Daily Democratic Wire 2-16-2010

George Wenschhof

This morning, President Barack Obama will tour a Jobs Training Center in Lanham, Maryland - as he continues to emphasize job creation and assistance.

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Senator Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) shocks Democrats by announcing he will not run again - He said in a press conference the bitter partisanship exhibited in Congress today has led him to leave the Senate. Polling had Bayh 20 points ahead of his Republican opponents; former Senator Dan Coates and Representative John Hostettler.


The lateness of his announcement almost guarantees the Democratic candidate for this senate seat will be picked by the Indiana State Democratic Party. Thousands of required signatures due today from a candidate will just not happen. The state party has until June to name a candidate who will now not face a primary contest. Chris Cillizza, who broke the story yesterday, and "The Fix" has more here.

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Top Taliban Commander captured in Pakistan - several days ago, in a joint raid involving the CIA and Pakistan intelligence forces, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar was captured in Karachi, Pakistan. The NY Times was asked by the White house to not report on the capture for several days as they were in the process of acting on valuable information obtained. The NY Times has more here.

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Vice President Joe Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden to travel to the Middle East to encourage the peace process - during the week of march 8, 2010, they will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, Palestinian Authority President Abbas, Egyptian President Mubarak and Jordanian King Abdullah. You can read more here.

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