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Lori Montgomery / Washington Post:
Obama pleads for $50 billion in state, local aid — President Obama urged reluctant lawmakers Saturday to quickly approve nearly $50 billion in emergency aid to state and local governments, saying the money is needed to avoid “massive layoffs of teachers, police and firefighters” and to support the still-fragile economic recovery.
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Maureen Dowd / New York Times:
Isn't It Ironic? — It's funny how things work out sometimes. — The two men running the White House have very different relationships with the press; one is warm and one is frosty. — One's relationship is more JFK, and one's has self-pitying echoes of Nixon.
Jackie Calmes / New York Times:
Obama Plans to Force BP's Hand on Oil Spill Fund — WASHINGTON — President Obama for the first time will address the nation about the ongoing oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday night and outline his plans to legally force BP executives to create an escrow account reserving billions …
Barak Ravid / Haaretz:
Abbas to Obama: I'm against lifting the Gaza naval blockade — The Palestinian president reportedly told Obama that lifting the naval blockade of Gaza would bolster Hamas, a move that shouldn't be done at this stage. — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is opposed to lifting …
New York Times:
The President's Moment — If ever there was a test of President Obama's vision of government — one that cannot solve all problems, but does what people cannot do for themselves — it is this nerve-racking early summer of 2010, with oil spewing into the Gulf of Mexico and far too many Americans out of work for far too long.
Erika Lovley / Politico Live's Blog:
Boehner to Hoyer: Stop Blaming Bush — House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) expressed frustration Sunday on NBC's “Meet the Press” over partisan fighting as lawmakers try to lift the cap that limits how much oil cleanup BP is responsible for, calling it remnants of the Bush administration's “psychology of neglect.”
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Washington Monthly
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Political Punch:
Boehner: Lift Liability Cap for BP — House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, called for completely lifting the liability cap on BP so that the company bears the full cost of the economic damage of the oil spill. — In an EXCLUSIVE “This Week” debate, Boehner and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer …
The Politico:
Obama: Gulf spill ‘echoes 9/11’ — Sounding reflective as he heads into a bruising electoral season, President Barack Obama told POLITICO columnist Roger Simon that the Gulf disaster “echoes 9/11” because it will change the nation's psyche for years to come.
David Brooks / The Atlantic Online:
Teachers Are Fair Game — I started covering education reform in 1983, with the release of the “Nation at Risk” report. In those days everybody had some idea for how we should reorganize the schools or change the curriculum—cut school size, cut class size, create vouchers, create charters …
Discussion:
Open Left
Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:
This Time Is Different — My friend, Mark Mykleby, who works in the Pentagon, shared with me this personal letter to the editor he got published last week in his hometown paper, The Beaufort Gazette in South Carolina. It is the best reaction I've seen to the BP oil spill …
Discussion:
The Glittering Eye
Paul Krugman:
Does Fiscal Austerity Reassure Markets? — Here's a thought I should have had earlier about the debate over whether now is a good time to start fiscal austerity. — For the most part, this debate has been between those like me and Brad DeLong, who assert that budget-cutting …
BBC:
Belgians vote in poll dominated by separatism — Belgium is holding parliamentary elections which could bring the country closer to a constitutional split. — The Flemish separatist party the New Flemish Alliance (NVA) is expected to do well in the vote.
Ethan Bronner / New York Times:
Gaza, Through Fresh Eyes — GAZA — For some, it's the relative modernity — the jazzy cellphone stores and pricey restaurants. For others, it's the endless beaches with children whooping it up. But for nearly everyone who visits Gaza, often with worry of danger and hostility …
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Commentary
Laura Myers / Las Vegas Review-Journal:
Angle to meet with GOP leaders, fundraisers — Sharron Angle will meet with Republican leaders and fundraisers in Washington this week as the GOP nominee for U.S. Senate seeks support for her Tea Party-backed bid to defeat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Times of London:
Revealed: Japan's bribes on whaling — A SUNDAY TIMES investigation has exposed Japan for bribing small nations with cash and prostitutes to gain their support for the mass slaughter of whales. — The undercover investigation found officials from six countries were willing to consider selling …