Thursday Open Thread [1.16.14]

According to the Washington Post, President Obama “is expected to announce some new limits on the National Security Agency program that collects billions of Americans’ phone records, but he will call on Congress to help determine the program’s future, according to current and former officials familiar with the administration’s plans.”

“Obama has concluded that the program has value as a counterterrorism tool, the officials said, but is also confronting difficult political realities. The program’s sweeping nature has prompted serious privacy concerns, and a divided Congress is unlikely to renew it when the law underpinning the program expires next year.”

I view this as a punt with good consequences.

Bridgegate has boosted Hillary in 2016. A new NBC/Marist Poll has found that the former Secretary of State now leads New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) 50% to 37%. Last month, Hillary’s lead was only 3 points, 48% to 45%.

Speaking of Hillary, the bipartisan Senate Benghazi report, released today, has debunked all the right wing conspiracy theories. Not that truth and facts matter to the right wing.

More evidence that Brian Schweitzer is just a Clinton plant: He wants to run in a Democratic primary attacking everything President Obama has done. He wants to run as the anti-Obama. I guess he is unaware that, among Democrats, who are the voters in a Democratic primary, the President gets something like 80-90% approval. So, if he does run, that would position Hillary as the defender of Obama, and his heir.