Top Items:
Brian Beutler / Talking Points Memo:
Did Boehner Just Pull The Plug On Fiscal Cliff Negotiations? — In response to President Obama's extensive comments about the fiscal cliff at the White House Wednesday afternoon, House Speaker John Boehner left himself little if any room to continue negotiations.
Discussion:
The Plum Line, Crooks and Liars, The Democratic Daily, Daily Kos, The Impolitic and The Daily Dish
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Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
House Republicans Again Show Why We Need to Wait Until January for a Deal — For about half a day, in the wake of President Obama's most recent budget compromise, it appeared that an agreement might be close at hand. Boehner was reported to be taking the temperature of his crazies on Obama's plan.
Discussion:
New York Times, Hot Air, BuzzFeed and Taking Note
Ryan Ellis / Americans for Tax Reform RSS:
ATR Statement on “Plan B” Tax Plan — ATR's statement on the “Plan B” tax bill. — ATR has consistently maintained that individual Members of Congress make a pledge to their constituents to oppose and vote against tax increases. The House this week will vote on a tax bill.
Politico:
Obama, Boehner duel on fiscal cliff — President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner traded sharp words Wednesday as each leader urged the other to get serious about averting the fiscal cliff — and Boehner revised his strategy on the Hill. — House Republican leaders are changing …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, CNN, National Review, Wonkblog, Business Insider, Quartz and The New Republic
Manu Raju / Politico:
Quick switch: Hatch backs Boehner Plan B
Quick switch: Hatch backs Boehner Plan B
Discussion:
CNN, Michelle Malkin, The Hill, The Fix, Washington Examiner, Los Angeles Times and Post Politics
Talking Points Memo:
Grover Norquist: Boehner's ‘Plan B’ Not A Tax Pledge Violation
Grover Norquist: Boehner's ‘Plan B’ Not A Tax Pledge Violation
Discussion:
Firedoglake and National Review
Tom Cohen / CNN:
Boehner's tax gamble roils fiscal cliff talks
Boehner's tax gamble roils fiscal cliff talks
Discussion:
The Hill and Alan Colmes'Alan Colmes'
David Taintor / Talking Points Memo:
White House: Obama Would Veto GOP's Fiscal Cliff ‘Plan B’
White House: Obama Would Veto GOP's Fiscal Cliff ‘Plan B’
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Firedoglake and Reuters
Kate Nocera / Politico:
Norquist giving House Republicans a pass on Boehner's ‘Plan B’
Norquist giving House Republicans a pass on Boehner's ‘Plan B’
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Outside the Beltway, Associated Press and CNN
Kos / Daily Kos:
Capitulation is never popular. Or effective.
Capitulation is never popular. Or effective.
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Fix, Hullabaloo, The Agonist and The Plum Line
Michael Scherer / TIME:
2012 Person of the Year: Barack Obama, the President — Twenty-seven years after driving from New York City to Chicago in a $2,000 Honda Civic for a job that probably wouldn't amount to much, Barack Obama, in better shape but with grayer hair, stood in the presidential suite on the top floor …
Discussion:
ABCNEWS, Daily Mail, The Caucus, ABCNEWS, The Hill, Capital New York, The Democratic Daily, The Atlantic Online, Greg's Opinion, Washington Wire, The Moderate Voice, Mediaite, LightBox, The Hinterland Gazette, Forbes, MadMike'sAmerica …, Gothamist, Twitchy, Taylor Marsh, Shakesville, Towleroad News #gay, GOP 12, Gawker, The Lonely Conservative, Business Insider, Weasel Zippers, JustOneMinute, The Tell, americanthinker.com, The Week and The BLT, more at Mediagazer »
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Richard Stengel / TIME:
The Choice — In 1782 an expatriate French aristocrat named …
The Choice — In 1782 an expatriate French aristocrat named …
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, LightBox, Politico, Mediaite, Gawker, Post Politics, Business Insider and msnbc.com
Adolph L. Reed Jr / New York Times:
The Puzzle of Black Republicans — WHEN Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina announced on Monday that she would name Representative Tim Scott to the Senate, it seemed like another milestone for African-Americans. Mr. Scott will complete the term of Senator Jim DeMint, who is leaving to run Heritage Foundation.
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Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:
CNN Anchor Blasts Florida Governor For Ducking Gun Control, Demands Action Before ‘I Cover Another Tragedy’
CNN Anchor Blasts Florida Governor For Ducking Gun Control, Demands Action Before ‘I Cover Another Tragedy’
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Raw Story and Mediaite
Ashley Killough / CNN:
TRENDING: Tim Scott points to ‘moral decay’ after school shooting
TRENDING: Tim Scott points to ‘moral decay’ after school shooting
Discussion:
Politico
Jeffrey Toobin / News Desk:
Postscript: Robert Bork, 1927-2012 — Robert Bork, who died Wednesday, was an unrepentant reactionary who was on the wrong side of every major legal controversy of the twentieth century. The fifty-eight senators who voted against Bork for confirmation to the Supreme Court in 1987 honored themselves, and the Constitution.
Discussion:
American Prospect
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Roger Kimball / Roger's Rules:
Robert H. Bork, 1927-2012 — Judge Robert H. Bork, one of the the greatest jurists this country has ever produced, died early this morning from heart complications in a Virginia hospital near his home. He was 84. — Bork was a national celebrity. Several years ago …
Jennifer Rubin / Right Turn:
More trouble for Hagel — Joining other groups and individuals opposing Chuck Hagel as secretary of defense, the generally liberal American Jewish Committee (among the older and better known Jewish organizations) has signaled it opposes the potential nomination. Executive director David Harris e-mails me the following:
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon, Weekly Standard and Capital J | JTA
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Maggie Haberman / Politico:
Kristol-founded group targets Hagel
Kristol-founded group targets Hagel
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, Washington Post and Weekly Standard
Washington Post:
Chuck Hagel is not the right choice for defense secretary
Chuck Hagel is not the right choice for defense secretary
Discussion:
Foreign Policy, The Atlantic Online, The Moderate Voice, BuzzFeed, Washington Free Beacon, The American Conservative, Hot Air, New York Times, Right Turn, Firedoglake, The Daily Dish, Power Line, Politico, Exposing Liberal Lies, Weekly Standard, Betsy's Page, “The Lid”, Financial Times, The Greenroom, National Review, The New Republic, Moe Lane, Slate and Mondoweiss
Kevin Robillard / Politico:
Joe Manchin: 'I'm so proud of the NRA' — 'I'm not supporting a ban on anything. I'm supporting a conversation on everything,' Manchin said. AP Photo — Close — West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who suggested earlier in the week that the time had come for some gun control restrictions …
Discussion:
WV MetroNews, Daily Kos, The Hill and Mediaite
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Byron York / Washington Examiner:
Obama, Reid slam brakes on gun control
Obama, Reid slam brakes on gun control
Discussion:
The Plum Line, Mediaite, The Week, Hot Air, Power Line, Politico and New York Times, more at Mediagazer »
NRO Symposium / National Review:
Newtown Answers — Twenty children and six adults are dead. In Nigeria, people put their lives at risk going to church on Sundays. But in New England? The thought that going to school could be a final act is hard for us to comprehend. The seeming senselessness of what happened …
Discussion:
jessica valenti, Little Green Footballs, Daily Kos, ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES, msnbc.com, Truthdig, Mediaite and Balloon Juice
CNN:
CNN Poll: Bare majority now support major gun restrictions — Washington (CNN) - Americans are reacting to the tragic events in Newtown, Connecticut with elevated levels of anger, shock and fear that have led a growing number of people to look for action from the government and society …
Discussion:
Taegan Goddard's …, Hot Air, Business Insider and The National Memo
Emily Goodin / The Hill:
Spielberg, Day-Lewis at Capitol for screening of ‘Lincoln’ for senators — The two stars brought the Senate to a halt when they arrived for a bipartisan viewing of their hit movie. — Actor Daniel Day-Lewis and director Steven Spielberg brought the Senate to a halt on Wednesday afternoon …
Discussion:
CNN
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Eric Schmitt / New York Times:
3 State Department Resignations After Libya Attack Report — WASHINGTON — Three State Department officials resigned under pressure on Wednesday following a report that detailed “grossly inadequate” security measures at the United States Mission in Benghazi, Libya, on the night assailants besieged …
Discussion:
CNN, CBS News, Taylor Marsh, Michelle Malkin, Fox News, The Other McCain and The Atlantic Online
Robert Rizzuto / Union-News:
Sen. Scott Brown says he now supports a federal ban on assault weapons — Although he once said banning so-called assault weapons fell under the category of issues best left to the states, Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown told The Republican / MassLive.com in an exclusive interview Wednesday that he now supports federal action.
Discussion:
The Hill and Post Politics
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Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:
The Assault Weapon Ban Would Have Never Passed If It Wasn't For Ronald Reagan
The Assault Weapon Ban Would Have Never Passed If It Wasn't For Ronald Reagan
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway
Frank Newport / Gallup:
To Stop Shootings, Americans Focus on Police, Mental Health — Democrats substantially more likely to see assault gun ban as effective — PRINCETON, NJ — Americans are most likely to say that an increased police presence at schools, increased government spending on mental health screening and treatment …
Discussion:
Politico, Weasel Zippers and Clayton Cramer's Blog
Matt Townsend / Bloomberg:
Guns Out of Stock at Wal-Mart as Magazine Prices Surge on — With President Barack Obama endorsing sweeping gun restrictions in the wake of the school shootings in Newtown, Connecticut, prices for handgun magazines are surging on EBay (EBAY) and semi-automatic rifles are sold out at many Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) locations.
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and The Gateway Pundit
Michael D. Shear / New York Times:
Obama to Give Congress Plan on Gun Control Within Weeks — WASHINGTON — President Obama declared Wednesday that he would make gun control a “central issue” as he opens a second term, submitting broad new gun control proposals to Congress no later than January and committing the power …
Discussion:
Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Capital New York, The Democratic Daily, Washington Monthly, Shakesville and CNN
Laura Vozzella / Washington Post:
Va. bill would order schools to arm teachers — Del. Robert G. Marshall is proposing a bill that would require some teachers or other school staff to carry concealed weapons in schools. — Marshall (R-Prince William) requested that the bill be drafted in response to the mass shooting last week at a Connecticut elementary school.
Discussion:
The Raw Story, Mediaite, Hot Air and No More Mister Nice Blog