memeorandum: Welder lauded by Scott Walker in speech is sex offender (Daniel Bice/JSOnline)

5:45 PM ET, January 23, 2014

Top Items:

Aaron Blake / Post Politics:

Huckabee: Dems think women can't control their libido — Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee (R) said Thursday that Republicans need to take a more combative attitude toward winning the votes of women, by emphasizing that women aren't weaklings in need of help from the government.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, BuzzFeed, ThinkProgress, Little Green Footballs, Talking Points Memo, Taylor Marsh, Liberaland, Booman Tribune, The Raw Story, No More Mister Nice Blog, Hullabaloo, Hinterland Gazette, Shakesville and Right Wing Watch

David Weigel / Slate:

Mike Huckabee: Democrats Want Women to Think “They Can't Control Their Libido” — Earlier today, Harvard's Institute of Politics announced that former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who's currently a Fox News host and who may run for president again in 2016, would be a “visiting fellow” for the spring semester.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, AMERICAblog News and The Raw Story

Noah Rothman / Mediaite:

NBC, CNN Reporters Pounce on Huckabee's ‘Libido’ Comments; Forced to Issue Corrections — Entertainer and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee appeared on Thursday to play right into the hands of the Democrats with a full frontal offensive in the “War on Women.”

Discussion: Weekly Standard and Hot Air

Daniel Strauss / Talking Points Memo:

Huckabee: Gov't Shouldn't Help Women Who Can't Control Libidos — Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) said that the government shouldn't help women who can't control their “libido or their reproductive system” by providing co-pay-free birth control and that Democrats are encouraging women to be “victims of their gender.”

Discussion: ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Feministing

Katie Glueck / Politico:
Mike Huckabee: Dems view women as ‘helpless’

Discussion: CNN

Nicholas Confessore / New York Times:

Biggest Liberal ‘Super PAC’ to Fund Possible Clinton Bid — The largest liberal “super PAC” in the country has begun raising money to elect Hillary Rodham Clinton president, formally aligning itself with Mrs. Clinton's undeclared presidential ambitions more than two years away from the election.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Moderate Voice, Tom Moran, PennLive.com and Balloon Juice

Dorsey Shaw / BuzzFeed:
19 Things That The New York Times Magazine “Planet Hillary” Cover Looks Like

Discussion: She The People and Gothamist

Arem Duplessis / The 6th Floor:
How Our Hillary Clinton Cover Came About

Discussion: The Fix and Daily Dot

Charlie Savage / New York Times:

Watchdog Report Says N.S.A. Program Is Illegal and Should End — WASHINGTON — An independent federal privacy watchdog has concluded that the National Security Agency's program to collect bulk phone call records has provided only “minimal” benefits in counterterrorism efforts, is illegal and should be shut down.

Discussion: Hit & Run, The Verge, Daily Dot, Right Wing News, Guardian, Talking Points Memo, The Moderate Voice, Hullabaloo, CANNONFIRE, Engadget, Daily Kos, emptywheel, No More Mister Nice Blog, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Washington Post, Boing Boing and Balloon Juice

Ellen Nakashima / Washington Post:
Independent review board says NSA phone data program is illegal and should end

Discussion: Guardian, Mashable, emptywheel, americanthinker.com and The Verge

Tal Kopan / Politico:

Mark Herring explains gay marriage shift — New Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring says his decision to challenge his state's ban on gay marriage, rather than defend it on behalf of the state, is part of an evolution in his views on the subject. — Herring announced his decision to side …

Discussion: CNN, Towleroad News #gay, neo-neocon, The Agonist and Mediaite

Eyder Peralta / NPR:
Virginia's New Attorney General Will Not Defend Gay-Marriage Ban

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Associated Press, GLAAD, Advocate, Daily Kos, The Dish, Talking Points Memo, Guardian and The Reaction

Robert Barnes / Washington Post:
Virginia to fight same-sex marriage ban

Discussion: BuzzFeed, NewsBusters, The Fix, Washington Blade, BillMoyers.com, Taegan Goddard's … and NBCNews

MiamiHerald.com:

Justin Bieber arrested in Miami Beach over DUI, drag-racing — After allegedly smoking pot all day, drinking beer and popping anti-depressants, bad-boy pop star Justin Bieber went on a wild pre-dawn drag race in Miami Beach that landed him in jail Thursday morning, police said.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, TMZ.com, Radio.com News, Daily Dot, The Daily Caller, Riptide 2.0, New Jersey Online, USA Today, Hinterland Gazette and Gawker

Alan Duke / CNN:
Bieber: What the f*** did I do? — (CNN) — Justin Bieber …

Discussion: Taking Note, KFOR-TV, Taylor Marsh and Gawker

Darryl Isherwood / New Jersey Online:

U.S. Attorney subpoenas Christie campaign and GOP State Committee over bridge scandal — Gov. Chris Christie delivers his State of the State address in which he also discussed the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal. (Tony Kurdzuk/The Star-Ledgery)

Discussion: Politico, Daily Kos and Post Politics

William K. Rashbaum / New York Times:
U.S. Attorney Issues Subpoena to Christie's Re-election Campaign

Discussion: Hinterland Gazette

Nicole Winfield / Associated Press:

Pope: Internet Is a ‘Gift From God’ for Dialogue — The Internet is a “gift from God” that facilitates communication, Pope Francis said in a statement released Thursday, but he warns that the obsessive desire to stay connected can actually isolate people from their friends and family.

Discussion: The Verge, Shakesville, Mediaite, Gothamist and The PJ Tatler

Caitlin MacNeal / Talking Points Memo:
Pope Cautions Catholics Against ‘Bombarding People With Religious Messages’

Discussion: ncronline.org and Liberaland

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:

Schumer seeks to poison Tea Party — Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y.), the Senate Democrats' political guru, has a plan to poison the Tea Party by driving a wedge between its rich funders and its blue-collar rank and file. — Schumer, one of the Democrats' most influential strategists …

Discussion: Pew Research Center …, Booman Tribune, Hot Air, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Plum Line, neo-neocon and Taegan Goddard's …

TIME:

Revenge-Porn King Hunter Moore Indicted on Federal Charges — Moore and an alleged accomplice Charles “Gary” Evens were indicted on 15 counts, including conspiracy, seven counts of unauthorized access to a protected computer to obtain information and seven counts of aggravated identity theft

Discussion: The Verge, Gawker, Daily Dot, Techdirt, The Other McCain and Balloon Juice

New York Times:

Leaning Right in Hollywood, Under a Lens — LOS ANGELES — In a famously left-leaning Hollywood, where Democratic fund-raisers fill the social calendar, Friends of Abe stands out as a conservative group that bucks the prevailing political winds. — A collection of perhaps 1,500 right-leaning players …

Discussion: American Spectator, The PJ Tatler and Weasel Zippers

Adam Withnall / The Independent:

Mystery of the Lyubov Orlova: Ghost ship full of cannibal rats ‘could be heading for Britain’ — A ghost ship carrying nothing but disease-ridden rats could be about to make land on Britain's shore, experts have warned. — The Lyubov Orlova cruise liner has been drifting across …

Discussion: The Raw Story, Gawker and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Daniel Bice / JSOnline:

Welder lauded by Scott Walker in speech is sex offender — By Daniel Bice of the Journal Sentinel — Emphasizing his role as a job creator, Gov. Scott Walker praised Christopher Barber's initiative during the governor's annual “state of the state” speech on Wednesday.

Discussion: Daily Kos, Talking Points Memo, The Raw Story and Post Politics

Matthew Garrahan / Financial Times:

CNN lays off more than 40 journalists — CNN has laid off more than 40 senior journalists in its newsgathering operation - including a pregnant producer who was two weeks away from giving birth to twins - as part of a reorganisation of the business under Jeff Zucker.

Discussion: Mediaite and Politico, more at Mediagazer »

Christopher Flavelle / Bloomberg:

Guns Make Voting Even Harder — If you want to feel truly dispirited about the health of U.S. democracy, skip the stories about Chris Christie and Bob McDonnell and go straight to today's report on the American voting experience. — The report, by a presidentially appointed commission …

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, Eduwonk and National Review

Dylan Scott / Talking Points Memo:

The Heritage Foundation Might Be Shedding Some Of Its Crazy Soon — 2013 wasn't exactly been a banner year for the Heritage Foundation, Washington's most well-known and influential conservative think tank. — In its first year under former senator and tea party godfather Jim DeMint …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Washington Monthly

Jake Sherman / Politico:

Paul Ryan doesn't want to be House speaker — SAN ANTONIO — Rep. Paul Ryan said he does not want to be speaker of the House, a declaration that will have reverberations in Republican leadership circles in Washington. — During a wide-ranging luncheon in a hotel ballroom here Thursday …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Peter Beinart / The Atlantic Online:

Rand Paul Is the 2016 Republican Frontrunner — Don't laugh. He has built-in advantages in Iowa and New Hampshire, a party moving in his direction, and formidable fundraising potential. — If Chris Christie was ever the frontrunner for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, he isn't anymore.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Dish and Truthout Stories

Sean Trende / Real Clear Politics:

Why the 2014 Senate Races Matter So Much — Yesterday I laid out some scenarios for the 2014 Senate races. At President Obama's current job approval rating, Democrats would likely suffer substantial losses in the upper chamber. On the other hand, if the president were to improve his standing …

Discussion: Hot Air, The Dish, Washington Monthly and Weekly Standard

Tom Howell Jr / Washington Times:

Moody's downgrades health insurers, citing Obamacare — Warns of ‘unstable and evolving regulatory environment’ — Moody's Investor Service has changed its outlook for the U.S. health care insurance sector from stable to negative, citing Obamacare's rollout and the uncertainty it brings.

Discussion: Reuters, Hot Air, The PJ Tatler, The Daily Caller and Ed Driscoll

Gregory N. Hicks / Wall Street Journal:

Gregory Hicks: Benghazi and the Smearing of Chris Stevens — Shifting blame to our dead ambassador is wrong on the facts. I know—I was there. — Last week the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence issued its report on the Sept. 11, 2012, terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya.

Discussion: Hot Air, Washington Free Beacon, Betsy's Page and Patterico's Pontifications

David Leonhardt / New York Times:

Upward Mobility Has Not Declined, Study Says — The odds of moving up — or down — the income ladder in the United States have not changed appreciably in the last 20 years, according to a large new academic study that contradicts politicians in both parties who have claimed that income mobility is falling.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Washington Post, News Desk, Washington Center …, National Review, The Dish, Wonkblog, JustOneMinute, Hit & Run, Hot Air and The Heritage Foundation

Tom Kludt / Talking Points Memo:

Poll Shows Most Republicans Think People Are Poor Because They Don't Work Hard Enough — Whether you're rich or poor, Republicans believe that's on you. — New findings released Thursday by Pew showed that most Republicans think rich people are largely responsible for their socioeconomic status.

Discussion: susiemadrak.com, Shakesville and Liberaland