memeorandum: Explosions Rock Baghdad Amid Iraqi Political Crisis (New York Times)

3:10 PM ET, December 22, 2011

Top Items:

McConnell: Pass short-term extension — In a blow to House Republicans, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has called on the House to pass a two-month payroll tax extension — while pushing Democrats to negotiate a full year extension of the tax break. — McConnell's statement came …

Discussion: CBS News, Washington Post, Bloomberg, The Mahablog, ABCNEWS, CNN, Booman Tribune, Daily Kos and US Politics

Susan Jones / CNSNews:

‘Waa, No Pizza Night’: Sad Stories Roll In at Request of Obama White House — (CNSNews.com) - The White House says it's been flooded with responses to the question it posed Wednesday: “What does $40 mean to you?” — One day after the White House asked “working” people to …

Discussion: The Jawa Report, Michelle Malkin, The Lonely Conservative and Hot Air

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:

McConnell sides with Dems over Boehner — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has been awfully quiet the last few days, as House Republicans rebel against the bipartisan payroll-tax-cut compromise he negotiated and helped pass last weekend. This morning that changed.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Associated Press, The Moderate Voice, The New Republic and Talking Points Memo

msnbc.com:
First Thoughts: What we learned from the Romney interview

Discussion: The Politico and Washington Monthly

National / NationalJournal.com:
McConnell Breaks With Boehner, Says House Should Pass Payroll Extension

Discussion: Mediaite, National Review and 89.3 WFPL News

John Parkinson / ABCNEWS:
Boehner Asks White House to Negotiate, but Obama Declines Invitation

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

David Jackson / USA Today:
Obama endorses McConnell payroll tax cut plan

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The New Republic and White House.gov Blog

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Senate GOP worries tax standoff could cost them chance at upper chamber

Discussion: ThinkProgress, The Politico, Outside the Beltway, Washington Post, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Prairie Weather and Roll Call

Alexander Bolton / The Hill: McConnell breaks with Boehner, urges House to pass payroll bill

Dorothy Rabinowitz / Wall Street Journal:

What Ron Paul Thinks of America — It seemed improbable that the best-known American propagandist for our enemies could be near the top of the pack in the Iowa contest, but there it is. — Ron Paul's supporters are sure of one thing: Their candidate has always been consistent …

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Don Surber, Washington Post, Business Insider, Balloon Juice, LewRockwell.com Blog, No More Mister Nice Blog, TalkLeft, GOP 12, msnbc.com, American Power, Wizbang, INSTAPUTZ and The Daily Caller

Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:

Paul in 1995: Say, have you read my newsletters? — Mitt Romney can breathe a sigh of relief, because Andrew Kaczynksi has shifted his attention to Ron Paul this week. Andrew dug up a 1995 interview with C-SPAN, a year before running for Congress after a decade out of office.

Discussion: Right Wing News, Mediaite, Outside the Beltway, Leon_H_Wolf's blog, Big Journalism, Total Return, American Power and USA Today, more at Mediagazer »

Ta-Nehisi Coates / The Atlantic Online:

Old News Cont. — Correction: After some prodding from Julian Sanchez, I re-read the Dave's piece. Calling it a defense is wrong. It isn't. It's an explanation. My apologies. I leave the text intact so that nothing is hidden. — Yesteday Ron Paul claimed on CNN that he'd never read …

Discussion: Firedoglake, A plain blog about politics, The Daily Dish and ThinkProgress

Jackie Kucinich / USA Today:

Paul's story changes on racial comments — WASHINGTON - Rep. Ron Paul has tried since 2001 to disavow racist and incendiary language published in Texas newsletters that bore his name, denying he wrote them and even walking out of an interview on CNN Wednesday.

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, Sky Dancing, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Stinque, Wall Street Journal, Hit & Run, RedState, Pirate's Cove, Melanie Phillips, Mediaite, Hot Air, CNN, The Right Scoop, The Daily Caller and Outside the Beltway

Conor Friedersdorf / The Atlantic Online:
Grappling With Ron Paul's Racist Newsletters

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Et tu, Mr. Destructo?, Daily Kos, neo-neocon and The Reaction

Alex Alvarez / Mediaite:
Hey, CNN? Can We Talk About What's Going On Between You And Ron Paul?

Discussion: Slate, The Moderate Voice, Indecision Forever, GOP 12 and The Page

Kevin Hoffman / The Blotter:

Gay community apologizes to Amy Koch for ruining her marriage — The gay and lesbian community of Minnesota has issued a letter of apology to recently resigned Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch for ruining the institution of marriage and causing her to stray from her husband and engage in an “inappropriate relationship.”

Discussion: Box Turtle Bulletin, Mediaite and Truth Wins Out

Concord Monitor:

Huntsman is the best choice for GOP — Purchase photo reprints at PhotoExtra » — Editorial review board with Jon Huntsman, Jr. on Tuesday, December 20, 2011.Purchase photo reprints at PhotoExtra » — There comes a time for many politicians when they gaze at their reflection and see a president.

Discussion: The Politico and CNN

NationalJournal.com:
Gingrich Slams Paul, Challenges Romney to Debate

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Joe Holley / Rick Perry 2012 Campaign for President:

Bush 41 backs Romney for president, admits he's not Gingrich's ‘biggest advocate’ — 1,587 — Less than two weeks before Iowa Republicans make their crucial caucus choices on the night of Jan. 3, George H.W. Bush offered words of support, if not an official endorsement, to an old friend, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Discussion: The Hill, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, GOP 12, The Caucus, Campaign 2012 and The Raw Story

Annie Lowrey / New York Times:

Signs Point to Economy's Rise, but Experts See a False Dawn — WASHINGTON — As the fourth quarter draws to a close, a spate of unexpectedly good economic data suggests that it will have some of the fastest and strongest economic growth since the recovery started in 2009 …

Discussion: Washington Post, The Atlantic Online, Outside the Beltway, Prairie Weather, The Enterprise Blog and American Power

CNBC:
Jobless Claims Drop Again; GDP Growth Slows to 1.8%

Discussion: MarketBeat and msnbc.com

Mackenzie Weinger / The Politico:

Jim Sensenbrenner sorry for ‘big butt’ quip — Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner sent a note of apology Thursday to Michelle Obama for referring to her “large posterior” and “big butt,” his spokesperson told POLITICO. — Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) was overheard talking about the first lady's healthy food initiative …

Discussion: FishbowlDC, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Weasel Zippers

Daniel Bice / JSOnline:
Sensenbrenner apologizes to first lady over “big butt” remark

Discussion: Colorlines, FishbowlDC, Gawker and ABCNEWS

New York Post:

Former Congressman Anthony Weiner's wife gives birth to baby boy — After a year filled with ridicule and scandal, disgraced former Congressman Anthony Weiner finally has something he can feel proud about — a new baby boy. — Weiner's wife, Huma Abedin, gave birth to the wee Democrat yesterday …

Discussion: Gothamist, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, Runnin' Scared and msnbc.com

George F. Will / Washington Post:

Gingrich, the anti-conservative — When discussing his amazingness, Newt Gingrich sometimes exaggerates somewhat, as when, discussing Bosnia and Washington, D.C., street violence, he said, “People like me are what stand between us and Auschwitz” [Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jan. 16, 1994].

Discussion: Power Line, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, The Spectacle Blog, The Volokh Conspiracy, National Review and Cato @ Liberty

James Fallows / The Atlantic Online:

What I Want For Christmas — Now that you ask. — Thanks to my old Shanghai/Beijing colleague Louisa Lim of NPR for the tip. Place your orders here.

Discussion: The Washington Note

Stephen Colbert / The State:

Colbert guest editorial: Naming rights, state mottoes and the GOP primary + video — As a proud son of South Carolina I must address recent unsubstantiated rumors published in The State that I, Stephen Colbert, tried to buy the naming rights to the 2012 Republican primary.

Discussion: Mediaite, Los Angeles Times and 2012 Decoded

ProPublica:

How Democrats Fooled California's Redistricting Commission — This spring, a group of California Democrats gathered at a modern, airy office building just a few blocks from the U.S. Capitol. The meeting was House members only — no aides allowed — and the mission was seemingly impossible.

Discussion: Big Government, Political Mojo, Hotline On Call, Campaign 2012 and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Gschwarzcnn / CNN:

Santorum: Vander Plaats said ‘he needed money to promote the endorsement’ — Des Moines, Iowa (CNN) - One of the most influential Christian leaders in Iowa told Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum “he needed money to promote the endorsement” of the candidate, Santorum told CNN on Wednesday.

Discussion: The Politico, GOP 12, Iowa Caucuses, National Review, The Other McCain, Good As You and ThinkProgress

Paul Krugman:

The Meaning of Mercury — David Roberts reports on the EPA's decision, finally, to regulate mercury from coal plants: … Let me repeat part of that: it will save tens of thousands of lives every year and prevent birth defects, learning disabilities, and respiratory diseases.