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9:05 PM ET, December 21, 2012

Top Items:

Remarks from the NRA press conference on Sandy Hook school shooting, delivered on Dec. 21, 2012 (Transcript) — Video: After a week of silence in the wake of the Newtown shootings, the National Rifle Association finally spoke out Friday defending guns and decrying violence.

Neetzan Zimmerman / Gawker:

While the NRA Was on TV Talking About the Need for More Guns Some Guy Was Walking Up and Down a Road in Pennsylvania Shooting People — The National Rifle Association today held its first press conference since last week's deadly shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary, and the takeaway was clear: We need more guns.

Discussion: Mother Jones, Guardian, The Political Carnival, Poynter, The Hinterland Gazette and Balloon Juice, more at Mediagazer »

Alex Pappas / The Daily Caller:

Journalists slam NRA throughout press conference — When National Rifle Association Wayne LaPierre leader took the stage on Friday to address the media about last week's elementary school massacre, he made it clear multiple times that the organization has issues with how the press reports on guns.

Discussion: Examiner, The Gateway Pundit and The PJ Tatler, more at Mediagazer »

Wjac Web / WJAC-TV:

4 dead in Blair Co. shooting; 3 troopers injured — Sponsored Links — BLAIR COUNTY, Pa. — The Blair County district attorney said that four people, including the alleged gunman, are dead after a series of shootings along a rural road on Friday. — The district attorney …

Discussion: Associated Press, Crooks and Liars, msnbc.com, Alan Colmes'Alan Colmes', Balloon Juice and The Hinterland Gazette

John H. Cushman Jr / New York Times:

N.R.A. Calls for Armed Guards in Schools to Deter Violence — WASHINGTON — The National Rifle Association on Friday called for schools to be protected by armed guards as the best way to protect children from gun violence. — The group, long the most vocal and influential organization …

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Moderate Voice, Feministe, Outside the Beltway, Hit & Run, Hot Air, Spectator, AEIdeas, Mashable!, FlowingData and Pew Research Center …

Melissa Hayes / NorthJersey.com:
Christie: Armed guards won't make schools safer

Discussion: Post Politics and Mediaite

Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:
NRA Blames Everything Except Guns: Outdated Video Games, Hurricanes, And Corporate Media Led To Newtown

Discussion: The BRAD BLOG and Gawker

The Altoona Mirror:
DA: 4 dead, 3 troopers hurt in shootings

Discussion: CBS Pittsburgh, Mediaite, The Hinterland Gazette and The Raw Story

BuzzFeed: 10 Things The NRA Blamed For The Sandy Hook Massacre

Robert Costa / National Review:

Inside the Meltdown — “How the hell can you do this?” — • followers — At a quarter to 8 p.m. on Thursday night, House Republicans gathered in the Capitol basement for an urgent, closed-door conference meeting. The scene was hushed and confused.

Discussion: Politico, Talking Points Memo, neo-neocon, The Strata-Sphere, Hot Air, The Other McCain, The PJ Tatler, thenation.com/blogs/117, Booman Tribune, Washington Wire, Alan Colmes'Alan Colmes', NewsBusters.org and Commentary Magazine

Steve Kornacki / Salon:

The humiliation of John Boehner — He's powerless, and his own party continues to make him look like a fool. Maybe he'll just walk away — Last night was hardly the first public humiliation that John Boehner has suffered at the hands of his fellow Republicans, but it's probably the most stark.

Discussion: Washington Post and A plain blog about politics

Justin Sink / The Hill:
Obama: 'We're going to have to find some common ground'

Discussion: Politico

Billy House / NationalJournal.com:
Trouble for Boehner's Speakership?

Discussion: Hot Air, The Maddow Blog, New York Post, Washington Post, First Read, National Review, The Hill, Outside the Beltway, Washington Examiner and The National Memo

Brian Beutler / Talking Points Memo:
Boehner Points — Subtly — Toward A Way Forward After Failure Of Plan B

Discussion: Daily Kos

Politico:
Democrats plot next steps after Boehner stumble

Discussion: The Huffington Post, CNN and Talking Points Memo

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:
Boehner Calls on Obama and Senate for Fiscal Solution

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Prairie Weather

Matthew Yglesias / Slate:
The Failure of Last Night's “Plan B” Vote Makes a Fiscal Cliff Deal More Likely

Discussion: New York Magazine, Hit & Run, Washington Examiner, Washington Wire, Wonkblog, The Huffington Post and Firedoglake

Mark Landler / New York Times:

Obama Nominates Kerry for Secretary of State — WASHINGTON — President Obama nominated Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts as secretary of state, choosing an elder of the Democratic Party's foreign policy establishment and a crucial political ally in the Senate to succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Discussion: msnbc.com, Twitchy, Outside the Beltway, Mediaite, Taylor Marsh, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Business Insider and Daily Kos

Jonathan Easley / Ballot Box:
Scramble is on for Kerry's Senate seat

Discussion: Politico

CNN:
John Kerry will be nominated for secretary of state, official says

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, ImmigrationProf Blog and Shakesville

Mj Lee / Politico:
Frank not saying ‘no’ to Senate appointment

Discussion: CNN, The Atlantic Online, Advocate, Post Politics, BuzzFeed and Business Insider

Justin Sink / The Hill:
Obama calls Kerry ‘perfect choice’ to succeed Clinton

Discussion: Politico and CNN

Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:
Kerry a Frequent Visitor with Syrian Dictator Bashar Al-Assad

Discussion: The Caucus, The Lonely Conservative, Jammie Wearing Fools, The Spectacle Blog and OpenSecrets.org

Justin Sink / The Hill:
Hillary Clinton, Susan Rice congratulate Kerry on State nomination

Discussion: Politico

Mike Allen / Politico:

Chuck Hagel apologizes for gay slur — Former Sen. Chuck Hagel, seeking to preserve his viability for nomination as secretary of Defense, on Friday issued a strong apology for a gay slur in 1998 that turned some top Democratic activists against his potential selection.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Bookworm Room, New York Times, Power Line, Algemeiner.com, Mediaite, The Moderate Voice, Wall Street Journal, Towleroad News #gay, The Hinterland Gazette and The Daily Dish

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
James Hormel: I question the sincerity of Chuck Hagel's ‘so-called apology’

Discussion: Towleroad News #gay, BuzzFeed, National Review and Post Politics

Jennifer Rubin / Right Turn:
EXCLUSIVE: Top Republican Senator will oppose Hagel nomination

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Washington Free Beacon, Post Politics and BuzzFeed

CNN:

Community Resource Officer Called to “Back Lot” — Jefferson County Sheriff's Deputy Neil Gardner soon would complete his second year as the uniformed community resource officer assigned to Columbine High School. Gardner, a 15-year veteran of the Sheriff's Office, normally ate his lunch …

Discussion: National Review, Wonkblog, The Atlantic Online, Gawker, Business Insider and Twitchy

David Weigel / Slate:
Wayne LaPierre Wants Armed Guards at Schools. Columbine Had an Armed Guard.

Discussion: Boing Boing, The PJ Tatler, Guardian, Business Insider, Firedoglake and The New Republic

Chris Heath / GQ:

GQ Exclusive! Ben Affleck on Politics: “Ugly.” “Toxic.” “Horrendous.” “Complete Bullsh-t.” “I Don't Want To Run For Office.” — All this feverish speculation that Ben Affleck is ready to put himself forward as a candidate if John Kerry vacates his senate seat, does it really come from somewhere?

Discussion: ABCNEWS and New York Magazine

Kylie Atwood / CBS News:
Affleck leaves door open for Senate run

Discussion: Politico, New York Times, Gawker, The Daily Caller and TalkLeft

Adam Nagourney / New York Times:

Marijuana, Not Yet Legal for Californians, Might as Well Be — LOS ANGELES — Let Colorado and Washington be the marijuana trailblazers. Let them struggle with the messy details of what it means to actually legalize the drug. Marijuana is, as a practical matter, already legal in much of California.

Discussion: Hit & Run, The BLT and The Raw Story

Hartford Courant:

Michelle Obama's Letter To Newtown: ‘Holding You In Our Hearts’ — Over the past week, we as Americans have been united in our grief as Newtown has laid to rest so many beautiful, innocent children, along with the heroic educators who worked every day to help them achieve their dreams.

Discussion: White House.gov Blog, ABCNEWS, The Hinterland Gazette, BuzzFeed, theGrio, The Moderate Voice and The Hill

Byron York / Washington Examiner:
Obama uses Clinton's playbook to exploit shooting

Discussion: Hot Air, Townhall.com and Betsy's Page

Slate:

How Many People Have Been Killed by Guns Since Newtown? — Slate partners with @GunDeaths for an interactive, crowdsourced tally of the toll firearms have taken since Dec. 14. — Since the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn., on Dec. 14, we at Slate have been wondering …

Discussion: The Daily Dish

Ron Nixon / New York Times:

With Farm Bill Stalled, Consumers May Face Soaring Milk Prices — WASHINGTON — Forget the fiscal crisis and the automatic budget cuts. Come Jan. 1, there is a threat that milk prices could rise to $6 to $8 a gallon if Congress does not pass a new farm bill that amends farm policy dating back to the Truman presidency.

Discussion: CRFB.org, Firedoglake, The PJ Tatler and LewRockwell.com Blog

Noah Smith / The Atlantic Online:

The Single Best Anti-Gun-Death Policy? Ending the Drug War — Universal gun confiscation is impossible, and even aggressive gun control might not dramatically reduce gun-related deaths. But ending our ridiculous and expensive war on drugs could. — Reuters — This is not a column against gun control.

Discussion: Washington Monthly