Afternoon News Bytes: Jan. 23, 2012 | Sojourners

Afternoon News Bytes: Jan. 23, 2012

THE HUFFINGTON POST: Dear Mr. President: Another Chance To Fight Poverty (OPINION)
Dear Mr. President: As you near the State of the Union Address, I wanted to write again this year and urge you to use the opportunity to specifically address issues of poverty and to re-confirm your 2008 pledge to cut poverty in half within ten years.
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DAILY KOS: Elections Morning Digest: Gabby Giffords Will Resign From Congress This Week
In case you missed it, Democratic Rep. Gabby Giffords announced that she would resign from Congress this week, to focus on recovering from the near-fatal assassination attempt where she was shot in the head a little over a year ago. She posted an extremely moving video in which she says: "I'm getting better. Every day, my spirit is high. I will return and we will work together for Arizona and this great country."
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MOTHER JONES: Occupy's Latest Target: Citizens United
From Tennessee to DC, New York City to Seattle, Saturday marked one of the biggest days of protest around the issue of money in politics and corporate power in America.
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CNN: In Depth: Where Money And Politics Collide                
You know that a news story has broken through, as we like to say in the journalism business, when Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart start playing it for laughs. In the last few weeks, the dynamic duo of Comedy Central has had a field day with the subject of super PACs, those fundraising machines that can raise unlimited donations to fund political ads, provided that they are not officially affiliated with a specific candidate.
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THE ATLANTIC: How The World Could—And Maybe Should—Intervene In Syria
In his article on possible intervention in Syria, Steven Cook has broached a subject that I agree must be raised. He forces us to confront the possibility -- he would argue the probability -- that the Western mantra of the inevitability of Assad's fall is both the triumph of hope over expectation and a cover for not taking more direct action to help the Syrian opposition.
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THE NEW YORK TIMES: Is Our Economy Healing?
How goes the state of the union? Well, the state of the economy remains terrible. Three years after President Obama’s inauguration and two and a half years since the official end of the recession, unemployment remains painfully high.
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THE HILL: Brown, Warren Agree To Anti-Super-PAC Pledge, Other Candidates Could Follow
Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown (R) and his Democratic rival, Elizabeth Warren, have reached a groundbreaking agreement to deter super PACs and outside groups from dominating their Senate race with millions of dollars of ads, Brown said Monday.
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THE HUFFINGTON POST: Florida Primary 2012 Likely To Shift GOP Candidates' Focus To Environment
Four years after the GOP's rallying cry became "drill, baby, drill," environmental issues have barely registered a blip in this Republican presidential primary. That's likely to change as the race turns to Florida.
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NPR: Candidates' Stance On Immigration Reform Scrutinized Ahead Of Florida Primary
The issue of immigration reform, which simmered mildly during the first three Republican presidential contests, appears ready to boil over now that the candidates have reached Florida for the state's Jan. 31 primary.
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