memeorandum: Bush admits mistakes in his final news conference (CNN)

2:05 PM ET, January 12, 2009

Top Items:

John Cushman / The Caucus:

From the White House Briefing Room, a Swan Song — President Bush's last press conference opened with cordial words for the reporters who have covered his remarkable eight years in office. — Acknowledging that relations have been strained at times - that some had “misunderestimated me …

Discussion: CNN, Michael Calderone's Blogs, The Moderate Voice, Wonk Room, James Fallows, Connecting.the.Dots and Fox News

CNN:

Bush admits mistakes in his final news conference — WASHINGTON (CNN) — Addressing reporters in his final news conference before leaving office, President Bush admitted Monday to several mistakes during his tenure in office. — “Clearly putting a ‘Mission Accomplished’ (banner) on an aircraft carrier was a mistake,” Bush said.

Discussion: The Swamp and The Impolitic

New York Times:
In Final News Conference, Bush Strikes Elegiac Tone

Discussion: TIME.com

Fox News:
Reflective Bush Warns Obama of Attacks Against Nation, Criticism Facing President

Discussion: MoJoBlog

Matt Corley / Think Progress:
Bush: It ‘may be fair’ to say that 'Republicans don't like immigrants.'

Discussion: culturekitchen and Washington Post

CNN: Bush gives prescription to GOP

Josh Kraushaar / Scorecard's Blogs:

Portman running to succeed Voinovich — Former Republican congressman Rob Portman will announce that he is running for the Senate soon after Ohio Sen. George Voinovich's retirement announcement, according to multiple Republican sources. — Portman's official announcement is expected to take place on Wednesday.

Discussion: The Swamp, The Caucus, MyDD, AmSpecBlog, Swing State Project and The Other McCain

Michelle Malkin:
I can't say I'll miss Crybaby George Voinovich

Discussion: Democracy in America and The Washington Independent

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:
Voinovich Announces Retirement

Discussion: Openers, Washington Monthly and Hot Air

Marc Ambinder:
Sen. George Voinovich made official this morning what Republicans …

Discussion: Swampland

Chris Cillizza / Washington Post:
Who Runs for Senate if Voinovich Retires?

Discussion: Scorecard's Blogs, Political Machine, MSNBC and The Politico

Alexander Burns / The Politico:

NYT reporter warns of one-term Obama — White House reporters for The New York Times predict that the market collapse will force President-elect Barack Obama to abandon for now many of his campaign promises. — If his stimulus plan “doesn't work out, he may very well be a one-term president …

Discussion: The Swamp, Associated Press, Comedy Central, The Politico and Reuters

Paul Kane / Washington Post:

House Republicans Invite Obama to Address Them — House Republicans have invited President-elect Barack Obama to speak before the entire GOP conference, hoping to set a different tone to the partisan wars of the last two years in which congressional Democrats battled President Bush.

Discussion: TIME.com

MSNBC: Obama team: ‘Urgent’ need for bailout money

Signorile / The Gist:

RNC Chair Candidate: “Homosexuality is a compulsion that can be contained, repressed or changed.” — Yes, that's what Ken Blackwell, the sketchy former Ohio Secretary of State who now has a good shot at running the Republican National Committee, told me a few months back, among some other very interesting and kooky things.

Discussion: The Raw Story and Pam's House Blend

The Directors / RedState:

If Not Ken Blackwell, Keep Mike Duncan — RedState endorses Ken Blackwell for Chairman of the Republican National Committee. — While RedState's endorsement in the race for Chairman of the Republican National Committee does not set us apart from many of our colleagues in the online right movement, our second choice does.

Discussion: The Hill's Blog Briefing Room, Ben Smith's Blogs, Political Machine and The Washington Independent

Stephen Dinan / Washington Times:

Obama climate czar has socialist ties — Group sees ‘global governance’ as solution — Until last week, Carol M. Browner, President-elect Barack Obama's pick as global warming czar, was listed as one of 14 leaders of a socialist group's Commission for a Sustainable World Society …

Discussion: Sister Toldjah, Gateway Pundit, Fausta's Blog, AmSpecBlog, Vox Popoli, Lost in Transition, JammieWearingFool and RedState

Khaled Abu Toameh / Jerusalem Post:

Iran warns Hamas not to accept Egyptian truce proposal — Iran is exerting heavy pressure on Hamas not to accept the Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire with Israel, an Egyptian government official said on Sunday. — The official told The Jerusalem Post by phone that two senior Iranian officials …

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Associated Press, The Moderate Voice, Haaretz, Yourish.com, Commentary, QandO, A Blog For All, Israellycool, Ynetnews, Townhall.com, Israel Matzav, Newshoggers.com and Hot Air

Michael Slackman / New York Times:
Crisis Imperils 2-State Plan, Shifting a Balance

Discussion: Commentary, The Lede, Mondoweiss, YID With LID and THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS

Mariana Cook / New Yorker:

A COUPLE IN CHICAGO … MICHELLE OBAMA: There is a strong possibility that Barack will pursue a political career, although it's unclear. There is a little tension with that. I'm very wary of politics. I think he's too much of a good guy for the kind of brutality, the skepticism.

Discussion: Wonkette

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

Ideas for Obama — Last week President-elect Barack Obama was asked to respond to critics who say that his stimulus plan won't do enough to help the economy. Mr. Obama answered that he wants to hear ideas about “how to spend money efficiently and effectively to jump-start the economy.”

Discussion: The New Republic, Matthew Yglesias, Guardian, Gristmill, Portfolio, The Jed Report, Blog entry, MSNBC, Financial Times, Prairie Weather and FiveThirtyEight.com

Rachel Abramowitz / Los Angeles Times:

The bleeping Golden Globes — Some of the acceptance speeches were saltier than usual this year, thanks to Mickey Rourke, Tina Fey and others. — The Golden Globes are supposed to be loose, but so loose that it could spur FCC sanctions? The Hollywood Foreign Press Assn …

Discussion: NewsBusters.org and Power Line

Andrew Malcolm / Top of the Ticket:
Golden Globes glow with language like that &*%$#@ Blagojevich

Discussion: Hot Air, Big Hollywood, The E&P Pub, Don Surber, Gawker and Althouse

Mike Kaszuba / Minneapolis Star Tribune:

Franken campaign asks for certificate to take seat — In letters to the governor and secretary of state, Democrat Al Franken is asking for an election certificate that would let him take office provisionally in the U.S. Senate. — ST. PAUL, Minn. - Democrat Al Franken asked Monday …

Discussion: Scorecard's Blogs and The Washington Independent

Minneapolis Star Tribune: Coleman is casting wider net for votes

Jonathan Weisman / Wall Street Journal:

Obama Plans to Keep Estate Tax — Democrats Want to Freeze Levy at Current Levels Instead of Letting It Expire Next Year — President-elect Barack Obama and congressional leaders plan to move soon to block the estate tax from disappearing in 2010, suggesting the levy might outlive the …

Discussion: Townhall.com, Commentary and Working Life

Mike Allen / The Politico:

Gay bishop will open inaugural weekend — The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, who was elected the Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop in 2003, will deliver the invocation for Sunday's kickoff inaugural event on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, the Presidential Inaugural Committee said.

Discussion: Concord Monitor, Taylor Marsh, Washington Monthly, Think Progress, AMERICAblog News, TIME.com and Shakesville

Bob Owens / Pajamas Media:

Pro-Joe: Plumber's Trip to Israel Scares the Establishment Media — After all, some of the best reporting of the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah War came from a cook. (Watch Joe's first report here) — Pajamas TV is turning Joe the Plumber into a journalist, and the media class doesn't like it one bit.

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Firedoglake, The Washington Independent, At-Largely, pandagon.net, theheretik.us and Washington Monthly

William Kristol / New York Times:

Continuity We Can Believe In — Barack Obama made news Sunday on ABC's “This Week”: The White House dog will likely be a Labradoodle or a Portuguese water dog. — I've got to say I'm a little disappointed. These are nice, friendly, generally obedient breeds (or in the case of the Labradoodle, a crossbreed).

Discussion: The Daily Dish, The Note, TBogg, George's Bottom Line and The E&P Pub

buffalobeast.com:

THE BEAST 50 MOST LOATHSOME PEOPLE IN AMERICA, 2008 — 50. Barack Obama — Charges: Beyond a few token acts of bipartisan marketing, Barry's major duty in the Senate was to avoid legislating, so he could pretend Washington-outsider status and nullify attacks on his non-existent policy positions.

Discussion: My Left Wing and TBogg