memeorandum: Remarks by the President in Nomination of Secretary of Defense and CIA Director (The White House)

6:25 AM ET, January 8, 2013

Top Items:

Exclusive: Hagel says critics distort his views on Israel, Iran — Chuck Hagel said Monday an accurate assessment of his record will demonstrate “unequivocal, total support for Israel” and endorsement of tough international economic sanctions against Iran. — Critics have “completely distorted” …

Discussion: Hot Air, New York Times, Mondoweiss, Right Turn, Weasel Zippers, CNN, Politico, Post Politics, The Daily Caller, Washington Examiner, The Hinterland Gazette, BuzzFeed, ABCNEWS and The Fix

Kenneth P. Vogel / Politico:
Bill Kristol's big plans start with Hagel nomination

Discussion: New York Magazine, CNN, Prairie Weather, Daily Kos, Hullabaloo and New York Times

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:
Dick Cheney Apparently Didn't Mind The Term “Jewish Lobby”

Discussion: Weekly Standard

Lanny J. Davis / The Hill:
Hagel must address ‘Jewish lobby’ comment

Discussion: The Atlantic Wire, Daily Dot and TBogg

Dovid Efune / Algemeiner.com:
Ed Koch on Chuck Hagel Nomination: Obama's Reneging on His Conveyed Support for Israel Has Come Earlier Than I Thought

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Israel Matzav, National Review and Washington Free Beacon

Hayes Brown / ThinkProgress:
FLASHBACK: Bill Kristol Wanted Chuck Hagel To Be Vice President

Discussion: msnbc.com, Salon, Talking Points Memo and Little Green Footballs

Jeffrey Goldberg / The Atlantic Online:
AIPAC's Uncertain Role in the Upcoming Hagel Nomination

Discussion: Business Insider, The Daily Caller, News Desk and Hot Air

Fred Kaplan / Slate:
The Real Reason Republicans Hate Hagel

Discussion: Quartz, Politico, The Agonist, BuzzFeed, The Daily Dish, First Read, The Moderate Voice, Via Meadia, ABCNEWS, p m carpenter's commentary, The Daily Caller, The Huffington Post, ABCNEWS and Mondoweiss

Valerie Jarrett / White House.gov Blog:
Hagel for Secretary of Defense

Discussion: BuzzFeed, AMERICAblog and The Democratic Daily

Bryan Bender / Boston Globe:
Still a potent gay rights voice, Barney Frank dials back opposition to Chuck Hagel nomination

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Advocate, Right Turn, Politico, American Prospect and Talking Points Memo

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
Why Hagel Matters — According to various reports …

Discussion: Guardian, Business Insider, Connecting.the.Dots, Mondoweiss, The Other McCain, The Spectacle Blog, p m carpenter's commentary, Whiskey Fire, Mother Jones, Wired, Firedoglake and Right Turn

Peter Beinart / The Daily Beast:
Why Hagel Matters — If the former senator is confirmed …

Discussion: Guardian, PERRspectives, AEIdeas, Washington Monthly, Weasel Zippers, The Moderate Voice and No More Mister Nice Blog

WOWT-TV:

Fast-Food Worker Hours Cut, New Health Care Law Blamed — A fast-food chain is slashing employee hours so franchise owners don't have to pay health benefits. Around 100 local Wendy's workers have learned their hours are being cut. A spokesperson says a new health care law is to blame.

Discussion: AMERICAblog

Rebecca Leber / ThinkProgress:

Wendy's Franchise Cuts Employee Hours To Part-Time To Avoid Obamacare — Not long after the owner of the Olive Garden and Red Lobster chains admitted their anti-Obamacare campaigns hurt more than helped, the owner of a Wendy's franchise in Omaha, Nebraska plans to cut 300 employees' hours …

Paul Mirengoff / Power Line:

John Brennan, “Arabist” — By the standards of the Obama administration, John Brennan, its nominee for CIA director, will not be noteworthy for lack of warm feelings towards the State of Israel. In a normal administration, though, he would stand out for this reason.

Glenn Greenwald / Guardian:
John Brennan's extremism and dishonesty rewarded with CIA Director nomination | Glenn Greenwald

Discussion: emptywheel, Crooks and Liars, Salon, Hullabaloo, The Plum Line, Business Insider, The National Memo, Reuters, Taylor Marsh, Progressive Alaska, Lawfare, The Daily Dish and The Agonist

Carlo Muñoz / The Hill:

'Don't ask, don't tell' dischargees to receive full back pay from DOD — In a landmark settlement, the Pentagon has agreed to give full back pay to U.S. service members who were discharged due to their sexual orientation under the military's “Don't ask, don't tell” policy.

Windy City / Windy City Media Group:

Former gay servicemembers to get full separation pay — WASHINGTON — Former service members who are part of a class action lawsuit challenging a Defense Department policy that cuts in half the separation pay of those who have been honorably discharged for “homosexuality” will receive their full pay after a settlement announced today.

Discussion: Daily Kos, Advocate, Towleroad News #gay and Joe. My. God.

Rick Green / Capitol Watch:

State Rep. DebraLee Hovey to Gabby Giffords: Stay Out — State Rep. DebraLee Hovey, who represents Newtown and Monroe, posted this on her public FB page. From Florida. (Note: Hovey removed the post from her public Facebook page on Sunday afternoon). — Giffords visited local officials …

Discussion: Gawker and msnbc.com

Josh Barro / Bloomberg:

Why Platinum Coin Opponents Are All Wrong — This morning, Joe Weisenthal and I took our message in favor of minting a trillion-dollar platinum coin to “Bloomberg Surveillance,” where we were met with the usual shock and horror from hosts Tom Keene and Sara Eisen.

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Quartz, Rumproast, Free exchange, Business Insider, Wonkblog, The Plum Line, Balloon Juice, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Althouse and Marginal Revolution

Congressman Greg Walden: 2010:
Greg Walden plans to introduce bill to stop U.S. Treasury from creating trillion dollar platinum coins …

Wall Street Journal:

Watchdog to Set Loan Rules — The federal government's consumer watchdog plans to unveil new home-lending rules, potentially reshaping the U.S. mortgage market by ushering in more standardization and preventing a return of the exotic loans that powered the housing bubble.

Discussion: Calculated Risk

DealBook:
In Deal, Bank of America Extends Retreat From Mortgages

Discussion: The Huffington Post, The Week and Capital New York

Adam Harrington / CBS New York:

New Jersey Senate President: Christie May Have ‘Prayed’ For Sandy To Come — TRENTON, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) — New Jersey Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) said Monday that Gov. Chris Christie might have “prayed” for Superstorm Sandy, because it has provided cover for what Sweeney …

Discussion: NO QUARTER USA NET, Gretawire and Ed Driscoll

Michael Calderone / The Huffington Post:

Politico Lays Off Staffers Amid Restructuring … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Jim VandeHei, John Harris, Dave Catanese, Jay Westcott, Jess Kamen, Politico, Politico Cult, Politico Cutbacks, Politico Layoffs, Calderone: The Backstory, Media News — Editor-in-chief John Harris and executive editor Jim VandeHei

Discussion: Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »

Investor's Business Daily:

Hugo Chavez Hit By Cuba's Surgical Strike — Americas: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez is dying of cancer in Havana, in a live demonstration of Cuba's vaunted socialized medical care. He went there instead of Brazil because he wanted to make a political statement. What irony.

Discussion: Power Line

This Just In:

Hillary Clinton back at work - with a football helmet — Hillary Clinton went back to work as secretary of state this morning and was greeted by colleagues showing off their sense of humor. — First off, we got the official State Department photo of her hosting the weekly meeting of assistant secretaries of state.

Discussion: Mediaite, Joe. My. God., Sense of Events, The Immoral Minority and Towleroad News #gay

Numbers / Pew Research Center for the People …:

Obama Viewed as Fiscal Cliff Victor; Legislation Gets Lukewarm Reception — OVERVIEW — Barack Obama is viewed as the clear political winner in the fiscal cliff negotiations, but the legislation itself gets only a lukewarm reception from the public: As many disapprove as approve …

Discussion: Daily Kos, CNN, Firedoglake, The Hill and Texas on the Potomac

Rasmussen Reports:

Just 8% Now Say They Are Tea Party Members — Views of the Tea Party movement are at their lowest point ever, with voters for the first time evenly divided when asked to match the views of the average Tea Party member against those of the average member of Congress.