Top Items:
ABCNEWS:
Capitol Stand-off: Republicans Caving? — My prediction: House Republicans will soon - probably within 24 hours - cave in and accept the two-month extension of the payroll tax cut passed last week by the Senate. — I base this on conversations with House Republicans who know they are losing …
RELATED:
Amie Parnes / The Hill:
Obama shows he's confident he's beating GOP in payroll tax fight — President Obama, who has been on the losing end of several hard-fought battles with House Republicans, is showing that he thinks he's winning the latest tax fight. — While the White House—which has made it known …
Discussion:
The Caucus and Booman Tribune
Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Rove: Republicans should fold in payroll tax cut standoff — Former Bush adviser Karl Rove said he agreed with the Wall Street Journal's blistering assessment on the failure of House Republican leadership in the payroll-tax debate, and conceded that Republicans have “lost the optics” and should fold on the issue.
Discussion:
GayPatriot, ThinkProgress, CNN, Campaign 2012, National Review and Liberal Values
Alex Seitz-Wald / ThinkProgress:
Speaker Cuts Off C-SPAN Cameras When Dems Attempt To Bring Vote On Payroll Tax Cut
Jennifer Epstein / Reuters:
With family away, Obama, Bo shop
Discussion:
White House.gov Blog, The Politico and The Gateway Pundit
Stephen C. Webster / The Raw Story:
Boehner's office cuts off C-SPAN cameras as GOP takes verbal beating
Discussion:
ThinkProgress and Mediaite
Jonathan Weisman / Washington Wire:
Gingrich to House GOP: Give In on Payroll Tax
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Gawker, ThinkProgress, Roll Call, National Review and The Huffington Post
Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
Literally walking away from a fight
Discussion:
Firedoglake and The Maddow Blog
Pete Kasperowicz / The Hill:
House Republicans stiff attempt from Democrats to call up Senate payroll bill
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Wonkette, The Politico, Washington Monthly, Wake up America, Hullabaloo, DownWithTyranny! and The Hill
Tommy Christopher / Mediaite:
Mitt Romney bin Busted: ‘Candidate Like Myself’ Would Have Done Bin Laden Raid (Except 2007 Mitt) — At Christmastime, it's comforting to know that a Mitt Romney interview is the gift that keeps on giving. On Wednesday's The Daily Rundown, host Chuck Todd drew a lot out of the candidate with his deceptively easygoing style.
Discussion:
The Reality-Based Community and US Politics
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msnbc.com:
Romney to Gingrich: If you can't stand the heat, wait until Obama's Hell's kitchen
Discussion:
The Caucus
Justin Sink / The Hill:
Gingrich challenges Romney to one-on-one debate over attack ads
Discussion:
The Politico, Hot Air, CNN and GOP 12
James Crugnale / Mediaite:
Rep. Ron Paul Gets Irked By Newsletter Questions, Walks Out Of CNN Interview — Ron Paul walked out of an interview with CNN's Gloria Borger following a heated exchange over the controversy regarding racist newsletters sent in his name during the 1990s. Borger asked the Congressman if he had ever read the newsletters.
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, National Review, Business Insider, Little Green Footballs and The PJ Tatler
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Justin Sink / The Hill:
Paul abandons interview concerning controversial newsletters — Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) took off his microphone and left a contentious interview on Wednesday when a CNN reporter asked repeatedly about racist articles published in his newsletter in the 1980s and 1990s.
Discussion:
CNN, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and American Power
Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
The point at which Mitt Romney loses his mind — Mitt Romney unveiled a brand-new stump speech in New Hampshire last night, reading a carefully-crafted, poll-tested text from two teleprompters. Confident that his Republican primarily rivals simply won't (or can't) catch him …
Discussion:
The Daily Dish, Daily Kos, Balloon Juice and The Caucus
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ABCNEWS:
Mitt Romney Says ‘Yes’ To Deporting President Obama's Uncle — ABC News' Michael Falcone reports: — Presidential candidate Mitt Romney told a Boston talk radio host on Wednesday that he supports the deportation of President Obama's Kenyan-born uncle who was arrested this fall on drunken driving charges in Massachusetts.
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Weasel Zippers
Charlie Savage / New York Times:
$335 Million Settlement on Countrywide Lending Bias — The Justice Department on Wednesday announced the largest residential fair-lending settlement in history, saying that Bank of America had agreed to pay $335 million to settle allegations that its Countrywide Financial unit discriminated …
Discussion:
Firedoglake and The Huffington Post
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Betsy Rothstein / FishbowlDC:
Lawmaker Says Michelle Obama Has ‘Large Posterior’ — Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.), known for his cantankerous ways and for not speaking to media unless it's his idea, was overheard at the Delta Crown lounge at Reagan National Airport today talking on his cellphone about an incident …
Discussion:
Mediaite, The Gateway Pundit and Weasel Zippers
Victor Morton / Washington Times:
Ex-President Carter sends condolences to Kim Jong-un — Former President Jimmy Carter has sent North Korea a message of condolence over the death of Kim Jong-il and wished “every success” to the man expected to take over as dictator, according to the communist country's state-run news agency.
RELATED:
Benjamin Kang Lim / Reuters:
Exclusive: North Korea's military to share power with Kim's heir
Discussion:
New York Times, Associated Press, Gothamist, Outside the Beltway, neo-neocon, ThinkProgress and New York Magazine
Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
Romney Reverses Position on Iraq — You people don't care about Iraq any more, do you? Didn't think so. — In an interview with MSNBC's Chuck Todd today, Mitt Romney asserts that “of course” invading Iraq was a bad idea now that we know Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction.
Discussion:
Campaign 2012, msnbc.com, Washington Monthly, CNN, Political Mojo and Ricochet Conversations Feed
John Hawkins / Right Wing News:
The 50 Best Political Quotes For 2011 (Third Annual) — 50) Get the hell off the Beach in Asbury Park and get out. You're done. It's 4:30 PM. You've maximized your tan. Get off the beach. Get in you cars and get out of those areas. — Chris Christie 49) NPR is a very elitist …
Discussion:
The Lonely Conservative, YID With LID, The Spectacle Blog and Betsy's Page
Derek Thompson / The Atlantic Online:
The Most Important Graphs of 2011 — What is it about graphs and economics? In a discipline where facts are murky and certainty is elusive, graphs offer a bright light of information and a small confidence that the world can be summed up between two axes.
Discussion:
Business Insider and Real Time Economics
Grist:
New EPA mercury rules are a bona fide Big Deal — Wednesday, at long last, the EPA unveiled its new rule covering mercury and other toxic emissions from coal- and oil-fired power plants. — Anyone who pays attention to green news will have spent the last two years hearing a torrent …
Discussion:
Washington Post, USA Today, Greenversations, Political Mojo, Firedoglake, New York Times, White House.gov Blog and Washington Monthly
RELATED:
iMFdirect:
2011 In Review: Four Hard Truths — What a difference a year makes ... We started 2011 in recovery mode, admittedly weak and unbalanced, but nevertheless there was hope. The issues appeared more tractable: how to deal with excessive housing debt in the United States …
Discussion:
Paul Krugman, Brad DeLong, Guardian and Business Insider
Daniel Jacobson / Gossip Cop:
Matt Damon Blasts Obama: “One-Term President With Balls” Would Be Better — Matt Damon rips President Obama in Elle magazine, blasting his leadership qualities and saying he'd prefer “a one-term president with some balls who actually got stuff done.” — The actor, a longtime supporter …
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit, Hot Air, Mediaite and The Daily Caller
Brian Tashman / Right Wing Watch:
Robertson Tells Father to Love his Gay Son through ‘Ex-Gay’ Conversion — Today on The 700 Club, a man with an openly gay son asked Pat Robertson how he can show his son “the love of Jesus when you know his sexual preference is an abomination to God.” Robertson told the father to love …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, The Raw Story and Towleroad News #gay
Doug Stanglin / USA Today:
Sheriff: Stray bullet kills Amish teen 1.5 miles away — A teenage Amish girl shot on the way home from a Christmas party in her horse-drawn buggy was apparently killed by a stray bullet fired by a man cleaning his rifle 1.5 miles away, an Ohio sheriff says.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars and Suburban Guerrilla
Ron Paul / Washington Post:
Ron Paul becoming serious contender in Republican presidential race — Now, party officials and other candidates are being forced to reckon with him as a purveyor of policy and, in some respects, the leader of a political movement that the GOP would like to harness.
Discussion:
Ron Paul 2012 Presidential …
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James Q. Lynch / Iowa Caucus 2012:
ISU/Gazette/KCRG Poll: Ron Paul new frontrunner
Discussion:
Ballot Box, CNN, The Politico, GOP 12 and news.iastate.edu
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