Top Items:
Charles M. Blow / New York Times:
Reframing the Gun Debate — This time things are different. — This time, nearly a month after the horrible mass shooting in Newtown, Conn., the public attention hasn't ricocheted to the next story. On the contrary, sorrow has hardened into resolve. — This time, something can and must be done.
Discussion:
The Fix, Vox Popoli, Democratic Strategist, The Moderate Voice and CNN
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David Weigel / Slate:
What Crazy Fascist Executive Orders Might Obama Use to Take Away Your Freedoms? — The Drudge Report is America's leading source of hyperlinks to Alex Jones articles, so I'm not sure why this splash page so shocked Washington. (Apparently there are reporters who still use Drudge as a sort of homepage?
Discussion:
Politico, p m carpenter's commentary, CANNONFIRE, Taylor Marsh, Hot Air, Talking Points Memo, The Week and The Gateway Pundit
Politico:
Expectations low for Joe Biden, NRA talks — Vice President Joe Biden and the NRA are sitting down Thursday morning to talk gun control. Up next for a talk: Wal-Mart. — But don't be fooled that the high-profile meetings are going to get much done. — The National Rifle Association doesn't want new gun laws.
Discussion:
ABCNEWS, Weasel Zippers, The Week, The New Republic and New York Times
Evan McMorris-Santoro / Talking Points Memo:
GOP Rep: An Executive Order On Guns Smacks Of ‘Dictatorship’
GOP Rep: An Executive Order On Guns Smacks Of ‘Dictatorship’
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and Truthdig
Reuters:
Biden says Obama could use executive orders to restrict guns
Biden says Obama could use executive orders to restrict guns
Discussion:
Politicker and TalkLeft
First Read:
First Thoughts: The disorganized cabinet shuffle — The Obama White House's disorganized cabinet shuffle... And some legitimate excuses for it... Obama to nominate Jack Lew for top Treasury job at 1:30 pm ET... Biden meets with the NRA and other gun-rights groups at the White House …
Discussion:
Booman Tribune
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Mike Allen / Politico:
11 days to inaug — NRA MEMBERSHIP SURGES — POTUS names Chief of Staff Jack Lew as Treasury secretary, 1:30 p.m. - Jim Warren to D.C. — Kevin Sheridan joins Dyke-Madden firm — TapprTumblr — THE JUICE: As pushback to N.Y. Times' A1 boys'-club photo, the White House yesterday blast-emailed …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Hot Air and ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES
Jennifer Epstein / Politico:
Labor Secretary Hilda Solis resigns
Labor Secretary Hilda Solis resigns
Discussion:
ABCNEWS, CNN, Taylor Marsh, This Just In and Power Line
Karl Rove / Wall Street Journal:
A GOP Strategy for the Debt-Ceiling Fight — The House should pass a bill pairing spending cuts with a dollar-for-dollar debt-ceiling increase. — President Obama says he won't negotiate with Republicans over his proposed more than $1 trillion increase in the debt ceiling as a matter …
Discussion:
ABCNEWS and Right Turn
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Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
Business leaders: Failure to raise debt ceiling will drive markets “haywire”
Business leaders: Failure to raise debt ceiling will drive markets “haywire”
Discussion:
The Maddow Blog, Applesauce, Daily Kos, ABCNEWS and Business Insider
Steve Benen / The Maddow Blog:
Carney on coin gambit: ‘There is no backup plan’ — For all the recent scuttlebutt about resolving the Republican debt-ceiling crisis with a trillion-dollar coin, there was an elusive detail: what does the White House think about this? Yesterday, for the first time, press secretary Jay Carney was pressed for an answer.
Discussion:
The Agonist
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The White House:
Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney, 1/9/2013 — MR. CARNEY: Welcome. Good afternoon. Thanks for being here. Sorry we had to postpone the briefing. Very busy day. I have a very important personnel announcement to make. Actually, I'm just kidding. I'll go right to the AP.
Discussion:
American Prospect
Justin Sink / The Hill:
White House declines to rule out the minting of a ‘platinum coin’
White House declines to rule out the minting of a ‘platinum coin’
Discussion:
The Reaction, Booman Tribune, The Verge and ABCNEWS
Josh Israel / ThinkProgress:
Inaugural Benediction To Be Delivered By Pastor Who Gave Vehemently Anti-Gay Sermon — The Presidential Inauguration Committee announced Tuesday that the President Obama has selected Pastor Louie Giglio of the Georgia-based Passion City Church to deliver the benediction for his second inauguration.
Discussion:
Washington Blade, BuzzFeed, New York Times, Shakesville, Good As You, The Week, The Caucus, Firedoglake, Advocate, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Politico, Towleroad News #gay, NPR, Pharyngula, AMERICAblog and The Hill
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Reuters:
Giffords gun control group wants $20 million for 2014 elections — (Reuters) - A new gun control group led by Gabrielle Giffords, the former U.S. congresswoman wounded in a Tucson shooting rampage, wants to raise $20 million for the 2014 congressional elections, matching …
Discussion:
Politico, The Hill and Washington Free Beacon
John Cornyn / CNN:
Cornyn: Why I can't support Hagel — Editor's note: John Cornyn, a Republican, is the senior United States Senator from Texas. — (CNN) — To the surprise of many, including me, President Barack Obama has nominated former Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel to be his next defense secretary.
Discussion:
Politico, Hot Air, Weekly Standard, Gawker and ABCNEWS
Ben Smith / BuzzFeed:
Obama Will Keep His “Heat Shield” — Eric Holder is the Obama Administration's indispensable man. — Image by Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images — Eric Holder may be the least popular member of the Obama cabinet. He is at the center of many of the Administration's ugliest fights with left and right …
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Linda Greenhouse / Opinionator:
Robert Bork's Tragedy — Even before Robert Bork died last month, he had achieved something close to martyrdom. In the quarter-century since the Senate rejected his Supreme Court nomination, successive generations of conservative lawyers and activists have carried the torch …
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Catalina Camia / USA Today:
Bill Clinton to receive Father of the Year award … Former President Bill Clinton hailed President Obama during remarks at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. (Photo: Jack Gruber, USA TODAY) — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — Former president Bill Clinton can add Father of the Year …
Discussion:
Newsday, Power Line, The Daily Caller and Jammie Wearing Fools
Joe Picard / The Hill:
Boehner takes flak from defense hawks on sequester stance — House Republican defense hawks are pushing back strongly against Speaker John Boehner's claim that he has GOP support to allow steep automatic budget cuts to take effect if President Obama does not agree to replace them with other reductions.
Discussion:
Washington Wire
Matthew Yglesias / Slate:
The Biggest Myth About The Platinum Coin Option — The biggest and weirdest myth out there about the $1 trillion platinum coin is the idea that it would require a large quantity of platinum to make one. The National Republican Campaign Committee, for example, is out there warning that …
Discussion:
The Maddow Blog, JustOneMinute, Althouse, Wonkblog, Mother Jones and Eschaton
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Tom Maguire / JustOneMinute:
He's Ready For The Clown Suit
He's Ready For The Clown Suit
Discussion:
The Volokh Conspiracy, Mashable! and Wonkblog
Katie Glueck / Reuters:
Virginia Poll: Armed school guards wanted — Bucking the national trend, Virginia voters, by a wide margin, want an armed guard in every school, but they do strongly back an assault weapons ban, according to a poll Thursday. — A Quinnipiac University poll found that Old Dominion voters favor putting …
Edward Glaeser / Bloomberg:
Why U.S. Spending Cuts Won't Kill Too Many Jobs — The U.S. began the year with an awkwardly arranged deal that raised taxes. I hope it doesn't end the year without a deal to limit spending. — The U.K. may have embraced austerity too soon, but the U.S. is far enough along in its recovery that it can begin balancing its books.