Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Whenever there are violent incidents between India and Pakistan, they’re worth paying attention to.
* Public revulsion occasionally matters: “The board of AIG decided on Wednesday not to join a lawsuit against the U.S. government over the terms of the company’s bailout, following two days of fevered backlash from Congress and the public over the prospect.”
* Another cabinet vacancy: “Labor Secretary Hilda Solis will not return in President Barack Obama’s second term, the White House confirmed Wednesday. Solis, formerly a California congresswoman, said she made the decision to step down from her role over the holiday season.”
* More on this in the morning: “White House Press Secretary Jay Carney on Wednesday did not specifically rule out the possibility of minting a $1 trillion coin, even as he told reporters that the White House has no backup plan for dealing with the debt ceiling if Congress refuses to act.”
* Bypassing the Hill? “President Obama will likely take executive action in an effort to tamp down the recent rash of gun violence, Vice President Biden said Wednesday.”
* Smart move: “Republican Gov. Susana Martinez says New Mexico will follow provisions of a federal health care law to expand the state’s Medicaid program to potentially provide medical services to 170,000 low-income adults.”
* Must-read piece of the day: “The Eternal Folly of the Bipartisan Debt Fetish.”
* An interesting twist, former Secretary of State Colin Powell will appear on “Meet The Press” this weekend to speak up in support of Chuck Hagel’s Secretary of Defense nomination. * The “47 percent” remarks sure were wrong: 70% of the counties with the fastest-growth in food-stamp aid vote Republican. * And an odd combination for the inauguration: the first Latino — the first openly gay — inaugural poet will appear the same day as a benediction from an Atlanta pastor who’s made anti-gay remarks. Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
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