Top Items:
New York Post:
Romney's new test — Newt Gingrich's surprise victory in South Carolina a few weeks ago forced Mitt Romney to show he could get tough in Florida. Now Rick Santorum's stunning sweep of three contests on Tuesday night should force Romney to do something far more difficult: transform himself into a leader who can energize his party.
Discussion:
The Page
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New York Times:
Foster Friess, a Santorum Supporter With Deep Pockets — Mitt Romney and Foster Friess, a wealthy donor to conservative causes, were walking out of an event together a few months ago when Mr. Friess broke the news: After backing Mr. Romney for president four years ago, he was getting behind Rick Santorum this time around.
Discussion:
Media Decoder, ABCNEWS, Wall Street Journal, The Last Tradition, The New Republic, The Democratic Daily, The Caucus and JustOneMinute
Josh Lederman / Ballot Box:
Mitt Romney ventures into conservative lion's den at CPAC — Mitt Romney is headed into the conservative lion's den just as concerns about his appeal to the Republican Party's right flank are reaching a fever pitch. — Romney's address on Friday before the Conservative Political Action Conference …
Wall Street Journal:
Where's the Rest of Them? — Santorum's rise, Romney's weakness, and the GOP coalition. — Rick Santorum did his second Lazarus act on Tuesday with his triple victory in two Midwest states and Colorado, interrupting Mitt Romney's media coronation. The question now is whether the Pennsylvanian can …
Discussion:
GOP 12
Mj Lee / Politico:
Rush Limbaugh mocks GOP establishment
Rush Limbaugh mocks GOP establishment
Discussion:
Mediaite, CNN, nation.foxnews.com and RADAMISTO
Matt K. Lewis / The Daily Caller:
The Rick Santorum boomlet presents an interesting conundrum …
The Rick Santorum boomlet presents an interesting conundrum …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, GOP 12 and Hot Air
Brian Tashman / Right Wing Watch:
CPAC Set to Host White Nationalist Leader
CPAC Set to Host White Nationalist Leader
Discussion:
The Maddow Blog, Politics, The New Civil Rights Movement, Washington Monthly and Little Green Footballs
CNN:
Romney: Rivals are ‘Republicans who acted like Democrats’
Romney: Rivals are ‘Republicans who acted like Democrats’
Discussion:
Politico, Conservatives4Palin, The Daily Beast, Swampland and Ballot Box
CNN:
Bachmann: Santorum win a ‘shot across the bow’
Bachmann: Santorum win a ‘shot across the bow’
Discussion:
Politico, The Last Tradition, The Hill and National Review
Shushannah Walshe / ABCNEWS:
Rick Santorum Vows Not to Run for ‘Pastor in Chief’
Rick Santorum Vows Not to Run for ‘Pastor in Chief’
Discussion:
Guardian
USA Today:
Obama mandate on birth control coverage stirs controversy — WASHINGTON - Congressional leaders and Republican presidential candidates joined Catholic religious groups on Wednesday in denouncing the Obama administration's mandate requiring health insurers to offer birth control coverage, but the White House stood its ground.
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ABCNEWS:
Senate Democrats Say Obama ‘Reinforced’ His Stance on Contraception Mandate at Democratic Retreat — President Obama “reinforced” his stance on the controversial contraception mandate while speaking at the Democrats' annual retreat at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. today, Senate Democrats said.
Discussion:
Campaign 2012, Hot Air, Pirate's Cove, Weasel Zippers, Taylor Marsh and The Gateway Pundit
Ben Pershing / Washington Post:
Tim Kaine splits with Obama on birth control rule for religious groups
Tim Kaine splits with Obama on birth control rule for religious groups
Discussion:
2012.talkingpointsmemo.com, Hot Air, Sky Dancing, Politico, National Review, CatholicVote.org, Firedoglake, Speaker and New York Times
ABCNEWS:
The White House Has No Opinion About Whether the Senate Should Pass a Budget - Today's Q's for O's WH - 2/8/12
The White House Has No Opinion About Whether the Senate Should Pass a Budget - Today's Q's for O's WH - 2/8/12
Discussion:
RedState and The Lonely Conservative
Christopher Goins / CNSNews:
Hoyer: 'The Fact Is You Don't Need a Budget'
Hoyer: 'The Fact Is You Don't Need a Budget'
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers, Hot Air and Michelle Malkin
New York Times:
States Negotiate $26 Billion Deal for Homeowners — After months of painstaking talks, government authorities and five of the nation's biggest banks have agreed to a $26 billion settlement that could provide relief to nearly two million current and former American homeowners harmed by the bursting …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Booman Tribune, The Page and DealBook
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David Dayen / Firedoglake:
49-State Foreclosure Fraud Settlement Will Be Finalized Today — Forty-nine states, every one but Oklahoma, as well as federal regulators will participate in a foreclosure fraud settlement that will release the five biggest banks (Wells Fargo, Citi, Ally/GMAC, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America) …
Discussion:
naked capitalism and emptywheel
Jim Vandehei / Reuters:
The political transformation of Barack Obama — There are two indisputable facts about politics. — The first is that every modern president in the fourth year of his presidency resorts to the cheap political stunts, broken promises and truth-fudging it takes to win reelection in what has been and will be a 50-50 nation.
Discussion:
Business Insider
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Peter Schroeder / The Hill:
Grassley: House GOP doing Wall Street's bidding on STOCK Act
Grassley: House GOP doing Wall Street's bidding on STOCK Act
Discussion:
Politico, Firedoglake, RedState, The Maddow Blog and New York Times
Truth Wins Out:
Truth Wins Out to Slam Newt Gingrich for Hypocrisy on Marriage Equality in Thursday Roll Call Ad — Contact: Wayne Besen, Executive Director — WASHINGTON - Truth Wins Out is placing a provocative full-page ad in the Capitol Hill publication Roll Call on Thursday admonishing Newt Gingrich …
Discussion:
Good As You, Towleroad News #gay and Joe. My. God.
RELATED:
Laurel Ramseyer / Firedoglake:
Washington Legislature Is First in the Nation to Reverse its DOMA Mistake and Pass a Marriage Equality Bill
Washington Legislature Is First in the Nation to Reverse its DOMA Mistake and Pass a Marriage Equality Bill
Discussion:
Poliglot, Washington Blade and Justia
Carol E. Lee / Washington Wire:
Michelle Obama Targets Obesity in Military — First Lady Michelle Obama leaves Thursday for a three-day, four-state tour to mark the second anniversary of her “Let's Move!” initiative to get Americans to eat healthier and be more physically fit. … The trip is a mix of events and announcements …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers
Washington Post:
Poll finds broad support for Obama's counterterrorism policies — The sharpest edges of President Obama's counterterrorism policy, including the use of drone aircraft to kill suspected terrorists abroad and keeping open the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have broad public support …
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Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
Repulsive progressive hypocrisy
Repulsive progressive hypocrisy
Discussion:
Hot Air, Don Surber, Truthdig, Oliver Willis, Instapundit, Washington Post, emptywheel and Political Mojo
Damian Carrington / Guardian:
The Himalayas and nearby peaks have lost no ice in past 10 years, study shows — Meltwater from Asia's peaks is much less than previously estimated, but lead scientist says the loss of ice caps and glaciers around the world remains a serious concern — • Live Q&A: What does the Himalaya glacier study mean for climate change?
Discussion:
Power Line, Watts Up With That?, Vox Popoli, Don Surber, Right Wing News, Weasel Zippers and Green
Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Report: White House to offer 10 states waivers on No Child Left Behind — President Obama on Thursday will offer waivers to 10 states that applied for exclusion from some aspects of the No Child Left Behind Law, according to a report in The Associated Press that cited an anonymous White House official.
Discussion:
CNN
BBC:
Greece bailout: Coalition fails to agree cuts — The party leaders only received the text of the draft proposals on Wednesday morning — Greek PM Lucas Papademos has failed to secure the support of his coalition for a raft of new austerity measures, after more than seven hours of talks.
Discussion:
FP Passport and Outside the Beltway
Manu Raju / Politico:
Mitch McConnell to assail ‘liberal thugs’ — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell plans to launch a fierce attack on the Obama administration and congressional Democrats, calling out “liberal thugs” for intimidating their opponents in the name of political expediency.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly and The Last Tradition
New York Times:
U.S. and Israel Split on Ways to Deter Iran — WASHINGTON — Amid mounting tensions over whether Israel will carry out a military strike against Iran's nuclear program, the United States and Israel remain at odds over a fundamental question: whether Iran's crucial nuclear facilities are about to become impregnable.
Discussion:
Israel Matzav and The Last Tradition