Archive for October, 2009

WHY CREIGH DEEDS IS LOSING: “It’s not that Bob McDonnell can sincerely compliment his opponent; it’s that Creigh Deeds doesn’t dare.”

CHANGE: Top Obama fundraisers get posts. “More than 40% of President Obama’s top-level fundraisers have secured posts in his administration, from key executive branch jobs to diplomatic postings in countries such as France, Spain and the Bahamas, a USA TODAY analysis finds.”

MURTHA / PMA UPDATE: Seven members of House defense subcommittee scrutinized by ethics investigators.

The investigations by two separate ethics offices include an examination of the powerful subcommittee chairman, John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), as well as others who helped the PMA Group secure earmarks for clients. The lawmakers received campaign contributions from the firm and its clients. Records obtained by The Washington Post show that the members under scrutiny also include Peter J. Visclosky (D-Ind.), James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.), Norm Dicks (D-Wash.), Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) , C.W. Bill Young (R-Fla.) and Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.).

The records also indicate that the House ethics committee staff recently interviewed the staff of Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) about the lawmaker’s allegation that a PMA lobbyist threatened him in 2007 when he resisted steering federal funds to a PMA client. The lobbyist told a Nunes staffer that if the lawmaker didn’t help, the defense contractor would move out of Nunes’s district and take dozens of jobs with him.

Read the whole thing.

STUDENT JOURNALISTS FACE CHARGES FOR REPORTING. More here.

MEGAN MCARDLE:

So GDP grew at 3.5% in the third quarter? Are we out of the woods yet?

Maybe. But I wouldn’t bet on it.

Me neither.

WELL, I’VE ACTUALLY STARTED MY CHRISTMAS SHOPPING, so I guess this Christmas toy list isn’t too early.

THE NINE MOST ECCENTRIC EXOPLANETS found so far. I think it’s just cool that you can make a list like this.

CAN THE UNIVERSITIES BE SAVED? A debate.