memeorandum: Santorum has raised $1M since last night (Jonathan Martin/The Politico)

8:50 AM ET, January 5, 2012

Top Items:

George F. Will / Washington Post:

Suddenly, a fun candidate — The complaint that Iowa is not a typical American state is true but trivial because there is no such state. Can you name one whose political culture, closely considered, is more like than unlike any other state's? Anyway, someplace has to go first …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, The Politico, Outside the Beltway, DownWithTyranny!, Mediaite, Don Surber, National Review, The Daily Caller, Eunomia, ABCNEWS and TheBlaze.com

James Hohmann / The Politico:

Morning Score: Paul raises $13M — EXCLUSIVE - PAUL RAISES $13 MILLION IN Q4: Ron Paul's campaign raised $13 million in the last three months of the year. The impressive figure comes after he took in $8 million during the third quarter. The cash flow will allow the Texas congressman to compete through later primaries and caucuses.

Discussion: Associated Press, Washington Post, ABCNEWS and GOP 12

Kevin Drum / Political Mojo:

How Do You Solve a Problem Like Mitt Romney? — Mitt Romney has a win in Iowa under his belt and is now headed to the friendlier environs of New Hampshire, where he's got a good chance of all but wrapping up the Republican nomination. Turns out, though, that this poses a problem for the Obama campaign …

Discussion: Campaign 2012, Swampland, New York Times and Truthdig

Karl Rove / Wall Street Journal:

A Big Win for Romney in Iowa — The former governor of Massachusetts is now a heavy favorite for the nomination. — Not long ago few thought Mitt Romney could win both the very conservative Iowa caucuses and then the quirky, slightly contrarian New Hampshire primary.

Discussion: The Politico, unionleader.com, Sabato's Crystal Ball, GOP 12 and National Review

New York Times:

Not Your Father's Republican Party — Norman J. Ornstein is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. — There is no doubt that Republicans are fragmented now as they move formally to try to choose a presidential nominee. Echoing Jim Rutenberg of The New York Times …

Discussion: Prairie Weather and Booman Tribune

David Corn / MoJo Articles:
Newt the Destroyer — Gingrich is now on a single-minded mission …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, NationalJournal.com, The Moderate Voice, Box Turtle Bulletin, Rod Dreher, The Atlantic Online, Balloon Juice, Indecision Forever, Guardian, CNN and msnbc.com

New York Times:
McCain Backs Romney After Santorum's Surge in Iowa

Discussion: The Caucus, THEROOT.COM and THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS

Nbc'S Jo / msnbc.com:
Huntsman on Romney's McCain endorsement: ‘Nobody cares’

Discussion: Hot Air, Eunomia, ABCNEWS and Mediaite

Jay Cost / Weekly Standard:
Morning Jay: What Iowa Tells Us About the State of the Race

Discussion: The Monkey Cage, Power Line, Associated Press, Washington Wire, Washington Post, Vodkapundit, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic Online, Betsy's Page and msnbc.com

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Credit Santorum with sinking Ron Paul

Discussion: Leon_H_Wolf's blog, AlterNet, News Desk and National Review

Emily Schultheis / The Politico:
Newt won't congratulate Mitt on win

Discussion: Hot Air and TheBlaze.com

Jonathan Martin / The Politico:
After Iowa caucuses, GOP elites seek ‘consensus’ candidate

Jonathan Weisman / The Caucus:
For McCain, a Choice Between Old Enemies

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Philly.com, Sister Toldjah and Connecting.the.Dots

Stephen Gutowski / MRCTV:

Richard Cordray: Any Legislation Which Has Even “Incidental Effects on the Economy” is a “Valid Exercise of Congressional Authority” — President Obama announced today that he was going to take a new step in the expansion of executive authority by recess appointing a head …

Discussion: sunshinestatesarah's Diary, Right Wing News, Verum Serum, Outside the Beltway, NationalJournal.com, Hot Air, Michelle Malkin, Washington Wire, Nice Deb and Prairie Weather

Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Doubling down: Obama follows Cordray recess appointment with three more to NLRB

Discussion: Speaker and RedState

Peter Schroeder / The Hill:
Court fight over recess appointments ‘almost certain,’ Chamber says

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and Campaign 2012

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Obama under strong pressure to break precedent on recess appointments

Discussion: The Politico, CNN, The Daily Caller, Washington Post, The Volokh Conspiracy, US Politics, Los Angeles Times and RedState

Brad Plumer / Washington Post:
With Cordray appointment, Obama sets new precedent

Discussion: Angry Black Lady Chronicles, The Monkey Cage, Daily Kos, Rortybomb, The Atlantic Online, Political Mojo, The Volokh Conspiracy, The Caucus and The New Republic

Washington Times:
Obama defies Congress with ‘recess’ picks

Discussion: Leon_H_Wolf's blog, The Heritage Foundation, americanthinker.com, blogs.telegraph.co.uk, Big Government, Betsy's Page, Power Line, New York Times, Campaign 2012, White House.gov Blog, RedState and The Politico

Peter Schroeder / The Hill:
Reid backs Obama after using pro forma sessions to block Bush

Discussion: Washington Post, National Review, Hot Air, Campaign 2012, Mediaite, Weasel Zippers and Viking Pundit

Joseph Williams / The Politico:
Obama makes 3 NLRB recess appointments

Discussion: The Huffington Post, The New Republic, The White House and ACS Blog

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Breaking: Obama also set to make recess appointments to the NLRB

Wall Street Journal:

Kodak Teeters on the Brink — Eastman Kodak Co. is preparing to seek bankruptcy protection in the coming weeks, people familiar with the matter said, a move that would cap a stunning comedown for a company that once ranked among America's corporate titans. — The 131-year-old company …

Discussion: CBS Boston, The Verge, Guardian, Atlas Shrugs and AllThingsD, more at Techmeme »

Phil Gast / CNN:

Oklahoma mom calling 911 asks if shooting an intruder is allowed — (CNN) — Home alone with her 3-month-old son, Sarah Dawn McKinley of Blanchard, Oklahoma, said she decided to make a stand when two men tried to break into her home on New Year's Eve. — McKinley, who had been widowed less …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and Rod Dreher

Michael McLaughlin / The Huffington Post:
911 Tells Mom ‘Do What You Have To Do’: Okla. Mom Sarah McKinley Kills Intruder Justin Martin

Discussion: msnbc.com, The Raw Story and Jammie Wearing Fools

Rebecca Lopez / WFAA-TV:

Dallas teen missing since 2010 was mistakenly deported — DALLAS - “It's very frustrating,” Lorene Turner said. — She has spent hours on Facebook trying to find her granddaughter, Jakadrien. — “Once I get home I am up until 3 or 4 in the morning searching and looking,” Turner said.

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, THEROOT.COM, utsandiego.com, Firedoglake, Hullabaloo, The Debate Link, The Raw Story, emptywheel, msnbc.com and The Agitator

Juana Summers / The Politico:

Herman Cain to launch 9-9-9 bus tour — Herman Cain's not a candidate anymore, but he's launching a new bus tour anyway. — The former Godfather's Pizza CEO announced plans to tour the country to raise support for the “9-9-9” plan that was the star of his aborted presidential run …

Discussion: NewsHounds blog

A.Killough / CNN: Cain aims to keep 9-9-9 alive

Charles McGrath / New York Times:

How Many Stephen Colberts Are There? — There used to be just two Stephen Colberts, and they were hard enough to distinguish. The main difference was that one thought the other was an idiot. The idiot Colbert was the one who made a nice paycheck by appearing four times a week on …

Laura Myers / Reuters:

Washington governor supports gay marriage law — (Reuters) - Washington Governor Chris Gregoire announced her support for gay marriage legislation on Wednesday, potentially putting the state on track to become the nation's seventh to fully recognize same-sex unions.

Discussion: The Politico and Truth Wins Out

Andrew Garber / Seattle Times:
Gregoire proposes legislation to legalize gay marriage

Discussion: governor.wa.gov, Firedoglake, Daily Kos, Towleroad News #gay and Joe. My. God.

Jonathan Martin / The Politico:

Santorum has raised $1M since last night — Rick Santorum has raised just over $1 million since his eight-vote loss in Iowa last night, his top strategist tells POLITICO. — John Brabender, who revealed that their server briefly went down under the crush last night, said almost all of the cash came online.

Discussion: americanthinker.com, The Week and The Daily Caller

Marie Diamond / ThinkProgress:

New Hampshire GOP Bill Mandates That New Laws Find Their Origin In 1215 English Magna Carta — New Hampshire Republicans are taking textual originalism to a whole new level: three lawmakers have proposed a bill that requires that all legislation find its origin not in the U.S. constitution, but an English document crafted in 1215.

Discussion: Wonkette and Angry Black Lady Chronicles

Hollie McKay / Fox News:

Do Musicians Block GOP Candidates From Using Their Songs? — When GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney's team was looking for a theme song for his campaign, Kid Rock's hit “Born Free” hit a chord. But instead of doing what countless other politicians before him had done …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and Big Hollywood

Reuters:

Obama plans to cut tens of thousands of ground troops — (Reuters) - The Obama administration will unveil a “more realistic” vision for the military on Thursday, with plans to cut tens of thousands of ground troops and invest more in air and sea power at a time of fiscal restraint, officials familiar with the plans said on Wednesday.

Discussion: iOwnTheWorld.com, Weasel Zippers and BLACKFIVE

Marisa Guthrie / Hollywood Reporter:

Keith Olbermann Blasts Current TV; Internal Memo Reveals Tension Over GOP Primary — “I was not given a legitimate opportunity to host under acceptable conditions,” Olbermann said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday. “They know it and we know it. Telling half the story is wrong.”