Top Items:
Aaron Blake / Post Politics:
GOP congressman: Rate of pregnancies from rape is ‘very low’ — Another Republican congressman ventured into the realm of rape and pregnancy Wednesday, saying at a committee hearing that incidences of pregnancy from rape are “very low.” — Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) …
Discussion:
The Other McCain, The Fix, Weekly Standard, Taking Note, Yahoo! News, Mediaite, Daily Kos, DownWithTyranny!, The Maddow Blog, The Raw Story and NationalJournal.com
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Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
No, Trent Franks Is Not Todd Akin — Ever since Todd Akin exposed his boundless stupidity, and handed Democrats political gold, by insisting that raped women can't get pregnant, liberals have been looking for more Akins. They think they've found the latest one in Trent Franks, who …
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, Politico, The New Civil Rights Movement, Outside the Beltway and Daily Kos
Sahil Kapur / Talking Points Memo:
House GOP Set To Vote Next Week On 20-Week Abortion Ban
House GOP Set To Vote Next Week On 20-Week Abortion Ban
Discussion:
Mediaite and Business Insider
Frank Newport / Gallup:
Americans Disapprove of Government Surveillance Programs — Americans split on whether leaker did the right or wrong thing — PRINCETON, NJ — More Americans disapprove (53%) than approve (37%) of the federal government agency program that as part of its efforts to investigate terrorism obtained records …
Discussion:
CNN, Hit & Run, Wonkblog, Opinionator, The Huffington Post, ThinkProgress and The Hill
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Tom Kludt / Talking Points Memo:
Democratic Sen. Tester: Snowden Didn't Compromise National Security (VIDEO) — Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) on Wednesday rejected the notion that Edward Snowden compromised the country's security when he leaked details of top secret National Security Agency surveillance programs.
Discussion:
Hot Air, VodkaPundit and CBS News
Tom Kludt / Talking Points Memo:
Peter King Calls For Legal Action To Be Brought Against Greenwald (VIDEO) — Rep. Peter King (R-NY) on Wednesday elaborated on his call for journalists to be punished if they report on classified information, singling out The Guardian reporter at the center of the firestorm …
Discussion:
Booman Tribune, Hit & Run and The Moderate Voice
Daniel Strauss / The Hill:
NSA revelations only ‘the tip of the iceberg,’ says Dem lawmaker
NSA revelations only ‘the tip of the iceberg,’ says Dem lawmaker
Discussion:
Hot Air and Weasel Zippers
Jia Lynn Yang / Washington Post:
NSA leaker Edward Snowden: U.S. targets China with hackers — HONG KONG — Edward Snowden, the self-confessed leaker of secret surveillance documents, claimed Wednesday that the United States has mounted massive hacking operations against hundreds of Chinese targets since 2009.
Discussion:
Firedoglake, CNNMoney.com, msnbc.com, Yahoo! News, The Gateway Pundit, The PJ Tatler, Little Green Footballs, The Daily Caller and Examiner
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Lydia Warren / Daily Mail:
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden says U.S. government has been hacking Chinese universities …
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden says U.S. government has been hacking Chinese universities …
Discussion:
Business Insider, The Hill, Politico and Althouse
Alexander Burns / Politico:
Establishment renders harsh verdict on Edward Snowden
Establishment renders harsh verdict on Edward Snowden
Discussion:
CNN, Associated Press, New York Times, The Week, Wonkblog, Daniel W. Drezner, Reuters and Washington Monthly
Thomas Drake / Guardian:
Snowden saw what I saw: surveillance criminally subverting the constitution | Thomas Drake
Snowden saw what I saw: surveillance criminally subverting the constitution | Thomas Drake
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Yahoo! News and CNN
Brian Beutler / Talking Points Memo:
Schumer: Cornyn Border Security Amendment A ‘Non-Starter’ And We Are Not Negotiating With Him — Democrats want it to be crystal clear. They don't think Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) is crucial to passing immigration reform. So they aren't negotiating with him over his non-starter amendment …
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, NationalJournal.com, Washington Monthly, Politico, National Review, BREITBART.COM, Immigration Reform, Hot Air, First Read and The Hill
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Byron York / Washington Examiner:
First look: The amendment that could upend the immigration debate
First look: The amendment that could upend the immigration debate
Discussion:
Immigration Reform, The Daily Caller and Politico
Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
How conservatives are trying to kill immigration reform
How conservatives are trying to kill immigration reform
Discussion:
Immigration Reform
Bernie Becker / The Hill:
Ways and Means Chairman: IRS targeting of Tea Party groups didn't start in Ohio — The IRS's singling out of conservative groups did not originate in Cincinnati, the House Republican in charge of tax policy said Wednesday. — House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) …
Discussion:
Politico, The Plum Line, ThinkProgress and Washington Free Beacon
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Eliana Johnson / National Review:
Blaming Cincinnati a ‘Nuclear Strike on Us,’ Says Cincy IRS Employee
Blaming Cincinnati a ‘Nuclear Strike on Us,’ Says Cincy IRS Employee
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and The PJ Tatler
John Stanton / BuzzFeed:
Arizona Senator's Son Used Homophobic, Anti-Semitic Language On Twitter — “He has apologized and I apologize as well,” says Senator Jeff Flake. — WASHINGTON — Sen. Jeff Flake's high school-aged son Tanner used Twitter to threaten the “faggot” who stole his bike that he “will find you …
Discussion:
CNN, Gawker and The Raw Story
Washington Post:
CIA's deputy director to be replaced with White House lawyer — The CIA's deputy director plans to resign and will be replaced by White House lawyer and agency outsider Avril D. Haines, Director John O. Brennan said Wednesday. — Haines, who will succeed career officer Michael Morell on Aug. 9 …
Discussion:
Reuters, Yahoo! News, Hot Air, Business Insider and The Raw Story
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Reid J. Epstein / Politico:
Deputy CIA director Michael Morell retires
Walter Shapiro / American Prospect:
Dear 2016 Democratic Upstart — To: 2016 White House Candidates (Democrats Only) — Since you have time to read an unsolicited memo with such a provocative subject line, it is safe to assume that your name is not Hillary or Joe. — That's good because I am not writing for the establishment types …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly
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Borys Kit / Hollywood Reporter:
Carey Mulligan Passes on Hillary Clinton Biopic
Carey Mulligan Passes on Hillary Clinton Biopic
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon, Los Angeles Times, Business Insider, Guardian and Politico
Greg Lindley / Facebook Newsroom:
Public Conversations on Facebook — Every day, hundreds of millions of people use Facebook to share their thoughts on big moments happening all around them. Whether it's talking about a favorite television show, cheering on a hometown sports team or engaging with friends during a breaking news event …
Discussion:
CNET, TechCrunch, The Verge, The Daily Caller, Red Alert Politics, NYT Bits and BBC
Steven Greenhouse / New York Times:
Judge Rules for Interns Who Sued Fox Searchlight — A Federal District Court judge in Manhattan ruled on Tuesday that Fox Searchlight Pictures had violated federal and New York minimum wage laws by not paying production interns, a case that could upend the long-held practice of the film industry …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, ProPublica, Red Alert Politics and Lawyers, Guns & Money, more at Mediagazer »
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New York Times:
Bloomberg Urges No Gifts to Democrats Who Blocked Gun Bill — Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, in a sharp escalation in the battle over gun control, is seeking to punish Democratic senators by taking away the one thing they most need from New Yorkers: money. — On Wednesday, Mr. Bloomberg …
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, Politico, Reuters, The Hill, Weasel Zippers, Political MoneyLine Blog, Capital New York, New Republic, Daily Kos, CNN, msnbc.com, ABCNEWS and The Plum Line
Eduardo Porter / New York Times:
Health Care's Overlooked Cost Factor — When the Evanston Northwestern Healthcare Corporation merged its two hospitals with the neighboring Highland Park Hospital just north of Chicago 13 years ago, the deal was presented as an opportunity to increase efficiency and improve the quality of patient care.
Discussion:
AEIdeas, The Heritage Foundation and National Review
Jeremy Herb / The Hill:
Panel rejects pulling sex assault cases from military's chain of command — The Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday voted against removing sexual assault cases from the military's chain of command. — The panel voted 17-9 to include in the Defense authorization bill an alternative …
Discussion:
Politico and The Raw Story
Katie Dvorak / The Hill:
White House, Senate Republicans spar at closed-door meeting — The White House is trying to jump-start budget talks with Senate Republicans to avoid a showdown over the raising the national debt ceiling later this year. — White House chief of staff Denis McDonough met Tuesday afternoon …
Discussion:
Daily Kos
Harriet Baldwin- / Examiner:
Secret Service “Visits” Outspoken Critic of Obama - Because of Twitter? — I know, RIGHT? — After you read this- you will wonder what country we are in. — Tom Francois is an outspoken critic of Barack Hussein Obama- and has a robust Twitter presence. He also likes to dabble with his “paint” program to create funny cartoons.
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit and Riehl World News
The Atlantic Online:
The Obama Surveillance Revelations Are Pushing Liberals Over the Edge — Progressives aren't going to give the president a pass on civil liberties anymore. — The email went out shortly after midnight Thursday, a few hours after the news broke about the Obama administration's large-scale monitoring …
Discussion:
Red Alert Politics, The Great Debate and Examiner