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GOPers chant ‘fire him’ at Paul Teller — House Republicans on Wednesday morning were calling for the firing of the Republican Study Committee top staffer after he was caught sending e-mails to conservative groups urging them to pressure GOP lawmakers to vote against a debt proposal from Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio).
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Boehner quells rebellion on the right — A dust up among a major House conservative bloc and the prospect of tens of billions of dollars in new spending cuts has Republican leadership feeling as if it quelled an uprising on the right after struggling to line up votes for much of the week.
Discussion:
JustOneMinute, Pajamas Media, CNN, PERRspectives, The Hill, The Daily Caller, Associated Press, Los Angeles Times, Hotline On Call, Outside the Beltway, Gothamist, Politics, Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, The Caucus, Sky Dancing, Prairie Weather, HotAirPundit, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and New York Times

Ben Affleck Reacts To House GOP Using Clip From ‘The Town’ In Debt Debate … WASHINGTON — Heads turned a bit on Tuesday night when the Washington Post reported that House Republicans were using a scene from the movie “The Town” as a motivational vignette to encourage members to back Speaker John Boehner's (R-Ohio) debt ceiling plan.
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Talking Points Memo, The Hill, Weigel, ThinkProgress, CNN, Mediaite, Big Hollywood, USA Today, TPMDC, The Note, National Review and The Caucus


Carney makes an accusation — Jay Carney took on Fox News's Ed Henry. — John Shinkle/POLITICO — The day after White House press secretary Jay Carney and Fox News reporter Ed Henry tangled over Henry's request for specifics on Obama's plan on debt limit and deficit reduction, Carney and Henry were back at it again on Wednesday.
Discussion:
nation.foxnews.com, Weasel Zippers and Pajamas Media

McCain vs. the Tea Party — Is the old John McCain back? — The fiery, independent version of the Republican senator from Arizona took to the floor of the Senate Wednesday morning. Demanding “straight talk,” Mr. McCain accused conservative opponents of the House Republican leader's plan of abandoning reason in the debt fight.
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The Gateway Pundit, The Hill, Washington Post, Washington Monthly, Mediaite, Don Surber, blogs.telegraph.co.uk, Hit & Run, The Moderate Voice, ThinkProgress, Outside the Beltway, Gawker, Fox News Insider, Nice Deb, Connecting.the.Dots, Marbury, Wall Street Journal, Balloon Juice and National Review

McCain Blasts Tea Party for ‘Foolish’ Demands in Debt Debate — ABC News' Sunlen Miller (@sunlenmiller) reports: — As Speaker of the House John Boehner is looking for votes on his House debt bill, one Senate Republican sent a strong message to the Tea Party block in the House and Senate …
Discussion:
CNN, The Politico, The Hill, Politics, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and TPMDC


Debbie Wasserman Schultz says GOP seeks ‘dictatorship ... spark panic’ — 'This is not leadership. This is almost like dictatorship, said Debbie Wasserman Schultz. AP Photo — Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), chair of the Democratic National Committee, said Wednesday …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers, CNN, The Gateway Pundit and Daily Kos

It's All Over but the Face-Saving? — It remains unclear whether the House will pass a bill by the speaker, John A. Boehner, to raise the debt ceiling, though prospects appear to be significantly better today than they did yesterday. Still, the math looks to be pretty close.
Discussion:
Washington Post, The New Republic, msnbc.com, The Confluence and Hullabaloo


A Time for Choosing — To govern is to choose. To vote is to choose. To vote against John Boehner on the House floor this week in the biggest showdown of the current Congress is to choose to vote with Nancy Pelosi. To vote against Boehner is to choose to support Barack Obama.
Discussion:
FreedomWorks blogs, National Review, A plain blog about politics, The Right Scoop, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Pundit & Pundette, AmSpecBlog, FrumForum, The Lonely Conservative, Lean Left, Riehl World View, ProfessorBainbridge.com, Firedoglake, The Sundries Shack, Swampland, Taylor Marsh, Erick's blog, The Daily Dish, The Gateway Pundit, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Outside the Beltway, The Daily Caller and Club for Growth


The Clearest Sign Yet That Boehner's Bill Will Pass the House — They talk a big game, but in private, Republicans attack the one person who stands up for what they claim to believe — If you listen to Eric Cantor or any of the self-styled Tea Party Republicans pushing the country to the brink of default …
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, Prairie Weather and msnbc.com


Boehner: ‘A Lot’ Of Republicans Want To Force Default, Create ‘Enough Chaos’ To Pass Balanced Budget Amendment — House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) said today that some members of his own caucus who are refusing to agree to a compromise debt ceiling deal are hoping to unleash “chaos” …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, ProfessorBainbridge.com, TPMDC and Sky Dancing

Quote of the Day — House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) …
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Post, The Moderate Voice, The Hill, A plain blog about politics, AMERICAblog News and Daily Kos

WSJ: Tea Party “hobbits” need to go back to Middle Earth, or something
Discussion:
John Boehner and The Other McCain

Tea party rally on Capitol Hill draws thin crowd
Discussion:
Daily Kos and Outside the Beltway

Hope For Boehner? Some House Conservatives Closing Ranks On Debt Limit Bill
Discussion:
Roll Call, Hullabaloo, Firedoglake, Talking Points Memo, Crooks and Liars and Harry's Place

Freshmen coalesce around Boehner plan
Discussion:
Decide America, The New Republic and Hot Air

Restive G.O.P. Yielding to Boehner Plan on Budget
Discussion:
The Caucus, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and The Mahablog

Dem lawmaker: ‘Nobody I know’ has seen Reid plan
Discussion:
The Politico, nation.foxnews.com and The Daily Caller

Powerful GOP group backs Boehner plan
Discussion:
No More Mister Nice Blog and Talking Points Memo

GOP in chaos — Scrambling for votes on his troubled deficit package …
Discussion:
The New Republic, Politics, National Review and Jack & Jill Politics

What Does Wall Street Want? — I've been having some disturbing conversations with both finance people and Washington people over the last few days, that have only confirmed the disconnect I wrote about a few weeks ago. Each side is sending signals that the other side is not reading correctly.
Discussion:
The Volokh Conspiracy and Vox Popoli
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Standard and Poor's Should Not Be Able to Play Kingmaker in the 2012 Election
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Bloomberg, Dow Jones Newswires and naked capitalism


Franken's SNL moment on the Senate floor — For a moment Wednesday, Al Franken looked like he was back on the set of Saturday Night Live and not on the floor of the U.S. Senate. In a speech explaining that there would be no money to pay for military and security personnel if Congress …
Discussion:
The Radio Equalizer, Pajamas Media and AmSpecBlog


50 Most Beautiful People for 2011 — It's no accident that Amy Cheng exhibits model-like poise in front of a camera. Growing up, her family would spend time outside their Chinese restaurant taking photos of one another in a park, and later on, Cheng would pose for her younger sister …
Discussion:
Wonkette, FishbowlDC, Gawker and The Daily Caller

House Democrats urge Obama to invoke the 14th Amendment in debt fight — House Democratic leaders are calling on President Obama to invoke the 14th Amendment and raise the debt ceiling without congressional input. — Addressing the House Democratic Caucus on Wednesday morning …
Discussion:
The Politico, Big Government, The Daily Hurricane, Weasel Zippers and Firedoglake
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House Democratic Leaders To Obama: Use The 14th Amendment [UPDATED]
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FreedomWorks blogs and Taylor Marsh


Palin to Keynote Tea Party Rally in Iowa — In the latest indication that her sights are still set on a presidential run, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has accepted an invitation to keynote a Tea Party rally in Waukee, Iowa, on Sept. 3, RealClearPolitics has learned.
Discussion:
The Note, GOP 12, Weasel Zippers, Hot Air and Conservatives4Palin


Report: Obama And Boehner Agreed To Raise Medicare Eligibilty Age Before Debt Talks Broke Down — In what may be one of the most under-reported stories of the debt ceiling talks, Politico's Jen Haberkorn notes that before negotiations broke down on Friday evening, President Obama and Speaker …
Discussion:
Red Dog Report, Hullabaloo and Daily Kos

Palin: American Ideals Are ‘Foreign To Our President’ Because Of ‘His Background’ — Adding her heft to the GOP's debt ceiling debacle, the “undefeated” Sarah Palin graced Fox News Business last night to slam President Obama for suggesting that the wealthy should return to a higher tax rate.
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Top of the Ticket and Arizona Republic


Stinger: James O'Keefe's Greatest Hits — The temperature was hovering near 90 degrees on the afternoon of Memorial Day when James O'Keefe III emerged from the woods and ambled over to my car. He was tall and thin, with pale skin and matted reddish hair. When his mug shot ran in the papers …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Big Journalism, Althouse and The Awl

Planned Parenthood clinic attacked with Molotov cocktail — MCKINNEY - Officials with Planned Parenthood confirmed that their McKinney clinic was the target of violence sometime last night. — Holly Morgan, director of media relations and communications for Planned Parenthood in Dallas …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress


G.D. Spradlin, Prolific Character Actor, Dies at 90 — G. D. Spradlin, whose experience as a corporate lawyer, independent oilman and rancher influenced his nuanced portrayals of authority figures in more than 70 films and television shows, including “The Godfather: Part II” and “Apocalypse Now …
Discussion:
Althouse

U.S. officials believe al-Qaeda on brink of collapse — U.S. counterterrorism officials are increasingly convinced that the killing of Osama bin Laden and the toll of seven years of CIA drone strikes have pushed al-Qaeda to the brink of collapse. — The assessment reflects a widespread view …
Discussion:
Top of the Ticket, Outside the Beltway, Salon, The Jawa Report, Mother Jones, Via Meadia and Reuters

Romney Leads Field of Announced GOP Candidates — Perry would be more competitive with Romney than Palin, Giuliani — PRINCETON, NJ — Mitt Romney is the leader for the GOP nomination among the current field of official candidates, supported by 27% of Republicans, compared with 18% for Michele Bachmann.