memeorandum: The Stimulus Bills: House vs. Senate (Michael Grabell/ProPublica)

6:40 PM ET, February 10, 2009

Top Items:

The Rorschach plan (wonkish, or at least hard to read) — An old joke from my younger days: What do you get when you cross a Godfather with a deconstructionist? Someone who makes you an offer you can't understand. — I found myself remembering that joke when trying to make sense of the Geithner financial rescue plan.

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Dish, American Prospect, Cafe Talk Aggregator, The New Republic, D-Day and Economist's View

The Huffington Post:

Administration Officials Met With Laughter At Bailout Briefing — Administration officials were greeted with sarcasm and laughter Monday night when they briefed lawmakers and congressional staff on Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's new financial-sector bailout project, according to people who were in the room.

Discussion: The Huffington Post and Don Surber

Wall Street Journal:

Details Scarce in Rescue Plan — WASHINGTON—The Obama administration Tuesday announced a wide-ranging financial sector rescue plan that could send $2 trillion coursing through the financial system. — The plan, which is designed to involve a mix of government and private capital …

Discussion: CNBC.com, Floyd Norris, TigerHawk, Real Time Economics, Donklephant, Indecision and Jules Crittenden

Roger Simon / The Politico:

After the speech, time for a drink — I might have more confidence in Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner if he looked like he could order a drink without getting carded. And he definitely is going to need a drink or two in the months ahead. We all will. — And that is because financiers on Wall Street have been drunk for years.

Discussion: The Swamp

Frank James / The Swamp: Lawmakers laughed at Geithner plan

Jack Healy / New York Times:
Stocks Slide as New Bailout Disappoints

Discussion: The Opinionator, The Corner, Robert Reich's Blog, Firedoglake and THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS

Zachary Roth / TPMMuckraker:
Ex-IMFer On Geithner's Speech: “This Is Not A Plan”

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Prairie Weather

Megan McArdle:
I'm from the government, and I'm here to help you

Discussion: Wall Street Journal and Real Time Economics

Democracy Now:
Economist James Galbraith: Bailed-Out Banks Should Be Declared Insolvent

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, Firedoglake, The Democratic Daily, D-Day, Top of the Ticket, Hullabaloo and Salon

Michael Grabell / ProPublica:

The Stimulus Bills: House vs. Senate — If all goes as expected today, the Senate will pass an $838 billion economic stimulus plan that follows a compromise reached over the weekend. But before the package can go to President Obama's desk, the Senate will have to resolve differences with the House and its $819 billion version.

Discussion: The Atlantic Business Channel, The Caucus, Washington Wire, The Moderate Voice, Associated Press, Progress Illinois, The Swamp, Balkinization, The Huffington Post and Truthdig

CNN:
Senate, House begin work on stimulus compromise

Discussion: PoliBlog, Connecting.the.Dots, Political Machine and Shakesville

David Stout / New York Times:
Senate Approves Stimulus Plan

Discussion: MoJoBlog, The Politico, Washington Monthly and Salon

Jared Allen / The Hill: House Dems to fight for their stimulus

Washington Post:
Senate Passes Economic Stimulus Bill

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Gothamist and The Fix

Media Matters for America:

Fox passes off GOP press release as its own research — typo and all … During the February 10 edition of Fox News' Happening Now, co-host Jon Scott claimed that “the Senate is expected to pass the $838 billion stimulus plan — its version of it, anyway. We thought we'd take a look back at the bill …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Raw Story, Daily Kos, The BRAD BLOG and AMERICAblog News

www.dcexaminer.com:
Blue Dog nips Obama with a better stimulus idea

Discussion: Hot Air, DownWithTyranny! and RedState

Haaretz:

Exit polls: Livni's Kadima leads in 2009 elections — Exit polls by Israel's three main television stations on Tuesday night showed Kadima as the leader in the 2009 general elections, with Likud coming a narrow second. — Channel 1, Channel 2 and Channel 10 polling of voters as they left …

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, Talking Points Memo, MyDD, Ben Smith's Blogs, Wonk Room, rubber hose, Israel Matzav, D-Day and Harry's Place

Jerusalem Post:
Livni may not be able to form gov't due to large right-wing bloc

Discussion: Power Line and Commentary

Jerusalem Post:
Kadima, Likud claim election victory

Discussion: PoliGazette

Bradley Burston / Haaretz:
LIVE ELECTION BLOG: Keep your eye on the Arab parties, and on the weather

Discussion: Jerusalem Post and BBC

Jack Kuenzie / WIS-TV:

Eight arrested in Michael Phelps case — Updated: — COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - New details have emerged about a party where Olympic champion Michael Phelps was spotted. — On Feb. 2, a British tabloid published a picture of the 14-time Olympic gold medalist using a water pipe to smoke marijuana.

Discussion: The Dish Rag and The Raw Story

Tyler Durden / Zero Hedge:

How The World Almost Came To An End At 2PM On September 18 — LiveLeak has caught a scary moment of previously undisclosed insight by Paul Kanjorski where he reveals some facts that have not been captured by the media previously. At 2 minutes and 20 seconds in the video below …

Discussion: Boing Boing, Portfolio, Political Machine, No More Mister Nice Blog and Taegan Goddard's …

Washington Whispers:

Busy Sarah Palin Backs Out of CPAC; Rush Limbaugh Is Still Speaking — The opening-day headliner for the annual CPAC conservative convention February 26-28, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, has pulled out, citing state business in Juneau. “We're obviously disappointed,” said a CPAC official.

Discussion: Townhall.com, Hot Air, Think Progress and TIME.com

CNN: Palin won't be making CPAC appearance

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:

Mr. Franken Comes to Washington — Entertainer Al Franken (D-Minn.) will spend the next two days in Washington readying himself to serve in the Senate, a move that comes even as the contested Minnesota Senate election plods on. — Franken arrives in town tonight and will be here through Thursday …

Discussion: Scorecard's Blogs and TIME.com

Kevin Duchschereand Pat Doyle / Minneapolis Star …:
Senate recount trial: Rejected absentee ballots of 23 voters can be counted

Discussion: The Caucus

Quinnipiac University:

Connecticut's Rell Is Queen Of The Hill At Midterm, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Dodd Has Worst Approval Ever — Halfway through her first elected term as Connecticut Governor and one week after a grim budget message, Jodi Rell has a 75 - 19 percent approval rating and tops …

Discussion: TPMDC, Washington Monthly, The Politico, Hotline On Call, Daily Kos, Swing State Project, The Raw Story, Democracy in America, MyDD, The New Republic and The Reaction

Catherine Philp / Times of London:

Iranian mob attacks moderate ex-president Mohammed Khatami on anniversary — Iran's former president was set upon by an angry stick-wielding mob today amid celebrations of the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution on the streets of Tehran. — The attack on Mohammed Khatami came …

Discussion: Obsidian Wings

Joe Klein / Swampland:
Not So Fast — The Soviets famously sent two messages …

Discussion: CNN, New York Times, democracyarsenal.org, QandO and The Daily Dish

Zachary Coile / San Francisco Chronicle:

Salazar puts coastal drilling plans on hold — (02-10) 13:30 PST Washington - — President Obama is shelving a plan announced in the final days of the Bush administration to open much of the U.S. coast to oil drilling, including 130 million acres off California's coast from Mendocino to San Diego.

Discussion: Heritage Foundation, The Foundry, The Washington Independent and Truthdig

MSNBC:
Bush-era offshore drilling plan shelved

Discussion: RedState

Walter Shapiro / The New Republic:

Impressed Me Not — On Obama's first White House press conference. — Through most of his inaugural primetime press conference, Barack Obama seemed like he was channeling a particularly loquacious combination of Joe Biden, Bill Clinton, and the ghost of Hubert Humphrey.

Discussion: Hullabaloo, PewResearch.org, Achenblog and Riehl World View

Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:
At His First Prime-Time News Conference, Obama Is Serious and Expansive

Discussion: New York Times, The Plum Line, White House Watch, AMERICAblog News, TVNewser, The Moderate Voice, Think Progress, Washington Monthly and Michael Calderone's Blogs

granma.cu:

Rahm Emanuel — WHAT a strange surname! It appears Spanish, easy to pronounce, but it's not. Never in my life have I heard or read about any student or compatriot with that name, among tens of thousands. — Where does it come from? I wondered. Over and over, the name came to mind …

Discussion: Gawker, The New Republic, Ben Smith's Blogs and Democracy in America

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:

HUCKABEE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT.... You've got to be kidding me. … Look, if Mike Huckabee doesn't like the stimulus bill, fine. But to tell people the legislation is “anti-religious” is just insane. Or, to put it another way, Huckabee is bearing false witness, which as he may have heard, is generally frowned upon.

Andy Barr / The Politico: Huckabee: Stimulus is ‘anti-religious’

Martin Wolf / Financial Times:

Why Obama's new Tarp will fail to rescue the banks — Has Barack Obama's presidency already failed? In normal times, this would be a ludicrous question. But these are not normal times. They are times of great danger. Today, the new US administration can disown responsibility for its inheritance; tomorrow, it will own it.

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias and Talking Points Memo

Kevin Helliker / Wall Street Journal:

You Might as Well Face It: You're Addicted to Success — Forced to take a buyout from the Kansas City Star last summer, Paul Wenske lost his sense of identity. “I'd been an investigative reporter all my life, and then boom,” says Mr. Wenske, an award-winning journalist of 30 years.

Discussion: Gawker and Dr. Helen

The White House:

Liveblog: Ft. Myers, FL townhall — 1:12 p.m.: Wrapping up. President is shaking some hands and greeting the crowd. — 1:10 p.m.: Question from an enthusiastic young man named Julio who says he has worked for McDonald's for four years but hasn't seen his benefits improve.

Discussion: The Politico, MyDD, The Hill's Blog Briefing Room, Gawker and SEIU