1) Nancy Scola presents a very important view of lobbyist influence in Congress. She writes about lawmakers, “They’re not crooks, they’re idiots! So many members of Congress — too many of them — outsource their thinking, and voting, on all but the matters most central to their own affairs, to the think tanks and lobbyists who are paid, well, to produce articulate and generally verifiable (though, naturally, quite biased) talking points, background memoranda, and opening statements on whichever topics matter most to their interests.”

2) Another good statement of fact that gets overlooked, particularly in the “Washington-is-broken” themed moment, Ezra Klein writes, “I continue to think the degree to which Americans hate watching the legislative process is a bigger issue than either side realizes.”

3) Poli-Sci visual designer Edward Tuffte was nominated to the Recovery Independent Advisory Panel to advise the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, which oversees the disclosure and accountability of stimulus data.