Top Items:
Chris Frates / NationalJournal.com:
Republicans, White House in Talks Toward Big Fiscal Deal — GOP senators and Obama's chief of staff have been meeting for weeks to set a course that might avoid a crisis when America hits its debt limit in the fall. — At least a dozen Republican senators are regularly meeting …
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, The Hill, ABC News, susiemadrak.com, Washington Wire and The Reaction
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Politico:
Marco Rubio stumbles — Todd Harris, the usually gregarious consultant to Sen. Marco Rubio, uncharacteristically resisted eight days of calls and emails seeking his thoughts for this column. When he finally did reply, the answer was: “to be honest, another story about Marco and immigration is not high on Christmas list!!”
Discussion:
Pat Dollard and msnbc.com
Politico:
Immigration could hinge on August recess
Immigration could hinge on August recess
Discussion:
Weekly Standard, The Plum Line, The Hill and Reuters
Meredith Shiner / The World's Greatest …:
Testy Meeting Among Senate GOP on ‘Nuclear Option’ Deal — A meeting of Senate Republicans on Wednesday grew tense as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told his members he could have gotten a better deal on nominations than the one negotiated by rank-and-file Republicans.
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Washington Monthly, Taegan Goddard's …, WHAS, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The Hill, The Huffington Post and Booman Tribune
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Rich Lowry / Politico:
Conversation about race? Get real — Let's take the advice of the attorney general of the United States. Let's have a national conversation about race in the wake of the Zimmerman case. Let's make it a painfully honest conversation — except about all the things that are painful for us to admit.
Discussion:
msnbc.com, National Review, Weasel Zippers, The Hinterland Gazette, BizPac Review and Pat Dollard
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Jermaine Spradley / The Huffington Post:
Rachel Jeantel: ‘I Believe Trayvon Hit First’ (VIDEO)
Rachel Jeantel: ‘I Believe Trayvon Hit First’ (VIDEO)
Discussion:
Scared Monkeys, NewsBusters blogs, The PJ Tatler, Weasel Zippers, Hot Air, Atlas Shrugs and The Hill
Kathleen Parker / Washington Post:
Why was Zimmerman allowed to walk around armed and loaded?
Why was Zimmerman allowed to walk around armed and loaded?
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, BizPac Review, The Huffington Post, Gawker and The Daily Caller
Patrick Howley / The Daily Caller:
IRS lawyer says scandal was overseen by D.C., names names — Top IRS officials in Washington, D.C. planned and oversaw the agency's improper targeting of conservative groups, according to the 72-year old retiring IRS lawyer who will testify Thursday before the House Oversight Committee.
Discussion:
Pat Dollard and Ed Driscoll
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Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
On Obamacare, Republicans test the definition of insanity — Well, this is embarrassing. Republicans have made so many attempts to repeal “Obamacare” that the scorekeepers have lost count. — “Republicans,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, “voted to repeal it 40 times.”
Discussion:
The Fix, Althouse and The Daily Caller
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Sam Baker / The Hill:
President to tout ObamaCare savings in Thursday address
President to tout ObamaCare savings in Thursday address
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, The Heritage Foundation and New York Times
Sahil Kapur / Talking Points Memo:
House Republicans Pass Dead-End Bill To Delay Obamacare Individual Mandate
House Republicans Pass Dead-End Bill To Delay Obamacare Individual Mandate
Discussion:
Yahoo! News and Alan Colmes' Liberaland
Jeanne Marie Laskas / GQ Magazine Online:
Have You Heard the One About President Joe Biden? — That's No Joke. Consider: He is the most quietly effective politician in D.C. (Don't laugh.) The “Most Influential Vice President in History.” (Seriously, stop laughing.) One of our nation's most senior statesmen. (Look it up!)
Discussion:
Politico, The Hill, The Fix, CNN and Yahoo! News
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Brent Weisberg / KOIN-TV:
Vancouver man's gun shooting defense: Biden
Vancouver man's gun shooting defense: Biden
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, Politico, The Daily Caller, CNN, BizPac Review and The PJ Tatler
Hadas Gold / Politico:
DNA test: Rep. Steve Cohen not the father — The woman whom Rep. Steve Cohen has been claiming is his out-of-wedlock daughter is not, according to a paternity test revealed on Thursday. — CNN had a paternity test done on Victoria Brink with Cohen's participation, although the Tennessee Democrat did not appear on camera.
Discussion:
CNN and FishbowlDC
New York Times:
Voters Approve of City's Progress, Poll Finds, but Seek Empathetic Mayor — After 12 years with a peevish and pragmatic billionaire running the city, New Yorkers are eager for a mayor with heart. — By a clear majority, the city's voters say empathy is the most important trait in the next mayor …
Discussion:
Yahoo! News, Politicker and Jammie Wearing Fools
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Roanoke College:
RC Poll: Cuccinelli holds narrow lead over McAuliffe but one-quarter of registered voters undecided
RC Poll: Cuccinelli holds narrow lead over McAuliffe but one-quarter of registered voters undecided
Discussion:
Washington Wire, Washington Post, First Read, Right Turn, Yahoo! News, LifeNews.com, National Review and Hot Air
Tal Kopan / Politico:
Virginia governor race 2013 poll: Terry McAuliffe holds narrow edge
Virginia governor race 2013 poll: Terry McAuliffe holds narrow edge
Discussion:
CNN, msnbc.com, Taylor Marsh, ThinkProgress and Towleroad News #gay
Gail Collins / New York Times:
The Cheney in Waiting — Dick Cheney's daughter wants to be a senator! To give Wyoming a conservative voice! Well, it's about time somebody thought of that. — “Over the last several years, citizens across our great state have urged me to consider running for the Senate,” Liz Cheney said, announcing her candidacy via YouTube.
Discussion:
American Spectator, TIME, Balloon Juice, ThinkProgress and Washington Examiner
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Michael O'Brien / First Read:
Cheney calls GOP senator she's challenging ‘confused’
Cheney calls GOP senator she's challenging ‘confused’
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Ballot Box, Slate, Right Turn, Weekly Standard, Politico and CNN
Noah Rothman / Mediaite:
‘Ridiculous’: Reporters Mock, Sneer At Daily Caller Intern Who Dared Ask Jay Carney A Question — The impropriety displayed on Wednesday by a high school-age intern who dared to ask White House Press Secretary Jay Carney a question relating to the security provided to the family of George Zimmerman knows no bounds.
Discussion:
The PJ Tatler, The Daily Caller, The Week, Politico, The Jawa Report and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
RELATED:
Jennifer Epstein / Politico:
Daily Caller questioner of Carney is high schooler
Daily Caller questioner of Carney is high schooler
Discussion:
PolicyMic, FishbowlDC, BuzzFeed, Mediaite, Hot Air, Yahoo! News, The Raw Story, Post Politics and The Huffington Post
Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:
Congressman: Benghazi Survivors Forced to Sign Non-Disclosure Agreements — Congressman Frank Wolf, a Republican from Virginia, said today on the House floor that survivors of the Benghazi terror attack have been forced to sign non-disclosure agreements: — “On Tuesday I raised the question …
Discussion:
Hot Air and BizPac Review
Politico:
Jim DeMint back at war with Republicans — Jim DeMint's at war with Republicans — again. — The tea party firebrand who made his mark in GOP primary races across the country is now at the helm of the Heritage Foundation where its political arm is doing the same thing: holding conservatives feet to the fire.
Nasser Al-Awlaki / New York Times:
The Drone That Killed My Grandson — SANA, Yemen — I LEARNED that my 16-year-old grandson, Abdulrahman — a United States citizen — had been killed by an American drone strike from news reports the morning after he died. — The missile killed him, his teenage cousin and at least five …
Discussion:
emptywheel and Mediaite
Reuters:
U.S. Senators Said to Reach Deal to Temporarily Hold Down Student Loan Rates — WASHINGTON — U.S. senators reached a deal on Wednesday to temporarily hold interest rates on student loans at lower levels as they raced to get the measure completed before an August deadline, a Senate aide said.
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland
EndPlay / TheDenverChannel.com:
Town of Deer Trail considering hunting licenses for unmanned aerial vehicles, bounties for drones — ‘They fly in town, they get shot down,’ man says — Deer Trail Mayor Franks Fields displays proper drone-hunting technique. (Photo by Amanda Kost/7NEWS) — Regular Photo Size
Discussion:
The Raw Story, Business Insider, The Week, Mashable, BizPac Review, The Gateway Pundit, UPROXX, National Review and ABC News