memeorandum: EXCLUSIVE: Republicans set to deliver big statement on abortion (Ralph Z. Hallow/Washington Times)

8:00 PM ET, January 6, 2014

Top Items:

Eliana Johnson / National Review:

Rachel's Show — MSNBC, the left-leaning cable-news network, has settled on one solution to its recent problems. It now has an executive reviewing scripts before they go on the air. The role, which has fallen to Rich Stockwell, a former executive producer of The Ed Show and Countdown …

Erika Janik / The Atlantic Online:

The Smartest Nerd in the Room — Why Melissa Harris-Perry is America's foremost public intellectual, and what she means — On Saturday, Melissa Harris-Perry apologized on air for segment that made light of the Romney clan's adoption of a young black boy.

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, Gawker, Weasel Zippers, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, Washington Free Beacon and Talking Points Memo

Eliana Johnson / National Review:

Rachel's Show — Maddow herself is the highest-paid and highest-rated talent at MSNBC, but beyond her own program, her quest to fill the network with her protégés may be dragging down ratings. Being an intellectual and a true believer is not, it seems, a good thing if you're in the ratings business.

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, The Daily Caller and Weasel Zippers

Lyle Denniston / SCOTUSblog:

Court stops Utah gay marriages (UPDATED) — UPDATE 1:16 p.m. State officials said on Monday that they are evaluating the legal fate of Utah same-sex couples who already have been married. A total of 950 marriage licenses have been issued in the state to gay and lesbian couples …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, National Review, Law Blog, Washington Post, ABC News, Power Line, The Week, Advocate, Mediaite, Towleroad News #gay, Taylor Marsh, NationalJournal.com, The Right Scoop, Althouse and The Volokh Conspiracy

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

Justices Block Gay Marriage in Utah During Appeal of Case — WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday blocked further same-sex marriages in Utah while state officials appeal a decision allowing such unions. — The terse order, from the full court, issued a stay “pending final disposition” …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, AMERICAblog News, Outside the Beltway, Washington Monthly, BillMoyers.com, Liberaland, The Raw Story and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Rick Hasen / Election Law Blog:
No Surprise: Supreme Court Stays Utah Gay Marriage Ruling: What It Means

Discussion: BuzzFeed, ABC News and Law Blog

Floyd Abrams / Wall Street Journal:
Abortion Rights as a Free-Speech Flashpoint

Discussion: LifeNews.com, National Review, Law Blog and The Volokh Conspiracy

Irin Carmon / msnbc.com:
Court reviews Texas abortion restrictions

Discussion: Al Jazeera America and Daily Kos

Eric Holthaus / Quartz:

How global warming can make cold snaps even worse — The cold air pushing toward America's heartland is of a duration and magnitude rarely seen since record-keeping began in the 1870s. In Minneapolis, forecasters warned that all-time wind chill records could be broken, with a stunning -65ºF predicted for Monday morning.

Discussion: Wonkblog, Weasel Zippers, Real Science, Pirate's Cove and Climate Depot

ThinkProgress:

Everything You Wanted To Know About The ‘Polar Vortex’ — A person struggles to cross a street in blowing and falling snow Sunday, Jan. 5, 2014, in St. Louis. — CREDIT: AP Photo/Jeff Roberson — On Sunday night, a reporter for The Weather Channel stood in a Minnesota snowstorm …

Discussion: Minneapolis Star Tribune, NBCNews and Fox News

Molly Ball / The Atlantic Online:

The Agony of Frank Luntz — Frank Luntz does not want the buffet. We are on the top floor of the Capitol Hill Club, the members-only Republican hangout a block from the Capitol, where a meaty smell is emanating from steam trays. Today's main course is ham, and Luntz shakes his head.

Discussion: ABC News, Balloon Juice, Booman Tribune, neo-neocon, Mediaite, TheBlaze.com, Washington Monthly, The Impolitic, Talking Points Memo and Roger Ailes

Nellie Andreeva / Deadline.com:

Sasheer Zamata Joins ‘Saturday Night Live’ As New Cast Member — EXCLUSIVE: Three years after she graduated from the University of Virginia, Sasheer Zamata is landing a very big break — the young comedy performer has been selected to join Saturday Night Live as a new cast member.

Discussion: The Verge, Mediaite, Guardian, Shakesville, New York Times, Gawker, Taylor Marsh, Gothamist, The Hinterland Gazette and Global Grind

CNN:

First on CNN: Liz Cheney to abandon Senate bid — New York (CNN) — Liz Cheney, whose upstart bid to unseat Wyoming Sen. Mike Enzi sparked a round of warfare in the Republican Party and even within her own family, is dropping out of the Senate primary, sources told CNN late Sunday.

Jeff Zeleny / ABC News:
Liz Cheney Abandons Uphill Fight in Wyoming Senate Race, Citing Family Health Problems

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Politico:
Liz Cheney: ‘I have decided to discontinue my campaign’

Discussion: CNN, American Prospect, Esquire, The Daily Beast, Washington Wire, Washington Monthly, Talking Points Memo, Outside the Beltway, The Raw Story, The Week and Casper Star-Tribune

David Weigel / Slate:
Liz Cheney Quits Senate Race in Wyoming

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Brittany Foster / PoliticsPA:

Breaking: Rep. Gerlach Will Not Seek Reelection — PA-6 Congressman Jim Gerlach (R-Chester) will not seek reelection in 2014. — “Nearing the end of my sixth term in the House and following 12 years of public service in the Pennsylvania House and Senate, it is simply time for me to move …

Discussion: Daily Kos, The Daily Caller, NBCNews and Talking Points Memo

Shira T. Center / Roll Call:
Jim Gerlach Won't Seek Re-Election (Updated)

Discussion: Booman Tribune

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
GOP's Jim Gerlach not running in 2014

Discussion: CNN

Max Boot / Wall Street Journal:

How Al Qaeda Terrorized Its Way Back in Iraq — As the country edges closer to civil war, much of the blame goes to Prime Minister Maliki—and the White House.

Discussion: Instapundit

Daniel Byman / Lawfare:
The Foreign Policy Essay: “2013 - The Year We Lost Iraq?”

Discussion: ProfessorBainbridge.com and The Dish

United States Senator John McCain:
McCAIN & GRAHAM ON REPORTED AL-QAEDA TAKEOVER IN FALLUJAH, IRAQ

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, Hot Air, Guardian, Lawfare, Outside the Beltway, First Read and Washington Free Beacon

Ralph Z. Hallow / Washington Times:

EXCLUSIVE: Republicans set to deliver big statement on abortion — Winter meeting to be delayed so members can attend March for Life on the National Mall — In an unprecedented show of opposition to abortion, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus is delaying the start …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Daily Kos, LifeNews.com, Talking Points Memo and March for Life

Ron Johnson / Wall Street Journal:

I'm Suing Over ObamaCare Exemptions for Congress — If the president wants to change the health-care law, he must ask Congress to do it. — On Monday, Jan. 6, I am filing suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin to make Congress live by the letter of the health-care law it imposed on the rest of America.

Discussion: The Plum Line, The Hill, The World's Greatest …, Business Insider, AEIdeas, Sister Toldjah, The PJ Tatler, Talking Points Memo, thenorthwestern.com, Betsy's Page, CBS DC, Liberaland, Right Wing News, National Review, VodkaPundit, American Spectator and The Volokh Conspiracy

Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner:
PRESS RELEASES AND STATEMENTS

Discussion: Politico and CNN

Sam Baker / NationalJournal.com: Obamacare Can't Fail ... ... because the White House …

James M. Odato / Albany Times Union:

Ready ... aim ... point ... talk — Handgun used as laser pointer by state official reportedly rattles foreign delegates — Jerome M. Hauer, Gov. Andrew Cuomo's director of homeland security, took out his handgun and used the laser sighting device attached to the barrel as a pointer …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Talking Points Memo, Gawker, Gothamist and The Raw Story

Noam Scheiber / The New Republic:

How Obamacare Actually Paves the Way Toward Single Payer — Last week the liberal documentary-maker Michael Moore prompted indigestion across the progressive wonk community by pronouncing Obamacare “awful.” In a New York Times op-ed, he bemoaned the way the president's law preserved …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Hit & Run, Hot Air, Questions and Observations, National Review and Maggie's Farm

Sean Davis / The Federalist:

Sorry, Comrade, But You Didn't Just Discover The Secret To Making Communism Work — If you're a Millennial who loves bread lines, prison camps, forced famines, and abject human misery, then you'll love the latest offering from Rolling Stone. Over the weekend, Jesse Myerson …

Discussion: Business Insider, PolicyShop and Catallaxy Files

Stephen Dinan / Washington Times:

Senate candidate suggests moving federal capital from Washington — One of the men seeking the GOP nomination for Nebraska's open Senate seat is proposing moving the capital from Washington to his home state, saying it would be an effective way to cut out the lobbyists and special interests …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Business Insider, Mediaite, Talking Points Memo and The Raw Story

Michael Wolff / USA Today:

The unbeatable Roger Ailes — The Fox News chief continues to crush his cable news competitors. — Why would you work in the cable news business? Does anybody look their best in cable news? The people in front of the camera look extreme, demented, desperate or vapid.

Discussion: Mediaite, Politico, Business Insider, No More Mister Nice Blog, TVNewser, Capital New York and TheBlaze.com, more at Mediagazer »

Lesley Stahl / CBS News:

The Cleantech Crash — Despite billions invested by the U.S. government in so-called “Cleantech” energy, Washington and Silicon Valley have little to show for it — The following is a script from “The Cleantech Crash” which aired on Jan. 5, 2014. Lesley Stahl is the correspondent.