Top Items:
New York Times:
C.I.A. Agents in Libya Aid Airstrikes and Meet Rebels — WASHINGTON — The Central Intelligence Agency has inserted clandestine operatives into Libya to gather intelligence for military airstrikes and contact rebels battling Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi's forces, according to American officials.
Discussion:
The Daily Dish, Mudville Gazette, Say Anything, The Volokh Conspiracy, Pajamas Media, Flopping Aces, Guardian, Connecting.the.Dots, Taylor Marsh, Weasel Zippers, FrumForum, LewRockwell.com Blog, Saideman's Semi-Spew, Right Wing News, NO QUARTER, Prairie Weather, The Atlantic Online, Balloon Juice and Outside the Beltway
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Matt Negrin / The Politico:
Tapper offers Carney ‘straw men’ — The temperature in the White House briefing jumped up Wednesday afternoon as Jake Tapper and Jay Carney vented some of their frustrations with each other publicly. — At one point, Tapper dissed Carney by saying he could provide a “room full of straw men” for the White House press secretary.
Discussion:
Balloon Juice
Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
On The Latest From Libya — I'm still absorbing this news and don't want to vent immediately, because there is still part of me that simply cannot believe that president Obama has already ordered covert action in Libya on one side in a civil war, and is now actively discussing whether to arm …
Discussion:
American Power, Da Techguy's Blog, JammieWearingFool, JustOneMinute, CNSNews and That's What She Said
Mark Hosenball / Reuters:
Exclusive: Obama authorizes secret support for Libya rebels
Exclusive: Obama authorizes secret support for Libya rebels
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, Wonkette, Emptywheel, Fausta's Blog, The Cable, Atlas Shrugs, Left Coast Rebel, Pajamas Media, Another Black Conservative, Sky Dancing, Say Anything, Shakesville, Jihad Watch, Mediaite, The Moderate Voice, ABCNEWS, Firedoglake, Weasel Zippers, The Raw Story, This Just In, The Lonely Conservative, American Power, TPMDC, Outside the Beltway, Hit & Run, Gawker, Israel Matzav, No More Mister Nice Blog, BLACKFIVE, Swampland, The Page, American Glob, National Review, New York Times and CNN
The Politico:
Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates win no love on Capitol Hill
Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates win no love on Capitol Hill
Discussion:
Pajamas Media, Hot Air and The Lonely Conservative
Myglesias / Yglesias:
Good Morning Libya — Today's New York Times features Mark Mazzetti …
Good Morning Libya — Today's New York Times features Mark Mazzetti …
Discussion:
The Daily Dish, Vancouver Sun and TPMDC
Gschwarzcnn / CNN:
Hillary Clinton's top score
Hillary Clinton's top score
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, The Politico and Gallup
Craig McMurtrie / ABC News:
The reluctant warrior
Ross Douthat:
The President's Credibility Gap
The President's Credibility Gap
Discussion:
NewsReal Blog, AMERICAblog News and FrumForum
David Rogers / The Politico:
Budget deal close with $33B in cuts — Budget talks came to life Wednesday but not without new tension between the White House and Senate Democrats, worried that the administration is too quick to agree to $33 billion in cuts to move Speaker John Boehner toward what remains a very uncertain deal.
Discussion:
CNN, The Other McCain, WyBlog, FrumForum, Pajamas Media, Say Anything, Washington Post, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Pundit Press, Daily Kos and The Hill
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The Politico:
Tea partiers warn GOP on dealmaking
Tea partiers warn GOP on dealmaking
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times and Fox Nation
First Read / msnbc.com:
First thoughts: Caving in — White House and Democrats continue …
First thoughts: Caving in — White House and Democrats continue …
Discussion:
National Review, The Politico, CNN and FrumForum
Margaret Carlson / Bloomberg:
Kennedy Pal Goes AWOL as Tea Party Cashes In: Margaret Carlson
Kennedy Pal Goes AWOL as Tea Party Cashes In: Margaret Carlson
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland
Mark Joyella / Mediaite:
GMA Takes On ‘Tea Party Darlings On The Dole’
GMA Takes On ‘Tea Party Darlings On The Dole’
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland and TPM LiveWire
Steve Kornacki / Salon:
The unbeatable Republican? — Massachusetts is a deeply Democratic state, one in which barely more than 15 percent of the seats in the state Legislature are held by Republicans and fewer than 15 percent of all registered voters belong to the GOP. So it's hardly surprising that national Democrats …
Discussion:
National Review
Marc Lacey / New York Times:
An Arizona Senate Race Waits to See if Giffords Emerges to Run — TUCSON — Representative Gabrielle Giffords is still in the hospital, but some of her most ardent backers are so enamored of the idea of her running for the Senate that they describe the inevitable campaign commercials …
Discussion:
The Agitator, USA Today and FrumForum
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Democrats consider proposing tax hikes — Senate Democrats are discussing plans to introduce tax policy changes that they say would raise federal revenues and broaden the budget debate beyond discretionary spending cuts. — Democrats feel they have been boxed by Republicans into a debate …
Discussion:
Pajamas Media, FrumForum, Prairie Weather and JammieWearingFool
Abby Phillip / The Politico:
Shh! Obama gets anti-secrecy award — The president accepted a transparency award in a closed, undisclosed meeting. — President Obama finally and quietly accepted his “transparency” award from the open government community this week — in a closed, undisclosed meeting at the White House on Monday.
WISC-TV:
Judge Says Union Bargaining Bill Not In Effect — Sumi Amends Temporary Restraining Order — MADISON, Wis. — The contentious collective bargaining law that strips most public workers of nearly all collective bargaining rights and force them to contribute more to their pension and health plans …
Discussion:
Hot Air, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Pajamas Media and Pundit Press
Tanya Somanader / ThinkProgress:
VIDEO: Indiana GOP Rep Says Women Will Pretend To Be Raped To Get Free Abortions — Yesterday morning, the Indiana House considered an anti-abortion bill that “would put some of the tightest abortion restrictions in the nation into Indiana law.” Introduced by state Rep. Eric Turner (R) …
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Indianapolis Star, Feministing, The Raw Story, TPMDC, Outside the Beltway, No More Mister Nice Blog, Angry Black Lady Chronicles, Sky Dancing, Zandar Versus The Stupid, Mock, Paper, Scissors, Little Green Footballs, Tennessee Guerilla Women, The Reality-Based Community, Shakesville and Booman Tribune
Steven Greenhouse / New York Times:
Ohio Lawmakers Pass Anti-Union Bill — The two houses of the Ohio Legislature approved a far-reaching bill on Wednesday that would hobble the ability of public-employee unions to bargain collectively and undercut their political clout. — They sent the bill to Gov. John R. Kasich …
Discussion:
Firedoglake, www2.nbc4i.com, UrbanGrounds and Alan Colmes' Liberaland
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Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Iowa GOP threatens effort to strip Florida of 2012 Republican convention — The chairman of Iowa's Republican Party on Thursday backed an effort to possibly move the 2012 Republican National Convention out of Florida if that state sticks to its January primary date.
Discussion:
The Politico, CNN and The Note
Benjamin Svetkey / PopWatch:
Arnold Schwarzenegger is back as ‘The Governator’ — EXCLUSIVE — He's been a famous body builder. He's been a killer cyborg from the future. He's been Governor of California. And now, in this week's exclusive cover scoop, Arnold Schwarzenegger reveals his plans for the next phase …
Discussion:
Michelle Malkin, Scared Monkeys, The Wire, The Daily Caller, Right Pundits, Outside the Beltway, Show Tracker and Capitol Alert
William Kristol / Weekly Standard:
Rubio Takes the Lead — Urges Congress to authorize military action, endorse regime change. — THE WEEKLY STANDARD has obtained the text of a letter freshman senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) sent tonight to the Senate majority and minority leaders. In it, Rubio proposes that the Senate authorize …
Discussion:
Washington Wire, CNN, USA Today, Say Anything, Post on Politics and Naked Politics
Stack / USW Blog:
A Well-Intentioned Bad Idea — International Vice President, United Steelworkers — By now anyone who had not yet heard of the Koch brothers has been introduced to them. Every major newspaper and magazine has run an article about the brothers who until recently lived largely under …
Discussion:
RedState, Moe Lane and Da Techguy's Blog
Mike McIntire / New York Times:
Odd Alliance: Business Lobby and Tea Party — The Tea Party does not have a presence in Indonesia, where the term evokes cups of orange pekoe and sweet cakes rather than angry citizens in “Don't Tread on Me” T-shirts. — But a Tea Party group in the United States, the Institute for Liberty …
Discussion:
No More Mister Nice Blog, A plain blog about politics, Booman Tribune and Prairie Weather
Kevin Bogardus / The Hill:
Obama issues veto threat over union measure in FAA bill — President Obama has threatened to veto the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill unless a provision on union organizing is removed. — In a statement of administration policy Wednesday, the White House said the president's …
Discussion:
The Politico, The Impolitic and Wonk Room
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Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:
White House Threatens To Veto Anti-Union Measure In Aviation Bill
White House Threatens To Veto Anti-Union Measure In Aviation Bill
Discussion:
RedState and American Spectator
Doug McKelway / Fox News:
Report Accuses DHS of Witness Tampering and Attempted Theft of Congressional Committee Documents — A key congressional committee on oversight is accusing the Department of Homeland Security of non-cooperation, witness tampering and even attempted theft of committee documents.
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit and Don Surber
Travis Waldron / ThinkProgress:
With New ‘Monkey Bill,’ Tennessee Takes Evolution Education Back To Scopes — Eighty six years after the infamous Scopes Monkey Trial opened Tennessee to the debate about the teaching of evolution, the state House is trying to slam the door shut again. Tennessee's House Education Committee approved …
Discussion:
Blogcritics, Booman Tribune and Knoxville News-Sentinel