Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Europe: “Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and President Nicolas Sarkozy of France warned Greece on Monday that it needed to move forward with promised reforms or risk losing the next installment of badly needed bailout funds.”
* Egypt: “Poised to dominate the new Parliament here, Egypt’s largest Islamist group is putting off an expected confrontation with Egypt’s military rulers, keeping its distance from more radical Islamist parties and hoping that the United States will continue to support the country financially, a top leader of the group’s political arm said Sunday.”
* Good move: “Fending off pressure from the mining industry and congressional Republicans, the Obama administration is moving forward with a plan to ban new uranium mining claims on 1 million acres near the Grand Canyon. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is expected to finalize a 20-year ban on new mining claims on public land surrounding the Grand Canyon at an event Monday in Washington.”
* A beautiful sight: “The sun had fallen and a crowd had gathered on a chilly Sunday night on the mall at the University of Arizona, for the last event of a weekend commemorating the first anniversary of the mass shooting here one year ago. The vigil began with the Pledge of the Allegiance. Led by Representative Gabrielle Giffords.”
* It’s a good thing Obama didn’t listen to Republicans on the auto industry: “Welcome to an unlikely beacon of hope for the global auto industry — Detroit. Executives arriving this week for the Detroit auto show find a U.S. car market that has morphed from meltdown three years ago to a safe haven as concerns grow about the stability of other big economies, from Europe to China.”
* He’s really not a good governor: “An audit shows NJ Transit took a $297 million loss after Gov. Chris Christie scrapped the Hudson River rail tunnel project in 2010.”
* Is Pat Buchanan’s career at MSNBC over? It sure looks like it.
* It’s not unreasonable to wonder if ABC News just isn’t good at moderating debates for presidential candidates.
* Penn State’s secrecy problem: “The sexual abuse scandal at Penn State reflects a culture of secrecy at the football powerhouse, according to a former Penn State trustee.”
* Fox News’ graphics department continues to be unintentionally amusing.
* Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) argued on CNN this morning that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was problematic because of its “unintended consequences.” Such as? “For example,” he said, “I can’t have a cigar bar anymore.”
Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
