‎7 Ways the Koch Bros. Benefit from Corporate Welfare
Mainstream America is finally getting to know the billionaire brothers backing the libertarian movement, thanks to a pair of dueling profiles in New York and The New Yorker. Now that we've heard about their charitable giving, David's 240-foot mega-yacht and role as patrons of the Tea Party movement,...
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Ending the War in Iraq
Remarks by the President in Address to the Nation on the End of Combat Operations in Iraq
Oval Office
August 31, 2010

Christopher Hitchens: Glenn Beck Rally Was 'Waterworld Of White Self-Pity'
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It’s Witch-Hunt Season
In a repeat from the 1990s, the Republicans appear bent on ugliness and paralysis.
by Paul Krugman
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Pierre Tristam:Neo-Supremacy Chic: Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin’s Tea-Scalding of MLK
They don’t call it white supremacy for nothing.
One of the ways this country’s reactionaries have made racism and neo-segregation chic is by co-opting the language of emancipation, equality and civil rights.
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Frank Rich: The Billionaires Bankrolling the Tea Party
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Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin's unholy alliance
Abramoff ally Rabbi Daniel Lapin and bigot John Hagee help "restore honor" at the Lincoln Memorial
by Joan Walsh
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Even Beck can't mar King's legacy
By Eugene Robinson
The majestic grounds of the Lincoln Memorial belong to all Americans -- even to egomaniacal talk-show hosts who profit handsomely from stoking fear, resentment and anger. So let me state clearly that Glenn Beck has every right to hold his absurdly titled "Restoring Honor" rally on Saturday.
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CBO Warns Republicans That Repealing Health Law Would Increase Deficit By $455 Billion

The Congressional Budget Office is out with a new letter saying that while the health care law could reduce the projected budget deficit by $30 billion in 2020, repealing it would increase the deficit by an estimated $455 billion:

On balance, the two laws’ health care and revenue provisions are estimated to reduce the projected deficit in 2020 by $28 billion, and the education provisions of the Reconciliation Act are estimated to reduce the projected deficit in 2020 by $2 billion. [...]

Finally, you asked what the net deficit impact would be if certain provisions of PPACA and the Reconciliation Act that were estimated to generate net savings were eliminated—specifically, those which were originally estimated to generate a net reduction in mandatory outlays of $455 billion over the 2010–2019 period. The estimate of $455 billion mentioned in your letter represents the net effects of many provisions. Some of those provisions generated savings for Medicare, Medicaid, or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and some generated costs. If those provisions were repealed, CBO estimates that there would be an increase in deficits similar to its original estimate of $455 billion in net savings over that period.

If they were to repeal the law, Republicans would have replace it with something that makes up for the deficit increases (assuming, of course that they will still care about the deficits) and helps slow the growth rate in the Medicare program. The GOP’s old leadership backed plan and its reliance on medical malpractice reform as a money saver won’t be enough.

Separately, the CBO also estimated that preventing payment reductions to the physician fee schedule would cost some $330 billion over the 2011–2020 period.
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The Terrorists Win
Nine years after 9/11, hatred of Islam has infected many Americans. How else can we explain the opposition to an Islamic community center two blocks away from where the attacks took place?
by Eric Alterman
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Building a Nation of Know-Nothings - NYTimes.com If the lies about the president continue to gain traction, we're all going to pay a price.

War Room: How the "ground zero mosque" fear mongering began
A viciously anti-Muslim blogger, the New York Post and the right-wing media machine: How it all went down.
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Frank Rich: How Fox Betrayed Petraeus

Nicholas D. Kristof: Taking Bin Laden’s Side
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Robert Creamer: Republican Strategy for Victory: Stall Economic Recovery
For the last twenty months, Democrats have been pushing to get the economy out of the ditch. Not only have Republicans refused to lend a hand, they have been actively throwing rocks under the wheels.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Extremist Makeover - Homeland Edition
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Change Accomplished
By Eugene Robinson —
This is a radical break from journalistic convention, I realize, but today I’d like to give credit where it’s due—specifically, to President Obama. Quiet as it’s kept, he’s on a genuine winning streak.
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Why are we so willing to repeat history's mistakes?
By David Sirota
Ideology and money interests trump lessons of the past in debates over war, economics and taxes.
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To All President Obama Haters

You didn’t get mad when the Supreme Court stopped a legal recount and appointed a President.

You didn’t get mad when Cheney allowed Energy company officials to dictate energy policy.

You didn’t get mad when a covert CIA operative got outed.

You didn’t get mad when the Patriot Act got passed.

You didn’t get mad when we illegally invaded a country that posed no threat to us.

You didn’t get mad when we spent over 600 billion(and counting) on said illegal war.

You didn’t get mad when over 10 billion dollars just disappeared in Iraq.

You didn’t get mad when you found out we were torturing people.

You didn’t get mad when the government was illegally wiretapping Americans.

You didn’t get mad when we didn’t catch Bin Laden.

You didn’t get mad when you saw the horrible conditions at Walter Reed.

You didn’t get mad when we let a major US city drown.

You didn’t get mad when we gave a 900 billion tax break to the rich.

You didn’t get mad when, using reconciliation; a trillion dollars of our tax dollars were redirected to insurance companies for Medicare Advantage which cost over 20 percent more for basically the same services that Medicare provides.

You didn’t get mad when the deficit hit the trillion dollar mark, and our debt hit the thirteen trillion dollar mark.

(The above is a copy/paste of a nice rant about some of the many errors of the Bush admin. This rant has been making the rounds for awhile now and I don’t know where it originated. What follows is my addition.)

Yet you get mad at President Obama for what exactly?

Expanding health care coverage to over 30 million more Americans while making the worst health insurance industry abuses illegal and reducing the deficit? (source)

Credit card reform which protects consumers from credit card company abuses? (source)

Lowering taxes for 95% of working families?

Being on target to cut Bush’s huge deficit in half within four years?

The DOW going from 6500 to over 11000 during his Presidency?

Is it because he signed expanded gun rights into law while not making any moves towards gun control?

The recession reversing with job losses turning into job gains?

Working to reform Wall Street Reform so we don’t experience another economic meltdown like what happened under Bush’s “leadership” in September 2008?

Working to reduce loose nukes in order to decrease the chances of a nuclear attack on the US by terrorists?

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Notice those last two are “works in progress.” These are things Obama is trying to do but the Republicans are doing everything they can stop him from being successful on these fronts (similar to how they pulled out every trick in the book to try to stop health care reform.) They don’t seem to care that stopping Obama from getting “political victories” (their biggest concern it seems) may lead to a terrorist nuking a major US city or another economic meltdown.

Think about that. “Country First”? Hardly. The Republican Party of today seems to exist only to further it’s own existence. They will stop at nothing to defeat Obama politically. They don’t care how many lies they have to tell or what the long term consequences are for average Americans.

It’s because of this that I think it’s of very much importance for the future of the United States that the “Republican Tea Party” be defeated this November. Do your part. Make sure you are registered to vote and get to the polls to vote against all Republican Tea Party candidates.
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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Mosque-Erade
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Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Ground Zero for Tolerance By Robert Scheer — The irrational attack on Muslims everywhere by the GOP's leadership is not only deeply subversive with regard to the American ideal of religious tolerance but also poses a profound threat to our national security.

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OpEdNews - Diary: The Anti-Mosque Movement is Politically Correct Nonsense
Diary: How the tables have turned! Conservatives who want Muslims to be 'sensitive' to others' needs weren't too sensitive to the needs of others back in the PC era, now were they? How about we all just suck it up and deal?
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Happy 75th Birthday, Social Security
by Katrina vanden Heuvel
On the 75th anniversary of Social Security, those who would axe benefits are spreading myths designed to make you think there's a looming crisis. It's simply just not true.
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Obama defends "ground zero mosque"
By Glenn Greenwald
The president takes a politically unpopular position and deserves praise for doing so.
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The Racists Return

By Joe Conason — Expressions of racial hatred on the right are troubling, but not nearly as troubling as the behavior of conservatives who excuse, embolden or simply pretend to ignore the bigots surrounding them.

Daly: Poor Rudy's privacy cry is laughable
Former city mayor Rudy Giuliani is quite the hypocrite with cry for privacy after daughter's theft.
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Fareed Zakaria to return ADL award over ground-zero mosque
In response to Fareed Zakaria returning an award that was presented to him in 2005, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) said it was “saddened, stunned and somewhat speechless” by his decision.
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Also confirmed: Marshall’s legacy
Elena Kagan’s confirmation to the Supreme Court is not only a victory for her, but also a confirmation of Justice Thurgood Marshall’s enduring legacy.
By Martha Minow

Sarah Palin and Newt Gingrich Need a History Lesson
By Joe Conason
No recent controversy has so plainly revealed the hollow values of the American right than the effort to prevent the construction of a community center in Lower Manhattan because it will include a mosque. It is a senseless attack on one of America’s most sacred traditions.
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We're still haunted by Angry White Males
There's something about a Democratic White House and Congress that brings out this ugliness
by Steve Kornacki
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How the GOP Destroyed the US Economy
by Barry Ritholtz
I can sum it up thusly: Whereas the Democrats have no economic policy, the Republicans have a very bad one.
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Bob Cesca The GOP Plot to Screw the Economy and the Middle...
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Leaking to Avert Disaster
By Joe Conason
While the Pentagon Papers revealed the duplicity of American policymakers in the senseless Vietnam War, their release came too late to save many lives or change the course of that conflict. The WikiLeaks disclosures may have arrived in time to influence policy and prevent disaster.
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New Yorkers reject Palin's blithering bigotry
She and her pals use the "Ground Zero mosque" to stir anti-Muslim fear. But the world's greatest city says no
By Joe Conason
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'Reverse Racism' Is a Weapon of Mass Distraction
by Leslie Savan The real creeps are anyone in the media who excuses or erases the role played by Breitbart, Fox News, and the Tea Party blogosphere in smearing Sherrod as a racist.

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

A Change Election—in the Wrong DirectionBy Joe Conason — The furious and frustrated electorate should be careful when they demand change in the upcoming midterm elections—because what they get may well be very different from what they actually want.

The NAACP and the Tea Party’s Flag-BurnersBy E.J. Dionne, Jr. —
Good for the NAACP. We need an honest conversation about the role of race and racism in the tea party. Thanks to a resolution passed this week at the venerable organization’s national convention, we’ll get it.

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Facing extinction: The "responsible Republican"
Warnings about right-wing extremism from Michael Gerson and ousted Bob Inglis are too little -- and much too late
by Joe Conason
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Paul Krugman makes David Brooks look like a fool because Brooks has no idea what he's talking about.
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The Rhyme And The Reason

by Chuck D.

The recent passing of a one-sided immigration bill into law in the state of Arizona has brought a buzz of American cultural attention to Public Enemy. This law is riveted in the bad taste and practice of racial profiling of Latino people in a region, and there still hasn’t been a clear answer as to how that land transferred from indigenous people into the United States of America.

On the Left, a False Choice Fuels the Growing Civil War Over Obama
by Peter Daou
Political consultant, former adviser to Hillary Clinton
This civil war is premised on a false choice: that an incremental legislative approach and a well-articulated grand ideological vision are mutually exclusive. They're not.

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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Steele Crazy After All These Years
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Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

The GOP Goes Off the Rails By Bill Boyarsky — Death wish isn’t too extreme a phrase to describe the Republicans’ recent conduct. What else could explain their behavior this summer?

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Fourth of July 1776, 1964, 2010
by Frank Rich
In the matter of race, we still take steps back and forward in bewildering alternation.
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Surprise, surprise: Tea Partiers are Republicans
by E.J. Dionne
Tea Party people, I have been arguing, are simply right-wing Republicans organized under a new banner.
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We Can’t Afford War By Amy Goodman —
The U.S. will eventually negotiate its withdrawal from Afghanistan. The only difference between now and then will be the number of dead, on all sides, and the amount of (borrowed) money that will be spent.

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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Blame
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

W.Va. Sen. Robert Byrd Dies at 92

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The Wound McChrystal Opened By E.J. Dionne, Jr. —
Gen. Stanley McChrystal put President Barack Obama in an impossible position. That is why McChrystal had to go.

General Discharge By Robert Scheer —
Rolling Stone’s definitive piece on the “Runaway General” establishes the man in charge of the Afghanistan misadventure as an egotistical flake whose half-baked Afghan war-fighting strategy should never have been endorsed.

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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
McChrystal's Balls - Honorable Discharge
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

On BP, Obama makes the pundits look like fools
As commentators fussed over the stagecraft of his BP speech, Barack Obama delivered -- big-time
By Gene Lyons
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Treat Palestinians Like Jews
By Robert Scheer —
If nothing else, this assault on decency by the Israeli government was clearly intended to derail the peace talks that President Barack Obama has encouraged. But instead of calling Israel on its savagery, the U.S. is virtually alone in the world in its embarrassingly mild rebuke.
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Why Israel should have known better
An Israeli journalist wonders why his nation's leaders stupidly ordered the raid on the Mavi Marmara.
by Joe Conason

R.I.P. Dennis Hopper

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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Back in Black - Glenn Beck's Nazi Tourette's
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Glenn to the Mountaintop
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Fox News

Don't invade Kagan's privacy
Elena Kagan is a legal scholar and advocate, not a gay-baiting politician. Her sexuality should not be an issue
By Joe Conason

Singer, actress Lena Horne dies at 92
The first black performer to be signed to a long-term contract by a major Hollywood studio, she went on to achieve international fame as a singer.

Will We Keep Hating the Government?
By E.J. Dionne —
Ever heard the one about the guy who hated government until a deregulated Wall Street crashed, an oil spill devastated the Gulf of Mexico, a coal mine collapsed, and some good police work stopped a terrorist attack?

What We Learned From Times Square
By Joe Conason —
Within hours after the car bomb fizzled in Times Square, the nonstop noise resumed on Fox News and talk radio, warning that the Barack Obama administration is failing to protect us.
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The Reaction by Michael J. W. Sticklings

By the way, if you'll indulge me, this has been quite a week for Republican craziness. Over at my blog, The Reaction, we frequently hand out "Craziest Republican/Conservative of the Day" awards. Here are several from the past few days:

-- Duncan Hunter (for saying American citizens who are the children of illegal immigrants should be deported);

-- Pat Bertroche (for saying that illegal immigrants should be microchipped);

-- Kristia Cavere (for saying that it was Republicans who liberated Europe during WWII); and

-- Leo Berman (for saying that Obama is "God's punishment on us").

This is the new normal in the GOP, which now, with few exceptions, occupies a narrow ideological sliver on the right. It's a party of draconian anti-immigrant laws in Arizona and draconian anti-abortion laws in Oklahoma (and Arizona as well). It's a party that feeds off anger, fear, and ignorance, a party to which deporting American citizens actually seems like a great idea. It's a party that idolizes Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck.

Hopefully voters will remember this in November.

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How Wall Street Creates Socialists
By E.J. Dionne
No leftist polemicist could come up with as damning a description of contemporary capitalism as the contents of an e-mail that Goldman’s Fabrice “Fabulous Fab” Tourre sent to his girlfriend.

It Takes Power to Control Power
By Joe Conason
Discredited as the financial powers are, their wealth alone continues to provide them with wildly disproportionate influence over the political process.

Boycotting Arizona’s Racism
By Amy Goodman
Arizona was the only territory west of Texas to secede from the Union and join the Confederacy during the Civil War. A century later, it fought recognition of the Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday. This week, an anti-immigrant bill was signed into law.
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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Law & Border
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Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Have Conservatives Gone Mad?
by Marc Ambinder
Mainstream conservative voices are embracing theories that are, to use Julian Sanchez's phrase, "untethered" to the real world.
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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Bernie Goldberg Fires Back
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Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

There is no liberal Rush Limbaugh
I didn't have a Sarah Palin moment when asked to name one. My silence was my answer
by Joan Walsh

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Welcome to Confederate History Month *by Frank Rich
Obama opposition increasingly comes wrapped in the racial code that Gov. Robert McDonnell revived in endorsing Confederate History Month.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
A Farewell to Arms
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Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

The Tea Partiers' racial paranoia
Can we stop pretending the anti-Obama movement is a populist, anti-elite uprising?
by Joan Walsh

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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
That's Tariffic
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

The massive (but under-reported) Reagan Administration Corruption
Conservative Republicans are such paragons of virtue and truth that they claim that Bill Clinton's administration was "the most corrupt administration in American history" despite the fact that history contradicts everything about that statement.
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The GOP's southern strategy lives on
Some Republicans seem to want to re-fight the Civil War -- and the civil rights movement, too
by Joan Walsh
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No One Is to Blame for Anything by Frank Rich
Alan Greenspan and Robert Rubin should take responsibility for their actions.

A Voice of Reason by Bob Herbert
We need sane voices to counter right-wing extremism. Next month, one such group of progressive thinkers celebrates its 10th anniversary.

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Exposing Glenn Beck as a Dangerous Fraud
by Bob Cesca
Political Writer, Blogger, and New Media Producer
Beck is a man who only embraces conservatism as a means to further his personal wealth and career as a successful TV goon. He's a faker, yet millions of people every day take his word for it. And it's bad for America.

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The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Say Anything
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Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Reform

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"If I'm going to sing like someone else, then I don't need to sing at all." ~ Billie Holiday (born on this day in 1915)

Kiss net neutrality goodbye. Take action today! The FCC is accepting public comments until Thursday on a proposed regulation that would protect net neutrality.
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Offshore drilling: Did Rahm sell out too soon?
Behind Obama's decision to drill is the same misguided political strategy that came close to killing health reform
by Joe Conason
How to decipher Obama's offshore oil puzzle
by Andrew Leonard
Obama and his base: Who's the maverick now?
by Jill Lawrence, Politicsdaily.com

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