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Nikki Haley: Donald Trump has contributed to ‘irresponsible talk’ — South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley defended her response to Tuesday's State of the Union, confirming to TODAY's Matt Lauer she was referring to Donald Trump as one of the “angriest voices” she mentioned.
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Nikki Haley: Damn right I was criticizing Trump in my SOTU rebuttal last night — Granted, there's not much for a Republican to say about Obama's policies in year eight that hasn't been said before, but we're in a weird place when the GOP's SOTU rebuttal is essentially a rebuttal of the GOP frontrunner.
Discussion:
RedState, Washington Monthly, The Great Debate, Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, The Last Refuge, The Daily Caller and NBC News

Transcript: Gov. Nikki Haley's Republican Address To The Nation — Below are the full remarks from Gov. Nikki Haley that followed President Obama's final State of the Union address, as prepared for delivery. — Good evening. — I'm Nikki Haley, Governor of the great state of South Carolina.


Nikki Haley Confirms She Targeted Donald Trump In SOTU Response; GOP Leaders Approved
Discussion:
The Last Refuge, Vox Popoli and John Hawkins' Right Wing News

Republican Party Uses State of the Union Response to Attack Donald Trump
Discussion:
Politico, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, The Gateway Pundit and WREG-TV

Steve King: Nikki Haley Could Be ‘Face’ Of GOP Because 'She's Beautiful'
Discussion:
New York Times, AMERICAblog NewsAMERICAblog … and Political Wire

The English And Spanish Versions Of The GOP SOTU Response Were The Same, Except On Immigration
Discussion:
Naked Politics, Daily Kos, Vox and Raw Story

Announcing #SNAPoftheUnion
Discussion:
addictinginfo.org, Mashable, Washington Blade, Peacock Panache, Gay Star News, Slate, Towleroad, Raw Story and Fusion

Iran's Propaganda Victory in One Illegal Image — Here it is: — This photograph violates international law. Article 13 of the Geneva Convention (III), governing the treatment of prisoners of war, requires Iran to protect prisoners against “insults and public curiosity.”
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Iran's Swift Release of U.S. Sailors Hailed as a Sign of Warmer Relations — TEHRAN — Iran's release of 10 United States Navy sailors on Wednesday, less than 24 hours after they were detained on the Persian Gulf, is being hailed in both countries as a sign that their relations have evolved since …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Fox News, jaybookman.blog.myajc.com, Pamela Geller, Washington Free Beacon, The Hill, Outside the Beltway, The Hayride, Hot Air, ThinkProgress, addictinginfo.org, Washington Post, American Spectator, WIVB-TV, Mediaite, Daily Kos, Joe.My.God., Prairie Weather, Business Insider, National Review, The Daily Caller and Liberty Unyielding


Anatomy of a moment in macho foreign policy posturing
Discussion:
Politico, Vox, Breitbart, War on the Rocks, USNI News, WAVY-TV and American Spectator


Al Jazeera America shutting down — Al Jazeera, which made a massive investment in covering the United States less than three years ago, is slamming the brakes on its American operation. — Al Jazeera America, a cable news channel that debuted in August 2013, is shutting down.
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Al Jazeera America to Shut Down in April — The cable news channel Al Jazeera America, which debuted in 2013 to great fanfare when it promised to cover American news soberly and seriously, is shutting down at the end of April. The move was announced at a companywide meeting on Wednesday.
Discussion:
USA Today, Talking Points Memo, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Pamela Geller, Mediaite, The Verge, ProFootballTalk and Althouse


Iowa Poll: Cruz holds 3-point lead as Trump attacks — Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz remains the top pick among likely caucusgoers in the latest Iowa Poll. Political reporter Jennifer Jacobs and political columnist Kathie Obradovich provide analysis.
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Trump New Favorite to Take Republican Nomination, Betfair Says
Discussion:
Political Wire, Politico, The Resurgent and The Week

Rand Paul mounts last-minute push to get back on main debate stage
Discussion:
Business Insider, Washington Post, NBC News and The Daily Caller

Rand Paul Flips: Yeah, I Guess I'd Support Trump As The Nominee
Discussion:
The Bob and Chez Show

In G.O.P. image race, “strong” tops “conservative”
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business, TheBlaze.com, Political Wire, Hot Air, The Week and BuzzFeed


Upset Republican donors: Have we wasted our money? — Major GOP donors and fundraisers are wondering whether they're wasting their money on super-PACs. — They say they're not ready to abandon the super-PACs, but they're starting to look for ways to make them more effective during …
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Republicans warn Bush team against harming Rubio
Discussion:
ABC News, Daily Kos, Political Wire, Florida Politics, The Daily Caller, New York Times and Hot Air

Cruz and Christie Gain in Popularity as Trump, Carson and Bush Stumble (POLL)
Discussion:
The Resurgent, Politico, Bloomberg Business, Yahoo Politics and The Hill


Pelosi: I'm Not for Abortion on Demand — House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi sees the recent Republican attempt to defund Planned Parenthood as an “insult to the intelligence and judgment of women.” — Asked if she had watched any of the undercover sting videos of Planned Parenthood …
Discussion:
RedState, ABC News, LifeNews.com and National Review
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NARAL dings Pelosi on abortion rhetoric
Discussion:
National Review and LifeNews.com


Employees caught doing hair in Waffle House kitchen — FORREST CITY, Ark. — A couple of Forrest City Waffle House customers said they got more than expected with their meals early Friday morning. — “He was just coughing. Cough. Cough. Making noises like that,” Antonio Robinson said.
Discussion:
theGrio and FOX31 Denver


This is what makes Republicans and Democrats so different — MSNBC asked Benjy Sarlin, its reporter on the Republican race, and Alex Seitz-Wald, its reporter on the Democratic race, to flip jobs for a week and write up what they learned. Their conversation is worth reading in full, but something Sarlin wrote caught my eye:
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice and MSNBC


White House pledges ‘audacious’ executive action in 2016 — President Obama will roll out a bold set of executive actions during his final year in office, his top adviser said Wednesday. — “We'll do audacious executive action throughout the course of the rest of the year, I am confident of that …
Discussion:
RedState and Shakesville
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Why the White House Is Tweeting Photos of Fake Cheese
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and National Review


Lawrence Phillips found dead in prison at age 40 — Lawrence Phillips, the former football star facing murder charges, was found dead early Wednesday at Kern Valley State Prison, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokeswoman Terry Thornton told USA TODAY Sports.
Discussion:
FOX2now.com, The Daily Caller and Sports on Earth Writers


Self-appointed ‘judge’ arrives in Burns to ask local residents to charge government officials with crimes — Occupiers of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge lead members of the media on a tour of some federal buildings. The protestors believe some government officails have acted in violation …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Raw Story
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The Note: When Chelsea Attacks — Hillary Clinton this morning defended her daughter's attacks against her Democratic challenger Bernie Sanders' single-payer health care plan, despite criticism the remark was inaccurate. “You know, I adore my daughter and I know what she was saying,” …
Discussion:
CNN, Politico, The Hill, New York Times, Talking Points Memo, Bernie Sanders, Bloomberg.com and Associated Press


Graphic: Two Oklahoma women arrested for horrific child abuse — MUSKOGEE, Okla. - Two Oklahoma women are accused of abusing a 5-year-old over the course of several months. — Rachel Stevens, 28, and Kayla Jones, 25, are charged with felony child abuse by injury and child neglect …
Discussion:
New York's PIX11