Top Items:
Reuters:
Meteorite hits central Russia, more than 500 people hurt — (Reuters) - More than 500 people were injured when a meteorite shot across the sky and exploded over central Russia on Friday, sending fireballs crashing to Earth, shattering windows and damaging buildings.
Discussion:
Associated Press, The Week, CANNONFIRE, Taylor Marsh, The Atlantic Online, Chicago Boyz, americanthinker.com, Mashable!, The Gateway Pundit and The Verge
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Geoff Brumfiel / Nature:
Russian meteor largest in a century — Explosion rivalled nuclear blast, but rock was still too small for advance-warning networks to spot. — A meteor that exploded over Russia this morning was the largest recorded object to strike the Earth in more than a century, scientists say.
Discussion:
Wired, Guardian, WorldViews, Little Green Footballs, Wonkblog, Hit & Run, Mashable!, NBC Southern California, Hot Air and The Atlantic Online
rt.com:
Meteorite hits Russian Urals: Fireball explosion wreaks havoc, over 900 injured (PHOTOS, VIDEO) — Screenshot from YouTube user Gregor Grimm — (12.5Mb) embed video — Russia's Urals region has been rocked by a meteorite explosion in the stratosphere.
Discussion:
The PJ Tatler, ANIMAL, The BRAD BLOG, msnbc.com, BuzzFeed and The Right Scoop
New York Times:
Meteor Fragments Rain Down on Siberia; Hundreds of Injuries Reported
Meteor Fragments Rain Down on Siberia; Hundreds of Injuries Reported
Discussion:
PJ Media, IHT Rendezvous, The Lede, Bloomberg, The Maddow Blog, Quartz, rubber hose, Crooks and Liars, Daily Kos, The Agonist, Washington Free Beacon and Hit & Run
BBC:
Meteor strike injures hundreds in central Russia
Meteor strike injures hundreds in central Russia
Discussion:
NBCNews.com, rt.com, Voice of Russia, News, Guardian, alan.com, Scared Monkeys, CNN, AMERICAblog, The Hinterland Gazette, Mediaite, Macleans.ca and NBC Southern California
Politico:
Why President Obama went all-in on Chuck Hagel — President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have fiercely defended the nomination of Chuck Hagel, despite advisers and Hill Democrats who questioned the move and predicted a firestorm, according to Democratic sources.
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Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:
Separate Vacations for Barack and Michelle Obama — The White House confirms today that President Barack Obama will be vacationing in Florida this weekend. His wife, First Lady Michelle Obama, will be in Colorado. The two daughters will be with Michelle. — From the White House press gaggle aboard Air Force One:
David Weigel / Slate:
Filibuster Temporarily Delays Hagel Nomination: Everybody Wins! — WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 31: Senate Armed Services Committee member Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) (L) talks with committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI) (R) as they and former U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE) arrive for Hagel's confirmation hearing …
Ryan Grim / The Huffington Post:
Elizabeth Warren Embarrasses Hapless Bank Regulators At First Hearing (VIDEO) — Elizabeth Warren, Video, Financial Regulation, Senate Banking Committee, Elizabeth Warren Bank Regulators, Elizabeth Warren Banking Committee, Elizabeth Warren Occ, Elizabeth Warren Sec, Elizabeth Warren Wall Street, Politics News
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Gawker, AMERICAblog, naked capitalism, Suburban Guerrilla and DealBook
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Luke Johnson / The Huffington Post:
Elizabeth Warren's Aggressive Questioning Prompts Anger From Wall Street — Sen. Elizabeth Warren's (D-Mass.) meeting with bank regulators Thursday left bankers reeling, after the politician questioned why regulators had not prosecuted a bank since the financial crisis.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Booman Tribune and Business Insider
Politico:
Jesse Jackson Jr. to plead guilty to federal charges — Former Rep. Jesse L. Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) will plead guilty to conspiring with his wife to illegally spend $750,000 in campaign funds on personal expenses, including a $43,000 Rolex watch, fur coats and memorabilia associated with Michael Jackson …
Discussion:
ABCNEWS, NBC Southern California, OpenSecrets.org, Weasel Zippers and National Review
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Katherine Skiba / Chicago Tribune:
Federal charges filed against Jesse Jackson Jr., wife — WASHINGTON— Former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. was charged today with violating federal law by misusing campaign funds. — Jackson, 47, a Democrat from Chicago, faces felony charges, including conspiracy, in a criminal information filed …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Chicago Sun Times and The Hill
Mike Ramsey / CBS Chicago:
Jesse Jackson Jr. Plea Deal Could Be Filed As Soon As Friday
Jesse Jackson Jr. Plea Deal Could Be Filed As Soon As Friday
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
Travis Waldron / ThinkProgress:
OOPS: GOP Rep. Inadvertently Makes The Case For Nearly Doubling The Minimum Wage — President Obama's State of the Union proposal to raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour and index it to inflation so that it keeps up with growth in the economy was quickly rebuked by top Republicans like Speaker John Boehner …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly and The Maddow Blog
Jennifer Jacobs / Des Moines Register:
BREAKING: Vilsack will not seek U.S. Senate seat in 2014 — Tom Vilsack has ruled out running U.S. Senate in 2014, clearing the way for the early Democratic frontrunner, U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley, to press forward and raise money for what's expected to be one of the most fiercely competitive races in the country.
Discussion:
Politico, CNN, Post Politics, The Daily Caller, Roll Call, Hot Air, The Iowa Republican and Ballot Box
Matt Wilstein / Mediaite:
So Long, Sarah, Hello Herman: Cain Officially Joins Fox News As Contributor — Fox News continued its talent overhaul this week when they announced they were officially hiring former GOP presidential primary candidate Herman Cain as a paid contributor for the network.
Discussion:
Colorlines
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Chris Ariens / TVNewser:
Herman Cain Joins Fox News as Contributor
Herman Cain Joins Fox News as Contributor
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Little Green Footballs, Liberal Values, Daily Kos and Taegan Goddard's …
David Brooks / New York Times:
When Families Fail — Today millions of American children grow up in homes where they don't learn the skills they need to succeed in life. Their vocabularies are tiny. They can't regulate their emotions. When they get to kindergarten they've never been read a book …
Discussion:
Right Turn, The Maddow Blog, AEIdeas, Mother Jones, National Review and Associated Press
Jennifer Medina / New York Times:
Over a Decade, Maureen O'Connor Spent $1 Billion on Bets — LOS ANGELES — A former mayor of San Diego spent the last decade wagering more than a billion dollars at casinos across the country, eventually liquidating her savings, auctioning her belongings, selling off real estate …
Discussion:
The Week, Patterico's Pontifications, The Daily Caller and The Other McCain
Aviva Shen / ThinkProgress:
Fox News: Obama Proposed ‘Free’ Preschool To Toddlers So They Can Vote For Him ‘In The Future’ — In his State of the Union address, President Obama made the case for universal early childhood education — an idea that isn't sitting well with conservatives.
Discussion:
The Raw Story, ABCNEWS and The National Memo
Jake Sherman / Politico:
Behind closed doors, House GOP tries to find its way — It's simple: House Republicans say that if they spend the next two years like they spent the last two, they'll become irrelevant. — So for the last few days, GOP leaders have met behind closed doors to both craft an agenda that confronts …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly
Thomas Kaplan / New York Times:
Cuomo Spokeswoman Quits After Four Months — Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's new communications director is leaving her post after just four months to reunite with her former boss, Jeffrey Zucker, the new president of CNN Worldwide. — The aide, Allison Gollust, informed Mr. Cuomo of her resignation on Friday …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Politics on the Hudson and Politico
Christopher Rosen / The Huffington Post:
Harrison Ford In ‘Star Wars: Episode VII’? Han Solo Reportedly Back For New Film — Video, Harrison Ford, Harrison Ford Han Solo, Harrison Ford Star Wars, Harrison Ford Star Wars Episode 7, Star Wars Episode 7 Harrison Ford, Star Wars Episode VII, Star Wars Harrison Ford, Entertainment News
David Weigel / Slate:
The Cuccinelli Manifesto — Virginia's attorney general doesn't fit the Republican rebranding. He is ultraconservative and undaunted. — Serious question: When was the last time a politician wrote a policy manifesto right before a campaign, and it didn't do irreparable damage to his internal organs?
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Ballot Box, The Maddow Blog and Hot Air
Breanna Edwards / Politico:
Lawmakers: Not spacey to study asteroids — Rep. Lamar Smith on Friday called for hearings on space science and exploration, following the aftermath of the meteor that landed and an asteroid making its close fly-by of Earth. — “Developing technology and research that enable us to track objects …
Discussion:
Hit & Run, Daily Kos, Committee on Science, Mashable! and emptywheel