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I am going to be honest with the American people — The first step to fixing a problem is honestly admitting there is a problem. America's goal must be to fix Social Security by making it more financially sound and sustainable for the long term. But Americans deserve a frank and honest discussion …
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TRENDING: Jindal to endorse Perry — Tampa, Florida (CNN) - Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is backing Rick Perry for president, a major endorsement for the Texas governor as the campaign for the Republican nomination enters the crucial fall stretch of the primary calendar, a source tells CNN.

New CNN Poll: Perry on top when it comes to electability — Tampa, Florida (CNN) - Hours before the start of the first-ever CNN/Tea Party Republican debate, a new national survey indicates that Texas Gov. Rick Perry is maintaining his lead in the race for the GOP presidential nomination.
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Why Ron Paul scares Rick Perry — One of the cardinal rules of politics is “never attack down,” meaning a front-runner should never attack or respond to an opponent who is far behind. Yet that is what Rick Perry is doing. He is intimidated by Ron Paul, and responding to Ron Paul. Why?
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Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Fred Malek: ‘Too Late’ for Palin to Run; GOP Nominee Will Be Perry or Romney
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The Daily Caller and GOP 12


Five things to watch for in CNN/Tea Party Republican debate
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Little Green Footballs, Daily Kos, Sky Dancing, Big Journalism, National Review, The Caucus and Wonkette

Mike Huckabee dings Rick Perry, says Mitt Romney more ‘electable’
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Raw Replay, ThinkProgress, Campaign 2012 and National Review

Pawlenty Announces Bid to Be Mitt Romney's Vice President
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Washington Post

Romney: Social Security Is Like a Criminal Fraud
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Wall Street Journal, Hot Air, Business Insider and RedState


GOP grumbles about jobs plan — House Republicans may pass bits and pieces of President Barack Obama's jobs plan, but behind the scenes, some Republicans are becoming worried about giving Obama any victories — even on issues the GOP has supported in the past.
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Crooks and Liars, Firedoglake, The Hill, The White House, TPMDC, CNN, Rasmussen Reports, Salon, Daily Kos, Washington Post, Washington Monthly, Flower & Thistle, Business Insider, Outside the Beltway, Swampland, Booman Tribune, Mother Jones, AmSpecBlog, The Maddow Blog and ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*
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REVEALED: Obama's Jobs Plan To Raise $400 Billion In Taxes — White House Office of Management and Budget Director Jack Lew outlined President Barack Obama's plan to pay for his $447 billion jobs plan — mostly through tax increases. — Lew said itemized tax deductions and exemptions …

Cantor says no to jobs bill spending — Washington (CNN) - House Majority Leader Eric Cantor continued to reach out to work with President Obama on his jobs bill Monday, but emphasized that Republicans are focused on items they support in the plan like the tax breaks and will oppose …
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National Confidential, Firedoglake, Washington Monthly and The Lonely Conservative

Obama proposes tax hikes on wealthy to pay for $447B jobs bill
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The Atlantic Online, Doug Ross, National Review and Outside the Beltway

The President's Do-Over — A week after President Obama took …
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ECHIDNE of the snakes and Betsy's Page


Obama Seeks to End Tax Breaks to Pay for Jobs Plan
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nation.foxnews.com, Hot Air, RedState, xpostfactoid and National Review

We Don't Have Deficit Reduction Because Republicans Don't Want It
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A plain blog about politics and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Obama proposes raising taxes on the wealthy to pay for $447 billion jobs bill
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Washington Monthly and Mother Jones

White House: Tax Hikes For The Wealthy Will Largely Pay For Jobs Bill
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Hullabaloo and Daily Kos

Administration Willing to Go It Alone
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Hot Air, The Hill and Weasel Zippers


Get Krugman! … - A Defense of Rap Rock. Yes, a Defense of Rap Rock. - The Strange Designs of the Earliest Typewriters - Tony Bennett on What He Wishes He Said to Amy Winehouse
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Megyn Kelly Hosts Fiery Debate Over Paul Krugman's ‘Years Of Shame’ 9/11 Column — NY Times columnist Paul Krugman observed 9/11 this weekend with a provocative blog post entitled “Years of Shame.” In it he calls out “Fake heroes like Bernie Kerik, Rudy Giuliani, and, yes …
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Mother Jones, Politics, RedState and Big Journalism


Angry Rumsfeld cancels N.Y. Times — Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Monday canceled his subscription to The New York Times after columnist Paul Krugman characterized the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks as “an occasion for shame.” — Rumsfeld tweeted, “After reading Krugman's …
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Indecision Forever, Daily Kos, Outside the Beltway, FishbowlDC, The Daily Caller, Big Government and American Power

More About the 9/11 Anniversary — It looks as if I should say a bit more about yesterday's anniversary. So: — The fact is that the two years or so after 9/11 were a terrible time in America - a time of political exploitation and intimidation, culminating in the deliberate misleading of the nation into the invasion of Iraq.
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Weasel Zippers and nation.foxnews.com

Paul Krugman 9/11 Blog Post Stokes Controversy … Paul Krugman drew conservative outrage on Sunday when he wrote that the anniversary of 9/11 had become a marker of “shame” for the U.S. (Scroll down for Krugman's new post on the subject.) — The New York Times columnist wrote a blog post called …
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The Anchoress, New York Magazine, Mediaite, Verum Serum, The Powers That Be and Truthdig


Morning Joe Skirmish As Smiley Recycles ‘Bush Lied’ — A skirmish broke out on Morning Joe today as Tavis Smiley claimed President George W. Bush “lied” the USA into the war in Iraq. Joe Scarborough and—surprisingly— Jon Meacham forcefully refuted Smiley's slur.
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nation.foxnews.com, Hot Air and Verum Serum
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The Most Nerve-Wracking Moment of George W. Bush's Presidency Was When He Threw a Ball
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Washington Post


For the First Time Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and Space Shuttle Commander Mark Kelly Share Their Story with Diane Sawyer — The Diane Sawyer Special will air in conjunction with the publication of — In a landmark television event, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and her husband Space Shuttle …
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Mediaite
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Gabrielle Giffords interview with Diane Sawyer not a done deal
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TucsonSentinel.com and Media Decoder


Al Gore in 24-hour broadcast to convert climate skeptics — (Reuters) - Former President Al Gore will renew his 30-year campaign to convince skeptics of the link between climate change and extreme weather events this week in a 24-hour global multi-media event.


In ‘Doonesbury,’ Palin biography ‘The Rogue’ gets a comic-strip tease — It all started in the summer of 2010, when author Joe McGinniss migrated from Massachusetts to Alaska, to be closer to nature. Human nature, at least, as it plays out on the Sarah Palin homestead.
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Wonkette, iOwnTheWorld.com, The Daily Dish, Balloon Juice and JOE McGINNISS


Veto a State, Lose an Ally — The United States must support the Palestinian bid for statehood at the United Nations this month or risk losing the little credibility it has in the Arab world. If it does not, American influence will decline further, Israeli security will be undermined …
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Firedoglake, Elder of Ziyon, Attackerman, emptywheel, Guardian, The Daily Dish, Taylor Marsh, The Moderate Voice, ThinkProgress and Israel Matzav


Feinstein: ‘Wiped out’ by scandal — Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said she was “wiped out” by Kinde Durkee, a well-connected California Democratic political operative who served as treasurer for hundreds of state, local and federal campaign committees. — Durkee was arrested by the FBI …
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Talking Points Memo, TPMDC and L.A. NOW

Rep. King says Judiciary Committee should question Obama's ‘Uncle Omar’ — Rep. Steve King (R-IA), a member of the House Judiciary Committee, said Monday that Congress should question President Obama's uncle Onyango Obama to see if he received preferential treatment during his deportation proceedings.
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Weasel Zippers