memeorandum: Southern Avenger no more: Rand Paul aide Jack Hunter leaves staff, returns to punditry (W. James Antle III/The Daily Caller)

1:00 PM ET, July 22, 2013

Top Items:

Rhetoric, race and reality in America — The biggest threat to black youths is other young blacks, not white bigots. — Rev. Al Sharpton speaks during a news conference outside the Department of Justice while discussing Trayvon Martin case. Sharpton called for the federal government …

Discussion: Connecting.the.Dots

Shelby Steele / Wall Street Journal:

The Decline of the Civil-Rights Establishment — Black leaders weren't so much outraged at injustice as they were by the disregard of their own authority. — The verdict that declared George Zimmerman not guilty of murdering Trayvon Martin was a traumatic event for America's civil-rights establishment …

Buckeye Firearms Foundation:

READ THIS ... Whatever you might think about the Zimmerman verdict, the fact remains that we are a nation of laws, not mob justice. — George Zimmerman was tried in a court of law and found NOT GUILTY. And that entitles him to continue exercising all his rights, including his Second Amendment right to own a firearm.

Discussion: Mediaite, The Daily Caller and The Raw Story

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:
Ohio Gun Group: 'We're Buying Zimmerman A New Gun'

Discussion: WHIO-TV

Mark Landler / New York Times:

Obama Plans to Unveil His Agenda for Economy — WASHINGTON — With major battles looming in the fall over the federal budget and the debt ceiling, President Obama is trying to regain the initiative, embarking on a campaign-style tour of the Midwest this week to lay out his agenda for reinvigorating …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Right Wing News, Booman Tribune, Taegan Goddard's …, Ed Driscoll and UrbanGrounds

Dan Pfeiffer / White House.gov Blog:
You're Going to Want to Watch This Speech

Discussion: Real Clear Politics, Business Insider, The PJ Tatler and The Daily Caller

Mark Tapscott / Washington Examiner: Is the Obama White House on a race-baiting campaign to save Obamacare?

Scott Wilson / Washington Post:
Obama seeks to put economy, middle class back in spotlight

Discussion: Power Line, National Republican …, BREITBART.COM, Yahoo! News and TheBlaze.com

Illinois Review:

OBAMA CO-SPONSORED LEGISLATION STRENGTHENING ILLINOIS' “STAND YOUR GROUND” LAW — CHICAGO - This past week President Obama publicly urged the reexamination of state self-defense laws (see remarks below). However, nine years ago then-State Sen. Barack Obama actually co-sponsored a bill …

Discussion: americanthinker.com, Rasmussen Reports and Weasel Zippers

John Fund / National Review:
Obama Voted to Strengthen Illinois's Stand Your Ground Law in 2004

Discussion: Power Line and The PJ Tatler

Niall Stanage / The Hill:
For blacks, empathy trumps the economy

Discussion: Booman Tribune

Tyler Durden / Zero Hedge:

25 Facts About The Fall Of Detroit That Will Leave You Shaking Your Head — Submitted by Michael Snyder of The Economic Collapse blog, — It is so sad to watch one of America's greatest cities die a horrible death. Once upon a time, the city of Detroit was a teeming metropolis …

Discussion: americanthinker.com, National Review, Power Line, The Heritage Foundation and Blazing Cat Fur

New York Times:
Cries of Betrayal as Detroit Plans to Cut Pensions

Discussion: The Week, msnbc.com, Hot Air, Gawker and CBS News

W. James Antle III / The Daily Caller:

Southern Avenger no more: Rand Paul aide Jack Hunter leaves staff, returns to punditry — The man who for years called himself the “Southern Avenger” says he now seeks to avenge his own honor. — Jack Hunter, the aide to Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul who has been under fire …

Discussion: Courier-Journal, USA Today, Politico, CNN, msnbc.com, The Volokh Conspiracy, The Hill, Washington Free Beacon, Mediaite, Hit & Run, The Raw Story, theGrio, First Read and Post Politics

Julie Hirschfeld Davis / Bloomberg:

Virginia Republican Suffers Abortion Backlash From Donors — Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli has less than half as much cash as Democratic opponent Terry McAuliffe, with a prominent list of Republican donors sitting out this year's most competitive U.S. political contest — and in some cases switching sides.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Yahoo! News and Outside the Beltway

First Read:
First Thoughts: Framing the fall debate over the economy

Discussion: USA Today, Daily Kos, Right Turn, Washington Post and The Fix

CBS News:
Face the Nation transcripts July 21, 2013: Boehner and Snyder

Discussion: A plain blog about politics, The Fix, The Plum Line and Taegan Goddard's …

Steve Kornacki / Salon:

Christie may be forced to quit as governor — If the polls are right and Chris Christie wins a lopsided reelection victory this fall, it will put the New Jersey governor in position to seek the presidency in 2016. That's the conventional wisdom, at least, and there's plenty to be said for it.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and msnbc.com

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

Detroit, the New Greece — When Detroit declared bankruptcy, or at least tried to — the legal situation has gotten complicated — I know that I wasn't the only economist to have a sinking feeling about the likely impact on our policy discourse. Was it going to be Greece all over again?

Discussion: Hit & Run, Daily Kos and VodkaPundit

Alexandra Jaffe / Ballot Box:

McConnell to get Tea Party challenger — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will have a challenger from the right in Matt Bevin, a local businessman and Tea Party candidate who plans to announce his run for Senate this week. — Bevin, who has been exploring the race since February …

Discussion: CNN, The Week and americanthinker.com

Courier-Journal:
Louisville businessman Matt Bevin to announce plans for U.S. Senate primary race against Mitch McConnell

Discussion: Politico, The Daily Caller, Yahoo! News and Daily Kos

Laurie Goodstein / New York Times:

Some Mormons Search the Web and Find Doubt — A Mormon Doubts: Hans Mattsson was once a high-ranking leader for the Mormon church in Europe. He joins others who are experiencing a crisis of faith and finding few answers from their church. — In the small but cohesive Mormon community where he grew up …

Discussion: New Republic

BBC:

Cameron unveils online porn curbs — Every household in the UK is to have pornography blocked by their internet provider unless they choose to receive it, David Cameron has announced. — In addition, the prime minister said possessing online pornography depicting rape would become illegal …

Discussion: Via Meadia and Samizdata

Guardian:
David Cameron cracks down on online pornography

Discussion: VentureBeat, Jezebel, The Raw Story, Mashable and Balloon Juice

Peter Hamby / CNN:

‘Stop Hillary’ group ramps up anti-Clinton efforts — Washington (CNN) - Hillary Clinton may or may not run for president in 2016, but the conservative effort to derail her potential candidacy is already underway. — Iowa poll: Who wins a Clinton-Christie 2016 showdown?

Discussion: Yahoo! News, Politico, Shakesville, americanthinker.com and Taylor Marsh

Noam Scheiber / New Republic:

The Last Days of Big Law — You can't imagine the terror when the money dries up — Of all the occupational golden ages to come and go in the twentieth century—for doctors, journalists, ad-men, autoworkers—none lasted longer, felt cushier, and was all in all more golden than the reign of the law partner.

Discussion: Above the Law, DealBook, The Volokh Conspiracy and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Alan Cowell / New York Times:

Duchess of Cambridge Is Hospitalized in ‘Early Stages of Labor’ — LONDON — After months of ever more frenetic anticipation, the British royal family said Monday that the Duchess of Cambridge, the former Kate Middleton, had gone to St. Mary's Hospital in the Paddington district of London …

Discussion: Economix, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Towleroad News #gay, The Week, Taylor Marsh, Mirror.co.uk, The Jawa Report and TalkLeft

David Leonhardt / New York Times:

In Climbing Income Ladder, Location Matters — The odds of rising to another income level are notably low in certain cities, like Atlanta and Charlotte, and much higher in New York and Boston.