Survey: USA Becomes Top Country Brand Under Obama from Reuters via CNBC
"Barack Obama has done it again. The president's starpower has made the United States the place most people want to visit and do business with, according to an annual survey that ranks nations like retail brands."
Relax, Mr President. There’s no need to rush from the Financial Times [of London]
"The clamour for instant decisions and even faster results has been particularly insistent in the arena of foreign policy. George W. Bush was assailed for starting a needless war in Iraq. Mr Obama’s crime has been to win the Nobel Peace Prize for preferring to talk before he shoots."
Iran's 'Great Satan' Addiction (David Ignatius) from the Washington Post
"It's a measure of the political turmoil in Tehran that the chief proponent of engagement with the United States over the past month has been the hard-line president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He has been attacked for his supposed willingness to make concessions to the West, including by some of the "green movement" reformers who defied him in the June presidential election."
Obama's Asia Tour Kicks Off at Critical Time on Home Front from McClatchy News Service
"He planned his Nov. 11-19 trip around the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Singapore, but added stops in Japan, China and South Korea. The itinerary reflects the growing importance of East Asia — especially China — to everything from financing U.S. debt and powering the global economic recovery to climate change, disease control, and containing nuclear threats from North Korea and Iran."
The Memory Trap from Foreign Policy Magazine
"Why remembrance of past imperial glory holds back Russia today. Part of an FP series, 20 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall."
What Ails the Senate (Stephen Hayes) from the Nation
"If there's a consistency to be found here, it's that in both cases, Lieberman seemed to take a delight in undermining the legislative priorities of his ostensible allies in the Democratic caucus. But the problem isn't so much that Lieberman is wrong now (though, of course, he is). The problem is that he was right then."
House Democrats Pass Health-Care Bill from the Washington Post
Recounts events from last night. More can be found HERE and HERE.
Hours after President Obama exhorted Democratic lawmakers to "answer the call of history," the House hit an unprecedented milestone on the path to health-care reform, approving a trillion-dollar package late Saturday that seeks to overhaul private insurance practices and guarantee comprehensive and affordable coverage to almost every American.
Health Care PASSES: The Scene in the House When it Happened from the Huffinton Post
Very moving video at this link.
"The House floor erupted in one of the loudest cheers the chamber has heard in years when Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), an hour before midnight, cast the 218th and deciding vote on landmark health care reform."
Pelosi Wins the Day from Politico
"“That was easy,” the speaker said with a smile. It wasn’t. She had just delivered a promise decades of her predecessors failed to bring home, harnessing her uncommon focus, vote-counting acumen and consensus-building skills to bring tens of millions of Americans a giant leap closer to having health insurance coverage with a 220-215 roll call"
The State of Hillary: A Mixed Record on the Job (Joe Klein) from Time Magazine
"Only a few of Clinton's recent predecessors have distinguished themselves. ... Most of the others have been frustrated or forgettable. And yet this is Hillary Clinton we're talking about — the second most popular American in the world, an eternally compelling and supremely talented character, the subject of constant speculation, a walking headline. Her very presence in the job makes it crucial once more."
Dems to Use Election to Push Agenda in Congress from the New York Times
"Blaming election setbacks on a drop in voter enthusiasm, Congressional Democrats said Wednesday that losses in governors’ races in Virginia and New Jersey — and a striking House win in New York — should give new urgency to their legislative agenda, including a sweeping health care overhaul."
Climate Bill Passes Without GOP from Politico
This is the CLIMATE BILL (not health care) we're talking here.
"With Republican boycotting the proceedings, Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) relied on a little used interpretation of committee rules to move the legislation. Traditionally, two minority members are required to conduct committee business."
The Night They Drove the Tea Partiers Down (Frank Rich) from the New York Times
"If the tea party right can’t win there, imagine how it might fare in the nation where most Americans live. Some G.O.P. leaders have started to notice."
Attack of the Palinites (Eugene Robinson) from the Washington Post
"Democrats have some thinking to do after Tuesday's elections, but Republicans don't have time to think. They're too busy trying to survive the party's internal purge and avoid being shipped off to political Siberia."
Is the Tea Party Gang Turning GOP Into Party of Hate? (David Corn) from Politics Daily
"When John Boehner, the Republican leader of the House, appeared at the Tea Party rally at the Capitol on Thursday afternoon, it was a dramatic signal: The wingnuts have taken over the GOP."
Cantor Calls for Inclusive Party, Criticizes Limbaugh Rhetoric from Bloomberg News Service
I was wondering what it would take for any GOP leader to start standing up to the out-of-control racism and anti-semitism openly displayed at Tea Party rallies. The fact that it has taken Cantor (who is Jewish) this long speaks volumes. Fifty-fifty says he caves on his Limbaugh criticism.
"The second-ranking Republican in the U.S. House, Eric Cantor, criticized some comments by talk-show host Rush Limbaugh as inappropriate and said his party needs to be inclusive."
Conservatives Rework Rhetoric After NY-23 Loss from the Washington Independent
"Tea Partiers Say GOP Loss Enough for Conservative Victory"
Let's have some more victories for the GOP like this one!
DOG NUGGET!!
The Last Word: Inside a Dog's World from The Week
I actually don't agree with much of what people are espousing in this article -- but it's interesting nonetheless.
"GO LOOK AT a dog. Go on, look—maybe at one lying near you right now, curled around his folded legs on a dog bed, or sprawled on his side on the tile floor, paws flitting through the pasture of a dream. Take a good look—and now forget everything you know about dogs. Because forgetting what we think we know is the best way to begin understanding dogs."
CULTURE NUGGET!!
Mickey Mouse's 'Edgy' Makeover from The Week
"Disney has created a menacing new Mickey for the Wii generation—is it a bad idea to mess with the Mouse?"
See also THIS from the Times [of London]
This reeks of "New Coke."
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