01.26.11 -- 11:49PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (8)

What Happened?

Back in the gory days of the financial crisis Sir Allen Stanford, a Texan who operated investments from Antigua, was the runner-up to Bernie Madoff as the arch-ponzi schemer of the day. Today a federal judge ruled that he is not currently competent to stand trial because of traumatic brain injury, addiction to anti-anxiety medication and major depressive disorder.

--Josh Marshall

01.26.11 -- 6:18PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (12)

Case Closed?

The House Ethics Committee dismisses cases against seven congressmen being investigated for fundraising from the financial services industry in the immediate run-up to the vote on financial regulatory reform.

--David Kurtz

01.26.11 -- 4:48PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (5)

Not Warp Speed But It's Somthin'

Lockheed research labs have just opened something that for the Trek geeks among us sounds a lot like a Holodeck.

--Josh Marshall

01.26.11 -- 3:59PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (13)

Counterprogramming

Unreformed Bush era DOJ politicizer now claims the Obama Justice Department is the one that's really politicized.

--David Kurtz

01.26.11 -- 3:52PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (14)

Fav Story of the Day

This is one of those stories at the critical intersection of science fiction, technology and parody. Political Computer scientists working for the advanced research arm of the Air Force have devised a computer forecasting program they claim can accurately predict civil unrest and domestic insurrections in countries around the world.

--Josh Marshall

01.26.11 -- 3:42PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (18)

You Don't Say

Ted Haggard: I'm probably what the kids call 'bisexual'.

--Josh Marshall

01.26.11 -- 12:25PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (40)

'Balloon Head'

TPM fave Sal Russo, whose illustrious career as a Republican operative includes being a co-founder of the Tea Party Express, had an epic encounter with Chris Matthews on Hardball. The topic: Michele Bachmann. Watch.

--David Kurtz

01.26.11 -- 12:16PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (11)

Would That Really Work?

That undetonated bomb discovered in Spokane along a Martin Luther King Day parade route may have been infused with a blood-thinning chemical found in rat poison in an effort to inflict worse injuries, the local sheriff says.

--David Kurtz

01.26.11 -- 11:34AM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (40)

More Minimal Than Ever

Mark Bittman brings his New York Times food column -- The Minimalist -- to an end after 13 years.

I am grateful to him for introducing me and thousands of other readers to Jim Lahey's revolutionary bread recipe and to the pleasure of bypassing Williams-Sonoma in favor of the local restaurant supply store.

If you were put off by the in-your-face, competitive reality cooking shows, there was Bittman, who kept it pleasurable, interesting and mostly unpretentious. If I had the choice between dining out at New York's hottest restaurant or shooting the shit with Bittman over a sizzling sauté pan in a cramped apartment kitchen, I'd take Bittman.

His next gig is taking on the agro-industrial complex from the Times' Opinion section. That should be fun, too.

--David Kurtz

01.26.11 -- 10:57AM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (7)

SLIDESHOW: Are We All BFF Now?

--David Kurtz

01.26.11 -- 9:27AM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (2)

Get Your SOTU Fix

Miss any of the action last night? Watch the president's State of the Union address, the official Republican response from Paul Ryan, and Michele Bachmann's strange Tea Party response.

--Ben Frumin

01.26.11 -- 9:06AM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (13)

SLIDESHOW: 'March For Life'

--Ben Frumin

01.26.11 -- 9:02AM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (6)

The Bachmann Response

Watch it here.

--Ben Frumin

01.25.11 -- 10:50PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (1103)

Bachmann Trainwreck Blogging

10:50 PM: I'm not even sure what to say about this.

--Josh Marshall

01.25.11 -- 10:18PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (202)

So What'd You Think?

So there it is. Let us know what you made of the speech.

CNN talking heads saying president didn't come through on deficits. I guess they may have already forgotten about their poll?

Late Update: Just realizing CNN seems to have been the only network get punk'd by Michele Bachmann's 'official' Tea Party SOTU response. Is that right?

Late Late Update: Someone please tell Wolf to stop vamping about CNN being the only network to run the Bachmann 'response'.

--Josh Marshall

01.25.11 -- 9:53PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (28)

SOTU Live Blogging, Part 2

9:51 PM: Obama's line on Social Security strikes me as somewhat ambiguous.

9:57 PM: Best laugh line of the evening, Politico's write up of National Journal's decision to break the White House speech embargo ...

National Journal editor in chief Ron Fournier told POLITICO he didn't reach out to the White House before posting the text, and was only concerned about the draft's accuracy. "I think that my only concern was that this was an accurate draft of the speech -- were the sources credible? I talked to our reporter, and was assured that it was a credible and accurate draft, and we moved it out."

"As a courtesy, I do wish I had given the White House a heads-up. Normally, anytime I'm part of a breaking news story, I do that," Fournier said.

I had the timing of this a bit off. I guess it would only have been checking it against the advance release excerpts.

--Josh Marshall

01.25.11 -- 9:00PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (40)

SOTU Live Blogging

9:01 PM: Lapping up the collegiality commentary.

9:08 PM: Feel like the mics are picking up more chatter this year. President Obama was just joking with Secy. Clinton about how he doesn't even need to give the speech now, everybody's read it. (One of the DC pubs broke the rules -- by any reasonable standard -- and released it while the embargo was still in effect.)

9:17 PM: What is that silver tray in front of Speaker Boehner with like glasses in it?

9:21 PM: Obama showing solid readings on MoJometer.

9:22 PM: With Obama talking about winning the future, I bet folks at Politico feel sheepish and embarrassed only trying to win the morning.

9:27 PM: Who will be first pol to call on Obama to apologize for calling oil "yesterday's energy"?

9:37 PM: For sake of clarity, I will from now on abbreviate 'win the future' as WTF.

--Josh Marshall

01.25.11 -- 8:51PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (62)

Telling and Hilarious

I was just watching CNN's pre-game show. And the anchor was practically flabbergasted reading the results of their own poll which showed that people overwhelmingly think protecting Social Security is a bigger priority than the deficit. Like by 3 to 1. Shocking. Shocking. Only not shocking at all if you follow public opinion data as opposed to Sunday morning TV.

--Josh Marshall

01.25.11 -- 8:39PM // RECOMMEND RECOMMEND (7)

Reporters' Sputnik Moment

Getting word from our reporters on the Hill that journalists will be allowed to bring laptops into the House chamber to cover the State of the Union address tonight. That would be a first. Reporters are barred from bringing any electronic devices into the House and Senate chambers.

The media covering Congress are divided into different camps -- TV, dailies, periodicals -- each overseen by its own separate press gallery (distinctions that are getting ever harder to make). The gallery staffs are very professional and abide by the rules. So this would be a giant step for digital media types seeking to escape the surly bonds of pen and pad.

--David Kurtz