First Read

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-24T23:08:00Z

As we've mentioned, we'll be taking a break -- beginning tomorrow -- for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. We'll return bright and early Monday, although we'll update the blog as news warrants. Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving. ...(read more)

2010 update: The musical chairs game in CT

2009-11-24T23:07:00Z

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From NBC's Ali Weinberg
COLORADO: Local pollster and analyst Floyd Ciruli tells Human Events that the state's Republican Party "has unified at a very early stage" of the 2010 campaigns. Two GOP gubernatorial contendors, Josh Penry and Tom Tancredo, declined to run and have endorsed former Rep. Scott McInnis. And yesterday, the state party unveiled "a conservative set of principles aimed at boosting the party's prospects in 2010 just as the Contract with America did for House Republicans in 1994."

CONNECTICUT: Connecticut's musical chairs game continues, the Hartford Courant says. The latest to switch races is Sam Caligiuri, who was until this afternoon running for the Republican Senate nomination. He'll now be campaigning for the state's 5th Congressional seat. In a statement, Caligiuri wrote: "I have been joined in that race by other Republican candidates for whom I have come to have a great deal of respect, and who I have concluded are in a better position than I am to defeat Senator Dodd."
...(read more)

Here's the guest list

2009-11-24T23:05:00Z

From NBC's Mark Murray
The White House -- finally! -- has released its guest list for tonight's state dinner.
Among the politicians: Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Sen. Chris Dodd, and Sen. Claire McCaskill.

Among the members of the media: NBC's Brian Williams, CBS's Katie Couric, the New York Times' Tom Friedman, CNN's Sanjay Gupta, and ABC's Robin Roberts.

Among the celebrities/moguls: David Geffen, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Gayle King, M. Night Shyamalan, and Steven Spielberg.

Below is the entire list...

...(read more)

HCAN gives thanks and also attacks

2009-11-24T22:47:00Z

From NBC's Mark MurrayThe liberal-leaning group Health Care for American Now (HCAN) is up with a new TV ad in Arkansas that thanks Democratic Sens. Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor for "standing up to the insurance industry" and voting to proceed on debating the Senate health-care bill. But HCAN is also airing a TV ad in Nebraska blasting GOP Sen. Mike Johanns for voting to block debate on the bill. "Johanns voted to stop the debate on health insurance reform from even taking place," the ad's narrator...(read more)

Obama wants to 'finish' Afghan job

2009-11-24T19:15:00Z

From NBC's Athena Jones
After weeks of high-level meetings to review his administration's strategy in Afghanistan, President Obama said he would announce his troop decision soon and declared his intention to finish a job that began more than eight years ago.

The main goal in the region remains the same: to destroy and dismantle al Qaeda and prevent the group and its extremist allies from operating effectively. After Thanksgiving -- and likely as soon as Dec. 1 -- the president plans to explain the rationale behind his decision to send what it expected to be thousands more troops to Afghanistan.

"After eight years, some of those years in which we did not have I think either the resources or the strategy to get the job done, it is my intention to finish the job," Obama said today at a joint news conference with India Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. "And I feel very confident that when the American people hear a clear rationale for what we're doing there and how we intend to achieve our goals, that they will be supportive."

...(read more)

Practically, a purity test problem

2009-11-24T19:04:00Z

From NBC's Domenico MontanaroThe New York Times' Nagourney makes a good point about why that GOP purity test might be a bad idea -- for those who care about winning -- for the party. He takes a look at how it would affect, for example, moderate congressman Mike Castle, who is Republicans' best chance at winning Vice President Joe Biden's former Senate seat in Delaware: Mr. Castle in many ways is a text-book example of why some Republicans think the party should avoid such purity tests. He appears...(read more)

Philippines political massacre

2009-11-24T17:18:00Z

From NBC's Domenico MontanaroYou thought politics in this country was rough. Take note, per AP, of what's happening in the Philippines: Two southern provinces were placed under emergency rule Tuesday as Filipino security forces unearthed more bodies from one of the worst incidents of election violence in the nation's history, pushing the death toll to 46. Police and soldiers found 22 bodies in a hillside mass grave Tuesday, adding to the 24 bullet-riddled bodies recovered near the scene of Monday's...(read more)

Schmidt, Plouffe named center fellows

2009-11-24T16:59:00Z

From NBC's Domenico MontanaroIn August of 2008, Bloomberg News headlined one of their stories this way: "Harvard? Yale? No, Delaware School Is New Epicenter of Politics." That's because both Steve Schmidt (who ran day-to-day operations for the McCain campaign), David Plouffe (Obama's campaign manager), as well as Obama's vice presidential running mate Joe Biden all attended the University of Delaware, about an hour and a half north of the Beltway. (Biden's the only one of the three to graduate....(read more)

Obama on US-India relationship

2009-11-24T16:43:00Z

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro President Obama welcomed India's Prime Minister Singh to the White House this morning. He stressed the importance of the U.S.'s relationship with India, mentioning briefly climate change and only alluding to its regional significance as it relates to Pakistan in particular. Pakistan and India are main rivals, clashing often over the disputed Kashmir region. India also wants more done by the Pakistanis to hold accountable those responsible for the deadly Mumbai bombings....(read more)

First thoughts: Next week's decision

2009-11-24T14:22:00Z

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg*** Next week’s decision: On “TODAY,” NBC’s Savannah Guthrie reported that President Obama is set to announce his decision on Afghanistan-Pakistan next week (likely on Tuesday, Dec. 1), and he’ll likely do it via a primetime address (although it probably won’t be from the Oval Office). Guthrie’s reporting comes after Obama last night concluded his ninth meeting with his national security team on Afghanistan. "After completing a rigorous...(read more)