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Thursday, November 19, 2009

News Nuggets 257

The endangered lynx with its kitten in Colorado -- the first time they've been seen there since the 1930s. From the National Geographic

Khamenei Will Be Iran's Last Supreme Leader from Newsweek

"The clerical establishment has become so sick of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei that they will not replace him when he dies."


Showdown Set for Health Bill from the Wall Street Journal

"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid set the stage for a climactic debate in the Senate over health care by unveiling a 10-year, $848 billion bill that would extend insurance to 31 million Americans without coverage."


Reid Plan Ups Pressure on Moderates from Politico

AMAZING -- Reid actually is actually PRESSURING some of his colleagues!

"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid unveiled his $848 billion health reform bill Wednesday to broad support from fellow Democrats — and the move quickly turned up the pressure on the last few wavering moderates to support the plan, which includes a sizable chunk of deficit cutting. "

More in the same vein HERE from Politico


Health Reform's False Abortion Debate (Ruth Marcus) from the Washington Post

"Let's dispense with three fallacies swirling about the question of abortion coverage in health-care reform. Two are being peddled by antiabortion forces. One, perhaps the most relevant, is being pushed by the pro-choice side."


The Wrong Side of History (Nicholas Kristof) from the New York Times

"Critics storm that health care reform is “a cruel hoax and a delusion.” Ads in 100 newspapers thunder that reform would mean “the beginning of socialized medicine.” ... All dire — but also wrong. Those forecasts date not from this year, but from the battle over Medicare in the early 1960s. I pulled them from newspaper archives and other accounts."


What They Really Believe (Thomas Friedman) from the New York Times

"You don’t believe in global warming? You’re wrong, but I’ll let you enjoy it until your beach house gets washed away. But if you also don’t believe the world is getting more crowded with more aspiring Americans — and that ignoring that will play to the strength of our worst enemies, while responding to it with clean energy will play to the strength of our best technologies — then you’re willfully blind, and you’re hurting America’s future to boot."


The GOP's No-Exit Strategy (EJ Dionne) from the Washington Post

"It's ... time to start paying attention to how Republicans, with Machiavellian brilliance, have hit upon what might be called the Beltway-at-Rush-Hour Strategy, aimed at snarling legislative traffic to a standstill so Democrats have no hope of reaching the next exit."


Hugs all round as Barack Obama meets half-brother during Asia tour from the [Manchester] Guardian

"US president greets Mark Ndesandjo, his brother on his father's side, who lives in the Chinese city of Shenzhen."


What Made Michelle Obama Anxious and Nervous (Lynn Sweet) from Politics Daily

"First Lady Michelle Obama revisited a stressful period of her youth on Monday, opening up to teen girls at a Denver mentoring event when asked about her views of standardized testing"


Senate Shake-Up, 2010? (Larry Sabato) from the VA Center for Politics

"Let's stress this from the outset: Democrats will almost certainly retain control of the Senate. Some bloggers aside, few of the top analysts on the Republican side question this conclusion. The GOP's real hope is to cut the Democratic margin by a few seats, so that they can regain the power to stop legislation (assuming they stick together--a giant "if")."


Fillibusted (Dana Milbank) from the Washington Post

"In their quest to thwart President Obama, Republicans do not fear the hobgoblin of consistency."


Conservative Cowards (Markos Moulitsas) from The Hill

"Seems that macho conservatives are terrified of shackled terrorists in orange jumpsuits and the United States Constitution. "


The 10 Differences Between Fox News and MSNBC from Air America

"Fox News fans defend their network's journalistic integrity by pointing to high ratings and MSNBC as the liberal equivalent. While the comparison may seem valid on the surface, there are glaring differences between the two networks."


Palin-Beck Ticket? Palin Doesn't Rule It Out from Newsmax

This is truly something straight out of Bizarro World.

"It's no secret that former GOP vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin and Fox News host Glenn Beck share great respect and admiration -- so their fans can be forgiven for wondering: Is a "dream ticket" of Palin-Beck ticket is completely out of the question? Perhaps not."


Another GOP Rep Bowing to the Birthers ... in New Jersey! from Daily Kos

The birthers/tea partiers are going to be quizzing GOP primary candidates with JUST these kinds of questions. The most unprincipled candidates will cave -- and then be slow-cooked during the general election.

"Yet another Republican congressman has joined forces with the birthers. The most recent example: Rep. Scott Garrett of New Jersey said President Obama should produce his birth certificate after being pressed on the issue by constituents who believe President Obama is actually a Kenyan citizen." ... It's also time to start paying attention to how Republicans, with Machiavellian brilliance, have hit upon what might be called the Beltway-at-Rush-Hour Strategy, aimed at snarling legislative traffic to a standstill so Democrats have no hope of reaching the next exit."


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