Top Items:
David Leonhardt / New York Times:
Do-Nothing Congress as a Cure — A trick question: If Congress takes no action in coming years, what will happen to the budget deficit? — It will shrink — and shrink a lot. This simple fact may offer the best hope for deficit reduction. — As federal law currently stands …
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Annie Lowrey / Slate:
How Congress can balance the budget in eight years by literally doing nothing. This is not a joke. — The Simpson-Bowles blue-ribbon deficit commission longs to slash Social Security and defense spending. The Bipartisan Policy Center's Alice Rivlin and Peter Domenici yearn for a value-added tax.
Discussion:
Derek Wallbank, Capital Gains and Games blogs, The Atlantic Online and The New Republic
Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Obama speech to focus on four steps for fiscal reform — In a major speech Wednesday on fiscal policy, President Obama will lay out four steps he thinks the federal government should take if it wants to balance its budget. — Obama will talk about the need to keep domestic spending low …
Discussion:
The Politico and AMERICAblog News
Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
GOP senators: Raise retirement age to 70 — Three Republican senators on Wednesday will propose a Social Security reform package that would raise the retirement age to 70 and cut benefits for the wealthy. — Sens. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Rand Paul (Ky.) and Mike Lee (Utah) …
Discussion:
Cubachi, The Politico, The Hill, Hot Air, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/* and Liberty Pundits Blog
Mike Lillis / The Hill:
Left's angst grows over Obama's shift — Anxiety over President Obama's shift to the political center is threatening to alienate the White House's liberal base. — As Obama prepares Wednesday to outline his deficit reduction strategy, liberals worry he'll embrace Medicare and Medicaid cuts …
Discussion:
Sky Dancing, Washington Post, Taylor Marsh, msnbc.com, Prairie Weather and JammieWearingFool
Wall Street Journal:
Deficit Speech Will Be Lightning Rod
Deficit Speech Will Be Lightning Rod
Discussion:
Wake up America, dallasmorningviewsblog …, Pirate's Cove and Agence France Presse
Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:
Progressive Group To Supporters: Withhold Donations To Obama If He Cuts Medicare, Medicaid
Progressive Group To Supporters: Withhold Donations To Obama If He Cuts Medicare, Medicaid
Discussion:
NewsBusters.org, Washington Post and Weasel Zippers
Alan Silverleib / CNN:
Obama to call for tax hikes in deficit fight
Obama to call for tax hikes in deficit fight
Discussion:
Firedoglake, The Moderate Voice, The Gateway Pundit, Mother Jones and This Just In
Ben White / The Politico:
Wall Street executives warn John Boehner on debt limit — NEW YORK — Republicans are growing increasingly concerned about the impact a bruising fight over raising the nation's $14.29 trillion debt ceiling could have on U.S. financial markets. — House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Crooks and Liars, The Moderate Voice, Weigel, Riehl World View, The Other McCain and Daily Kos
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Terence P. Jeffrey / CNSNews:
Cantor in 2010: ‘Beyond Comprehension’ To Lift Debt Limit to $14.294 Trillion
Cantor in 2010: ‘Beyond Comprehension’ To Lift Debt Limit to $14.294 Trillion
Discussion:
protein wisdom
Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Dems revive same line of attack against Boehner in debt ceiling fight
Dems revive same line of attack against Boehner in debt ceiling fight
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers
Matthew Tully / Indianapolis Star:
Will Daniels seek presidency? Sounds like it — Wearing a green jacket that made him look like he'd just won the Masters, Gov. Mitch Daniels on Tuesday talked about the “savage process” politicians go through when running for president, and about the “certainty of hurtful things” occurring to the families of those seeking the job.
Discussion:
Ballot Box, The Daily Caller, National Review, Hotline On Call and Cafe Hayek
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Mary Beth Schneider / Indianapolis Star:
Daniels' presidential run would take on big issues — But governor says he still hasn't decided on 2012 campaign — Gov. Mitch Daniels' campaign for president would be a crusade against federal debt and for major entitlement reform — if, that is, he runs.
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, msnbc.com, CNN and Taegan Goddard's …
Samuel Winnacker / genewscenters.com:
GE Responds to Public Outcry - Will Donate Entire $3.2 Billion Tax Refund to Help Offset Cuts and Save American Jobs — Fairfield, CT, 13th April, 2011- GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt has informed the Obama administration that the company will be gifting its entire 2010 tax refund, worth $3.2 Billion …
Discussion:
GOOD, Mediaite, The Raw Story and Poynter
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Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
Obama's “bad negotiating” is actually shrewd negotiating — In December, President Obama signed legislation to extend hundreds of billions of dollars in Bush tax cuts, benefiting the wealthiest Americans. Last week, Obama agreed to billions of dollars in cuts that will impose the greatest burden on the poorest Americans.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, TalkLeft, Hullabaloo and Washington Post
Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:
Pray. Hope. Prepare. — When I was in Cairo during the Egyptian uprising, I wanted to change hotels one day to be closer to the action and called the Marriott to see if it had any openings. The young-sounding Egyptian woman who spoke with me from the reservations department offered …
Discussion:
Hit & Run, The New Republic, Salon and National Review
Susan Crabtree / TPMDC:
Graham Vows To ‘Tie Senate In Knots’ Over $50K Left Out Of Budget Deal — Not all Republicans were celebrating Tuesday about the fine print of the $38.5 billion in cuts House Republicans managed to wrangle in last week's 11th-hour budget showdown. Tea Party loyalists who wanted tens …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Business Week, The Moderate Voice, Talking Points Memo, Booman Tribune and Outside the Beltway
John Melloy / Fast Money:
Inflation Actually Near 10% Using Older Measure — After former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker was appointed in 1979, the consumer price index surged into the double digits, causing the now revered Fed Chief to double the benchmark interest rate in order to break the back of inflation.
Discussion:
The Big Picture, Sweetness & Light, Hit & Run, Doug Ross and Don Surber
Quinnipiac University:
New York's Cuomo Outscores Christie, Other Governors In States Polled By Quinnipiac University; More New Yorkers Approve Of New State Budget — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has a 64 - 16 percent job approval rating among registered voters, higher than the governors in any state polled by Quinnipiac University so far this year.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice and CNN
The Daily Beast:
Sidney Harman 1918-2011 — Sidney Harman died last night of complications from acute myeloid leukemia at the young age of almost 93. He first learned of his illness one month ago and remained vigorously engaged as Executive Chairman of Newsweek, and Chairman of the Academy for Polymathic Study …
Discussion:
Blogs and Stories, New York Times, USA Today, DealBook, Deadline.com, Washington Post, Mixed Media, Gawker and The Daily Dish, more at Mediagazer »
Eric Lichtblau / New York Times:
Lobbyists Won Key Concessions in Budget Deal — WASHINGTON — At a quarter till midnight last Friday, with a deal to avert a government shutdown barely an hour old, Senator Harry Reid phoned a fellow Democratic senator, Ron Wyden, at home and startled him with some bad news.
Andrew Malcolm / Top of the Ticket:
Why Obama was forced to give today's deficit speech — If President Obama is in political trouble, just wait a minute. He'll give a speech. He thinks speech-making is his best skill and clearly prefers campaigning over presidenting at a desk. — Oh, look! Obama's giving another speech this afternoon.
Discussion:
Corrente and Firedoglake
Ann Barnhardt / American Thinker:
The Keystone of the Islamic Milieu: Inbreeding — The darkest hour is just before dawn. A huge swath of this planet, from the Straits of Gibraltar to the Philippine Sea, has been held in a synthetic, forced nightfall for nearly fourteen centuries. But the sunrise is coming …
Discussion:
Right Wing News
Jim Hoft / The Gateway Pundit:
Oops... NY Times Admits That Obama's Economic Policies Have Failed - Then Quickly Scrubs the Line — The New York Times released a rare and honest appraisal of of Barack Obama's failed economic policies yesterday. — Economix Blog reported: … But, that wasn't posted long.
Discussion:
Datechguy's Blog, That Mr. G Guy's Blog, The Blaze, Weasel Zippers, theblogprof, The Agonist, Economix and Mother Jones
Igor Volsky / Wonk Room:
ThinkProgress Leaves Bachmann Speechless: Doesn't ‘Have An Answer’ On Whether Homosexuality Is A Public Health Hazard — Yesterday, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) — who is seriously considering launching a campaign for the presidency — appeared before the FAMiLY Leader, an anti-gay social conservative group in Iowa.
Discussion:
Shakesville, Wonkette, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Towleroad News #gay, Pam's House Blend and Good As You
Chris Moody / The Daily Caller:
Capitol Hill staffers line up for free Botox — If you see Capitol Hill staffers smiling uncontrollably this week, it's not because they're happy about avoiding a government shutdown: They probably just got a stiff shot of Botox. — More than a dozen Hill staffers got Botox injections …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers