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Gov. Sarah Palin to resign her office — Updated: — ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin will resign her office in a few weeks, she said during a news conference at her Wasilla home Friday morning. — Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell will be inaugurated at the Governor's Picnic at Pionner Park …
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A Letter to Sarah — You're blowing it. — We haven't met, but you might remember I was one of the first columnists to tout you for John McCain's running mate. I cheered you mightily when Senator McCain selected you, and I still believe that you were the smartest choice he could have made given the obstacles before him.


First on the Ticker: Palin will not run for re-election — WASHINGTON (CNN) - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is expected to announce Friday that she will not seek a second term, three sources tell CNN. — Palin has scheduled a 3 p.m. ET news conference at her home in Wasilla.

GOP sources: Palin won't run for re-election — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has told associates that she will not seek re-election next year, freeing her to pursue a White House bid in 2012, according to two GOP sources. — Palin is to make her decision known later this afternoon from her home …
Discussion:
Joe. My. God.

Palin to make announcement from Wasilla at 3 — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will make what her office is only calling an “announcement” at 11 AM local (3 Eastern) from her home in Wasilla. — Speculation is raging both in Alaska and in the Lower 48 that she'll reveal her plans regarding next year's gubernatorial race.

That '30s Show — O.K., Thursday's jobs report settles it. We're going to need a bigger stimulus. But does the president know that? — Let's do the math. — Since the recession began, the U.S. economy has lost 6 ½ million jobs — and as that grim employment report confirmed …
Discussion:
Atlantic Correspondents, The Strata-Sphere, The Confluence, Clusterstock, Balloon Juice, Economist's View and Vox Popoli
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Secrets of the WSJ — This morning's Wall Street Journal opinion section contains a lot of what one expects to see. There's an opinion piece making a big fuss over the fake scandal at the EPA. There's an editorial claiming that the latest job figures prove the failure of Obama's economic plan — something I dealt with in the Times.


The EPA Silences a Climate Skeptic — The professional penalty for offering a contrary view to elites like Al Gore is a smear campaign. — Printer — Friendly — Wherever Jim Hansen is right now — whatever speech the “censored” NASA scientist is giving — perhaps he'll find time to mention the plight of Alan Carlin.

ERICKSON: Who cares about Honduras? — Barack Obama has fundamentally shifted our foreign policy away from our own national interests in Honduras. He aligns us with the interests of Hugo Chavez, Fidel Castro and a long list of South American drug cartels.
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A ‘coup’ in Honduras? Nonsense.
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, Raw Story, QandO, Political Byline, Let's Get It Right, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Sense of Events, MyDD, Eunomia, Winds of Change.NET and Power Line

Let them come to Tegucigalpa
Discussion:
Gateway Pundit

Obama ‘meddles’ in Honduras — and chooses the wrong side
Discussion:
Washington Post, Counterterrorism Blog, Macsmind, Jules Crittenden, The Moderate Voice and neo-neocon


Court Filing Shows Evidence Cheney Swayed White House Response to CIA Leak — Discussions of CIA Agent Listed in Filing — A document filed in federal court this week by the Justice Department offers new evidence that former vice president Richard B. Cheney helped steer …
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Emptywheel, PERRspectives, The Confluence, Political Byline, At-Largely and Shakesville

Report: U.S. to block Iran sanctions at G8 summit — The United States is opposed to enacting a new set of financial sanctions against Iran that are due to be discussed in the G8 summit next week, diplomatic officials in New York reported Friday. — According to officials, sanctions against Iran are expected to top the G8's agenda.

Al Franken, Policy Wonk — Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) welcomed her new colleague Al Franken to the Senate with a fairly rude remark: “It's important he go against the grain of his past career and really get to know the issues.” As Jon Chait says: … I have met Franken, years ago …
Discussion:
New York Times

Iran Cleric Says British Embassy Staff to Stand Trial — PARIS — Brushing aside British and European efforts to seek the release of local British Embassy staff members held in Tehran, the Iranian authorities indicated Friday that they planned to put some of them on trial …
Discussion:
The Hill's Blog Briefing Room
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New Evidence on the Foreclosure Crisis — Zero money down, not subprime loans, led to the mortgage meltdown. — Printer — Friendly — What is really behind the mushrooming rate of mortgage foreclosures since 2007? The evidence from a huge national database containing millions …

Obama Honeymoon Continues; 7 Months Is Recent Average — Earlier honeymoons lasted an average of 26 months — PRINCETON, NJ — Presidents typically enjoy positive approval ratings during the early stages of their presidencies, commonly known as the “honeymoon” period.

Kristol vs Schmidt, Round 2 — The war of words between conservative columnist Bill Kristol and Steve Schmidt, former campaign manager for John McCain's 2008 presidential bid, has ensnared another senior adviser, Mark Salter, who has come to Schmidt's defense after a recent appearance by Kristol on “Fox & Friends”.


Nebraskans Greet Sen. Johanns...And His Staff Calls the Cops. — One day before we celebrate the birth of our nation, Nebraskans gathered at a scheduled healthcare roundtable to call on Senator Johanns to support an American solution to our healthcare crisis.


You Know The Real Reason Why Time Mag Is Going Down the Drain? The Content! — For all the tears that get shed over the beginning of the middle of the end for Mr. Luce's mag and newsweeklies in general, one obvious explanation generally gets glossed over: They are mostly written …

‘Rogue broker’ blamed for oil spike — The startling spike in oil prices to their highest level this year on Tuesday was caused by a rogue broker who placed a massive bet in the Brent oil market, triggering almost $10m (€7m) of losses for his company. — PVM Oil Associates …


U.S. Shifts Strategy on Illicit Work by Immigrants — Immigration authorities had bad news this week for American Apparel, the T-shirt maker based in downtown Los Angeles: About 1,800 of its employees appeared to be illegal immigrants not authorized to work in the United States.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Workplace Prof Blog, The Washington Independent, Truthdig and Sweetness & Light


Climate vote threatens Dems' careers — ALTON, Va. — Rep. Thomas Perriello relishes an energy fight with Republicans — even here in the rural Southside. — The freshman lawmaker understands the potential consequences that he and other vulnerable Democrats face for backing …


The Great American Bubble Machine — Matt Taibbi on how Goldman Sachs has engineered every major market manipulation since the Great Depression — In Rolling Stone Issue 1082-83, Matt Taibbi takes on “the Wall Street Bubble Mafia” — investment bank Goldman Sachs.


NY City Apartment Sales Down More Than 50% — Manhattan apartment sales plunged more than 50 percent and the average price dropped 21.4 to 24 percent from a year ago, as the U.S. recession forced many who own a piece of the Big Apple to eat humble pie, several reports said.


Christian Left Mounts Political Campaigns — Randy Brinson, a conservative political consultant in Alabama, has been fielding anxious calls for weeks from business interests across the South. — Their concern is massive ad blitz on Christian and country-music stations across 10 states.