Top Items:
Jonathan Allen / Politico:
Why they want to go over the cliff — Washington's Democratic and Republican power brokers have sent the message to the nation that going over the fiscal cliff is a worst-case scenario. But they're not acting that way, not at all. — Instead, many of them have calculated that it's better …
Discussion:
Firedoglake, The Hill, Washington Post, Guardian, Salon, AMERICAblog, The Week, Business Insider, Politicker, neo-neocon, Connecting.the.Dots, The Caucus and Taylor Marsh
RELATED:
New York Times:
Narrower Tax Deal Floated as Lawmakers to Sit With Obama — WASHINGTON — Congressional leaders prepared for what was looming as a make-or-break White House meeting on the fiscal crisis Friday afternoon as top aides said they were exploring a scaled-back proposal that would prevent tax increases …
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway and Balloon Juice
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Optimism for fiscal deal grows ahead of White House meeting — Senators are growing more optimistic of a deal to avoid part of the fiscal cliff as Senate Republican Mitch McConnell (Ky.) works with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and President Obama to craft a last-minute deal.
Discussion:
Booman Tribune
Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
The logic of House GOP intransigence — The unruly House Republicans who emasculated Speaker John Boehner as the country flirts with fiscal havoc might've seemed like they were doing their best “Lord of the Flies” rendition. — But last week's mayhem had a certain logic — the logic of politicians wanting to keep their jobs.
Discussion:
Wake up America, Booman Tribune, Washington Examiner, CNN, Guardian and Daily Kos
Manu Raju / Politico:
Obama will make scaled-back offer in White House meeting
Discussion:
Daily Kos
Steven T. Dennis / Roll Call:
Pessimism Abounds as White House Calls Cliff Meeting
Discussion:
The Other McCain
Chelsea Karnash / CBS Philly:
3 Officers Wounded After Suspect Opens Fire At Gloucester Township Police Station — CLEMENTON, NJ (CBS) — Police and rescue crews responded to the Gloucester County Municipal Building on Chews Landing Road this morning after shots were fired inside the Gloucester Township police station.
Discussion:
Runnin' Scared, The Raw Story, Gawker and The Hinterland Gazette
RELATED:
Ramsey Cox / The Hill:
Senate approves bill to reauthorize foreign surveillance programs — The Senate on Friday approved a bill reauthorizing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) in a 73-23 vote. — The bill will extend for five years the ability of U.S. intelligence authorities to conduct surveillance …
Discussion:
Mother Jones, The Maddow Blog and Hit & Run
RELATED:
Dallas Morning News:
Exclusive: David Dewhurst campaign says aide stole at least $600,000 — Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (front), receiving an endorsement during his U.S. Senate campaign from former rival Craig James, had hundreds of thousands of dollars stolen from his state political accounts by an aide, his campaign says.
Discussion:
Politico, Talking Points Memo, The Fix, Ballot Box and Post Politics
Sky News:
Gang-Rape In India: Teen Victim Kills Herself — Video: Women mourn the death of the teenager — A 17-year-old Indian girl who was allegedly gang-raped killed herself after police pressured her to drop the case and marry one of her attackers, police and a relative said on Thursday.
Discussion:
ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES, JONATHAN TURLEY and Gawker
Gregory L. White / Wall Street Journal:
Putin Signs Ban on U.S. Adoptions — Children at an orphanage in Rostov-on-Don, Russia. A new law would ban Americans from adopting Russians. — MOSCOW—President Vladimir Putin signed a bill Friday banning U.S. citizens from adopting Russian children, raising tensions with Washington …
Discussion:
Politico, Associated Press, LifeNews.com, Power Line and New York Times
RELATED:
Burgess Everett / Politico:
GOP senators propose $1 trillion debt ceiling deal — A pair of GOP senators, confident Congress will head off the tax hikes set to kick in within days, are already turning their attention to entitlements and the debt ceiling. — Tennessee Sens. Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander pitched …
Discussion:
The National Memo
Jason Volentine / KASW-TV:
Sheriff Arpaio sending armed posse to protect schools — PHOENIX — Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Thursday that he plans to deploy his armed volunteer posse to protect Valley schools from the kind of violence that happened in the Connecticut shooting tragedy.
Discussion:
Mediaite and The National Memo
Paul Krugman:
A Double Shot of Misunderstanding — One of the enduring fantasies of the pundit class - most dramatically demonstrated by the ludicrous Politico piece on What Insiders Know - is that all we need to fix our economic problems is to get the great and the good together and bypass those pesky elected officials.
Discussion:
Mother Jones, Business Insider, The Week and Wonkblog, more at Mediagazer »
Matt Schudel / Washington Post:
Retired Gen. Schwarzkopf dies at 78 — H. Norman Schwarzkopf, the four-star Army general who led allied forces to a stunningly quick and decisive victory over Saddam Hussein's Iraqi military in the 1991 Persian Gulf War and who became the most celebrated U.S. military hero of his generation, died Thursday in Tampa.
Discussion:
The Spectacle Blog, neo-neocon, Gawker and Foreign Policy
RELATED:
Robert D. McFadden / New York Times:
Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, U.S. Commander in Gulf War, Dies at 78
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, The Week, americanthinker.com, Crooks and Liars, Twitchy and National Review
Jennifer Steinhauer / New York Times:
Summoned Back to Work, Senators Chafe at Inaction — WASHINGTON — Senators bid hasty goodbyes to families, donned ties and pantsuits in lieu of sweat pants and Christmas sweaters and one by one returned to the Capitol on Thursday to begin the business of doing nothing in particular.
Discussion:
ABCNEWS, Washington Monthly and ABCNEWS
Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:
Senate Republicans refuse to confirm Kerry until Hillary testifies about Benghazi — Isn't this pushing a jinx? If Senate Republicans insist on having Hillary Clinton testify before allowing John Kerry's confirmation to proceed, aren't they risking a torn ACL or turf toe for the outgoing Secretary of State?
Discussion:
Washington Monthly and Pirate's Cove
Chicago Tribune:
Grim milestone: Austin shooting apparently 500th homicide in Chicago — Gave Bates smiled through tears as she swiped her hand across her phone, flipping through pictures of her cousin playing around and striking goofy poses. — “He was a lot of fun, very good at imitating people,” Bates said of Nathaniel T. Jackson, 40.
Discussion:
Hot Air, Weasel Zippers and Shot in the Dark
Pete Kasperowicz / The Hill:
Senate votes to block Hurricane Sandy relief for tax cheats, dead people — The Senate on Friday approved an amendment to a Hurricane Sandy disaster relief bill that would prohibit dead people and anyone with “serious delinquent tax debts” from receiving the funds.
Discussion:
Post Politics
CBS News:
Bush aide: “Please put the harps back in the closet” — The chief of staff to former Pres. George H.W. Bush, who is in intensive care at Houston's Methodist Hospital, told Bush family and friends in an email today that the former president “would ask me to tell you to please put the harps back in the closet …
Discussion:
CNN, The Hill, Post Politics, Mediaite and Politico
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