memeorandum: In U.S., 39% Say View on Healthcare “Depends” on Details (Lydia Saad/Gallup)

8:35 AM ET, October 21, 2009

Top Items:

Allahpundit / Hot Air:

The real reason the White House is attacking Fox News: Containment — This seems so obviously correct that I feel embarrassed for not having figured it out sooner. … Allen and Gerstein: … Both Politico and Mediaite note that the expected righteous indignation at being lectured …

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, PostPartisan, Stephen Kruiser, GayPatriot, NO QUARTER, Washington Monthly, Dr. Sanity, Dr. Melissa Clouthier, Mediaite, American Glob, Jules Crittenden, Don Surber and Wizbang

Michelle Malkin:
MoveOn demands that Democrats stay off Fox News

Discussion: The Strata-Sphere, News Hounds, Hot Air, NewsBusters.org, The Political Carnival and Mediaite

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
Containing Fox — The rationale of the White House offensive …

Discussion: Townhall.com, The Politico, Riehl World View, Stephen Kruiser, Macsmind, Say Anything, Media Blog on National …, Hot Air and TalkLeft

Political Punch:
Today's Qs for O's WH - 10/20/2009

The Huffington Post:
Hill Aides: More Senators Would Back Public Plan If Obama Pushed Harder

Discussion: The Confluence, Progress Illinois, Firedoglake, Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, Congress Matters, AMERICAblog News, The Plum Line, TPMDC, Comments from Left Field and TalkLeft

Susan Crabtree / The Hill:

Democrats lock Republicans out of committee room — Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.) locked Republicans out of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee room to keep them from meeting when Democrats aren't present. — Towns' action came after repeated public ridicule from the leading Republican …

Discussion: Doug Ross, The Politico, Gateway Pundit and Shot in the Dark

John / Power Line:

Dems Flee Countrywide Vote — Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee have been pressing for an investigation of Countrywide Mortgage's “VIP Program,” under which powerful Democrats like Kent Conrad and Chris Dodd received sweetheart mortgages, apparently as bribes.

Philip Boroff / Bloomberg:

Carnegie Hall Stagehand Moving Props Makes $530,044 — Oct. 20 (Bloomberg) — After you practice for years and get to Carnegie Hall, it's almost better to move music stands than actually play the piano. — Depending on wattage, a star pianist can receive $20,000 a night at the 118-year-old hall …

Discussion: Fausta's Blog, Gothamist, ArtsBeat, MoJo Blog Posts and The Corner on National …

Grunt / Media Matters for America:

Limbaugh to NYTimes environment reporter Revkin: “Why don't you just go kill yourself” — From the October 20 edition of Premiere Radio Network's The Rush Limbaugh Show: — Please upgrade your flash player. The video for this item requires a newer version of Flash Player.

Discussion: Guardian, Climate Progress, DeSmogBlog, Media Matters for America, Little Green Footballs, Glenn Thrush's Blog and The Political Carnival

Andrew C. Revkin / Dot Earth:
Thought Experiments on Birth and Death

Discussion: Jules Crittenden, Watts Up With That?, Firedoglake and DeSmogBlog

WorldNetDaily:

Traditional Americans are losing their nation — In the brief age of Obama, we have had “truthers,” “birthers,” tea party activists and town-hall dissenters. — Comes now, the “Oath Keepers.” And who might they be? — Writes Alan Maimon in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Oath Keepers …

Discussion: DISSENTING JUSTICE, MyDD, The Reaction, Liberal Values and The Political Carnival

Adam Serwer / American Prospect:
Pat Buchanan: White Americans Are “Losing” Their Country.

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns and Money, Matthew Yglesias, Washington Monthly and ATTACKERMAN

Louis Uchitelle / New York Times:

Volcker's Voice Fails to Sell a Bank Strategy — Listen to a top economist in the Obama administration describe Paul A. Volcker, the former Federal Reserve chairman who endorsed Mr. Obama early in his election campaign and who stood by his side during the financial crisis.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Clusterstock, Prairie Weather, naked capitalism, The Baseline Scenario and The Big Picture

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:

Happy Hour Roundup: New CBO Score Bodes Well For Public Option — Update: This just in: — In another step forward for the public option, I'm told reliably by a source that House leaders have been given a new Congressional Budget Office “score” finding that the evolving House bill …

Discussion: Open Left, TPMDC, Hot Air, AMERICAblog News and The Political Carnival

Brian Beutler / TPMDC:
Pelosi Prepares To Move Ahead With Robust Public Option

Discussion: The Hill, The Politico and Open Left

Sam Youngman / The Hill:

Obama urges GOP to ‘get a mop’ and clean up Bush administration mess — President Barack Obama urged Republicans to help clean up the mess the Bush administration left behind in comments at a Tuesday night fundraiser. — Obama, speaking to donors to the Democratic National Committee (DNC) …

Discussion: Truthdig

Sam Youngman / The Hill:
President Obama takes on Wall Street in New York City fundraiser

Discussion: The Politico

Bill Donohue / Washington Post:

America's secular saboteurs — There are many ways cultural nihilists are busy trying to sabotage America these days: multiculturalism is used as a club to beat down Western civilization in the classroom; sexual libertines seek to upend the cultural order by attacking religion …

Discussion: Bark Bark Woof Woof, Pharyngula, #gay, INSTAPUTZ and Wonkette

Sandra Block / USA Today:

Latest bank fee is for paying off credit card on time every month — You floss regularly, yield to oncoming traffic and use your credit cards judiciously, dutifully paying off your balance every month. — You may believe that your exemplary behavior shields you from unexpected credit card fees.

Discussion: Outside The Beltway

Alexander Mooney / CNN:

Former rivals Plouffe, Schmidt team up — (CNN) - Nearly a year after Election Day 2008, the campaign managers for John McCain and Barack Obama, who spent last year at war, have joined forces. — McCain campaign manager Steve Schmidt and David Plouffe, his counterpart on the Obama campaign …

Mike Soraghan / The Hill:

Medicare for everyone — Say hello to “Medicare Part E” — as in, “Medicare for Everyone.” — House Democrats are looking at re-branding the public health insurance option as Medicare, an established government healthcare program that is better known than the public option.

Discussion: The Politico, Washington Post, New York Times, Obsidian Wings and MyDD

Eric Shawn / Fox News:

‘They Tried to Steal an Election,’ N.Y. Voter Fraud Case Heats Up — Thirty-eight forged or fraudulent ballots have been thrown out, according to records at the Rensselaer County Board of Elections in Troy, N.Y. Enough votes, an election official admits, to likely have tipped the November election to the Democrats.

Discussion: Atlas Shrugs, Michelle Malkin, Moe Lane, JammieWearingFool, The Washington Independent and The Other McCain

Jim Hoft / Gateway Pundit: ACORN's Party Likely Stole NY Election- Fraud Investigation Turns Up Bogus Ballots

Washington Post:

U.S. deeply split on troop increase for Afghan war — Majority says nation lacks clear strategy — As President Obama and his war cabinet deliberate a new strategy for the war in Afghanistan, Americans are evenly and deeply divided over whether he should send 40,000 more troops there …

Discussion: USA Today, ABCNEWS, The AfPak Channel, Top of the Ticket, Telegraph and New York Times

Victor Davis Hanson / The Corner on National …:

Voting Present Is Not an Option — By: Victor Davis Hanson — While our Narcissus-in-Chief is frozen gazing at his perfect image in his private pool, choices have to be made in Afghanistan. Consider the following: — (a) We have a Democratically controlled Congress that by and large has supported …

Discussion: THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:

NY-23: Can Doug Hoffman Win? — President Barack Obama heads to New York City later today to raise campaign cash for businessman Bill Owens, the party's nominee in the Nov. 3 special election in New York's 23rd district, but the emerging storyline in the race is whether Conservative party …

Discussion: Human Events, American Spectator, American Power, The Corner on National …, RedState, Scorecard's Blog, Hot Air and Newsweek Blogs

Lydia Saad / Gallup:

In U.S., 39% Say View on Healthcare “Depends” on Details — Undecided group generally favors a “public option” component — PRINCETON, NJ — While the majority of Americans appear to have made up their minds on healthcare reform, 39% say their support for a final healthcare bill will depend …

Discussion: The Note, The Swamp, No More Mister Nice Blog and USA Today

Fiona Harvey / Financial Times:

UN climate negotiator knocks full treaty hopes — The Copenhagen climate change conference will not produce a new international treaty, the top United Nations climate change official has said, but the meeting will set out the political framework for cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

Discussion: European Tribune, Yale Environment 360 and Grist

David Espo / Associated Press:

Analysis: Courting doctors in health care battle — WASHINGTON — In the special interest war over health care, the White House and congressional Democrats have the nation's drug makers and hospitals generally on their side; the insurance industry, not so much.

Discussion: Chicago Sun Times, Associated Press, The Foundry and protein wisdom

Oprah.com:

Oprah Winfrey Talks to Sarah Palin on The Oprah Winfrey Show — CHICAGO — In a world exclusive, Oprah Winfrey will interview former Alaska governor Sarah Palin for an episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show to air Monday, November 16, 2009. Winfrey and Palin will meet for the very first time on the episode …

Discussion: The Caucus, Another Black Conservative, Conservatives4Palin.com, NewsBusters.org, The Oprah blog, The TV Guy, Left Coast Rebel, TPM LiveWire and Gawker

NY Daily News:

Judge revokes Bernard Kerik bail, sends ex-NYPD top cop to jail for trying to taint jury pool — A judge tossed former NYPD commissioner Bernard Kerik in jail for trying to taint the jury pool via the Internet Tuesday - days before the top cop's corruption trial starts.

Discussion: City Room, ABCNEWS, Salon, TalkLeft, On Deadline, Newshoggers.com and Roger Ailes

Michael Franzese / Big Government:

Rush or Reverend Al?... Will the Real Racist Please Stand Up? — Like everyone else who is a fan of the NFL, I have heard of the recent firestorm over Rush Limbaugh being ousted by Roger Goodell in his bid to become part owner of the St Louis Rams. Apparently Limbaugh has been accused …

Bob Holmes / New Scientist:

Meet future woman: shorter, plumper, more fertile — For similar stories, visit the Evolution and Human Evolution Topic Guides — Women of the future are likely to be slightly shorter and plumper, have healthier hearts and longer reproductive windows. These changes are predicted …

Discussion: Politics Daily, Telegraph and ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES

Rachel Weiner / The Huffington Post:

The Ten Most Egregious Fox News Distortions (VIDEO) — Fox News has defended itself against administration criticism by saying the White House has confused its pundit shows with its news programs. But the network constantly, misleadingly disparages Obama and his administration in its supposedly straight reporting.

Discussion: Media Matters for America, Washington Monthly, Hullabaloo, Liberal Values and News Hounds