Top Items:
Bob Woodward / Washington Post:
Robert Gates, former defense secretary, offers harsh critique of Obama's leadership in ‘Duty’ — In a new memoir, former defense secretary Robert Gates unleashes harsh judgments about President Obama's leadership and his commitment to the Afghanistan war, writing that by early 2010 …
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, CNN, The Fix, Guardian, The Daily Caller, his vorpal sword, Ed Driscoll, Business Insider, Washington Free Beacon, Talking Points Memo, Weasel Zippers, Mediaite, Hullabaloo, TheBlaze.com, The PJ Tatler, The Lead with Jake Tapper, Weekly Standard, Post Politics, Balloon Juice and National Review
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Thom Shanker / New York Times:
In His New Memoir, Robert M. Gates, the Former Defense Secretary, Offers a Critique of the President — WASHINGTON — President Obama eventually lost faith in the troop increase he ordered in Afghanistan, his doubts fed by top White House civilian advisers opposed to the strategy …
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, CNN, Talking Points Memo, ABC News, WorldViews, TIME, Close Read, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, Liberal Values, The Week, Post Politics, Business Insider, Mediaite, NBCNews and Washington Free Beacon
Robert M. Gates / Wall Street Journal:
The Quiet Fury of Robert Gates — Bush and Obama's secretary of defense had to wage war in Iraq, Afghanistan—and today's Washington … All too often during my 4½ years as secretary of defense, when I found myself sitting yet again at that witness table at yet another congressional hearing …
Discussion:
CNN, Washington Wire and Politico
Evan McMorris-Santoro / BuzzFeed:
White House Defends Joe Biden Against Book By Former Defense Secretary — “Joe Biden has been one of the leading statesmen of his time, and has helped advance America's leadership in the world,” says the National Security Council spokesperson. — Tim Shaffer / Reuters / Reuters
Discussion:
Mediaite, Weasel Zippers and Post Politics
Burgess Everett / Politico:
In surprise, unemployment benefits advance — In a surprise, several Senate Republicans on Tuesday morning joined with Democrats to break the filibuster of a bill to extend unemployment benefits for three months. — By 60-37, Senate Democrats secured the votes needed to advance the bill …
Discussion:
Slate, CNN, Mediaite, Taylor Marsh, The Raw Story and Outside the Beltway
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Robert Costa / Post Politics:
House GOP leaders coach rank-and-file on discussing unemployment
House GOP leaders coach rank-and-file on discussing unemployment
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Wonkblog and The Fix
John Bresnahan / Politico:
Michael Bloomberg gives $2.5M to Senate Majority PAC
Michael Bloomberg gives $2.5M to Senate Majority PAC
Discussion:
Washington Wire, Guardian and Weasel Zippers
Patricia Murphy / The Daily Beast:
The Senate's Last Compassionate Conservative Tries to Help the Jobless
The Senate's Last Compassionate Conservative Tries to Help the Jobless
Discussion:
NewsBusters and The Plum Line
Speaker.gov:
Boehner Statement on Jobs
Boehner Statement on Jobs
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Talking Points Memo, The Plum Line and PoliticusUSA
Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:
Jobless Benefits Extension Clears One Hurdle, but More Remain
Jobless Benefits Extension Clears One Hurdle, but More Remain
Discussion:
The World's Greatest … and National Review
Reid J. Epstein / Politico:
Obama hits House GOP on unemployment benefits
Obama hits House GOP on unemployment benefits
Discussion:
CNN, The Hill and ThinkProgress
Catherine Taibi / The Huffington Post:
Rush Limbaugh's Polar Vortex ‘Hoax’ Comments Knocked Down By Weatherman (VIDEO) — Rush Limbaugh made headlines Monday when he called the “polar vortex” of dangerously cold conditions sweeping across the Midwest a “hoax,” but now an actual weatherman is saying otherwise.
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Riehl World News, The Right Scoop and Politico
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Alan Duke / CNN:
What the heck is a polar vortex?
What the heck is a polar vortex?
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Weasel Zippers, Blogcritics and Rush Limbaugh
CNN:
Angry Dennis Rodman defends North Korea basketball game — (CNN) — Dennis Rodman defended his visit to North Korea with a team of fellow former NBA players in a combative exchange Tuesday, saying the trip was a “great idea for the world.” — In an exclusive interview with Chris Cuomo of CNN's …
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Mark Mazzetti / New York Times:
Burglars Who Took On F.B.I. Abandon Shadows — Stealing J. Edgar Hoover's Secrets: One night in 1971, files were stolen from an F.B.I. office near Philadelphia. They proved that the bureau was spying on thousands of Americans. The case was unsolved, until now.
Hadas Gold / Politico:
Navy mistakenly sends FOIA plans to reporter — The Unites States Navy inadvertently sent a memo to a local NBC News reporter this week detailing how it intended to try and deter requests he had filed under the Freedom Of Information Act. — Scott MacFarlane, a reporter for NBC 4 in Washington …
Discussion:
Hit & Run, Gawker, Mediaite and Business Insider, more at Mediagazer »
Austin Frakt / The Incidental Economist:
What happened to US life expectancy? — Here's another chart from the JAMA study “The Anatomy of Health Care in the United States”: — Why did the US fall behind the OECD median in the mid-1980s for men and the early 1990s for women? Note, the answer need not point to the health system.
Discussion:
Wonkblog, Washington Center … and Firedoglake
James Taranto / Wall Street Journal:
How value judgments cloud social thought. — City Journal's Kay Hymowitz weighed in over the holidays with a response to our Dec. 16 column, in which we faulted the premise of her earlier article titled “Boy Trouble.” She maintains that the main body of the article (which we described as …
Discussion:
Shakesville
Kasey Babbitt / fox4kc.com:
Daisy Coleman hospitalized in Kansas City after suicide attempt — KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Maryville Mo., teenager, who has been at the center of a rape case which made national headlines, was in a Kansas City hospital on Monday night after attempting to take her own life.
Discussion:
The Raw Story, ThinkProgress, Daily Mail and Washington Post
Bruce Schneier / The Atlantic Online:
How the NSA Threatens National Security — Our choice isn't between a digital world where the agency can eavesdrop and one where it cannot; our choice is between a digital world that is vulnerable to any attacker and one that is secure for all users. — Secret NSA eavesdropping is still in the news.
Discussion:
Washington Post
Richard Pollock / Washington Examiner:
Surprise! Walmart health plan is cheaper, offers more coverage than Obamacare — WATCHDOG OBAMACARE HEALTH CARE ACCOUNTABILITY WALMART — New Obamacare health insurance enrollees may feel a pang of envy when they eye the coverage plans offered by Walmart to its employees.
Discussion:
Ricochet Conversations Feed and TheBlaze.com
Tova Dvorin / Arutz Sheva:
Dutch Soccer Team Leaves Star Israeli Player Behind — Star Israeli-national soccer player Dan Mori banned from Abu Dhabi due to nationality. Dutch politician slams ‘cowardly’ decision. — The premier Dutch soccer team Vitesse left for training in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this year …
Discussion:
Jihad Watch and Weasel Zippers
Tara Palmeri / New York Post:
Spitzer caught sucking Lis Smith's toes in topless hot tub romp — Sleazy Eliot Spitzer turned a resort hot tub into a steamy love cauldron over the weekend — kissing and sucking the toes of his topless mistress, Lis Smith, in front of families with children, mortified witnesses told The Post.
Caitlin MacNeal / Talking Points Memo:
Gingrich: ‘Life Was Fine’ During Warmer ‘Age Of The Dinosaurs’ — Newt Gingrich, a self-proclaimed “amateur paleontologist,” said Monday that the Earth's rising temperature is not a major issue. — “The age of the dinosaurs was dramatically warmer than this is right now and it didn't cook the planet …
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, Little Green Footballs, Mediaite and The Raw Story
Sean Trende / Real Clear Politics:
4 Million Medicaid Enrollees Under Obamacare? Doubtful. — The White House has propagated numbers regarding sign-ups for the Affordable Care Act, claiming that the program is responsible for 4 million people gaining coverage through Medicaid expansion; 3 million enrollees in their early 20s …
Discussion:
National Review, The Fact Checker, AEIdeas, Wonkblog and Americans Against the …