Top Items:
New York Times:
Obama Gun Proposal to Look Beyond Mass Shootings — A new federal assault weapons ban and background checks of all gun buyers, which President Obama is expected to propose on Wednesday, might have done little to prevent the massacre in Newtown, Conn., last month.
RELATED:
Politico:
Why President Obama's gun plan may be doomed — Before President Barack Obama can even launch his campaign-style blitz for new gun control measures, there are strong indications that any comprehensive legislation restricting weapons and ammunition won't even see a vote on the House floor.
Discussion:
CNN, Mediaite, The Page, Capital New York, Hot Air, Washington Examiner, Wall Street Journal and The Reaction
Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:
Pennsylvania House Republicans Introduce Bill To Rig The 2016 Presidential Election … Earlier this week, Republican National Committee Chair Reince Priebus endorsed a Republican plan to rig the next presidential election to make it nearly impossible for the Democratic candidate to win the White House …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice and Booman Tribune
First Read:
First Thoughts: Obama set to go big on guns — Obama set to go big on guns... But the opposition will go equally big... NRA — with its new web video — brings a sledgehammer to the fight... Sandy relief passes the House (but with just a minority of the majority)... And that's instructive …
Discussion:
Taegan Goddard's …, msnbc.com, Mediaite and Politico
Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:
W.H. Releases Letters from Little Kids Pleading for Gun Control
W.H. Releases Letters from Little Kids Pleading for Gun Control
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers, Taylor Marsh, The Powers That Be and UrbanGrounds
Brendan Sasso / The Hill:
Leahy: Senate to hold hearings on proposals to reduce gun violence
Leahy: Senate to hold hearings on proposals to reduce gun violence
Discussion:
Politico
Associated Press:
In letters, children ask Obama to change gun laws
In letters, children ask Obama to change gun laws
Discussion:
Michelle Malkin, No More Mister Nice Blog and The Hill
Reid J. Epstein / Politico:
President Obama set to unveil new gun plan
President Obama set to unveil new gun plan
Discussion:
CNN, New York Times, The Reaction, The Week, First Read, News Desk, Fox News, National Review, msnbc.com and Talking Points Memo
Paul Waldman / American Prospect:
The NRA Opens Fire — In case you were waiting for the National Rifle Association's reasonable, constructive contribution to our current debate on how best to curb gun violence in America, your wait is over. They are locked, loaded, and ready to bring the crazy.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly and Lawyers, Guns & Money
RELATED:
CNN:
NRA airs new TV ad criticizing Obama on eve of White House gun announcement — Washington (CNN) - The National Rifle Association released a new television commercial Tuesday night charging President Barack Obama of hypocrisy for being “skeptical” about placing armed guards at schools …
Jason Howerton / TheBlaze.com:
NRA BLASTS ‘ELITIST’, ‘HYPOCRITE’ OBAMA IN SCATHING NEW VIDEO — The National Rifle Association on Tuesday provided TheBlaze an exclusive look at its new video, which criticizes President Barack Obama's opposition to having armed guards in more schools across the United States.
Discussion:
New York Times, msnbc.com, The Daily Caller, Politico, AMERICAblog, Addicting Info and Weasel Zippers
Katie Glueck / Politico:
NRA ad attacked for including President Obama's daughters
NRA ad attacked for including President Obama's daughters
Discussion:
Addicting Info, Weasel Zippers and The National Memo
Evan McMorris-Santoro / Talking Points Memo:
NRA TV Ad: Obama ‘Elitist Hypocrite’ Because His Daughters Have Armed Guards
Javier Manjarres / The Shark Tank:
Congressman Radel on Possible Presidential Impeachment- “All Options Should be on the Table” — Congressman Steve Stockman from Texas has taken aim against President Obama's forthcoming executive orders that will further restrict gun rights by “eliminating funding for implementation …
Discussion:
Politico, The Hill and The Daily Caller
RELATED:
Kathryn Bigelow / Los Angeles Times:
Kathryn Bigelow addresses ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ torture criticism — ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ director Kathryn Bigelow answers criticism of the film's depiction of torture, which she says does not equal endorsement of the tactics. — Kathryn Bigelow. — For a long time, measuring more years …
Xenos / Reading is for Snobs:
These Are The People The Wall Street Journal Thinks We Should Have Sympathy For? — The Wall Street Journal had an article providing a fairly thorough breakdown of the new tax policies that will now be in effect due to the “fiscal cliff” agreement reached by congress. The article itself wasn't too bad, really.
Discussion:
Brad DeLong
RELATED:
Politico:
Why debt limit must be used to force a balanced budget — This Monday, President Obama again asserted that the country would “default” if Congress did not raise the debt limit. “The full and faith and credit of the United States is not a bargaining chip,” he said at a press conference.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Heritage Foundation and Daily Kos
Kevin Bogardus / The Hill:
Chamber, union leaders mull alliance to press for immigration reform — Washington's most powerful business lobby and prominent union leaders are discussing a joint push on immigration reform this year. — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is in discussions with the AFL-CIO …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner and TheBlaze.com
Macon Phillips / White House.gov Blog:
Why We're Raising the Signature Threshold for We the People — When we launched We the People, none of us knew how popular it would be, but it's exceeded our wildest expectations. Through the past year, interest in We the People exploded and we're closing in on 10 million signatures.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life:
Roe v. Wade at 40: Most Oppose Overturning Abortion Decision — Millennials Far Less Aware of Historic Ruling — As the 40th anniversary of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision approaches, the public remains opposed to completely overturning the historic ruling on abortion.
Discussion:
CNN, Hullabaloo and Taegan Goddard's …
George Dvorsky / io9:
How 19-year-old activist Zack Kopplin is making life hell for Louisiana's creationists — For Zack Kopplin, it all started back in 2008 with the passing of the Louisiana Science Education Act. The bill made it considerably easier for teachers to introduce creationist textbooks into the classroom.
Discussion:
Boing Boing and Little Green Footballs
Eric Ostermeier / Smart Politics:
FOX Still Shunned at Obama Press Conferences — The favorite news outlet of conservatives ranks just ninth in presser questions in Obama's first term, getting to ask questions at only half the rate of the Big 3 broadcast networks — During Barack Obama's news conference on Monday the president called on seven reporters.
Discussion:
Hot Air
Ian Swanson / The Hill:
Lawmakers slam DOJ prosecution of Swartz as ‘ridiculous, absurd’ — House lawmakers blasted federal prosecutors on Tuesday for pushing aggressive hacking charges against Internet activist Aaron Swartz, who killed himself on Friday. — Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) says his Oversight panel …
Discussion:
Guardian, Chicago Sun Times, TechPresident, CANNONFIRE and The Huffington Post, more at Mediagazer »
Allison Sherry / Denver Post:
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to leave cabinet position in March — WASHINGTON — Interior Secretary Ken Salazar will step down from his cabinet position in the Obama administration and return to Colorado to spend time with his family, his office has confirmed to The Denver Post.
Discussion:
New York Times, Politico, The Daily Caller, msnbc.com, Hot Air, BuzzFeed, Michelle Malkin and InsideClimate News
Bob McManus / New York Post:
Andrew's empty gun win — It's always about the polls — Albany has once more felt the heavy hand of Andrew Cuomo — to what useful purpose, it remains to be seen. — Politics, not policy, looks to have been the point of Cuomo's so-called SAFE Act of 2013, a gun-control bill marinated …
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon and Capital New York
Howard Schneider / Washington Post:
U.S.-China deficit may be lower than thought — Stephan Savoia/AP - In this 2012 file photo, a container is loaded onto a ship from China at Massport's Conley Terminal in the port of Boston. In releasing the study on the U.S. trade deficit with China, the WTO and OECD highlighted how the data could influence the world trade agenda.
Amie Parnes / The Hill:
Obama runs afoul of Dem base — The nomination of former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) to head the Pentagon disappointed liberals and women's groups hoping for the first female Defense secretary. — It was also a double blow, of sorts, as Obama picked a fight with Republicans over Hagel …
Discussion:
Weekly Standard, Weasel Zippers and Mediaite