a former nine-term congressman who retired in 2010 to pursue an unsuccessful gubernatorial bid …

New York Times:

Seizing a Moment, Al Jazeera Galvanizes Arab Frustration — The protests rocking the Arab world this week have one thread uniting them: Al Jazeera, the Qatar-based satellite channel whose aggressive coverage has helped propel insurgent emotions from one capital to the next.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, The Daily Dish, RubinReports and msnbc.com, more at Mediagazer »

The Politico:

Barack Obama fires up the health team — President Barack Obama may have said “let's fix it and move on” in his State of the Union address, but the president is sending messages that he is ready to roll up his sleeves and keep fighting the health care battle as long as he needs to.

Discussion: USA Today, Right Wing News, The Hill and Wonk Room

Leslie Horn / PC Magazine:

NASA Marks 25th Anniversary of the Challenger Disaster — NASA is remembering three major tragedies in its history this week, starting with the 25th anniversary of the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger on Friday. — “This year marks the 25th anniversary of the loss of the Challenger …

Discussion: protein wisdom

Reuters:

Special Report: A Long Island tax cut backfires on the Tea Party — MINEOLA, New York (Reuters) - At his January 2010 inauguration, Tea Party-backed Republican Edward Mangano marched up to the podium, pen in hand. Even before being officially declared Nassau County Executive, he signed a repeal of an unpopular home energy tax.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, ThinkProgress, Guardian and Philly.com

New York Post:

The Homeland-Security follies — For most Americans, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano's inaugural “state of US domestic security” speech yesterday will be notable mainly for marking the end of the useless “color code” threat system. But such trifling changes can never …

Discussion: GOP 12 and ABCNEWS