Top Items:
Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
Allen West tirade: Wasserman Schultz ‘vile...despicable...not a Lady’ — Florida GOP Congressman Allen West this afternoon dispatched a scathing personal email to Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, calling her “vile, unprofessional ,and despicable,” “a coward …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Fox News, Pajamas Media, New York Magazine, Outside the Beltway, The Gateway Pundit, Feministing, Scared Monkeys, The Other McCain, TPMDC, No More Mister Nice Blog, Washington Post, Hotline On Call, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Gawker, CNN, Althouse, Doug Ross, Weasel Zippers, JammieWearingFool, The Raw Story, Balloon Juice and Hit & Run
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Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
Obama tries to box in House GOP — President Obama stopped by the White House briefing room, offering an update on the status of the debt-ceiling process. I've seen some reports suggesting the president endorsed the Gang of Six's compromise, but that's not quite what he said, and it seems to miss the point of Obama's comments.
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Russell Berman / The Hill:
House GOP passes ill-fated ‘cut, cap, and balance’ legislation — House Republicans on Tuesday approved an ambitious but legislatively ill-fated plan to enact deep spending restraints that could clear the decks for a compromise over the debt limit. — The so-called “cut, cap and balance” …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, The New Republic and Outside the Beltway
Helene Cooper / New York Times:
Obama to Back Repeal of Law Restricting Marriage — WASHINGTON — President Obama will endorse a bill to repeal the law that limits the legal definition of marriage to a union between a man and a woman, the White House said Tuesday, taking another step in support of gay rights.
Discussion:
Washington Post
Russell Berman / The Hill:
Two House lawmakers call for vote on Gang of Six plan
Two House lawmakers call for vote on Gang of Six plan
Discussion:
RedState, Taylor Marsh, The Politico, Roll Call and Connecting.the.Dots
Allen West / National:
At this Point, Anyone with an Obama 2012 Bumper Sticker is a Threat to the Gene Pool — Greetings to our constituents, fellow Floridians, and all Americans, here we are for another weekly update. There is only one word that describes the past week: appalling.
Discussion:
MyDD, The Raw Story, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and American Power
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Marie Diamond / ThinkProgress:
Allen West: Obama Supporters Are ‘A Threat To The Gene Pool’ — Rep. Allen West (R-FL) is no stranger to controversy and seems to relish in making outrageous statements just to provoke a reaction. But the freshman congressman may have outdone himself with a rambling, far-ranging post on the site …
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars
Dan Balz / Washington Post:
Post-ABC poll: GOP too dug in on debt talks; public fears default consequences — Majorities of Americans see both President Obama and congressional Republicans as not willing enough to compromise in their budget negotiations, but the public views the GOP leaders as particularly intransigent …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, msnbc.com, Wall Street Journal, Hot Air, The Note and Gallup
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The Note:
ABC News/Washington Post Poll: Dissatisfaction With Washington Hits 19-Year High
ABC News/Washington Post Poll: Dissatisfaction With Washington Hits 19-Year High
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, Top of the Ticket, CNN, Scared Monkeys, The Daily Caller and Taegan Goddard's …
Michele Bachmann / Washington Post:
Post-ABC poll: GOP too dug in on debt talks; public fears default consequences
Post-ABC poll: GOP too dug in on debt talks; public fears default consequences
Discussion:
Angry Bear and CNN
JSOnline:
Democratic senator Hansen retains seat in recall attempt — Tea party activist, attorney are winners in Republican primaries — By Tom Tolan, Lee Bergquist and Georgia Pabst of the Journal Sentinel — Democratic state Sen. Dave Hansen of Green Bay was the first of nine state senators …
Discussion:
msnbc.com
Jared Bernstein / The Huffington Post:
The People Want Balance! — It's crunch time — way past crunch time, really — in the debt ceiling/budget debate. While partisans are sharpening their knives in preparation of administering a deep, self-inflicted wound, markets are beginning to lurch around, tanking on bad news regarding the deal and visa-versa.
Discussion:
ThinkProgress and Washington Post
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Rosalind S. Helderman / Washington Post:
House pursues balanced-budget bill; need for backup plan acknowledged
House pursues balanced-budget bill; need for backup plan acknowledged
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Slate Magazine, Don Surber, Opinion L.A., Economist's View, Balkinization and The Gateway Pundit
Gautham Nagesh / The Hill:
Report: Obama top recipient of News Corp. donations — Political donations by News Corp., its employees and their families were evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, with President Obama the all-time leading recipient, according to a report from the Sunlight Foundation.
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and JammieWearingFool, more at Mediagazer »
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Ryan Sibley / Sunlight Foundation Blog:
Murdoch's influence extends to U.S., global politics
Murdoch's influence extends to U.S., global politics
Discussion:
TalkLeft, Towleroad News #gay, New York Times and Mixed Media
Americans for Tax Reform RSS:
What should taxpayers think about the “Gang of Six” announcement today? — Americans for Tax Reform today released the following statement from Grover Norquist, president of the group: — “What should taxpayers think about the ‘Gang of Six’ announcement today?
Discussion:
The Note, Pajamas Media, The Politico and National Review
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Daniel J. Mitchell / Cato @ Liberty:
The Gang of Six Is Back from the Dead: Contemplating the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly in Their Budget Plan
The Gang of Six Is Back from the Dead: Contemplating the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly in Their Budget Plan
Discussion:
americanthinker.com, Marginal Revolution and National Review
Michael Crowley / Swampland:
Reporter Accosted After Bachmann Comments on Migraines — It's not easy to get to Michele Bachmann. Her appearance at a rally on Tuesday in Aiken, South Carolina, attended by perhaps 150 people, featured three uniformed police officers and two body guards in plain clothes.
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, Mediaite, afa.net, nation.foxnews.com, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Post, Top of the Ticket, The Other McCain, Slate, Outside the Beltway, The Politico, The Daily Caller, New York Magazine, Confederate Yankee, CNN, Washington Monthly, Liberal Values, The Reality-Based Community, American Power, Fox News, TPMDC, ABCNEWS, Ben Smith's Blog, The Moderate Voice, Crooks and Liars, Politics, National Review, The Raw Story, msnbc.com and The Note, more at Mediagazer »
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Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:
Bachmann Says Migraines Won't Be a Problem if She's Elected President
Bachmann Says Migraines Won't Be a Problem if She's Elected President
Guardian:
Phone hacking: David Cameron braced for tough questions from MPs — Prime minister likely to be asked about his party's links to phone-hacking suspect in Commons debate following his statement to house — David Cameron is braced for tough questions from MPs about his party's links …
Discussion:
Left Foot Forward, AMERICAblog News and The Wire
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Vikram Dodd / Guardian:
News International ‘deliberately’ blocked investigation
News International ‘deliberately’ blocked investigation
Discussion:
msnbc.com, The Nation and Left Foot Forward, more at Mediagazer »
Carol Williams / L.A. NOW:
Man's call for Obama assassination is free speech, not crime, court rules — A La Mesa man who posted racial epithets and a call to “shoot” Barack Obama on an Internet chat site was engaging in constitutionally protected free speech, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday in overturning his criminal conviction.
Discussion:
Confederate Yankee
The Politico:
Iowa caucuses in December? It's possible — That's not the only domino. With South Carolina's primary facing money troubles after state funding for election operations was cut, Florida — which had been planning to go fifth, on March 1 or 3 — has been pushing to go earlier.
Discussion:
Taegan Goddard's …
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Emily Schultheis / The Politico:
Iowa caucuses in December? It's possible
Iowa caucuses in December? It's possible
Discussion:
americanthinker.com, Outside the Beltway and Iowa Caucuses
Laura King / Los Angeles Times:
Taliban denies texting Mullah Omar's death, blames hacking — A spokesman for the Afghan militia says its phones and website were tampered with. Later emails angrily denounce the death report. — A previous report of the death of Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar didn't pan out.
Discussion:
Mediaite, Weasel Zippers and New York Magazine
Jennifer Epstein / The Politico:
Finally, Minnesota open for business — Minnesota's legislature approved a budget deal in the early hours of Wednesday morning that will end the state's 20-day government shutdown - the longest ever in a state - once Gov. Mark Dayton signs it later in the day.
Discussion:
CNN
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JSOnline:
Step aside, senator — Freshman Sen. Ron Johnson is blocking a well-qualified candidate from appointment to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Give her a hearing. — Republican Sen. Ron Johnson is single-handedly blocking the nomination of a University of Wisconsin law professor …
Ron Nixon / New York Times:
Cost-Cutters, Except When the Spending Is Back Home — WASHINGTON — Freshman House Republicans who rode a wave of voter discontent into office last year vowed to stop out-of-control spending, but that has not stopped several of them from quietly trying to funnel millions of federal dollars into projects back home.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice and Politics
Timothy Geithner / Wall Street Journal:
A Dodd-Frank Retreat Deserves a Veto — Only six congressional Republicans crossed the aisle to support reform one year ago. The GOP is still working to thwart change. — Two and a half years ago, with our country on the edge of a second Great Depression, we met with the president …
Discussion:
The Politico and Politics
Byron York / Washington Examiner:
BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL — As debt talks continue, feds are hiring — and never firing — A new analysis of federal workforce data shows that even in this time of retrenchment and downsizing, the federal government almost never fires or lays off workers. In fact, in many corners …
Discussion:
Wizbang, Weasel Zippers, Fausta's Blog and USA Today