DAYLEE PICTURE: A misty morning landscape in Lithuania. From National Geographic.
"With U.S. officials growing more confident that economic, political pressure may curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions, mood in Tehran turns bleak as Iranians prepare for a period of prolonged hardship and, they fear, war."
The President's Underappreciated, Undersold Success Stories (David Rothkopf) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"Perhaps the greatest weakness of the Obama administration is its inability to own its successes. While this is hardly a weakness that will be cited by the president's opponents in the upcoming campaign, or even one that they will acknowledge, perhaps, it will impact the outcome next November. Because the Obama track record on many fronts is much better than the administration gives itself credit for. They could be doing much, much more to tout what is an impressive litany of successes. "
I have long held the same view of Obama's foreign and domestic policy achievements!
U.S. Navy Rescues Iranians Who Were Captured by Pirates from the New York Times
"The U.S.S. Kidd rescued thirteen people whose fishing vessel was seized in the North Arabian Sea in November, the Pentagon said on Friday."
Bain, Barack and Jobs (Paul Krugman) from the New York Times
"Mitt Romney says that President Obama has been a job destroyer, while he was a job-creating businessman. But those claims border on dishonesty."
GOP Nightmare: Obama Fixes the Economy (Andrew Leonard) from Salon
"After a handful of recess appointments, fears of a "January surprise" surface in conservative circles."
Unemployment Falls to 8.5%; 200,000 New Jobs Created from CNBC
"The U.S. unemployment rate unexpectedly fell to 8.5 percent last month as job creation was more robust than expected, providing continued signs that the nation's labor market is improving gradually."
Gabrielle Giffords’ Future Up in the Air a Year after Tucson Shooting from Politico
"By all rights, Gabrielle Giffords should be running for an Arizona Senate seat now. Instead, it’s a miracle that the congresswoman can even walk — and whether she wants to campaign for a fourth House term remains an open question even as her team plans the logistics."
With the Cordray Appointment, Obama Hits the Trenches (Dan O'Mahoney) from Salon
"At its core the refusal to even allow the appointment of a director to the CFPB to come to a vote represents selective enforcement of the law of the land. It allows an agency already formed and approved by the existing machinations of representative democracy to sit hamstrung based on ideological preference."
Obama Testing 2-Tier Strategy Against His G.O.P. Rivals from the New York Times
"From making a recess appointment to inserting itself into the Iowa caucuses, the Obama campaign is trying to tie his rivals to the unpopular Congress."
Mitt's Single-digit Landslide, and Newt's Singularly Focused Revenge (Robert Shrum) from The Week
"Romney can no longer avoid the fury of his desperate rivals. This weekend in New Hampshire, they'll pile on the frontrunner like never before."
Romney Wins but Takes a Beating (Peggy Noonan) from the Wall Street Journal
"Taxes and spending are the ties that bind, the top and bottom crust that holds the pie together. They're the reason the party is still the party, and not the splinter groups. The third element, Mr. Obama, is this year equally important. But there's no denying the Republicans are in a brawl, and it is becoming ferocious."
Simple Arithmetic (Michael Walsh) from National Review
"... if Romney is the nominee, he will lose. He has no idea what Axelrod & Co. are capable of, nor of the depths to which they will stoop to destroy him. They will attack him as a flip-flopper, as a panderer, as a rapacious and heartless one percenter, and, yes, as a Mormon."
Wow -- it's interesting to hear what desperate vicious thugs Dave Axelrod et al are. Romney better watch out!
Here’s What Romney’s Unreleased Tax Returns Almost Certainly Hide (Brian Beutler) from Talking Points Memo
"Mitt Romney still says he’s unlikely to publicly release his tax information, even if he clinches the Republican presidential nomination, and Democrats have a pretty good idea why."
Newt Gingrich: Obama Will 'Laugh' at Mitt Romney from Politico
"Newt Gingrich said Friday that if Mitt Romney becomes the Republican presidential nominee, President Barack Obama will simply “laugh at him.” “As people look at his record and they imagine him debating Obama, Obama’s going to laugh at him,” Gingrich said on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “Obama’s going to say, ‘I developed Obamacare based on Romneycare. I even brought your staff into the White House in order to develop it.’”"
Rick Santorum: The Phenomenon the Pundits Couldn’t See Coming from the Washington Post
"All of a sudden, conservative pundits appear to have found a candidate they can agree on and perhaps even like. Fresh off his near-win in Iowa, Rick Santorum is getting new respect from the conservative punditocracy, which, if it bothered to notice him at all, generally dismissed him as a long shot only two weeks ago. Now, the conservative media consensus seems to be that he. could. go. all. the. way."
Why Rick Perry Didn't Drop Out: 4 Theories from The Week
"Surprisingly, the Texas governor shakes off what many saw as a campaign-ending fifth-place finish in Iowa. What's keeping him in the race?"
Watch Out for Newt (Charlie Cook) from the National Journal
"The former House speaker could wound Mitt Romney if he wants to pay him back for his attack ads."
SCIENCE-TECHNOLOGY NUGGET!!
"Time Cloak" Created; Can Make Events Disappear from National Geographic
"Experiment is first to make a hole in time, expert says."
OBAMA BOOK NUGGET!!
I showcased this two weeks ago.
Jodi Kantor Goes Inside the Obamas' Marriage in New Book from Chicago Magazine
"his month, Jodi Kantor, 36, a Washington correspondent for The New York Times, delves into the lives of the president and First Lady with The Obamas (Little, Brown and Company, $29.99). It’s billed as a penetrating, gossipy page-turner of a biography about their time in the White House."
NEWS OCEAN SPECIES NUGGET!!
"Lost World" of Odd Species Found Off Antarctica (Pictures) from National Geographic
"A camera-equipped submersible robot filmed species such as barnacles, crabs, anemones, and even an octopus, all of which are mostly colorless and live in utter darkness at depths of 7,875 feet (2,400 meters), according to a new study."
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