memeorandum: Ron Paul — Two Decades of Leadership [Rick Brookhiser] (The Corner)

9:55 AM ET, December 17, 2007

Top Items:

New Clinton campaign out to show her likability — New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, trying to warm up an image some voters perceive as cold, starts a drive Monday to showcase her personal side with testimonials from friends, associates and constituents she has helped.

Discussion: michellemalkin.com, The Swamp, Associated Press, New York Times, Blue Crab Boulevard, The Page and Macsmind

Tony Leys / Des Moines Register:

Iowa's first lady to back Edwards for president — Iowa's first lady, who had said she would stay neutral in the presidential race, has changed her mind and plans to endorse Democrat John Edwards Monday. — "I decided to join in the fray," Mari Culver said in an interview today.

Discussion: Associated Press

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

Big Table Fantasies — Broadly speaking, the serious contenders for the Democratic nomination are offering similar policy proposals — the dispute over health care mandates notwithstanding. But there are large differences among the candidates in their beliefs about what it will take to turn a progressive agenda into reality.

Discussion: Prairie Weather, Daniel W. Drezner and Tom Watson

Patrick Healy / New York Times:

In '08 Race, the Other Clinton Steps Up Publicly — DUNLAP, Iowa — When Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign advisers laid out their new political strategy in a private conference call with allies last Tuesday, Bill Clinton was not on the line. He did not need to be. The message being delivered was his.

Discussion: The Politico, Washington Times, No More Mister Nice Blog and Shakespeare's Sister

Geoff Earle / New York Post: KERREY'S PRAISE OF BARACK A BIG O-BOMBO

Michael James / Political Punch:
Why Did Bob Kerrey Mention Obama's Middle Name — 'Hussein'?

Discussion: Political Machine, The RBC, Outside The Beltway, JammieWearingFool and No More Mister Nice Blog

Patrick Healy / The Caucus:
Clinton Endorsed by Bob Kerrey

Discussion: Radio Iowa and The Democratic Daily

Patrick Healy / The Caucus:
Iraq Vote Dogs Clinton (Again)

Discussion: Daily Kos

Jose Antonio Vargas / The Trail:

Ron Paul Beats Own Fundraising Record — In 2004, on the day John Kerry accepted the Democratic presidential nomination, the Boston senator raised $5.7 million on the Internet, the biggest online fundraising day on record. — Yesterday, Ron Paul, the Republican congressman whose rock star status …

Discussion: The Caucus, PoliBlog (TM) and Connecting.the.Dots

The Corner:

Ron Paul — Two Decades of Leadership [Rick Brookhiser] — Cleaning out a drawer, I found one of my all-time favorite political items—a flyer that was handed to me at a Democratic debate in New Hampshire in 1984. The centerpiece is a chart titled, "Who is RESPONSIBLE?"

Discussion: LewRockwell.com Blog

Michael Levenson / Boston Globe:
Ron Paul raises millions in today's Boston Tea Party event

Discussion: The Democratic Daily, Los Angeles Times, Publius Endures, PoliGazette, DBKP and TechRepublican.com

Dan Morain / Los Angeles Times:
The man behind Paul's fundraising curtain

Discussion: Wonkette, LewRockwell.com Blog, The Moderate Voice and The Debatable Land

Yahoo! News:

Lieberman's New Kiss of Death — The Nation — Senator Joe Lieberman will finally come clean on Monday, unleashing his inner-Republican to endorse the struggling campaign of Senator John McCain, according to several news reports. It is a bittersweet alliance for both men.

Discussion: PoliBlog (TM), Middle Earth Journal, CANNONFIRE, PoliGazette, Oliver Willis, Firedoglake, The Moderate Voice and The Politico

The Trail:
Lieberman to Cross Aisle to Endorse McCain

Discussion: Shakespeare's Sister, Buck Naked Politics, DownWithTyranny!, Blue Hampshire, Hot Air, Outside The Beltway, The Daily Dish, Lawyers, Guns and Money, CAFFEINATED POLITICS, TalkLeft, Marc Ambinder, Roger L. Simon and PoliPundit.com

Michael Cooper / New York Times:

Candidates Scrambling to Cope With Rise of Huckabee — Just one month ago, Mitt Romney's supporters thought that they had Iowa fairly well in hand. But there was Mr. Romney last week, telling several hundred people at a high school cafeteria in Marion that he was the underdog and pleading …

Discussion: Washington Post, Telegraph, Associated Press, Booman Tribune and Crunchy Con

David Paul Kuhn / The Politico:

Huckabee ramps up game in early states — LITTLETON, N.H. - Determined to prove he's more than a political "one-night stand," Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee will make his largest ad buys in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina this week. — The former Arkansas governor …

Washington Post:

Bush Faces Pressure to Shift War Priorities — As Iraq Calms, Focus Turns to Afghanistan — With violence on the decline in Iraq but on the upswing in Afghanistan, President Bush is facing new pressure from the U.S. military to accelerate a troop drawdown in Iraq and bulk up force levels in Afghanistan …

Discussion: Political Machine, Prairie Weather, On Deadline and SWJ Blog

lttonline.co.uk:

Carbon rationing predicted to deliver collapse in travel demand — Transport policy-makers should start preparing now for a dramatic reduction in motorised travel that will be brought about by carbon rationing, one of the country's leading environmental thinkers told LTT this week.

Discussion: Flopping Aces, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and Silent Running

Atrios / Eschaton:

Shorter Candidates — Obama: The system sucks, but I'm so awesome that it'll melt away before me. — Edwards: The system sucks, and we're gonna have to fight like hell to destroy it. — Clinton: The system sucks, and I know how to work within it more than anyone.

Kevin Landrigan / Nashuatelegraph.com:

Clinton chases after Obama with gender card — This week has finally put an end to all of that silly talk over the last 10 months from media pundits and political observers alike that Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., was going to win the New Hampshire primary in a walk.

Discussion: The Politico, The Stump and eyeon08.com

Markus Becker / Spiegel Online:

Climate Change Deal Reached after US U-Turn — There were tears, boos and, at the end, even hugs: After a long struggle, the delegates at the UN climate conference on Bali finally managed to agree on a roadmap for fighting climate change. Despite the lack of concrete targets, most considered the deal a success.

Jonathan Leake / Times of London:
Bali deal leaves greens in despair

Discussion: Telegraph, NewsBusters.org and EU Referendum

Tom Maguire / JustOneMinute:

Abolishing The Death Penalty — Karl Rove was clever enough to get liberal activists (not so broadly interpreted to include the Massachusetts Supreme Court and the mayor of San Francisco) to force gay marriage onto the front page and into the national debate in 2004.

Scarecrow / Firedoglake:

Who Will Stand with Chris Dodd for the Constitution? — Sometime today, Chris Dodd will take the floor in the US Senate and begin talking — a filibuster — and what he has to say touches on the most important issues facing this country. The immediate topic will be a bill to provide retroactive immunity …

Discussion: Think Progress, CNN, Lean Left, State of the Day, Salon and The Anonymous Liberal

Brandon McGinley / The Daily Princetonian:

Open Season — In the news section of today's Daily Princetonian, a grotesque tale of personal intimidation is told, detailing activity not acceptable anywhere, let alone at an elite American university. The lives of five members of the University community who hold and defend traditional beliefs …

Discussion: Kesher Talk and Redstate