memeorandum: Deserving of the DREAM — In the spring, when college admission … (Reuters)

9:40 AM ET, December 8, 2010

Top Items:

Kevin Drum / Mother Jones:

Obama Goes Medieval on the Left — Damn. I skipped Obama's press conference today, but I guess that was a big mistake. If my Twitter feed is anything to go by, progressive heads were exploding all over the intertubes. Here is Philip Klein's summary:

Discussion: ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Booman Tribune, AmSpecBlog, Yglesias and Commentary

Ezra Klein:

How the White House cut its deal and lost its base — If you look at the numbers alone, the tax cut deal looks to have robbed Republicans blind. The GOP got around $95 billion in tax cuts for wealthy Americans and $30 billion in estate tax cuts. Democrats got $120 billion in payroll-tax cuts …

Hugh Hewitt / Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog:

DeMint To Oppose “the Deal” — Senator JimDeMint just announced on my program that he will oppose the deal as well as a vote for cloture on the deal. He is reluctant to criticize GOP Senate leadership, but believes the deal at a minimum has to be paid for, and that we need “a permanent economy” …

Discussion: Firedoglake, TPMDC, James Pethokoukis, The Daily Caller, Zandar Versus The Stupid, The Politico, Breitbart.tv, Clusterstock, The Hill and The Hill

David Leonhardt / New York Times:

For Obama, Tax Deal Is a Back-Door Stimulus Plan — A year ago, President Obama and the Democrats made the mistake of assuming that an economic recovery was under way. This week's deal to extend the Bush tax cuts shows that the White House's top priority is avoiding the same mistake again …

Discussion: Washington Post, Washington Monthly, Wall Street Journal, Center for American Progress, The Big Picture, Associated Press, ThinkProgress, Economix, Suburban Guerrilla, TPMCafe, Yglesias, Ezra Klein, The New Republic and Democracy in America

The Politico:

Harry Reid tries to add online poker to tax bill — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is trying to use the tax cut package President Barack Obama brokered with Republicans to legalize online poker, POLITICO has learned — a move that could further complicate the deal Obama announced Monday.

Discussion: The Hill, ThinkProgress, The Hill, Scared Monkeys, The Daily Beast, Clusterstock, National Review and Top of the Ticket

The Huffington Post:
Mary Landrieu: ‘Obama-McConnell’ Plan Is ‘Almost Morally Corrupt’

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Politics Daily, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Daily Caller, Firedoglake, South Capitol Street, Daily Kos, Associated Press, Taylor Marsh, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, ThinkProgress and Colorlines

The Huffington Post:
House Democrats Rip Obama's Tax Cut Deal

Discussion: Guardian and Towleroad News #gay

Associated Press:
Obama Lashes Out At ‘Hostage-Taking’ Republicans, Sanctimonious Democrats

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, The Huffington Post, Washington Monthly, msnbc.com and The Hill

New York Times:
Biden and G.O.P. Leader Helped Hammer Out Bipartisan Tax Accord

Discussion: The Huffington Post, The Note, The Politico, Suburban Guerrilla and ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*

New York Times:
Obama Defends Tax Deal, but His Party Stays Hostile

The Hill:
Pelosi escalates criticism of tax-cut deal

Discussion: Questions and Observations and National Review

The Hill:
Democrats to draw line at estate tax after Obama's deal with Republicans

Discussion: George's Bottom Line

Eric Kleefeld / TPMDC:
Obama Dresses Down ‘Sanctimonious’ And ‘Purist’ Progressives (VIDEO)

Discussion: TBogg

Free exchange:
Did Barack Obama lose a political battle but win a war?

Discussion: Economist's View, Real Time Economics and Grasping Reality …

Robert D. McFadden / New York Times:

A Political Life Filled With Cruel Reversals — Elizabeth Edwards, who as the wife of former Senator John Edwards gave America an intimate look at a candidate's marriage by sharing his quest for the 2008 presidential nomination as she struggled with incurable cancer and, secretly …

Discussion: American Power, South Capitol Street, NO QUARTER, Close Read, skippy the bush kangaroo, Raw Story, Towleroad News #gay and Eschaton

Shane D'Aprile / Ballot Box:

O'Donnell calls extending jobless benefits a ‘tragedy’ — Christine O'Donnell on Tuesday compared the “tragedy” of extending unemployment benefits to Pearl Harbor and the death of Elizabeth Edwards. — “Today marks a lot of tragedy,” O'Donnell, the Tea Party-backed GOP Senate candidate from Delaware …

Discussion: Prairie Weather and Hit & Run

Raleigh News & Observer:

Cancer claims Elizabeth Edwards — Elizabeth Edwards, author of ‘Saving Graces’ , greets and autographs copies of her book for the community in 2006. — Elizabeth Anania Edwards, who became a national figure in her fight against cancer and as a partner in her husband John's political career, died today.

Discussion: The Democratic Daily, CNN, Zandar Versus The Stupid, Taylor Marsh and Mediaite

Think Progress:
The Legacy Of Elizabeth Edwards

Discussion: Ezra Klein, The Atlantic Online, The New Republic, Newsweek, Guardian, Sky Dancing and Washington Post

The Politico:
Elizabeth Edwards dies of cancer

Discussion: Hot Air, South Capitol Street, Ben Smith's Blog, theblogprof, CBS News and People.com

Matt Bai / New York Times:

Murmurs of Primary Challenge to Obama — WASHINGTON — President Obama's compromise with Republicans on extending tax cuts for the wealthy, which his self-described progressive critics see as a profound betrayal, is bound to intensify a debate that has been bubbling up on liberal blogs …

Discussion: Commentary, Balloon Juice, Crooks and Liars and American Power

Jack Shafer / Slate:

Julian Assange's Great Luck — Why his arrest and jailing in the United Kingdom is good news for him. — A U.K. magistrates' court denied Julian Assange bail and jailed him this morning over charges filed in Sweden that he had violated sex laws in that country last summer.

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Connecting.the.Dots, Guardian, Threat Level, South Capitol Street, Ben Smith's Blog, Raw Story and Mediaite

Mark Hosenball / Reuters:
Special Report: STD fears sparked case against WikiLeaks boss

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money, DISSENTING JUSTICE, Guardian, Media Diary, LewRockwell.com Blog, Hullabaloo, Law Blog, The Daily Dish, Firedoglake, South Capitol Street, Mother Jones, Outside the Beltway and The Lede, more at Mediagazer »

Rachel E. Stassen-Berger / Minneapolis Star Tribune:

Dayton poised to win the recount — A GOP source with knowledge of Tom Emmer's plans said he would concede this morning at his Delano home. — Removing all but a smattering of ballot challenges, a lead attorney for Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer acknowledged Tuesday …

Discussion: Ballot Box and Shot in the Dark

TwinCities.com:
Emmer to concede election to Dayton

Discussion: South Capitol Street and Public Policy Polling

David Kocieniewski / New York Times:

Tax Package Will Aid Nearly All, Especially Highest Earners — The deal to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for two years includes a bevy of additional credits and deductions that will reduce the burden on nearly all households. — But the tax benefits will flow most heavily to the highest earners …

Discussion: Firedoglake

cbpp.org:
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Discussion: economy.com, The New Republic and Center for American Progress

Bloomberg:

Obama's Deal to Extend High-Earner Tax Cuts Unpopular in Poll — Americans don't approve of keeping the breaks for upper-income taxpayers that are part of the deal President Barack Obama brokered with congressional Republicans, a Bloomberg National Poll shows.

Discussion: Gallup, The Page and Los Angeles Times

Pejman Yousefzadeh / A Chequer-Board of Nights …:

In Which Thomas Friedman Insults the Chinese By Pretending That He Can Think Like Them — Let's go to the tape: … Where to begin? — First off, fight over “how and where an airport security officer can touch” Americans is one that goes to the very core of privacy concerns that have been part …

Discussion: Hot Air

Adam Serwer / American Prospect:

New McCain, New DREAM. — John McCain has co-sponsored several previous versions of the DREAM Act, including the far more liberal 2003 version that didn't have an age cap. The much narrower legislation under consideration this year, which would offer a path to citizenship for immigrants …

Discussion: AILA, The Huffington Post and Speakeasy

Laura Rozen / The Politico:

U.S. abandons effort to get new Israel settlement freeze — The United States has decided to abandon an effort to persuade Israel to issue a new temporary West Bank settlement moratorium in order for direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks to resume, U.S. officials said Tuesday.

Discussion: Israel Matzav, War in Context and CNN

Mark Landler / New York Times:
U.S. Drops Bid to Sway Israel on Settlements

Discussion: CNN, Wall Street Journal, Israel Matzav, Pajamas Media, Hot Air, Ben Smith's Blog and The Daily Dish

Reuters:

Deserving of the DREAM — In the spring, when college admission letters arrive, America's local newspapers are filled with articles about students who have persevered against the odds, excelled at school and in their communities and made it into leading colleges and universities.

Discussion: ABCNEWS

Sam Youngman / Ballot Box:

President Obama's Sister Souljah week — President Obama's liberal critics are furious, vocal and useful to a White House trying to solve the riddle of reelection. — White House officials who last year viewed the “professional left” as an annoying bunch of ungrateful idealists living …

Discussion: JammieWearingFool

Carl Zimmer / Slate:

Scientists see fatal flaws in the NASA study of arsenic-based life. — On Thursday, Dec. 2, Rosie Redfield sat down to read a new paper called, “A Bacterium That Can Grow by Using Arsenic Instead of Phosphorus.” Despite its innocuous title, the paper had great ambitions.