Top Items:
William Kristol / Weekly Standard:
A Letter to Michael Steele — You are, I know, a patriot. So I ask you to consider, over this July 4 weekend, doing an act of service for the country you love: Resign as chairman of the Republican party. — Your tenure has of course been marked by gaffes and embarrassments …
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Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
RNC chairman: Obama pursued Afghanistan war ‘trying to be cute’ — Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele was caught on video at a fundraiser in Connecticut on Thursday raising doubts about the war in Afghanistan. — The Democratic National Committee (DNC) pushed out the video …
Eric Kleefeld / TPMDC:
Steele Says We Shouldn't Be In Afghanistan; Calls It Obama's War Of Choice — Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele may be misremembering exactly how and when the Afghanistan war began. — At a Republican Party fundraiser in Connecticut on Thursday, Steele declared …
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Talking Points Memo, West Virginia Blue, Wonkette, Newshoggers.com and FrumForum
Brian Beutler / TPMDC:
Top Republicans Pile On Steele, Call For His Ouster — Republicans are furious with RNC Chairman Michael Steele, who was caught on camera saying that the war in Afghanistan is a doomed effort launched by President Obama. Steele has no shortage of enemies in the GOP and many of them sense an opportunity here.
Discussion:
Ben Smith's Blog, The Atlantic Online, Guardian, Talking Points Memo, The Stranger … and Daily Kos
Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Dems say Steele is “rooting for failure.” Really, Dems? — By all means, Dems should go on the attack against Michael Steele for his wild comments about Afghanistan. But do they really think it's a good idea to say he's for cutting and running, is “rooting for failure” and is “betting against our troops”?
Discussion:
Washington Monthly
Barbara Morrill / Daily Kos:
Michael Steele: Afghanistan “was a war of Obama's choosing” — It's long been clear that the Republican Party's strategy since Barack Obama became president was to obstruct and attack, no matter what the issue, no matter what the reality. But this video goes beyond any level of mendacity we've seen over the past 18 months.
Michael Powell / New York Times:
U.S. Economy Shed 125,000 Jobs in June; Rate Is 9.5% — The United States added just 83,000 private-sector jobs in June, a dishearteningly low number that could add to the growing number of economists who warn that the economic recovery is stalling. — Multimedia
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Ezra Klein:
Economy lost 125,000 jobs and 652,000 workers in June — A brutal unemployment report this month. Payrolls dropped by 125,000. In another one of those unwanted lessons in how we calculate unemployment data, the unemployment rate dropped from 9.7 percent to 9.5 percent — but not because people got hired.
Christina Romer / White House.gov Blog Feed:
The Employment Situation in June — Today's employment report shows continued signs of gradual labor market recovery. Private nonfarm payroll employment increased by 83,000 in June and the unemployment rate fell two-tenths of a percentage point to 9.5%. June marks the sixth month in a row …
Discussion:
The White House, TalkLeft, The Swamp, The Washington Independent, Democratic National Committee, Pirate's Cove and D.C. Now
USA Today:
What is the Tea Party? A growing state of mind — WASHINGTON — The “Tea Party” is less a classic political movement than a frustrated state of mind. — A year and a half after the idea of a Tea Party burst into view, three of 10 Americans describe themselves in the USA TODAY/Gallup Poll …
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Frank Newport / Gallup:
Tea Party Supporters Overlap Republican Base — Eight out of 10 Tea Party supporters are Republicans — PRINCETON, NJ — There is significant overlap between Americans who identify as supporters of the Tea Party movement and those who identify as conservative Republicans.
Discussion:
Democratic Strategist, PostPartisan, Hullabaloo, Real Clear Politics, Daily Kos and Balloon Juice
Adam Liptak / New York Times:
Kagan Reminds Senators: Legislation Is Your Job — WASHINGTON — Supreme Court confirmation hearings are usually designed to probe a nominee's conception of the role of the justices. But this week's questioning of Elena Kagan turned into a tutorial on Congressional responsibility.
Discussion:
The Politico, CNN, DISSENTING JUSTICE, Indecision Forever, Prairie Weather and The Huffington Post
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Charlie Cook / National Journal Online:
Hurricane GOP On The Way — MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT IT: THERE IS A WAVE OUT THERE, AND FOR DEMOCRATS, THE HOUSE IS, AT BEST, TEETERING ON THE EDGE. — Imagine sitting in Washington's Verizon Center, listening blissfully to Carole King and James Taylor, thanks to a fast-thinking friend who managed to score four floor seats.
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
Myths of Austerity — When I was young and naïve, I believed that important people took positions based on careful consideration of the options. Now I know better. Much of what Serious People believe rests on prejudices, not analysis. And these prejudices are subject to fads and fashions.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Hit & Run, DailyHowler.com, The Confluence, Taylor Marsh and Prairie Weather
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Motoko Rich / New York Times:
Factory Jobs Return, but Employers Find Skills Shortage — BEDFORD, Ohio — Factory owners have been adding jobs slowly but steadily since the beginning of the year, giving a lift to the fragile economic recovery. And because they laid off so many workers — more than two million since the end of 2007 …
Discussion:
Economix, Clusterstock, FrumForum, Angry Bear, Democracy in America, The Glittering Eye, Don Surber and Eschaton
Michelle Malkin:
Assimilation and the Founding Fathers — As we head into Independence Day weekend, my column today reflects on the other “A” word missing from the immigration debate: Assimilation. — Assimilation and the Founding Fathers — by Michelle Malkin — Creators Syndicate — Copyright 2010
Fred Lucas / CNSNews:
Congressional Report Claims Administration Misled About Efforts on Oil Spill — (CNSNews.com) - Billy Nungesser, president of New Orleans' Plaquemines Parish, sensed that a chart showing 140 oil skimmers at work — a chart given to him by BP and the Coast Guard — was “somewhat inaccurate.”
Discussion:
Michelle Malkin, Questions and Observations, Townhall.com, Weasel Zippers and Left Coast Rebel
Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Broadband Grants — It's good that this is happening, but sad to see it happening so late in the game considering when the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was passed: … I think this episode highlights some of the tensions and problems that have plagued our efforts at doing discretionary fiscal stimulus on an adequate scale.
RELATED:
Ron Brynaert / Raw Story:
Exclusive: Washington Post fails to disclose blogger's ties to White House — UPDATE: Washington Post responds, promises it will require full disclosure from all “Leadership” contributors — Kris Coratti, Communications Director of The Washington Post, issued this statement in response to Raw Story's report.
Moni Basu / CNN:
Death by stoning imminent for Iranian woman, attorney says — (CNN) — Sakineh Mohammadie Ashtiani, a mother of two, is waiting to die in Iran by a method of execution described by her lawyer as “barbaric” — stoning. — She will be buried up to her chest, deeper than a man would be …