Top Items:
Barton Gellman / Washington Post:
Edward Snowden, after months of NSA revelations, says his mission's accomplished — MOSCOW — The familiar voice on the hotel room phone did not waste words. — “What time does your clock say, exactly?” he asked. — He checked the reply against his watch and described a place to meet.
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Outside the Beltway, Techdirt, WorldViews, Gizmodo, Hit & Run, Booman Tribune, americanthinker.com, The Hinterland Gazette, The Moderate Voice, New Day, Talking Points Memo, Mashable, Washington Wire, Taylor Marsh, The Week, Boing Boing, Hot Air, CNN, WJLA-TV, Hullabaloo, TIME, Guardian, BillMoyers.com, Business Insider, Mediaite, Gawker, The BLT, The Raw Story, Josh Blackman's Blog, Digits and The Reaction, more at Mediagazer »
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Peter Walker / Guardian:
Edward Snowden to broadcast Channel 4's alternative Christmas Day message — NSA whistleblower records message from Russia, filmed by Laura Poitras, warning of the dangers of a loss of privacy — Edward Snowden, the whistleblower who prompted a worldwide debate when he leaked a cache …
Discussion:
Little Green Footballs, Talking Points Memo and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
Joanne Kenen / Politico:
HHS offers help for people who miss Obamacare deadline — People who can't finish the online signup for Obamacare health insurance by midnight today because of website problems can seek extra time to finalize their application and still get covered by Jan. 1, according to a message posted on HealthCare.gov early this afternoon.
Discussion:
Josh Blackman's Blog and Weasel Zippers
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Chad Terhune / Los Angeles Times:
California health exchange tops 400,000 enrolled prior to deadline
California health exchange tops 400,000 enrolled prior to deadline
Discussion:
Mediaite, Talking Points Memo and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
ObamaCare site sees traffic surge on eve of enrollment deadline
ObamaCare site sees traffic surge on eve of enrollment deadline
Discussion:
Politico
Oliver Wright / The Independent:
Alan Turing gets royal pardon for ‘gross indecency’ - 61 years after he poisoned himself — He was the father of modern computing whose work on the Enigma code at Bletchley Park is said to have shortened the Second World War. — But he was also gay and in those less enlightened times …
Discussion:
Guardian, NBCNews, Shakesville and Business Insider
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Emma G. Fitzsimmons / New York Times:
Alan Turing, Enigma Code-Breaker and Computer Pioneer, Wins Royal Pardon
Alan Turing, Enigma Code-Breaker and Computer Pioneer, Wins Royal Pardon
Discussion:
emptywheel, Outside the Beltway and Gizmodo
Caroline Davies / Guardian:
Enigma codebreaker Alan Turing receives royal pardon
Enigma codebreaker Alan Turing receives royal pardon
Discussion:
Techdirt, Feministing, Gawker, Boing Boing and Towleroad News #gay
Andrea Peyser / New York Post:
Give her the heave-ho, de Blasio — Enough! — If Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio has a lick of sense in his 6-foot-5 frame, he'll cast out of his incoming administration Lis Smith — the randy Democratic operative who's got a freaky fetish for the black knee socks and balding pate of married ex-Love Gov Eliot Spitzer.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Mediaite, Gawker and Politicker
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Jose DelReal / Politico:
Bill de Blasio daughter reveals drug, alcohol abuse — In an unusual and moving Christmas Eve video, the college-age daughter of New York City Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio is revealing for the first time her struggle with alcohol, drugs and depression — and is urging others in need to get help.
Discussion:
ABC 7 Eyewitness News and CNN
Jennifer Bendery / The Huffington Post:
Here Are The 15 Democratic Senators Bucking The White House And Threatening War With Iran — WASHINGTON — As the United States finally puts a decade of war behind it, a group of senators, including 15 Democrats, is defying the White House and threatening to push the country into a fresh war with Iran.
Discussion:
Mondoweiss, Hullabaloo and Philly.com
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Peter Beinart / The Daily Beast:
Where's the Anti-War Left on Iran?
Where's the Anti-War Left on Iran?
Discussion:
The American Conservative
Molly Ball / The Atlantic Online:
The Battle Within the Democratic Party
David Brooks / New York Times:
The Legitimacy Problem — It's pretty clear that the implementation of Obamacare will set the tone for how Americans think about government for years to come. There are two large questions to be settled, which you might call the questions of competence and coercion.
Discussion:
PolicyShop and Democratic Strategist
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Byron York / Washington Examiner:
GOP should try again to delay Obamacare's individual mandate
GOP should try again to delay Obamacare's individual mandate
Discussion:
Hot Air and americanthinker.com
Kris Van Cleave / WJLA-TV:
VIDEO: Santa Claus shot with pellet gun at toy giveaway in Southeast — WASHINGTON (WJLA) - A man in a Santa Claus suit was shot in the back with a pellet gun Tuesday morning at a toy giveaway in Southeast. — According to an ABC7 photographer who was interviewing the victim at the time of the shooting …
Julian Sanchez / The Atlantic Online:
The War on Terror's Jedi Mind Trick — National-security officials insist new violations of privacy are essential for keeping Americans safe from terror—but there's no evidence the programs have stopped any attacks. — A Republican-appointed judge and President Obama's own handpicked …
Discussion:
CANNONFIRE and Outside the Beltway
RELATED:
Michael B. Mukasey / Wall Street Journal:
The Air of Unreality in NSA Reform
Lucy McCalmont / Politico:
Sarah Palin: I didn't read ‘Duck Dynasty’ interview — Turns out Sarah Palin, who has been one of Duck Dynasty's biggest defenders, hasn't actually read the GQ interview that includes cast member Phil Robertson's controversial comments on homosexuality and other subjects.
Discussion:
Mediaite, Business Insider, Liberaland and Gawker
Lucy McCalmont / Politico:
‘Festivus’ writer grieves about Rand Paul — One of the writers of the famed “Festivus” episode of “Seinfeld” isn't too happy Sen. Rand Paul used the holiday to tweet a rant against Washington. — Airing his own grievance on Tuesday, writer Dan O'Keefe, took a swipe at the Republican senator from Kentucky.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, New Day and The Raw Story
Adam Withnall / The Independent:
Kim Jong-un: North Korean leader ‘was very drunk’ when ordering executions — Source tells Japanese newspaper purge of Kim's powerful uncle Jang Song-thaek was inevitable after ‘surprising’ first deaths — The North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was “very drunk” when he ordered the recent execution …
Discussion:
Liberaland and Mediaite
Peter Sullivan / The Hill:
Civil rights leaders call for Obama to withdraw Georgia judicial nominees — Civil rights leaders and members of the Georgia congressional delegation on Monday called on President Obama to withdraw his nominees for federal courts in the state over concerns about their views and lack of diversity.
Discussion:
The Hinterland Gazette and Weasel Zippers
Michael Barone / Washington Examiner:
Is Mark Warner seeing dangerous numbers? — I couldn't help noting that Mark Warner, the Democratic senior senator from Virginia, was one of the six Democratic senators calling for “hardship exemptions” for people finding Obamacare insurance policies too expensive, and also one of the 13 Democratic senators …
Discussion:
Power Line