Top Items:
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 …
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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” …
Rick Hasen / Election Law Blog:
No Surprise: Supreme Court Stays Utah Gay Marriage Ruling: What It Means
No Surprise: Supreme Court Stays Utah Gay Marriage Ruling: What It Means
Floyd Abrams / Wall Street Journal:
Abortion Rights as a Free-Speech Flashpoint
Abortion Rights as a Free-Speech Flashpoint
Discussion:
National Review, Law Blog, LifeNews.com and The Volokh Conspiracy
Irin Carmon / msnbc.com:
Court reviews Texas abortion restrictions
Court reviews Texas abortion restrictions
Discussion:
Al Jazeera America and Daily Kos
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 …
Discussion:
Power Line, The Moderate Voice, No More Mister Nice Blog, Mediaite, Hot Air, PJ Lifestyle, The PJ Tatler, PoliticusUSA, The Daily Caller, Weasel Zippers, LifeNews.com, Ricochet Conversations Feed, NewsBusters, TVNewser, Ed Driscoll, Washington Free Beacon, Taylor Marsh, The Hugh Hewitt Show, Daily Kos, TheBlaze.com and alicublog, more at Mediagazer »
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, Gawker, New York Times, Taylor Marsh, The Hinterland Gazette, Gothamist and Global Grind
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:
Liberal Values, Weasel Zippers, Real Science, Pirate's Cove and Climate Depot
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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, Fox News and CBC 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, Hullabaloo, Booman Tribune, neo-neocon, Mediaite, The Impolitic, TheBlaze.com, Balloon Juice, Washington Monthly, Talking Points Memo and Roger Ailes
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
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Shira T. Center / Roll Call:
Jim Gerlach Won't Seek Re-Election (Updated)
Jim Gerlach Won't Seek Re-Election (Updated)
Discussion:
Booman Tribune
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
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:
Gawker, The PJ Tatler, Weasel Zippers, The Daily Caller, Washington Free Beacon, Mediaite and Talking Points Memo
Jeff Zeleny / ABC News:
Liz Cheney Abandons Uphill Fight in Wyoming Senate Race, Citing Family Health Problems — Liz Cheney announced today that she was withdrawing from the Senate race in Wyoming, abruptly ending her Republican primary fight against Sen. Mike Enzi, a three-term incumbent who became a far …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo
RELATED:
David Weigel / Slate:
Liz Cheney Quits Senate Race in Wyoming
Liz Cheney Quits Senate Race in Wyoming
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, American Spectator, Guardian, ThinkProgress and CNN
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.
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, SiliconBeat, Politico, MasterResource, National Review and Power Line
RELATED:
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:
Weasel Zippers, The Raw Story, The Daily Caller, Talking Points Memo, Gawker and Gothamist
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
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:
Hit & Run, Washington Monthly, Hot Air, Questions and Observations, National Review and Maggie's Farm
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, Talking Points Memo, Mediaite and The Raw Story
CNN:
CNN Poll: Support for legal marijuana soaring — Washington (CNN) - In a major turnaround from past decades, a majority of Americans support legalizing marijuana, according to a new poll. — The CNN/ORC International survey released Monday also indicated that the number of people who say smoking pot is morally wrong has plunged.
Discussion:
Business Insider
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 »
BBC:
Afghanistan girl, 8, wearing suicide vest detained — An eight-year-old Afghan girl wearing a suicide vest has been detained by police in southern Afghanistan. — She was held on Sunday night in Helmand province, as she tried to carry out an attack against border police wearing a suicide jacket …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers, Jihad Watch and Atlas Shrugs
Margaret Sullivan / The Public Editor's Journal:
When a (Partial) Tweet Becomes an Ad, What Are the Rules? — The media world gets weirder every day, but this moment still stands out as something of a stunner - the kind of thing that merits a place on the eternal timeline of “How the Internet Flipped the Media World on Its Head.” — Picture it:
Discussion:
Scripting News, Boing Boing, Pressing Issues, Gothamist, SiliconBeat and Re/code, more at Mediagazer »
Palestinian Media Watch:
PA leader: Stages plan to eliminate Israel is basis of PA policy — PA leader: Stages plan to eliminate Israel — is basis of PA policy — Abbas Zaki, close associate of Mahmoud Abbas, says a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders is only first stage in the PA's program because “the inspiring idea cannot be achieved
Laurence J. Kotlikoff / New York Times:
Abolish the Corporate Income Tax — BOSTON — JOBS don't grow out of thin air, especially well-paying ones. They require, among other things, companies that are willing to operate where you live. Just ask the Seattle-based District 751 of the machinists' union, which was worried that Boeing …
Discussion:
AEIdeas, Hit & Run and Lawyers, Guns & Money
Catherine Thompson / Talking Points Memo:
Father Faces Manslaughter Charges After Baby Dies Of Gunshot To Abdomen — A Pennsylvania man faces charges of involuntary manslaughter after fatally shooting his 2-month-old daughter on Christmas Eve. — G. Scott Davis, 35, was “messing” with a loaded handgun at his East Lampeter …