memeorandum: Reid Pushes Back on Fast-Track Trade Authority (Annie Lowrey/New York Times)

2:20 PM ET, January 30, 2014

Top Items:

Why I Was Wrong About Chris Christie — He wasn't so smart or post-partisan, and may pay the price as a presidential hopeful. — A year ago, I wrote: “The smartest move in politics today is to move against Washington and the two major parties. And the smartest man in politics may be Chris Christie.”

Discussion: Hullabaloo, ABC News, Guardian, susiemadrak.com and Talking Points Memo

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:

Henry Waxman, 20-Term Democrat, Is Leaving House — CAMBRIDGE, Md. — Representative Henry A. Waxman of California, a diminutive Democratic giant whose 40 years in the House produced some of the most important legislation of the era, will announce on Thursday that he is retiring at the end of the year.

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Liberaland, The Gateway Pundit and National Review

Washington Post:

For 2016, Hillary Clinton has commanding lead over Democrats, GOP race wide open — Hillary Rodham Clinton holds a commanding 6 to 1 lead over other Democrats heading into the 2016 presidential campaign, while the Republican field is deeply divided with no clear front-runner, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Discussion: CNN, The Fix, Daily Kos, Taylor Marsh, Political Insider blog, American Power, First Read and Hot Air

Richard Simon / Los Angeles Times:

Rep. Henry Waxman to retire from Congress — Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Beverly Hills), shown at a 2012 campaign appearance in Rolling Hills Estates, announced his retirement from Congress Thursday after four decades in office. (Christina House / For The Times / September 15, 2012)

Discussion: Roll Call, Washington Monthly, Business Insider, Poynter, The PJ Tatler and National Review

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:

Democrats: Cede the House to save the Senate — With Democrats' grasp on the Senate increasingly tenuous — and the House all but beyond reach — some top party donors and strategists are moving to do something in the midterm election as painful as it is coldblooded: Admit the House can't be won and go all in to save the Senate.

Discussion: The Hill, Firedoglake, New York Times, Hot Air, PJ Media, americanthinker.com and The Reaction

Henry Waxman / CNN:
Rep. Waxman to retire at end of term

Discussion: Politico

Karen Tumulty / Washington Post:
Henry Waxman to retire at end of congressional session

Discussion: NPR, Mediaite and Weekly Standard

Jake Sherman / Politico:
NRCC head predicts GOP pickups in House

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and The Fix

Politico:
Henry Waxman to retire

Discussion: NationalJournal.com, Hot Air and The Fix

Damian Paletta / Washington Wire:
GOP Has Choices - None Easy - on Debt Ceiling

Discussion: Salon, Washington Blade, Washington Post, AMERICAblog News and The Plum Line

Lisa Schencker / Salt Lake Tribune:

Lunches seized from kids in debt at Salt Lake City elementary — Education » School officials cite unpaid balances on students' meal accounts. — | The Salt Lake Tribune — Up to 40 kids at Uintah Elementary in Salt Lake City picked up their lunches Tuesday …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, RYOT News, BizPac Review, Gawker, ABC News, The Raw Story and NBCNews

Dear patrons and Uintah Elementary:

Dear patrons and Uintah Elementary parents, — We have been investigating the lunch situation at Uintah Elementary School and would like to share the following information. — On Monday, a district Child Nutrition manager was sent to Uintah Elementary School to investigate the large number …

Discussion: ThinkProgress and KSL-TV

Wall Street Journal:

Liberal vituperation makes our letter writer's point. — Five days on, the commentariat continues to drop anvils on Tom Perkins, who may have written the most-read letter to the editor in the history of The Wall Street Journal. The irony is that the vituperation is making our friend's point …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Verge, Mediaite, Gawker, Instapundit, neo-neocon, Daily Kos, Business Insider, Ed Driscoll, naked capitalism and Michelle Malkin

Ben White / Politico:

Why the rich are freaking out — NEW YORK — The co-founder of one the nation's oldest venture capital firms fears a possible genocide against the wealthy. Residents of Manhattan's tony Upper East Side say the progressive mayor didn't plow their streets as a form of frosty revenge.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Plum Line and Business Insider

Michael Barone / Washington Examiner:

Gallup Obama approval numbers suggest shifting Electoral College map — BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL BARACK OBAMA POLLS CAMPAIGNS APPROVAL RATINGS ELECTORAL COLLEGE — Gallup has released President Obama's approval numbers for 2013 for the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Discussion: Booman Tribune

Quinnipiac News + Events:

Release Detail — January 30, 2014 - Crist Tops Florida's Scott On Almost Every Measure, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Voters See Crist Better On Top Priority - Economy — Watch Video: Assistant Director Tim Malloy discusses poll results — Former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist …

Discussion: CNN, Real Clear Politics and Liberaland

Tal Kopan / Politico:
Florida poll: Charlie Crist tops Rick Scott

Discussion: Outside the Beltway

Derrik J. Lang / Associated Press:

JOHANSSON STEPPING DOWN AS OXFAM AMBASSADOR — You are here — Home » SodaStream International Ltd. » Johansson stepping down as Oxfam ambassador — LOS ANGELES (AP) — Scarlett Johansson is ending her relationship with a humanitarian group after being criticized over her support …

Discussion: Algemeiner.com, Mondoweiss, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Politico, The PJ Tatler and Guardian

Anthony Weiner / NY Daily News:

Anthony Weiner's advice to Rep. Michael Grimm on how to get along with reporters — Help from a former embattled congressman to a current one. — Former Congressman Anthony Weiner is no stranger to strife between policians and the press — giving him unique insight into the brouhaha …

Discussion: TheBlaze.com, Politicker, Talking Points Memo, Politico, New York Times and Liberaland

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
Dustup could hurt Michael Grimm's reelection

Discussion: The Huffington Post, The Agonist and Talking Points Memo

Kevin Drum / Mother Jones:

No Smoking Guns Yet, But the Noose is Tightening Around Chris Christie — The New York Times is pretty clearly expending a lot of resources on the various Chris Christie scandals. So far they haven't produced any smoking guns, but they're sure digging up some stuff that doesn't look good for Team Christie.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Washington Monthly, NewsBusters, The Raw Story, Taegan Goddard's … and New York Times

New York Times:
How Pressure Mounted for Development in Hoboken

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

WonkViz:

Obama Issues Fewer Executive Orders than Any President Since the 1800s — Ted Cruz has already referred to Barack Obama's use of executive orders as “lawless.” Considering it's a safe bet we'll be hearing a lot more of this rhetoric in the months to come, I decided to dig into the historical data on presidential executive orders.

Discussion: Hinterland Gazette, Washington Monthly, Hullabaloo, The Daily Beast, The Star-Ledger Editorial Page, Right Wing News and The Heritage Foundation

kff.org:

Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: January 2014 — January 1st may have been a monumental date for those working on and closely following the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but the latest Kaiser Health Tracking Poll finds little change in the public's knowledge and views of the law.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Washington Wire, Wonkblog and National Review

Wall Street Journal:

Senate Majority Leader Reid delivers body blow to Obama on trade — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid broke with the White House and said he opposed legislation aimed at smoothing the passage of free-trade agreements, imperiling two major deals being negotiated with Asian and European partners.

Discussion: susiemadrak.com, Real Time Economics, naked capitalism, Hot Air and The Hill

Annie Lowrey / New York Times: Reid Pushes Back on Fast-Track Trade Authority

John Stanton / BuzzFeed:

Some Republicans See Racism As a Factor in Immigration Stalemate — “I hate to say this, because these are my people — but I hate to say it, but it's racial,” says a Republican congressman. — Jason Reed / Reuters — WASHINGTON — For more than a year House Republican leaders have insisted …

Discussion: ThinkProgress and Right Wing Watch

Damon Linker / The Week:

Is National Review doomed? — The conservative movement's leading magazine faces a lawsuit that could bring it to its knees — N — ational Review, founded by William F. Buckley, Jr. in 1955, has had an enormous impact on the nation's politics. Its writers formulated the ideology …

Discussion: Balloon Juice, more at Mediagazer »

The Fix:

Hillary Clinton is the biggest frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination ever. Yes, ever. — Hillary Rodham Clinton's 61-point edge over Joe Biden in new Washington Post-ABC News polling makes her the single biggest frontrunner for a Democratic presidential nomination …

Discussion: Infowars, The Dish, WMUR, Mediaite, Business Insider, Shakesville and Public Policy Polling

Molly K. Hooper / The Hill:

Convention wipeout coming soon? — This could be the year that Congress bans taxpayer money to pay for presidential political conventions. — Public money for the four-day partisan shindigs has long been a political bull's-eye. But effort after effort has fallen short even as criticism of the party-heavy gatherings has increased.

Discussion: The Greenroom