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Archive | February, 2010

Pelosi Won’t Say, Can’t Say, Doesn’t Know

On ABC’s “This Week,” Speaker Pelosi asked a fundamental question about lawmakers in Congress. She answered it like this: PELOSI:Well first of all our members — every one of them — wants health care. I think everybody wants affordable health care for all Americans. They know that this will take courage. It took courage to [...]

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Al Gore, China, and Nancy Pelosi Hearts Tea Partiers

Two important editorials today, one on China, with this closer: China is no enemy, but inflating the challenge from China could be just as dangerous as underestimating it. The other from former Vice President Al Gore, who finally addresses the latest scandals and Rush Limbaugh induced hysteria on climate change. I’ve also got something up [...]

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Reviews on the HCR Summit are In

A lot of responses to the simple question I posed in my newsletter on Thursday: What do you think about Obama’s health care summit?  There were way too many to post, but below is a representative smattering of the wide opinions I received. Thanks to everyone for chiming in, which I ask every month to [...]

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Jim Bunning Shows Democrats How It’s Done

Via Politico, after the Democrats’ milquetoast performance on health care leadership over the last year and counting, who doesn’t appreciate Sen. Bunning’s bluntness? In a colloquy with Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Sen. Jeff Merkley, a freshman Democrat from Oregon, was pleading for Bunning to drop his objection, when the Kentucky Republican got fed [...]

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Obama Says Please, Republicans Say No

One big problem for Democrats after yesterday’s event is that it’s doubtful any congressional minds were changed. The Democrats didn’t drive directly into the Republicans and their false talking points, because the congressional leaders who are best at doing so weren’t invited. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Anthony Weiner, even Dennis Kucinich, though I’m not a particularly [...]

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Political Palate Cleanser

Well, whether you love or hate Pres. Obama, what Republican could have pulled off almost a 7-hour policy debate? The bad news is that he’s the president, so he shouldn’t have to play mediator or “moderator.” He’s supposed to lead. Other than that… The Wall Street Journal’s Susan Davis has put together “The Best Tweets [...]

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LIVEBLOGGING: Obama, Dems and Republicans, The Summit

–updated throughout summit– After over a year, it just now dawns on Pres. Obama that he should consider going smaller? That’s what the Wall Street Journal is reporting, even as the White House denies it. It’s the backdrop of the summit. The larger Obama health plan has been in jeopardy since last month, when Democrats [...]

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Gov. Paterson and his Thug Aide

Governor of a big state uses his powers to help a key aide hide thuggery against a woman, said governor also using the police to nudge the woman into being, shall we say, a bit more cooperative. What century are we in? Well, the New York Times piece involving Paterson has dropped and it’s as [...]

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Countdown to Blair House Health Care… er… Rumble!

What do you expect from tomorrow’s televised health care summit between Obama, Democrats and Republicans? Short answer: “PEOPLE SITTING AROUND ARGUING INTO MICROPHONES IS WHAT WE DO.” Nod to Ben Smith for this one. …and since the previous meta thread on Kevin Madden, Twitter and factoid analysis, I thought I’d draw attention to a woman [...]

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Kevin Madden, Twitter and the Problem with Cherry Picked Factoids

I rarely do this, but let’s go meta for a moment. Kevin Madden was Mitt Romney’s former campaign aide. Not bad on the eyes, obviously smart and a favorite among the Beltway set, Madden dispenses analysis on Twitter like mini shots of political caffeine, delivering short bursts of cherry-picked political nuggets easily digested by people [...]

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The Re-Election

“The gathering storm is the 2010 elections,” one top official said. … The themes for Obama’s campaign are not yet chosen, but a top adviser said not to expect a radical surprise: “He knows who he is.” – Exclusive: White House privately plots 2012 campaign run Mike Allen’s “exclusive” coming after David Plouffe re-joins the [...]

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An Interview with WJC

Below is an excerpt of an interview with Fox’s Major Garrett and former President Bill Clinton, which hits on the new book, “The Death of American Virtue” by law professor Ken Gormley. One of the revelations in it has to do with the investigation behind what happened when Lewinski was held by FBI agents. “I [...]

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Gibbs: Public Plan Doesn’t Have ‘Enough Political Support in Majority’

Updating up front (4:00 pm), the remark from Robert Gibbs on the public option is one for the books: “We have seen obviously that though there are some that are supportive of this, there isn’t enough political support in a majority to get this through,” Gibbs responded. “The president… took the Senate bill as the [...]

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Palin Puts Bomb-Bomb-Bomb Iran Back in the News

Sarah Palin has started quite a conversation. Riffing off of a Daniel Pipes column, though it was actually a mis-read of Patrick J. Buchanan’s article at Townhall, Palin on Iran has had its desired outcome. Now, I’ve already written about this, including Dick Cheney’s shot at Sarah, but Palin’s Iran comments have brought a lot [...]

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President Rahm

Excuse me, but where’s the buck stop? Evidently in the Obama era, it stops with Rahm, anywhere but with Barack Obama. That’s because Democrats are having a terrible time figuring out what they do if the problem really is the President. He’s got three more years, then a re-election, so if this far out he’s [...]

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