Top Items:
David Brooks / New York Times:
Pass the Bill! — It's beginning to look as though we're not going to get an immigration reform law this year. House Republicans are moving in a direction that will probably be unacceptable to the Senate majority and the White House. Conservative commentators like my friends Bill Kristol …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Taegan Goddard's … and Prairie Weather
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New York Times:
In the House, a Refusal to Govern — On two crucial issues this week, the extremists who dominate the Republican majority in the House of Representatives made it clear how little interest they have in the future prosperity of their country, or its reputation for fairness and decency.
Discussion:
Weekly Standard, The Maddow Blog, Daily Kos, The Plum Line, Taking Note, Outside the Beltway and addictinginfo.org
Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
Oh, snap! The GOP misfires on food stamps. — There was a rare moment of candor on the House floor this week. — Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Tex.), a committee chairman and the man who led House Republicans to their majority in 2010, was explaining why he and his colleagues decided to drop the food stamp program from the farm bill.
Discussion:
Campaign for America's Future, americanthinker.com, Daily Kos, The Plum Line and Post Politics
Mary Clare Jalonick / Associated Press:
Republicans to Tackle Cuts in Food Stamp Program — House approval of a scaled-back farm bill is setting up what could be an even bigger fight over food stamps and the role of domestic food aid in the United States. — Food stamps have been a part of farm bills since the 1970s to gain urban Democratic votes for the rural measure.
Discussion:
Shakesville, Reuters and Associated Press
Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
House Republicans Pass Bloated Socialist Monstrosity — Thank you, deserving socialist takers. — The House of Representatives just passed a farm bill, which overlays a Byzantine political calculus atop what ought to be a simple policy question. Should the government subsidize business owners because their business is agriculture?
Discussion:
The Week and Balloon Juice
New York Times:
House Republicans Push Through Farm Bill, Without Food Stamps
House Republicans Push Through Farm Bill, Without Food Stamps
Discussion:
Washington Wire, The Week, addictinginfo.org, The Fix, A plain blog about politics, Wall Street Journal, Hot Air, Washington Monthly, CNN, Yahoo! News and The Hill
David Edwards / The Raw Story:
Gohmert repeatedly shouts ‘Objection!’ to silence claims food stamp cuts hurt hungry families
Gohmert repeatedly shouts ‘Objection!’ to silence claims food stamp cuts hurt hungry families
Discussion:
aflcio.org, msnbc.com, Reuters and Mock, Paper, Scissors
Ian Swanson / The Hill:
House approves farm bill in big win for Boehner, GOP leaders
House approves farm bill in big win for Boehner, GOP leaders
Discussion:
Yahoo! News and Daily Kos
Larry Gordon / Los Angeles Times:
Janet Napolitano, Homeland Security chief, to head UC — U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is being named the next president of the 10-campus UC system. (Alex Wong / Getty Images / July 18, 2012) — Janet Napolitano, the U.S. secretary of Homeland Security and former governor of Arizona …
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, Weekly Standard, Taegan Goddard's …, Business Insider, The PJ Tatler and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
Reuters:
Rights groups summoned to meet fugitive Snowden — (Reuters) - Former intelligence agency contractor Edward Snowden asked to meet human rights groups at a Moscow airport on Friday to discuss what he called threatening and illegal behavior by the United States to prevent him gaining asylum.
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Paul Owen / Guardian:
Edward Snowden to meet Amnesty and Human Rights Watch at Moscow airport - live coverage — NSA whistleblower to meet human rights groups at Sheremetyevo airport to discuss his next steps forward as he claims US is illegally denying his right to seek asylum — Edward Snowden along …
Discussion:
Business Insider, Taylor Marsh and Mashable
Ezra Klein / Wonkblog:
One Senate staffer's theory: Mitch McConnell actually wants to get nuked — Perhaps McConnell wants Reid to go nuclear. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) — A Senate Democratic staffer e-mails with an interesting — and off-message — theory:
Discussion:
Daily Kos and A plain blog about politics
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Ezra Klein / Wonkblog:
Mitch McConnell's problem: How can he threaten to obstruct the Senate even more?
Mitch McConnell's problem: How can he threaten to obstruct the Senate even more?
Discussion:
The World's Greatest … and New York Times
Sahil Kapur / Talking Points Memo:
Reid: McConnell Broke His Word On Filibuster, So The Nuclear Option Is On The Table
Reid: McConnell Broke His Word On Filibuster, So The Nuclear Option Is On The Table
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Yahoo! News and Daily Kos
Politico:
Harry Reid slams Mitch McConnell, ready for nuclear option
Harry Reid slams Mitch McConnell, ready for nuclear option
Discussion:
Mediaite, americanthinker.com, Hot Air, National Review, Washington Examiner and Ballot Box
Ramsey Cox / The Hill:
McConnell: Reid will be ‘worst’ Senate leader in history if he goes nuclear
McConnell: Reid will be ‘worst’ Senate leader in history if he goes nuclear
Discussion:
CNN
John Fund / National Review:
Obama's Alinskyite Administration — Judicial Watch, a conservative legal foundation, has used the Freedom of Information Act to uncover documents that show Eric Holder's Justice Department used a “community relations” unit to support and stage-manage public protests in Florida …
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CBS News:
Could “North Colorado” be America's 51st state? — PLAY CBS NEWS VIDEO — There's a growing effort to create a 51st state out of parts of northeast Colorado and southwestern Nebraska. — Ten counties started talking about seceding last month. Now some people in Lincoln and Cheyenne counties …
Discussion:
Zandar Versus The Stupid, No More Mister Nice Blog, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Taking Note
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Reuters:
New front opens in Syria as rebels say al Qaeda attack means war — (Reuters) - Syrian rebels said on Friday the assassination of one of their top commanders by al Qaeda-linked militants was tantamount to a declaration of war, opening a new front for the Western-backed fighters struggling against President Bashar al-Assad's forces.
Discussion:
The Hill, ThinkProgress, Los Angeles Times, Hot Air, americanthinker.com, USA Today and Outside the Beltway
Associated Press:
Spitzer submits signatures to get on NYC ballot — NEW YORK (AP) — Eliot Spitzer has met the deadline to file thousands of petition signatures for his bid to revive his political career by running for New York City comptroller. — Spitzer said that “over 27,000 signatures” …
Discussion:
First Read, Taegan Goddard's … and Associated Press
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Maggie Haberman / Politico:
Eliot Spitzer submits signatures in N.Y.C. race
Eliot Spitzer submits signatures in N.Y.C. race
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, CNN and Alan Colmes' Liberaland
Lyle Denniston / SCOTUSblog:
Employer health mandate upheld — Giving the Obama administration a major new legal victory for the often-besieged federal health care law, the Fourth Circuit Court ruled on Thursday that Congress had clear authority to impose the requirement that larger employers provide adequate health insurance …
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Elizabeth Harrington / CNSNews:
Pelosi: The Employer Mandate ‘Was Not Delayed’
Pelosi: The Employer Mandate ‘Was Not Delayed’
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers, Politico, Washington Examiner, Power Line, Michelle Malkin and The PJ Tatler
Guardian:
Revealed: how Microsoft handed the NSA access to encrypted messages — • Secret files show scale of Silicon Valley co-operation on Prism — • Outlook.com encryption unlocked even before official launch — • Skype worked to enable Prism collection of video calls
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Mashable, Hot Air, BBC, The Atlantic Wire, CANNONFIRE, The Daily Caller, The Agonist, Marginal Revolution, FP Passport, Hit & Run, emptywheel, KDVR.com, Little Green Footballs, The Reaction, The Verge, Mediaite, The Hill, Gawker, Business Insider, TechCrunch and Alan Colmes' Liberaland
Ralph Z. Hallow / Washington Times:
Exclusive: Rick Perry's October trip to Israel sign of another White House bid — Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Thursday that he will visit Israel in October, a move that signals to the political world that he is seriously considering making another presidential run in 2016.
Discussion:
Ballot Box, Trail Blazers Blog and Algemeiner.com
Chris Christie / CNN:
Who wins in a Clinton-Christie 2016 showdown? — Washington (CNN) - Call it a very early look at what could possibly happen in November 2016. — According to a new national poll, Hillary Clinton would top New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky in hypothetical presidential election showdowns.
Discussion:
Politico