Top Items:
David A. Graham / The Atlantic:
Bernie Sanders's America — What can be gleaned from Senator Bernie Sanders's new ad, targeted at voters in Iowa and New Hampshire? The spot is a classic montage of Americana—dairy farms, coffee shops, the Des Moines skyline, happy families, campaign rallies—set to Simon and Garfunkel's “America.”
Discussion:
US News, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, USA Today and New York Times
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Nick Corasaniti / New York Times:
Bernie Sanders, and Simon and Garfunkel, Put Focus on Voters — With the help of the Simon and Garfunkel song “America,” Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont has released a powerful 60-second commercial in Iowa that seeks to remind his supporters how far he, and they, have come — and to inspire them anew to caucus for him on Feb. 1.
NBC News:
First Read: The GOP Establishment's Risky Bet on Trump — First Read is a morning briefing from Meet the Press and the NBC Political Unit on the day's most important political stories and why they matter. — The GOP establishment's risky bet on Trump — Former Sen. and GOP presidential …
Annie Karni / Politico:
Bill Clinton questions Hillary's Super Tuesday plan
Bill Clinton questions Hillary's Super Tuesday plan
Discussion:
Trail Blazers Blog and Mediaite
Bloomberg Business:
Campaigner-in-Chief Bill Clinton Is Worried
Campaigner-in-Chief Bill Clinton Is Worried
Discussion:
ABC News, Reuters, National Review, Talking Points Memo and MSNBC
Eliza Collins / Politico:
Clinton hits Sanders: ‘A president has to deliver in reality’
Clinton hits Sanders: ‘A president has to deliver in reality’
Discussion:
Daily Wire, PoliticusUSA, LifeNews.com and MSNBC
Matthew Yglesias / Vox:
Bernie Sanders's new ad “America” is perfect for now but shows the big challenge he'll face soon
Bernie Sanders's new ad “America” is perfect for now but shows the big challenge he'll face soon
Discussion:
The Hill and The Gateway Pundit
Dan Merica / CNN:
Sanders uses Simon & Garfunkel in non-traditional closing ad
Sanders uses Simon & Garfunkel in non-traditional closing ad
Discussion:
Yahoo Politics and American Spectator
Jeff Black / Bloomberg Business:
Trump Fear Stalks Davos as Elite Pray for Spring Reality Check — Concerns over protectionism and U.S. reputation bubble up — Ex-White House advisor still thinks Trump will be nominee — If Donald Trump as president of the United States is the ghost that's stalking Davos …
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John Hawkins / John Hawkins' Right Wing News:
The Chart That Proves Donald Trump Has No Chance In A General Election — ShareTweet — Whether Donald Trump wins the Republican primary or not, he'll never be the President of the United States. Well, I shouldn't say never. Hillary could go to jail, a meteor could strike …
Discussion:
The Right Scoop, American Spectator and RedState
Ann Althouse / Althouse:
The coming cascade of smart, educated people embracing Trump. — “It troubles me that there can't be a serious discussion about immigration issues because people are afraid of being called racist. People are afraid of being called a bigot. And I think one of the things that people …
Connor O'Brien / Politico:
Graham: Choice between Trump, Cruz like ‘being shot or poisoned’ — Sen. Lindsey Graham unloaded on GOP presidential front-runners Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, comparing the choice between the two “like being shot or poisoned.” — The South Carolina Republican, who recently endorsed former Florida …
Discussion:
ABC News, Mediaite, Talking Points Memo, Patterico's Pontifications, The Hill and The Week
Manu Raju / CNN:
The Ted Cruz pile on: GOP senators warn of revolt should he win nomination — Washington (CNN)Republican Party leaders and prominent senators are sharpening their knives against Ted Cruz, expressing growing alarm over his candidacy as he continues to mount a serious threat in Iowa.
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Jonathan Martin / New York Times:
Donald Trump or Ted Cruz? Republicans Argue Over Who Is Greater Threat — WASHINGTON — With Donald J. Trump and Senator Ted Cruz battling for the Republican nomination, two powerful factions of their party are now clashing over the question: Which man is more dangerous?
Loras College:
TRUMP AND CRUZ DEADLOCKED, WITH RUBIO A DISTANT THIRD, LORAS COLLEGE POLL FINDS
TRUMP AND CRUZ DEADLOCKED, WITH RUBIO A DISTANT THIRD, LORAS COLLEGE POLL FINDS
Discussion:
CNN, kbur.com, Political Wire, Politico, Business Insider, Talking Points Memo and Hot Air
Elianayjohnson / National Review:
Cruz: Establishment Has Abandoned Rubio for Trump
Cruz: Establishment Has Abandoned Rubio for Trump
Discussion:
Power Line, Bloomberg Business, Politico, New York Times, RedState and DownWithTyranny!
Eli Stokols / Politico:
Rubio to Cruz: If I'm so ‘establishment,’ why are they attacking me?
Rubio to Cruz: If I'm so ‘establishment,’ why are they attacking me?
Discussion:
New York Times, Hot Air and The Resurgent
Nick Gass / Politico:
Trump and Cruz try out new attacks on each other
Trump and Cruz try out new attacks on each other
Discussion:
ABC News, Breitbart, Trail Blazers Blog and Washington Monthly
Rich Lowry / Politico:
The Battle for the Soul of the Right
The Battle for the Soul of the Right
Discussion:
Hot Air, Daily Wire and The Hill
Adam Gabbatt / Guardian:
Carly Fiorina accused of ‘ambushing’ children for anti-abortion rally — Party of schoolchildren visiting Iowa botanical garden become part of backdrop for Republican presidential candidate's speech on abortion — Carly Fiorina has been accused of “ambushing” a group of children …
RELATED:
Des Moines Register:
Last Slide — Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina …
Last Slide — Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina …
Discussion:
Mother Jones and Fusion
Tara Culp-Ressler / ThinkProgress:
Carly Fiorina Accused Of Crashing Kids' Field Trip And Ushering Them To Anti-Abortion Rally
Carly Fiorina Accused Of Crashing Kids' Field Trip And Ushering Them To Anti-Abortion Rally
Discussion:
The Frisky, Quad City Times and LifeNews.com
Kristina Wong / The Hill:
Pentagon releases al Qaeda bomb expert from Guantánamo — The Pentagon on Thursday announced the transfer of two Guantánamo detainees, including an al Qaeda explosives expert who developed bombs to target U.S. forces. — Tariq Mahmoud Ahmed al-Sawah, 58, was transferred to Bosnia, where he holds citizenship.
Discussion:
RedState, New York Times, Weasel Zippers, Washington Free Beacon, The Long War Journal, Hot Air and The Resurgent
Eli Stokols / Politico:
The Bush blame game begins — They think he wasted money on everything from an iPad-sized video mailer to direct mail for donors in states that don't yet matter. They think his attacks on Marco Rubio are doing more harm than good. And they worry that, at the end, all he will have accomplished …
Discussion:
RedState, The Daily Caller, Daily Wire, The Resurgent, Daily Kos, CBS News, The Last Refuge, NBC News and CNN
RELATED:
Anthony Brooks / WBUR:
WBUR Poll: Large Share Of N.H.'s Undeclared Voters Yet To Settle On A Candidate Or A Party
WBUR Poll: Large Share Of N.H.'s Undeclared Voters Yet To Settle On A Candidate Or A Party
Discussion:
Daily Wire, Hot Air, Cincinnati.com, Washington Post and Florida Politics
Alan Pyke / ThinkProgress:
BREAKING: Oklahoma City Cop Will Serve 263 Years In Prison For Serial Rape Of Black Women — Former Oklahoma City police officer Daniel Holtzclaw was sentenced to a full 263 years in prison on Thursday for a series of rapes and sexual assaults against black women living on his beat.
Discussion:
The Week
Adam Taylor / Washington Post:
The ‘Obama is a Muslim’ conspiracy theory is still reverberating in the Middle East — When Barack Obama stepped onto the national political stage almost a decade ago, rumors swirled that he was secretly a Muslim. These rumors have frequently been debunked — the U.S. president is a practicing Christian …
Discussion:
Allen B. West, Daily Wire and Israel Matzav
RELATED:
Alan Cowell / New York Times:
Putin ‘Probably Approved’ Litvinenko Poisoning, British Inquiry Says — LONDON — A high-profile British inquiry into the poisoning of Alexander V. Litvinenko, a former K.G.B. officer and foe of the Kremlin, concluded on Thursday that his murder “was probably approved” by the head …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Washington Post, Associated Press, BuzzFeed, Telegraph, Guardian, The Moderate Voice, The Daily Caller, The Week and Mother Jones
New York Times:
As Water Problems Grew, Officials Belittled Complaints From Flint — LANSING, Mich. — A top aide to Michigan's governor referred to people raising questions about the quality of Flint's water as an “anti-everything group.” Other critics were accused of turning complaints about water into a “political football.”
Discussion:
Detroit Free Press, Washington Post, Guardian, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Mahablog, Slantpoint, Diane Ravitch's blog and Daily Wire
RELATED:
Charles M. Blow / New York Times:
The Poisoning of Flint's Water
The Poisoning of Flint's Water
Discussion:
Detroit Free Press, Slantpoint and Seeing the Forest
Corky Siemaszko / NBC News:
Vets: Don't Blame Obama for Track Palin's Behavior — Don't blame President Obama for the PTSD that Sarah Palin claims her oldest son is battling. — That was the message Wednesday from the head of a New York City-based veteran's organization that has fought for years to get Iraq …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Daily Wire, Business Insider, addictinginfo.org, The Week and New York Times
RELATED:
Ross Douthat / New York Times:
My Sarah Palin Romance
My Sarah Palin Romance
Discussion:
Conservative Review, New York Daily News, Vox, Hullabaloo, Reuters, Washington Examiner and Hot Air
Anthony DeChristopher / The Hill:
The smoking gun? — Special Access Programs (SAP) is a game changer. It is now undeniably clear that the results of the FBI investigation will be the end of one of two things: Hillary's bid for the White House or the legitimacy of the FBI—at least when it comes to prosecuting cases on the mishandling of classified material.
Discussion:
Fox News, Hot Air and Rush Limbaugh