MORNING READ

Democratic proposals to bailout automakers earn skepticism from bloggers on both sides. A bailout may just prolong the companies’ inevitable failures, which would lead to trouble for their employees, according to bloggers. Democrat Mark Begich has overtaken Sen. Ted Stevens (R) in the Alaska Senate race, liberal bloggers note. Republicans’ last hope of keeping Democrats from getting to 60 seats may rest with Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), conservative bloggers write.

While Democrats and President-elect Barack Obama support more rescue money for Detroit, the car companies can’t survive until they whittle down the massive employee compensation packages they owe, writes The Corner’s Larry Kudlow. Letting General Motors file for bankruptcy could be one option, but bankruptcy laws wouldn’t provide much guidance for how to deal with the 479,000 retirees and their spouses collecting pensions, writes Atrios, who suggests new bankruptcy laws.

After Alaska resumed vote counting on Wednesday, Begich erased Stevens’s 3,000-vote lead and is now ahead by 814 votes, writes Swing State Project’s James L. More than 35,000 votes remain uncounted, and most of them come from areas where Begich is expected to do well, including Anchorage, his home city. FiveThirtyEight’s Sean Quinn now calls Begich the “overwhelming favorite” to win the seat. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) should join Sens. Chambliss and Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) in calling for the ouster of Stevens, a convicted felon, from the Senate, writes Townhall’s Amanda Carpenter.

Begich’s lead and Democrat Al Franken’s “better than even” chance of overtaking Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) in a recount means that a Chambliss victory in the Georgia runoff may be needed to keep Democrats from a filibuster-proof majority, writes Jonathan Garthwaite at Townhall. Chambliss is in trouble now that Democrat Jim Martin is running an ad reminding voters of the “reprehensible” campaign the Republican ran six years ago against Sen. Max Cleland (D), writes Taylor Marsh.

FROM THE BLOGS:
B to the K – Atrios, Eschaton
Paulson’s Adjustments Better than Obama’s – L. Kudlow, The Corner
Just Great – Pejman Yousefzadeh, RedState
Begich Leads by 814 Votes – James L., Swing State Project
Begich Now An Overwhelming Favorite – Sean Quinn, FiveThirtyEight
Georgia Only In Way of 60 Votes – J. Garthwaite, Townhall
Chambliss in Trouble – Taylor Marsh
Calling The Top Republican in America – A. Carpenter, Townhall
Is This The Right’s MoveOn? Really? – T. Beeton, MyDD

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:
Bailout’s Next Phase: Consumers – Wall Street Journal
Showdown Begins over Lifeline to Automakers – Washington Post
Grab a Chair – Washington Post
Alaska Senator Now Trails in Votes – New York Times