Top Items:
Glenn Thrush / Politico:
Obama's reboot: Can Podesta save him? — Barack Obama's at the lowest point of his presidency. Can John Podesta save him? — When President Barack Obama's chief of staff, Denis McDonough, approached John Podesta a few weeks ago about taking over the high-aggravation job of White House counselor …
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Peggy Noonan's Blog:
Incompetence — Everyone is doing thoughtful year-end pieces on President Obama. Writers and reporters agree he's had his worst year ever. I infer from most of their essays an unstated but broadly held sense of foreboding: There's no particular reason to believe next year will be better …
Steven Dennis / Roll Call:
Podesta Apologizes for ‘Jonestown’ Remark After Getting Ripped by Boehner Spokesman
Podesta Apologizes for ‘Jonestown’ Remark After Getting Ripped by Boehner Spokesman
Discussion:
Politico, The Plum Line, TheBlaze.com, Weasel Zippers, Mediaite, The PJ Tatler and National Review
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System:
For immediate release — Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in October indicates that economic activity is expanding at a moderate pace. Labor market conditions have shown further improvement; the unemployment rate has declined but remains elevated.
Discussion:
National Review, BBC and NBCNews
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Peter Schroeder / The Hill:
Fed pulls back on stimulus — The Federal Reserve announced Wednesday it would begin rolling back its stimulus for the economy, cutting the amount of bonds it purchases every month by $10 billion. — The Federal Open Market Committee announced it was ready to “modestly reduce” …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly
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Watch The Moment Mitt Romney Realizes He Is Going To Lose The Election — Netflix is out with a trailer for its new Mitt Romney documentary — “MITT” — which provides a fascinating, behind-the-scenes look into some of the most important moments of his failed campaign for president.
Discussion:
The Verge, FishbowlDC, Mediaite and The Week
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Paul Waldman / American Prospect:
New Documentary Threatens to Make You Like Mitt Romney — During the 2012 campaign, I, like every liberal writer whose job it is to comment on politics every day, wrote many unkind things about Mitt Romney. Much of the time I found him more sad than despicable; politicians who nearly reach …
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What the Duck? — How in the world did a family of squirrel-eating, Bible-thumping, catchphrase-spouting duck hunters become the biggest TV stars in America? And what will they do now that they have 14 million fervent disciples? Our Drew Magary toured the Louisiana backwater with Phil Robertson and the Duck Dynasty gang to find out
Discussion:
GLAAD, Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, Mediaite, The Raw Story, Towleroad News #gay, Liberaland and Gothamist
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James Hibberd / Inside TV:
‘Duck Dynasty’ star makes anti-gay comments; GLAAD slams
‘Duck Dynasty’ star makes anti-gay comments; GLAAD slams
Discussion:
The Jawa Report, Weasel Zippers and Althouse
Washington Post:
Obenshain to concede Virginia attorney general's race on Wednesday in Richmond — State Sen. Mark D. Obenshain(R) will concede the race for Virginia attorney general to Democrat Mark R. Herring on Wednesday, according to two people familiar with the decision.
Discussion:
CNN, Politico, Talking Points Memo, Outside the Beltway, Gawker and Daily Kos
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NSA shouldn't keep phone database, review board recommends — The White House will release later Wednesday the report of a surveillance review board that has recommended modifying the National Security Agency counterterrorism program that collects virtually all Americans' phone records.
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David E. Sanger / New York Times:
White House Speeds Release of Report on Changes to N.S.A.
White House Speeds Release of Report on Changes to N.S.A.
Discussion:
Gizmodo
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How John McCain Turned His Clichés Into Meaning — When I walk into John McCain's office a week before Thanksgiving, he is not at all happy — and seems to be enjoying it quite a bit. — He is sampling none of the usual flavors of upset we tend to associate with the Arizona senator …
Discussion:
The Fix, Weasel Zippers, Talking Points Memo, Politico, Mediaite and Post Politics
Chris Cillizza / Washington Post:
This is the ad every Democrat should be scared of in 2014 — Ending Spending, a conservative outside group dedicated to, well, ending (government)spending, is running an ad in New Hampshire that will be replicated endlessly by Republican candidates and groups in the 2014 midterm election.
Discussion:
National Review, Shakesville, americanthinker.com, The PJ Tatler, ABC News and Reuters
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Larry Klayman in huge CNN smackdown — Conservative legal activist Larry Klayman got into an argument on CNN with host Don Lemon and legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin when he was brought on to discuss his victory this week in a lawsuit challenging NSA surveillance, resulting in Lemon cutting …
Discussion:
The Week
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Senate Dems block amendment to restore veteran benefits by closing illegal immigrant welfare loophole — Senate Republicans were unable to stop military pension cuts when Senate Democrats blocked a vote on an amendment to prevent the cuts by closing a welfare loophole for illegal immigrants Tuesday night.
Discussion:
Right Wing News, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit, Scared Monkeys and The Lonely Conservative
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Elizabeth Harrington / Washington Free Beacon:
Disabled Military Retirees Not Exempt from Pension Cuts in Budget Deal
Disabled Military Retirees Not Exempt from Pension Cuts in Budget Deal
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Jay Leno in Demand: CNN's Jeff Zucker Among Suitors — The late-night host will be without a TV job in February, with the architect of the “Tonight Show” debacle joining Tribune, “American Idol's” Core Media and even ex-NBC chief Jeff Gaspin among those courting him. — How in demand is Jay Leno?
Discussion:
Politico, Mediaite, Liberaland, TheBlaze.com and Gawker, more at Mediagazer »
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Birther tea party rep. refuses to stand near Obama photo, moves away U.S. flag — A tea party-back Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Missouri this week asked that a flag be moved because she did not want to stand near a photo of President Barack Obama during a press conference.
Discussion:
Liberaland
AHIP Coverage:
Health Insurers Voluntarily Extend Deadline for Premium Payment — New AHIP Infographic: 5 Steps to Ensuring Coverage Begins on January 1, 2014 — Washington, D.C. - To provide greater peace of mind for consumers purchasing coverage through the new federal and state marketplaces …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Mediaite and National Review
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Barbara Walters on Obama: ‘We Thought He Was Going To Be The Next Messiah’ — Yes, she really said it. — On CNN's Piers Morgan Live Tuesday, in a brief discussion about President Obama, Barbara Walters actually said, “We thought that he was going to be - I shouldn't say this at Christmastime …
Discussion:
Michelle Malkin, The PJ Tatler, The Gateway Pundit, Ed Driscoll, The Lonely Conservative and americanthinker.com
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The Conservative Media Arms Race Coming To An Internet Near You — Last week, with two high-profile acquisitions, a conservative media company catapulted itself from successful but largely below-the-radar company to a player with a portfolio that could make it the next news empire on the right.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, The Moderate Voice and FishbowlDC
Heather Haddon / Metropolis:
Appointees Who Resigned in Wake of Bridge Controversy Retain Attorneys — Two appointees of Gov. Chris Christie's who recently resigned amid a controversy over lane closures at the George Washington Bridge have retained private attorneys, according to correspondence from their attorneys viewed by The Wall Street Journal.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Politico
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Reid Wants 8 More Years as Senate Leader — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid sounds like a man who intends to stay in his office into the next decade. — “I don't want to do it more than eight more years,” the Nevada Democrat said of serving as his party's leader in the Senate during a Wednesday interview with CQ Roll Call.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Post Politics, Weasel Zippers and The Lonely Conservative
New York Times:
Saudi Arabia Will Go It Alone — London — Saudi Arabia has been friends with our Western partners for decades; for some, like the United Kingdom where I serve as ambassador, for almost a century. These are strategic alliances that benefit us both. Recently, these relationships have been tested …
Discussion:
Jihad Watch, Israel Matzav and The Jawa Report
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NRA backs John Cornyn over Steve Stockman in Texas — The National Rifle Association on Wednesday endorsed Sen. John Cornyn in the GOP Texas Senate primary, dealing a blow to vocal gun rights champion Steve Stockman, the congressman who is challenging Cornyn for his seat.
Discussion:
TheBlaze.com
Harris Interactive:
Americans' Belief in God, Miracles and Heaven Declines — Belief in Darwin's theory of evolution rises — A new Harris Poll finds that while a strong majority (74%) of U.S. adults do believe in God, this belief is in decline when compared to previous years as just over four in five (82%) …
Discussion:
CANNONFIRE, The Raw Story, CNSNews, Business Insider and TheBlaze.com
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Arrest, strip-search of Indian diplomat in New York triggers uproar — (CNN) — The arrest and detention of an Indian consular official in New York on visa fraud charges has created a diplomatic uproar, with punitive steps taken against State Department officials in New Delhi.
Discussion:
americanthinker.com and ImmigrationProf Blog
Adam Kredo / Washington Free Beacon:
Obama Poses with Controversial Separatist Leader — The White House is facing questions after a photograph surfaced of President Barack Obama smiling next to the leader of an authoritarian separatist group known for its past terrorism and what experts dubbed egregious human rights violations.
Discussion:
Israel Matzav and Weasel Zippers