memeorandum: The Democrats' Orwellian Talking Point — By: Daniel Foster (Daniel Foster/The Corner …)

3:25 PM ET, February 23, 2010

Top Items:

Dan Pfeiffer / White House.gov Blog Feed:

Will the Republicans Post Their Health Plan... and When? — The President believes strongly that Thursday's bipartisan meeting on health insurance reform will be most productive if both sides come to the table with a unified plan to start discussion - and if the public has the opportunity …

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:

Stupak: ‘Unacceptable’ — This statement from Bart Stupak is conciliatory in tone, but not in substance, and it isn't going to make things easy in the House: — I was pleased to see that President Obama's health care proposal did not include several of the sweetheart deals provided to select states in the Senate bill.

Discussion: Firedoglake, CNN, TalkLeft, CentristNet and Lawyers, Guns and Money

kff.org:

Kaiser Health Tracking Poll — February 2010 — The February Kaiser Health Tracking Poll finds the public still split on health care reform legislation, with 43 percent in favor and 43 percent opposed. However, the poll also finds that majorities of Americans of all political leanings …

Discussion: The New Republic, Behind the Numbers, Washington Post, Taegan Goddard's … and Politics Daily

Wall Street Journal:

ObamaCare at Ramming Speed — The White House shows it has no interest in compromise. — A mere three days before President Obama's supposedly bipartisan health-care summit, the White House yesterday released a new blueprint that Democrats say they will ram through Congress with or without Republican support.

Discussion: Moonbattery, Betsy's Page, JustOneMinute, The Politico and Neptunus Lex

Mike Allen / The Politico:

GOP plans dozens or hundreds of health-care amendments — Big RNC donors hit Steele for planes, Ritz, limos — Airport body scanners to finally begin rolling out in March — “Morning Joe”: Ron Paul (7:35 a.m.), Steve Hildebrand (8:40 a.m.), Frank Bruni (8:50 a.m.) ... Sarah Palin will appear …

Discussion: CNN, Christian Science Monitor, CBS News, Washington Post, msnbc.com, Hot Air, The Note and Taegan Goddard's …

Rachel Slajda / TPMDC:
Boehner: Obama's Health Care Proposal Is Too Short

Discussion: Think Progress, Open Congress, Washington Monthly and Firedoglake

Molly Hooper / The Hill:
Boehner: GOP will ‘crash’ WH ‘infomercial’ on healthcare reform

Discussion: The Hill, Hot Air and Newsweek Blogs

Ezra Klein:

A failure of White House leadership — One other point on the public option: This has been a complete and utter failure of White House leadership. They need to give this effort their support, or they need to kill it by publicly stating their opposition. But they can't simply wait …

Discussion: Eschaton

The Huffington Post:

Rockefeller Not Inclined To Support Reconciliation For The Public Plan — WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? — Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.V.) threw a wrench into Democratic efforts to get a public option passed through reconciliation, saying that he thought the maneuver was overly partisan and that he was inclined to oppose it.

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, The Hill, Matthew Yglesias, TPMDC, New York Times, Open Left, Don Surber, Think Progress, TalkLeft, Washington Monthly, Firedoglake, Daily Kos, Working In These Times, Wake up America and TPM LiveWire

Ezra Klein:
Jay Rockefeller's inconvenient honesty on the public option

Discussion: TPMDC, The New Republic, Swampland and New Mexico Independent

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Robert Gibbs: Public Option Via Reconciliation Can't Pass Congress

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Ezra Klein, Daily Kos and TPMDC

Carl Hulse / New York Times:

In Passage of Jobs Measure, a Glimpse of Bipartisanship — WASHINGTON — Five Republican senators broke ranks with their party on Monday to advance a $15 billion job-creation measure put forward by Democrats, a rare bipartisan breakthrough after months in which Republicans had held together …

Discussion: Washington Post, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Boston Globe, Bloomberg, The Hill, Washington Monthly, The Moderate Voice, Shakesville, FiveThirtyEight and Prairie Weather

Michael O'Brien / The Hill: Reid: GOP should ‘stop crying’ about majority-vote move on healthcare

Frank Bruni / New York Times:

Where Scott Brown Is Coming From — In just 48 hours, Scott Brown would be sworn in as the newest member of the United States Senate, stepping into the shoes (and office suite) of Edward M. Kennedy and the world of woe on Capitol Hill. But as he zipped down a Massachusetts highway …

Discussion: The Swamp, The Page, The Washington Independent and Commentary

ABCNEWS:

Exclusive: Navy to Lift Ban on Women Serving Aboard Submarines — Women Will Be Assigned to Subs if Congress Does Not Object — Women are a big step closer to serving on U.S. Navy submarines. ABC News has learned that the Navy has decided to lift the ban on female submarine crew members.

Jen DiMascio / The Politico: Army hesitant on repealing gay ban

Adam C. Smith / St. Petersburg Times:

As Crist poll numbers slide, staffers leave campaign — Speaking after a White House meeting with governors on Monday, Charlie Crist said he supported stimulus spending. — In the latest sign of turbulence for Charlie Crist's wounded U.S. Senate bid, key staffers are starting to leave the campaign.

Discussion: Hot Air, The Politico, Townhall.com, Hotline On Call and race42008.com

J. Taylor Rushing / The Hill:

Senate sitting on 290 bills already passed by House; tension mounts — Exasperated House Democratic leaders have compiled a list showing that they have passed 290 bills that have stalled in the Senate. — The list is the latest sign that Democrats in the lower chamber are frustrated with their Senate counterparts.

Discussion: Say Anything and AMERICAblog News

Jeanne Cummings / The Politico:

Steele's spending spree angers donors — Republican National Chairman Michael Steele is spending twice as much as his recent predecessors on private planes and paying more for limousines, catering and flowers - expenses that are infuriating the party's major donors who say Republicans need every penny …

Discussion: Power Line, Washington Monthly, Ben Smith's Blog, CNN, JOSHUAPUNDIT, The Caucus, The Daily Caller and The Page

Michael Barbaro / City Room:

Ford Polls New Yorkers on Himself and Gillibrand — Former Representative Harold E. Ford Jr. of Tennessee has dug into his own pocket to pay for a detailed poll, conducted over the last few days, intended to test the viability of a Senate run in New York, according to people briefed on the matter.

Discussion: Taegan Goddard's …, Ben Smith's Blog, The Corner on National … and The Page

The Conference Board:

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index® Declines Sharply — The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index®, which had increased in January, declined sharply in February. The Index now stands at 46.0 (1985=100), down from 56.5 in January. The Present Situation Index decreased to 19.4 from 25.2.

Discussion: The Atlantic Business Channel, Financial Times, Clusterstock, Associated Press, Reuters, FT Alphaville, CentristNet and National Review Online

Richard Teitelbaum / Bloomberg:

Secret AIG Document Shows Goldman Sachs Minted Most Toxic CDOs — Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) — When a congressional panel convened a hearing on the government rescue of American International Group Inc. in January, the public scolding of Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner got the most attention.

Discussion: The Atlantic Business Channel, Clusterstock, naked capitalism, Real Time Economics, The Big Picture and DealBook

Charlie Martin / Pajamas Media:

Climategate Meets the Law: Senator Inhofe to Ask for DOJ Investigation (Pajamas Media/PJTV Exclusive) — Inhofe intends to ask for a probe of the embattled climate scientists for possible criminal acts. And he thinks Gore should be recalled to explain his prior congressional testimony.

Discussion: Townhall.com, U.S. Senate Committee …, Hot Air, Say Anything, HillBuzz, The Strata-Sphere, GayPatriot, NewsBusters.org, Don Surber, Shot in the Dark and Jules Crittenden

Jenna Wortham / New York Times:

Apple Bans Some Apps for Sex-Tinged Content — Apple has started banning many applications for its iPhone that feature sexually suggestive material, including photos of women in bikinis and lingerie, a move that came as an abrupt surprise to developers who had been profiting from such programs.

Discussion: Digits, TechCrunch and New York Magazine

Brian Maloney / The Radio Equalizer:

Mark Levin Questions Glenn Beck's Behavior And Strategy — ‘STOP DIVIDING US’ — Levin Challenges Beck To Behave Like An Adult — *** GLENN BECK EMBRACES LIBERAL PALS, BELIEVES IN GLOBAL WARMING *** — *** NEW: INTRODUCING THE CANNOLIS *** — Is Mark Levin the only major figure …

Discussion: WorldNetDaily, The Politico, skippy the bush kangaroo, Mediaite, Rumproast, Newsweek Blogs, American Conservative …, The Other McCain, The Lonely Conservative, Wonkette, Another Black Conservative, Left Coast Rebel and Riehl World View

CNN:

Cheney suffered mild heart attack, office says — Former Vice President Dick Cheney suffered a mild heart attack Monday. — Washington (CNN) - Former Vice President Dick Cheney suffered a mild heart attack Monday when he complained of chest pains and was hospitalized, his office said Tuesday.

Discussion: The Hill

Fox News:

1 Dead in Shooting at Luke Air Force Base — A shooting and fatal car crash on Luke Air Force Base in Litchfield, Ariz., have left one person dead and another injured, KSAZ Phoenix reported. — At 11 p.m. Monday night two individuals ran the main base entrance gate with their car …

Discussion: The Jawa Report, Mudville Gazette and Gateway Pundit

RushLimbaugh.com:

What I Would've Said at CPAC — BEGIN TRANSCRIPT — RUSH: No, Snerdley. Look, I'm going to get to it. I got an e-mail just in time ago, “Would you stop being mean to Snerdley?” Hey, e-mailer! Snerdley should stop interrupting me. He's not the host. I am.

Discussion: Washington Times, Think Progress, Hit & Run and The Corner on National …

New York Times:

Pakistani Reports Capture of a Taliban Leader — ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — In another blow to the Taliban senior leadership, Pakistani authorities have captured Mullah Abdul Kabir, a member of the group's inner circle and a leading military commander against American forces in eastern Afghanistan …

Discussion: Politics Daily, The Awl, Jon Taplin's Blog and snooperreport.com

CNN:

Traficant will launch independent congressional bid — (CNN) - Former Democratic Rep. James Traficant, who in September was released from a federal prison after serving seven years on a bribery and racketeering conviction, told CNN Tuesday he will launch an independent bid to return to Congress.

Discussion: Washington Wire, Taegan Goddard's … and Glenn Thrush's Blog

Harry Joe / Margin of Error:

Republican Blizzard on the Generic Ballot — It would take a major turn of events for the Democrats to hold onto the House of Representatives. There I said it. Why the confidence on Republicans gaining 40 seats and getting to the 218 seats needed to control the House?

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, The New Republic, The Monkey Cage, Taylor Marsh, Democracy in America, The Daily Dish and Wake up America

Matthew Jaffe / Political Punch:

CBO Says Stimulus Added Up to 2.1 Million Jobs in Fourth Quarter of 2009 — ABC News' Matthew Jaffe reports: — The Obama administration's $787 billion stimulus bill created up to 2.1 million jobs during the final three months of last year, according to a new report from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.

Discussion: Washington Monthly and New York Magazine