memeorandum: The Power Elite — One of the great achievements of modern times … (David Brooks/New York Times)

9:45 PM ET, February 19, 2010

Top Items:

Breaking: Reid Signals Support For Reconciliation Vote On Public Option — In another surprising step forward for the public option, Senator Harry Reid's office says that if a final decision is made to pass health reform via reconciliation, the Majority Leader would support holding a reconciliation vote on the public option.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Coop's Corner, JOSHUAPUNDIT, Raw Story, Gateway Pundit, Hot Air, The Washington Independent, The Page, The Corner on National …, Open Congress, SpeakEasy, The Political Carnival and AMERICAblog News

Ezra Klein:

The strange politics of the public option revival — Trying to figure out the politics of this public option revival has been a bit of a strange experience. On the one hand, momentum seems to be building: The letter asking Reid to run the public option through the reconciliation process has 18 senators attached.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, TalkLeft and Open Left

New York Times:

Obama to Offer Health Bill to Ease Impasse as Bipartisan Meeting Approaches — WASHINGTON — President Obama will put forward comprehensive health care legislation intended to bridge differences between Senate and House Democrats ahead of a summit meeting with Republicans next week …

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:

Health Care Proposal Takes Shape For Obama To Bring To Summit — Okay, I've got some more info for you on what the health care compromise proposal that Obama will bring to the summit next week is going to look like. — Bottom line: It's all but certain to have the Cadillac tax in it …

Discussion: Firedoglake, TPMDC, Sadly, No!, The Hill and Wonk Room

Adam Green / Open Left:
BREAKING: Obama will support the public option if Reid will

Discussion: TPMDC, techPresident, Open Congress, Dennis the Peasant, Corrente and SpeakEasy

James Hohmann / The Politico: Lincoln will back cloture on jobs bill

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Cantor: Obama must take reconciliation off the table for healthcare reform

Discussion: Washington Monthly

Fox News:
Obama Writing Health Bill to Skirt GOP Filibuster

Discussion: Another Black Conservative, Swampland, The Foundry, Weasel Zippers and Gateway Pundit

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Fish White House Logic On Public Option Revival

Discussion: Firedoglake and TalkLeft

Ezra Klein:
Is the public option making a comeback?

Discussion: The Politico, Firedoglake, The New Republic, TPMDC, NewsBusters.org, Open Left, Daily Kos, Open Congress, New York Magazine, Wonkette and ABCNEWS

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:

A Sensible Response to Terrorism — As you probably know, a white guy entranced by an extremely version of Tea Party-style right-populist paranoia deliberately crashed an airplane into an IRS building in Texas yesterday. I'm not especially interested in debating semantics …

Discussion: ATTACKERMAN, Ezra Klein, PoliBlog, BLACKFIVE and Left in the West

ABCNEWS:
Suicidal Pilot's Wife Reacts to ‘Tragic’ Attack

Discussion: American Power and Infowars

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

Holder admits nine Obama Dept. of Justice officials worked for terrorist detainees, offers no details — Attorney General Eric Holder says nine Obama appointees in the Justice Department have represented or advocated for terrorist detainees before joining the Justice Department.

Discussion: Power Line, JOSHUAPUNDIT, Confederate Yankee, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and The Corner on National …

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:

Is the next GOP presidential candidate a CPAC speaker? — There's no question that the next GOP presidential nominee will have spoken at this year's CPAC conference, a top Republican lawmaker said Friday. — Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), the ranking member of the House Oversight …

Discussion: The Politico, CNN, No More Mister Nice Blog and Newsweek Blogs

E.J. Dionne / PostPartisan:
Palin and Brown: Mitt Romney's best friends

Discussion: Hot Air

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:

Pawlenty compares administration to Tiger Woods, voters to scorned wife — Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) on Friday told voters to follow the lead of Tiger Woods' wife Elin Nordegren and “take a nine-iron and smash the window out of big government.” — Pawlenty, who is considered …

Discussion: The Politico, Left Coast Rebel, Ben Smith's Blog, No More Mister Nice Blog, CNN, The Swamp and Daily Kos

Harvey Araton / New York Times:
Apologizing, Woods Sets No Date for Return to Golf

Discussion: RaceWire

Josh Margolin / New Jersey Online:

U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg is diagnosed with cancer … U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, New Jersey's 86-year-old senior senator, was diagnosed with treatable stomach cancer in the last 24 hours and will begin chemotherapy today. — The Democrat still plans to finish out his current term …

Discussion: The Politico, Washington Post, Hot Air, Outside The Beltway, Don Surber, The Hill, The Page, MyDD, The Awl and JammieWearingFool

Carrie Johnson / Washington Post:

Bush lawyers who approved waterboarding to face no discipline — Bush administration lawyers who wrote memos blessing the waterboarding of terrorism suspects and other harsh interrogation tactics “exercised poor judgment” but will not face discipline for their actions, according …

Discussion: Firedoglake, The Atlantic Politics Channel, Raw Story, Balkinization, unbossed.com, TPMMuckraker, The Political Carnival and Newshoggers.com

Ari Shapiro / NPR:
Terror Memos Didn't Violate Legal Ethics, Report Finds

Discussion: TalkLeft

Scott Shane / New York Times:

F.B.I., Laying Out Evidence, Closes Anthrax Letters Case — WASHINGTON — More than eight years after anthrax-laced letters killed five people and terrorized the country, the F.B.I. finally closed its investigation of the matter on Friday. The bureau released a 92-page report adding eerie …

Discussion: Politics Daily

Joby Warrick / Washington Post:
FBI closes investigation into 2001 anthrax attacks

Discussion: The Hill

Andy Barr / The Politico:

Bachmann: Obama ‘intending to fail’ — Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) urged conservatives on Friday to fight to prevent an American “decline” created by the policies of President Barack Obama. — In a long and meandering speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference evoking …

Discussion: The Note, Gateway Pundit and CNN

The Huffington Post:

John Ashcroft: Civilian Trials For Terrorists Have ‘Use And Utility’ — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — In an acknowledgment that throws a wrench in Republican talking points, former Attorney General John Ashcroft said on Friday that the criminal justice system does, indeed, have a role to play in trying terrorist suspects.

Discussion: Latest Open Salon Blog, Washington Monthly and Daily Kos

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Poll: Majority Backs Mirandizing Of Xmas Plotter And Other Terror Suspects

Discussion: CNN and The Washington Independent

Michael F. Cannon / Cato @ Liberty:

Krugman Don't Know Health Insurance — When I debated Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman on health care reform, I asked him if he was familiar with the work of University of Pennsylvania economist Mark Pauly. Pauly is a leader in the economics of health insurance.

Paul Krugman / New York Times:
California Death Spiral

Discussion: Hit & Run, Latest Open Salon Blog, The Sideshow, Atlantic Correspondents, DailyHowler.com, Democratic Strategist, Newsweek Blogs, The Greenroom, Clusterstock and The Hill

Zaid Jilani / Think Progress:

CPAC audience boos former GOP Rep. Bob Barr for saying waterboarding is torture. — This afternoon, the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) held a debate titled “Does Security Trump Freedom?” that featured former GOP congressman and Libertarian Presidential candidate Bob Barr …

Discussion: The Political Carnival and The Week Magazine

Heather / Crooks and Liars: Bob Barr shouted down at CPAC for saying waterboarding is torture

Jimmy Orr / Christian Science Monitor:

Rapper Sky Blu says Mitt Romney used ‘Vulcan grip’ on him in plane fiasco — Sky Blu, singer of the band LMFAO, says Mitt Romney had him in a ‘Vulcan grip’ while aboard an airplane Monday night in Vancouver. — Mitt Romney used a “Vulcan grip” on rapper Sky Blu? — Wow.

Discussion: Breitbart.tv, The Gun Toting Liberal, New York Magazine, Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, Hot Air and Moonbattery

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:

Gays, gay marriage foes spar at CPAC — The young crowd at CPAC doesn't seem terribly interested in the issue of same-sex marriage, but there's been a bit of shadow boxing between the gay Republican group GOProud, which got a booth over objections from social conservatives …

Discussion: Think Progress, Swampland and The Washington Independent

Brianna Keilar / CNN:
Gay Republicans draw support, concern at CPAC

Discussion: Right Wing Watch, Truth Wins Out, HRC Back Story, AMERICAblog Gay and GayPatriot

The Note:

Far-Right John Birch Society 2010 — ABC's Jonathan Karl reports: This week's Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington has a co-sponsor from the far-right fringe of American politics: The John Birch Society. — According to Ian Walters, a spokesman for CPAC …

Discussion: Little Green Footballs and The Washington Independent

The Note:

Ron Paul supporters are taking over CPAC! — ABC News' Bret Hovell reports: Libertarian Texas Congressman Ron Paul - who has a large and occasionally rowdy backing throughout the country - was scheduled to speak here at the Conservative Political Action Conference at 4:30 — Friday afternoon.

Discussion: CNN and The Politico

Alex Seitz-Wald / Think Progress:

Profit-Seeking Palin Reportedly Rips CPAC As A Profiteering Convention — One leading Republican who is conspicuously absent from this year's CPAC is Fox News pundit Sarah Palin. A source told Politico that Palin declined the invitation because she “does not want to be affiliated” …

Discussion: Pundits Blog, Infowars, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Taylor Marsh and Hotline On Call

Thomas Fitzgerald / Philly.com:

Sestak says federal job was offered to quit race — Not so, says White House — Rep. Joe Sestak (D., Pa.) said yesterday that the White House offered him a federal job in an effort to dissuade him from challenging Sen. Arlen Specter in the state's Democratic primary.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Top of the Ticket, Washington Post and Politics Daily