memeorandum: With NSA revelations, Sen. Ron Wyden's vague warnings about privacy finally become clear (David A. Fahrenthold/Washington Post)

11:35 AM ET, July 29, 2013

Top Items:

Fredric U. Dicker / New York Post:

Bill and Hillary Clinton are ‘livid’ at comparisons to Weiner's sexcapades and Huma's forgiveness — Bill and Hillary Clinton are angry with efforts by mayoral hopeful Anthony Weiner and his campaign to compare his Internet sexcapades — and his wife Huma Abedin's incredible forgiveness …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Israel Matzav, Mediaite, Scared Monkeys, The Gateway Pundit, americanthinker.com and The PJ Tatler

Maureen Dowd / New York Times:

Time to Hard-Delete Carlos Danger — WASHINGTON — WHEN you puzzle over why the elegant Huma Abedin is propping up the eel-like Anthony Weiner, you must remember one thing: Huma was raised in Saudi Arabia, where women are treated worse by men than anywhere else on the planet.

Discussion: New York Post, ThinkProgress, Religion Dispatches, Taylor Marsh, First Read, Politicker, theGrio and BuzzFeed

Greg B. Smith / NY Daily News:
Weiner campaign paid private eye $45,000 to investigate own 2011 Twitter ‘hacking’ lie, reports show

Discussion: Business Insider, Real Clear Politics, The Fix, The Other McCain, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Peter Schroeder / The Hill:
Obama, Hillary Clinton set for Monday lunch

Discussion: CNN, Taylor Marsh and Connecting.the.Dots

Staten Island Advance:
EXCLUSIVE: Anthony Weiner talks sexting scandal, Staten Island issues (video)

Discussion: New York Times

Bob Cusack / The Hill:
Marion Barry: Weiner a ‘good Democrat’

Discussion: The Daily Caller and Weasel Zippers

Dylan Byers / Politico:

Cumulus planning to drop Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity — In a major shakeup for the radio industry, Cumulus Media, the second-biggest broadcaster in the country, is planning to drop both Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity from its stations at the end of the year, an industry source told POLITICO on Sunday.

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

Stranded by Sprawl — Detroit is a symbol of the old economy's decline. It's not just the derelict center; the metropolitan area as a whole lost population between 2000 and 2010, the worst performance among major cities. Atlanta, by contrast, epitomizes the rise of the Sun Belt …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Power Line, National Review, Eschaton, The Reality-Based Community, VodkaPundit and Prairie Weather

Associated Press:

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul hits critics for ‘gimme, gimme’ attitude toward federal Sandy relief — FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul hit back at New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie in the two Republicans' ongoing spat over national security. — Christie last week criticized Paul's opposition …

Discussion: TIME, The Fix, Hot Air, The Mahablog, Post Politics, The Daily Caller, Taegan Goddard's …, Hit & Run and CNN

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

Are Republicans too divided to have a civil war? — A nasty fight is brewing among Republicans over a proposal to defund Obamacare. Another intra-party fight is flaring over national security and the war on terror. And yet another is well under way over immigration reform.

Discussion: Booman Tribune and Taegan Goddard's …

Kevin Liptak / CNN:
After hits from King and Christie, Rand Paul fires back on Sandy aid

Discussion: PoliticusUSA, Politico and The Hinterland Gazette

Evan McMurry / Mediaite:
Rep. Peter King Blasts Rand Paul For ‘Apologizing For America’: ‘Fringes’ Will ‘Destroy’ GOP

Discussion: The Hill and Hit & Run

Stephen Carter / Bloomberg:

How to Get Obama Out of His Bubble — During Bill Clinton's presidency, I once listened to a senior White House aide complain about the amount of time his boss spent meeting ordinary citizens. There was always a sob story, the aide said, and the president would return to the Oval Office demanding …

John Avlon / The Daily Beast:

Pope Francis's Lessons for the GOP — The new pope hasn't been afraid to challenge the entrenched interests that have sullied his church's perception. His style of reaching out is just what might save the Republican Party. — On the heels of Pope Francis's triumphant visit to Brazil for World Youth Day …

Discussion: Taegan Goddard's …

Reuters:

Israel, Palestinians dispute format of Washington peace talks — (Reuters) - Israeli and Palestinian officials put forward clashing formats for peace talks due to resume in Washington on Monday for the first time in nearly three years after intense U.S. mediation.

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, The Week, Algemeiner.com and Gawker

William Booth / Washington Post:
Peace talks set to begin after Israel agrees to free 104 Palestinian prisoners

Discussion: Los Angeles Times and The Hugh Hewitt Show

New York Times:
Israel and Palestinians Set to Resume Peace Talks, U.S. Announces

Discussion: Guardian, Booman Tribune, Via Meadia, New Republic and The Reaction

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:

Momentum Builds Against N.S.A. Surveillance — WASHINGTON — The movement to crack down on government surveillance started with an odd couple from Michigan, Representatives Justin Amash, a young libertarian Republican known even to his friends as “chief wing nut,” and John Conyers Jr. …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Guardian, Prairie Weather, The Agonist and Mediaite

David A. Fahrenthold / Washington Post:
With NSA revelations, Sen. Ron Wyden's vague warnings about privacy finally become clear

Discussion: Taylor Marsh and Post Politics

Washington Post:
Ron Wyden: FISA court ‘anachronistic’

Discussion: Secrecy News and Crooks and Liars

Kari Rea / ABC News:
Glenn Greenwald: Low-Level NSA Analysts Have ‘Powerful and Invasive’ Search Tool

Discussion: The Spectacle Blog, The Daily Caller, The PJ Tatler, Little Green Footballs and The Raw Story

Lydia Saad / Gallup:

In U.S., 52% Back Law to Legalize Gay Marriage in 50 States — Americans would legalize gay marriage nationwide, favor equal rights for such unions — PRINCETON, NJ — If given the opportunity to vote on a law legalizing gay marriage in all 50 states, the slight majority of Americans …

Discussion: The Hill, Real Clear Politics and First Read

Matt Friedman / New Jersey Online:

Lautenberg and Booker's tortured history shows up in campaign — Days before Newark Mayor Cory Booker announced he wanted to run for the U.S. Senate seat held by Frank Lautenberg in December, the two men's top aides tried to negotiate over the phone. — Lautenberg Chief of Staff Dan Katz …

Discussion: Ballot Box and Taegan Goddard's …

Daniel Politi / Slate:

Fox News to Scholar: Why Would a Muslim Write a Book About Jesus? — It's got plenty of competition but this may just be the single most cringe-worthy, embarrassing interview broadcast on Fox News. At least in recent memory. Fox News anchor Lauren Green had religious scholar Reza Aslan …

Discussion: The Atlantic Wire, The New Republic, CANNONFIRE, The Week, The Raw Story, UPROXX, Mediaite, Crooks and Liars, BuzzFeed and ThinkProgress, more at Mediagazer »

New York Times:

Detroit Looks to Health Law to Ease Costs — As Detroit enters the federal bankruptcy process, the city is proposing a controversial plan for paring some of the $5.7 billion it owes in retiree health costs: pushing many of those too young to qualify for Medicare out of city-run coverage …

Discussion: Weekly Standard, americanthinker.com and VodkaPundit

Ryan Parker / Denver Post:

Colorado concealed-carry permits see dramatic increase in 2013 — A run on guns in Colorado — Instructor John Abramson, left, works with Catherine Williams during a concealed-carry class at the Centennial Gun Club shooting range on Saturday. Williams said she decided to take the class …

Discussion: ThinkProgress and TalkLeft

New York Times:

A New Defense of Voting Rights — On Thursday, Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. took an important step toward repairing the damage from last month's Supreme Court ruling striking down a central element of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He is right to adopt an aggressive approach to defending …

Discussion: National Review