memeorandum: Last U.S. troops leave Iraq, ending war (Reuters)

5:20 PM ET, December 18, 2011

Top Items:

Quote of the Day — At this week's debate for Republican presidential candidates, Newt Gingrich emphasized one of his favorite subjects: his disgust for the federal judiciary. The disgraced former House Speaker warned of “an uprising” against the courts, adding that he's …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Political Mojo and Zandar Versus The Stupid

Alexander Bolton / Ballot Box:

Gingrich: Congress can send Capitol Police to arrest rogue judges — GOP presidential frontrunner Newt Gingrich said Congress has the power to dispatch the Capitol Police or U.S. Marshals to apprehend a federal judge who renders a decision lawmakers broadly oppose.

Discussion: Patterico's Pontifications and Washington Post

Lucy Madison / CBS News:

Gingrich: Gov't branches should rule 2 out of 3 — PLAY CBS NEWS VIDEO — Newt Gingrich on Sunday reiterated his argument that there is something “profoundly wrong” with the United States' judicial system, and argued that the balance of power in American government should come down to “two out of three” branches of the government.

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, ABCNEWS, The Iowa Republican and Washington Post

David G. Savage / Los Angeles Times:
Newt Gingrich says he'd defy Supreme Court rulings he opposed

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, CBS News, Little Green Footballs, Outside the Beltway, Hullabaloo, A Blog For All, The Strata-Sphere, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Towleroad News #gay

Iowa Caucuses:
The Des Moines Register's GOP caucus endorsement: Mitt Romney is best to lead

Jennifer Jacobs / Iowa Caucuses:
10 factors that could determine Newt Gingrich's fate in Iowa

Discussion: Boston Globe, The Politico and Swampland

A.Killough / CNN:
Des Moines Register endorses Romney

Discussion: The Politico, Iowa Caucuses, USA Today and Los Angeles Times

Ron Nixon / New York Times:

Boehner Says House G.O.P. Opposes Deal on Payroll Tax — WASHINGTON — A day after the Senate overwhelmingly approved legislation to extend a payroll tax cut for two months, House Republicans made clear Sunday that they would not support the measure. — Speaker John A. Boehner …

Discussion: AMERICAN FUTURE, Balloon Juice and Blue Mass Group

Amie Parnes / The Hill:
Keystone climbdown leaves Obama supporters scratching their heads

Discussion: The Politico, Roll Call, The Huffington Post, Taylor Marsh, CNN and New York Times

Russell Berman / The Hill:
Speaker Boehner opposes Senate's two-month payroll tax cut extension

Discussion: The Politico

Russell Berman / The Hill:
White House backs Senate payroll bill over House objections

Discussion: Speaker, The White House, RedState, The Politico and CNN

Jonathan Allenand Jake Sherman / The Politico:
House GOP revolts on payroll deal

Discussion: CNN, The New Republic, Washington Post, Booman Tribune, americanthinker.com, Power Line, Don Surber and The Other McCain

Associated Press:

Vaclav Havel, Dissident Playwright Who Led Czechoslovakia, Dead at 75 — PRAGUE — Vaclav Havel, the dissident playwright who wove theater into politics to peacefully bring down communism in Czechoslovakia and become a hero of the epic struggle that ended the Cold War, has died. He was 75.

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, ThinkProgress, ArtsBeat, Los Angeles Times, Firedoglake, Booman Tribune and The Talking Dog

J.Y. Smith / Washington Post:
Vaclav Havel, dissident playwright and former Czech president, dies

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Suburban Guerrilla

Michael Winfrey / Reuters:
Vaclav Havel, leader of “Velvet Revolution,” dies

Discussion: americanthinker.com and Michael Totten

Ted Mann / The Atlantic Wire:
Vaclav Havel is Dead

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, emptywheel, The Incidental Economist and The Daily What

Nick Gillespie / Hit & Run:
Vaclav Havel, RIP

Discussion: Harry's Place, Outside the Beltway and Chicago Boyz

Robert Stacy McCain / The Other McCain:

Minnesota Republican Resigns Post Over Allegation of ‘Inappropriate’ Relationship — This news was a shock to me, involving allegations — and we must stress that these are only allegations at this point — against a female politician whom I have actually met: … (Via TPM and Memorandum.)

Discussion: Don Surber and Daily Pundit

Rachel E. Stassen-Berger / Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Sen. Koch quit over ‘inappropriate’ relationship

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Little Green Footballs, Hullabaloo, The Raw Story, tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com and Hot Dish Politics

Doug Grow / MinnPost:
Latest Amy Koch developments complicate GOP plans across the board

Discussion: The Blotter and Firedoglake

Reuters:

Last U.S. troops leave Iraq, ending war — (Reuters) - The last convoy of U.S. soldiers pulled out of Iraq on Sunday, ending nearly nine years of war that cost almost 4,500 American and tens of thousands of Iraqi lives and left a country still grappling with political uncertainty.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Zandar Versus The Stupid and TalkLeft

New York Times:

Last Convoy of American Troops Leaves Iraq, Marking an End to the War — BAGHDAD — The last convoy of American troops to leave Iraq drove into Kuwait on Sunday morning, marking the end of the nearly nine-year war. — The convoy's departure, which included about 110 vehicles and 500 soldiers …

Discussion: msnbc.com, ThinkProgress, The Daily What, Washington Monthly and Outside the Beltway

Michael Zennie / Daily Mail:

Vivid new Battle of the Bulge photos offer never-before-seen look at the war-weary soldiers braving the frigid weather as they fight off Nazi Germany's last major offensive of World War II — Breathtaking new photographs, including several vivid full-color images, offer a never-before-seen look …

Star-Ledger Guest / NJ Voices Guest blog:

Discrimination against same-sex marriages cannot be tolerated in our society as a matter of law — By Robert Menendez — Since my vote in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act 15 years ago, like tens of millions of Americans, I have reflected deeply and frequently about this issue.

Discussion: Towleroad News #gay

Inderdeep Bains / Daily Mail:

The brave women of the Middle East: Female protesters brutally beaten with metal poles as vicious soldiers drag girls through streets by their hair in day of shame — After being viciously beaten by a 10-strong mob of Egyptian male soldiers, this woman lies helplessly on the ground as her shirt …

Discussion: Atlas Shrugs

Associated Press:

Islamists win 70 percent of the vote in second round of Egypt elections — Unofficial results put Muslim Brotherhood ahead with 39 percent of the vote, Salafi Al Nour with 31 percent; liberal Wafd party wins 22 percent. — Get Haaretz on iPhone — Get Haaretz on Android

Discussion: NO QUARTER and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Max Fisher / The Atlantic Online:

A Photo That Encapsulates the Horror of Egypt's Crackdown — Three soldiers beat a defenseless woman, pull off her abaya, and drag her down a Cairo street — The above photo shows Egyptian army soldiers beating a young woman in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Saturday, the second straight …

Discussion: Sister Toldjah and Newshoggers.com