Top Items:
The Note:
Senator Kyl Drops Out of the Debt Talks, Leaving Zero Republicans at the Table — ABC News' Sunlen Miller (@sunlenmiller) reports: — Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., will also drop out of the debt talks, a source within his office confirms today. The Arizona Republican's office will issue a formal statement shortly.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, The Daily Dish, Weigel, YID With LID and HotAirPundit
RELATED:
Ezra Klein / Washington Post:
Why Eric Cantor won't make the budget deal — (Brendan Hoffman - Getty Images) Eric Cantor is pulling out of the debt-ceiling talks. But he's not saying they should end. In fact, he's saying they've been very successful thus far. “We have a blueprint to move forward to trillions …
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, Washington Monthly, TPMDC and Blue Virginia
Wall Street Journal:
Cantor Pulls Out of Biden-Led Budget Talks — WASHINGTON—House Majority Leader Eric Cantor Thursday said he was pulling out of the bipartisan budget talks headed by Vice President Joe Biden for now because the group has reached an impasse over taxes that only President Barack Obama and Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) could resolve.
David Rogers / The Politico:
Deficit talks in danger as Eric Cantor bails
Discussion:
CNN, The Hill, The Reid Report and Outside the Beltway
Shelley Murphy / Boston Globe:
Whitey Bulger arrested — Boston gangster surrenders quietly in Calif. after 16 years on run — Fugitive South Boston gangster James “Whitey” Bulger, wanted for 19 murders, was captured last night in Southern California, the result of a tip from FBI television spots that began airing this week.
Discussion:
The New Republic, ThinkProgress, AmSpecBlog, The Democratic Daily, The Impolitic and JammieWearingFool
RELATED:
New York Times:
Whitey Bulger Is Arrested in California — LOS ANGELES — James (Whitey) Bulger, a legendary Boston crime boss indicted in 19 murders and who is on the F.B.I.'s 10 Most Wanted list, was arrested by federal authorities Wednesday night in Santa Monica, ending an international manhunt that had gone …
Discussion:
City Room, Jezebel, L.A. NOW, The Caucus, Gothamist, The Informer, New York Magazine and Balloon Juice
Stephen Moore / Wall Street Journal:
Drafting Rubio — The Republican nomination for president is completely up for grabs, but there's a lot of agreement on who the vice presidential pick should be: freshman senator Marco Rubio. — The Republican nomination for president is completely up for grabs, but there's a lot of agreement …
Discussion:
No More Mister Nice Blog, Taegan Goddard's …, The Daily Pulp, AmSpecBlog and The Daily Caller
RELATED:
Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
Romney leads the way in Florida
Discussion:
Orlando Sentinel, Taegan Goddard's … and Flap's Blog
NY Daily News:
Senate Republicans moving closer to saying ‘I do’ to gay marriage in New York State — ALBANY - Senate Republicans on Wednesday were close to signing off on a religious protection provision that could boost the chances that gay marriage will pass in New York.
RELATED:
Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:
New York Senators Say Same-Sex Marriage Bill Will Likely See Vote Today
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Associated Press, PolitickerNY, Above the Law and Feministing
Judd Legum / ThinkProgress:
EXCLUSIVE — Herman Cain: Jon Stewart Attacked Me 'Because I'm Black' — ThinkProgress filed this report from Iowa Falls, Iowa. — Earlier this month, ThinkProgress reported that GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain told an audience in Pella, Iowa that he would not sign a bill longer than three pages.
Discussion:
Mediaite, Wonkette, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The Wire, Fox Nation, Outside the Beltway and Gawker
Dan Berman / Reuters:
W.H. to release 30M barrels of oil — The Obama administration will release 30 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in an effort to offset oil supply disruptions in the Middle East, the Energy Department announced Thursday morning. — Other International Energy Agency countries …
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Hot Air, CNN, Datechguy's Blog and HotAirPundit
RELATED:
Karl Rove / Wall Street Journal:
Why Obama Is Likely to Lose in 2012 — Even a small drop in the share of black voters would wipe out his winning margin in North Carolina. — President Barack Obama is likely to be defeated in 2012. The reason is that he faces four serious threats. The economy is very weak and unlikely …
Discussion:
americanthinker.com, The New Republic, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, GOP 12 and Wake up America
Reuters:
Dutch populist Geert Wilders acquitted of hate speech — (Reuters) - Dutch populist politician Geert Wilders was acquitted of inciting hatred of Muslims in a court ruling on Thursday that may strengthen his political influence and exacerbate tensions over immigration policy.
RELATED:
Pamela Geller / Atlas Shrugs:
Geert Wilders Verdict: Not Guilty All Counts! Eureka! “Today is a victory for freedom of speech”
Discussion:
Jihad Watch
Jeffrey Goldberg / The Atlantic Online:
Answering Andrew Sullivan on Allison Benedikt — Andrew weighs in on the Benedikt controversy with a thoughtful post, which you should read in full. He writes, at the end: … The outrage comes form the fact that many of us — I would dare say most American Jews — believe that you just don't get to walk away.
Discussion:
National Review, Water Over Rocks, The Volokh Conspiracy and JTA
RELATED:
Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
Jews In America And Israel
Discussion:
The Reality-Based Community, Water Over Rocks, Mondoweiss and The Atlantic Online
Richard Cohen / Washington Post:
President Obama's Afghanistan speech confirms America's decline — The American Century just ended. This was the phrase coined by Henry Luce, which so aptly described America as the modern-day colossus, more powerful than any nation had ever been. Wednesday night, President Obama said that power had reached its limit.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Jack & Jill Politics and Mediaite
RELATED:
Heidi Przybyla / Bloomberg:
Ryan Medicare Plan Would Make Americans Worse by 57%-34%, Poll Shows — Representative Paul Ryan, the House Budget Committee chairman who has become a star in the Republican Party with his plan to overhaul Medicare, is emerging as a polarizing figure among Americans.
Discussion:
Reuters, Firedoglake, Comments from Left Field, Washington Post and Healthwatch
Ta-Nehisi Coates / New York Times:
The Haunting of Rick Perry — Should Gov. Rick Perry of Texas enter the 2012 presidential race, he would enjoy a strange and remarkable escort — the irrepressible ghost of Cameron Todd Willingham. — Charged with the horrific crime of intentionally torching his home and leaving …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, Daily Kos, The Atlantic Online and Lawyers, Guns & Money
Sabato's Crystal Ball:
Democrats Blue as Senate Acquires a Reddish Tinge — Larry J. Sabato and Kyle Kondik, U.Va. Center for Politics — As we take a fresh look at next year's Senate races, one thing is clear: Barring an unexpected reelection landslide by President Obama, Republicans are at least slightly favored to take the Senate.
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Huffington Post
James Freeman / Wall Street Journal:
Is Rick Running? — A Republican campaign veteran tells us that Texas Governor Rick Perry has decided to run for President, though the official word from Team Perry is still a definite maybe. — A Republican campaign veteran tells us that Texas Governor Rick Perry has decided to run for President …
James Fallows / The Atlantic Online:
I Liked the ‘Chinese Professor’ Ad, But This Is Stupid and Offensive — (See update below.) Unlike many people, I admired the panache and artistry of the “Chinese Professor” ad used during last fall's campaign to warn about the self- destructive tendencies of America's borrow-and-spend era.
Discussion:
Weigel
Thomas Catan / Wall Street Journal:
FTC to Serve Google With Subpoenas in Broad Antitrust Probe — The FTC is set to serve Google with civil subpoenas, signaling the start of an antitrust probe into whether the firm has abused its dominance on the Web. Julia Angwin, Jen Valentino and Jessica Vascellaro discuss on digits.
Discussion:
Gawker, Washington Post, The Raw Story, Taylor Marsh, TechCrunch, Law Blog and AllThingsD, more at Techmeme »
RELATED:
Sara Forden / Bloomberg:
Google's Page, Schmidt Face Senate Subpoena Threats
Discussion:
AllThingsD and The Politico
Dan Eggen / Washington Post:
Romney backers launch super PAC — A group of prominent Mitt Romney backers has quietly launched a “super PAC” to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money in support of his bid for the White House, according to organizers and others involved in the effort.
Discussion:
Ben Smith's Blog, The Page, GOP 12 and OpenSecrets.org
Gschwarzcnn / CNN:
TRENDING: Palin Sudan trip a no-go — (CNN) - Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin canceled a July trip to Sudan due to “scheduling problems,” a source with knowledge of the trip confirmed to CNN Thursday. — Palin was scheduled to travel to the southern part of the war-savaged country with Franklin Graham …
Discussion:
The Politico, Ballot Box, Little Green Footballs, The New Civil Rights Movement and Jezebel
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
EXCLUSIVE: Interview with Chris Christie — When I last spoke to Chris Christie in 2009 he was locked in a primary battle for the New Jersey governorship with an opponent who claimed he was insufficiently conservative. He was brimming then with ideas about cutting employee benefits …
Robin Bravender / The Politico:
Senate Democrats: Long live the ‘czars’ — Schumer called the amendment a ‘poison pill.’ — Senate Democrats on Thursday knocked down the latest GOP effort to unseat the Obama administration's policy “czars.” — The chamber voted 47-51 to defeat an amendment from Sen. David Vitter …
Discussion:
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