memeorandum: Allen West: Hillary Clinton caught ‘Benghazi flu’ (Katie Glueck/Politico)

3:15 PM ET, December 20, 2012

Top Items:

CNN:

CNN Poll: Are GOP policies too extreme? — Washington (CNN) - Just over half the public says that the GOP should give up more than the Democrats in any bipartisan solution to the country's problems, according to a new national survey. — And a CNN/ORC International poll also indicates …

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:

Leader Reid rules out Senate vote on ‘Plan B’ — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Thursday the Senate will not vote on Speaker John Boehner's (R-Ohio) “Plan B” to extend tax rates for family income below $1 million. — The Democratic leader blasted Boehner for wasting time on …

Discussion: Politico and Daily Kos

CNN:

House set to vote on Boehner's Plan B — Washington (CNN) — The House is set to vote Thursday on Plan B, a GOP version of an agreement on the fiscal cliff, and another measure designed to lure support for the plan from hard-line Republicans. — The White House threatened Wednesday to veto that plan …

Discussion: The Agonist, Freedom's Lighthouse, National Review, Business Insider and Politico

Jennifer Rubin / Right Turn:
Republicans put Obama in a box

Discussion: Balloon Juice, AEIdeas, Eschaton and The Daily Caller

Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:
Harry Reid: ‘We Are Not Going to Do Anything’

Discussion: CNN

Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
Obama in focus, yet all over the map

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, First Read, Belmont Club, Betsy's Page and American Spectator

Politico:
Fiscal cliff: The lowest point

Discussion: Hit & Run, The Hill, americanthinker.com, Washington Examiner, The Plum Line, Talking Points Memo, First Read and Quartz

CNN:
Inouye praised as ‘quintessential American’ in Capitol ceremony

Discussion: Politico

Brian Thompson / nbcnewyork.com:

Cory Booker Will Run for U.S. Senate in 2014: Sources — Newark Mayor Cory Booker will not challenge New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie in next year's gubernatorial race and will instead run for U.S. Senate in 2014, political sources familiar with his decision tell NBC 4 New York.

Discussion: Politico, The Hill, Taylor Marsh, GOP 12, Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, Runnin' Scared, First Read, Towleroad News #gay and National Review

Cory Booker:

Finishing the Work We Started — I love Newark. I did not come to this city through the providence of birth. I chose Newark, and Newark, thank God, accepted me, embraced me and allowed me the greatest privilege of my life - to serve as mayor. — As Mayor, the politics and process of change hasn't been easy.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, ABCNEWS, New York Times, BuzzFeed, CNN, msnbc.com and Daily Kos

David Giambusso / New Jersey Online:
Cory Booker won't challenge Christie, eyes U.S. Senate instead

Discussion: The Fix, The Hinterland Gazette and Post Politics

Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:

Newt Gingrich On Mitt Romney: ‘I Would Have Probably Done Better’ Against Obama … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Elections 2012, Gingrich 2012, Newt Gingrich, Video, Mitt Romney 2012, Mitt Romney Gay Marriage, Newt Gingrich Gay Marriage, Newt Gingrich Immigration Reform, Newt Gingrich Mitt Romney, Rnc Review, Romney Media, Politics News

Discussion: Guardian, The Raw Story, Towleroad News #gay, Taegan Goddard's … and Right Wing Watch

Chris Geidner / BuzzFeed:
Newt Gingrich Supports “Reality” Of State-Sanctioned Marriage Equality

Discussion: AMERICAblog

Scott Keyes / ThinkProgress:

Florida Man Invokes ‘Stand Your Ground’ Law After Shooting Fellow Pizza Customer — A Florida man defended his decision to shoot an impatient pizza customer over the weekend, citing the state's infamous “Stand Your Ground” law. — Michael Jock, a 52-year-old resident of St. Petersburg …

Discussion: Gawker and AMERICAblog

Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:

Fox News Brings On Santa Claus To Discuss The ‘War On Christmas’ — Fox and Friends took its coverage of the so-called “War on Christmas” to the front lines on Thursday morning by inviting Santa Claus to weigh in on America's changing culture and secularization.

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, Gawker, BuzzFeed and Towleroad News #gay

Charlie Spiering / Washington Examiner:

Connecticut congressman: Rick Perry a ‘testosterone laden’ individual with blood on his hands … During a press conference on gun control yesterday, Rep. Jim Himes D-Conn. blasted Texas Governor Rick Perry for vocally supporting Second Amendment rights for American citizens after the horrific school shooting in Connecticut.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Connecting.the.Dots, Riehl World News and Jammie Wearing Fools

Greta Van Susteren / Gretawire:

I don't agree with any of my FNC colleagues or anyone else who is a tad bit sarcastic on our air about Secretary Clinton's health — I believe that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is suffering from a concussion. She has never shied away from a fight (assuming the testimony would even amount to that) …

Discussion: Politico and Mediaite

Katie Glueck / Politico:
Allen West: Hillary Clinton caught ‘Benghazi flu’

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Outside the Beltway, Mediaite, Associated Press and New York Times

Ann Coulter / Official:

WE KNOW HOW TO STOP SCHOOL SHOOTINGS — In the wake of a monstrous crime like a madman's mass murder of defenseless women and children at the Newtown, Conn., elementary school, the nation's attention is riveted on what could have been done to prevent such a massacre.

Discussion: protein wisdom, Hot Air, The Hinterland Gazette and The Gateway Pundit

Jeff G. / protein wisdom:

A sad announcement — I know I probably shouldn't have done it — especially because yesterday was a snowy day with the temperature here in Colorado dipping well below freezing — but on a whim I took all my guns and ammunition out in a small skiff on one of the nearby lakes and, sad to say …

Discussion: Primordial Slack

John Hinderaker / Power Line:

Miss USA Wins the Crown — Say what you will about Donald Trump, he runs a pretty good pageant. I didn't live-blog tonight's Miss Universe show, but I kept notes as it went along, and so what follows are my impressions as the event unfolded. With a lot of stuff left out …

Discussion: Althouse

Ian Austen / New York Times:

In $18 Million Theft, Victim Was a Canadian Maple Syrup Cartel — OTTAWA — It was an inside job of sorts. Thieves with access to a warehouse and a careful plan loaded up trucks and, over time, made off with $18 million of a valuable commodity. — The question is what was more unusual …

Discussion: National Review and The Tell

Fred Thys / WBUR:

WBUR Poll: Brown Would Be In Strong Position For Special Election — BOSTON — A WBUR poll of 500 registered voters (PDFs - topline, crosstabs) finds U.S. Sen. Scott Brown is in a strong position should there be a special election to fill U.S. Sen. John Kerry's seat.

Discussion: The Hill, Michelle Malkin, Boston Globe, Politico, National Review, Hot Air, Ballot Box and msnbc.com

Steven Greenhouse / Media Decoder:

‘Charlie Rose’ Show Agrees to Pay Up to $250,000 to Settle Interns' Lawsuit — Charlie Rose and his production company have agreed to pay as much as $250,000 to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by a former unpaid intern who claimed minimum wage violations.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Politico and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »

Daniel Henninger / Wall Street Journal:

Henninger: No Guardrails, Again — For its own protection, American society needs to rediscover self-control and self-restraint. — With Newtown, the American people seem to sense that it is a moment to stand down and think hard about whether something's amiss in their society. And it's not just the guns.

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, American Spectator and msnbc.com

Paul Mirengoff / Power Line:

The emerging aspect of the Benghazi scandal — failing to bring justice to the terrorists — We have discussed the Benghazi scandal in terms of three aspects: the failure to provide adequate security before the attack; the response during the attack; and, in the aftermath …

Discussion: Washington Post