Top Items:

A Pen, a Phone, and a Flailing President — The White House's problem might not be strategies and tactics. It might be Obama himself. — For months, the White House and its allies mocked critics of Barack Obama's leadership, arguing that no president has “Green Lantern” superhero powers.
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Fix, Hot Air, neo-neocon, The Plum Line, Power Line, Booman Tribune, VodkaPundit, Politico and National Review
RELATED:


Are House Republicans planning to pull a fast one on immigration? — In the House of Representatives, immigration reform is not only not dead, it's actually the subject of a lot of working and talking as Republicans prepare for their annual retreat this weekend.
Discussion:
The Plum Line, Business Insider, The Hugh Hewitt Show and Washington Wire


Don't Do It — The House Republican leadership has been confronted …
Discussion:
Hot Air

Obama to Assert Unilateral Agenda
Discussion:
Washington Wire, Business Insider, Guardian, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller, Towleroad News #gay and New York Times

Morning Plum: Inside Obama's game plan for 2014
Discussion:
Hot Air, Hullabaloo and NationalJournal.com


NSA and GCHQ target ‘leaky’ phone apps like Angry Birds to scoop user data — GCHQ documents use Angry Birds - reportedly downloaded more than 1.7bn times - as a case study for app data collection. — The National Security Agency and its UK counterpart GCHQ have been developing capabilities …
Discussion:
News Desk, Gawker, The Daily Banter, Truthdig, emptywheel, Talking Points Memo, Hinterland Gazette, Booman Tribune, The PJ Tatler, Shakesville and The Verge
RELATED:

Spy Agencies Scour Phone Apps for Personal Data — When a smartphone user opens Angry Birds, the popular game application, and starts slinging birds at chortling green pigs, spy agencies have plotted how to lurk in the background to snatch data revealing the player's location, age …
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Politico, Mashable, Hit & Run, NPR and emptywheel


Hillary Clinton: “My Biggest Regret Is What Happened In Benghazi” — QUESTION: Any do-overs that you would — relative to Secretary of State? HILLARY CLINTON: Oh, sure. I mean, you know, you make these choices based on imperfect information. And you make them to — as we say, the best of your ability.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Taylor Marsh, Liberaland, The Gateway Pundit and National Review
RELATED:


Clinton Spokesman Says She Used Facebook, Bought Something Online Last Wednesday
Discussion:
Mediaite

Clinton Calls Benghazi Her ‘Biggest Regret’ as Secretary
Discussion:
Taegan Goddard's …

Hillary Clinton Says She Hasn't Driven A Car Since 1996 (VIDEO)
Discussion:
American Power

Hillary Clinton: Benghazi ‘biggest’ regret
Discussion:
Hot Air and Fox News Insider

Clinton's biggest regret at State: Benghazi
Discussion:
Politico and Fox News Insider


The Five Worst Things About The New Republican Proposal To Replace Obamacare — On Monday, a trio Republican senators unveiled an alternative to Obamacare eerily similar to the one that former presidential candidate Mitt Romney proposed in 2012. The plan boils down to a rehash …
Discussion:
Liberaland
RELATED:

A Republican plan to replace ObamaCare, cover pre-existing conditions and lower costs — During his State of the Union address on Tuesday, President Obama will probably declare that his signature health care law is finally starting to work as designed. — We expect him to claim the mantle of …
Discussion:
Wonkblog, Business Insider, National Review and AEIdeas


Senate Republicans Develop The Most Credible Plan Yet To ‘Repeal And Replace’ Obamacare — “Repealing and replacing” Obamacare with market-oriented reforms has been the Republican mantra for years now. If you're a long-time follower of this space, you know that we're skeptical that Obamacare …
Discussion:
Daily Kos, National Review, The Mahablog and AEIdeas

State of the Union 2014: The search for a non-awkward Obamacare shout-out
Discussion:
Washington Post and VodkaPundit


What is wrong with this guy? He is such a jerk! He is a repeat offender! — This posting is not about Wendy Davis. It is not about her views. This is about a man who has pattern of being disrespectful to women: — We are a big nation with different viewpoints.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and The Other McCain


I Watched The New Mitt Romney Documentary With My Wife And It Was A Huge Mistake — The compelling new Netflix film reveals, among other things, the ideal Mormon husband. Thanks a lot, Mitt. — At the Republican National Convention in 2012, the Romney campaign released a piece …


At The Grammys, Beyoncé And Jay-Z Made The Case For Marriage That Conservatives Can't — On Saturday, the New York Times' Ross Douthat wrote a column in which he suggested concessions both liberals and conservatives ought to make if we're to get together on the joint project of making marriage more appetizing and acceptable.
Discussion:
ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES, Althouse, The Raw Story, The Daily Caller and New York Times


How the right destroyed itself: History, ideology and strategic blunders — Even if they could, Democrats already beat them there — Last week I wrote an article arguing that the impediments to conservative reform are structural — that the idiosyncrasies of the Republican base make appealing …
RELATED:

Walker's numbers up in Wisconsin poll — (CNN) - Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has a slight edge over his Democratic opponent in the state's 2014 gubernatorial contest, according to a new Badger State survey. — The Marquette Law School poll released Monday indicates 47% of Wisconsin voters …
Discussion:
Politico
RELATED:

How Scott Walker and the conservatives saved Wisconsin. America, take note
Discussion:
Rush Limbaugh and Althouse


Trey Radel to resign House seat — Rep. Trey Radel (R-Fla.) will resign from Congress on Monday, according to multiple sources. — Radel, 37, was caught buying cocaine in November from an undercover federal agent in Washington and spent nearly a month in a rehabilitation facility.


Hawaiians, D.C. Residents Most Approving of Obama in 2013 — Wyoming and West Virginia residents least approving — PRINCETON, NJ — Residents of 11 states and the District of Columbia gave President Barack Obama job approval ratings above 50% in 2013. Hawaii had the highest approval rating among …
Discussion:
Politico, GovBeat, Hinterland Gazette, National Review and Washington Post


Quentin Tarantino Suing Gawker Over Leaked ‘Hateful Eight’ Script (Exclusive) — The director takes legal action over the distribution of his script. — Quentin Tarantino — Quentin Tarantino has filed a copyright lawsuit against Gawker Media for allegedly facilitating the dissemination …
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, Gawker, Mashable, The Verge, NBCNews, Daily Dot and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »


Sochi 2014: No gay people in city, says mayor — The mayor of Sochi, host of the Winter Olympics, has said there are no gay people in the city. — Anatoly Pakhomov said homosexuals were welcome at the Games - as long as they “respect Russian law” and “don't impose their habits on others”.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Mashable, AMERICAblog News, Business Insider, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, ThinkProgress, ABC News and Outside the Beltway


Group unveils State of the Union drinking game — If you're not yet excited for Tuesday's State of the Union address, Generation Opportunity has a something that might catch your college-age attention: a drinking game. — The conservative anti-Obamacare organization is having some fun …
Discussion:
Independent Journal Review