memeorandum: SEC's Hunt for Fault in Crisis Loses Steam (Jean Eaglesham/Wall Street Journal)

10:35 PM ET, August 7, 2013

Top Items:

IN REBUKE, OBAMA CANCELS MOSCOW SUMMIT WITH PUTIN — LOS ANGELES (AP) — In a rare diplomatic rebuke, President Barack Obama on Wednesday canceled his Moscow summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. — The decision reflected both U.S. anger over Russia's harboring …

Discussion: Associated Press, RT, Reuters, AMERICAblog, CNN, Politico, Taylor Marsh, Weasel Zippers, Via Meadia, The Gateway Pundit, Weekly Standard, protein wisdom and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

John Lewis / Guardian:

Veteran civil rights campaigner praises Snowden's act of ‘civil disobedience’ — John Lewis, one of America's most revered civil rights leaders, says the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden was continuing the tradition of civil disobedience by revealing details of classified US surveillance programs.

Discussion: Politico, The Hinterland Gazette, The Switch, The Hill, The Huffington Post and The Raw Story

Robert Zubrin / National Review:

Give Snowden Immunity — The United States should give former NSA contractor Edward Snowden immunity from prosecution in exchange for congressional testimony. — The suggestion may strike many of my fellow national-security conservatives as outrageous. Snowden certainly violated the law and may have committed treason.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Hit & Run

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Obama's Russia reset unravels

Discussion: CNN, Techdirt and The Hill

Politico:
Jay Leno's interview with President Obama (transcript, video)

Discussion: The Caucus, JustOneMinute, Althouse and Connecting.the.Dots

Philip Rucker / Washington Post:
Obama cancels upcoming meeting with Putin

Discussion: New York Times, The Switch, The Other McCain, Voices, WorldViews and Post Politics

The White House:
Statement by the Press Secretary on the President's Travel to Russia

Discussion: AMERICAblog, RT, WorldViews, Guardian, New Republic, The Week, Wall Street Journal, The Hinterland Gazette, Yahoo! News, ThinkProgress, The Monkey Cage, The Dish, AL.com, Mediaite, New York Times and Politico

Arizona Republic:

Hundreds protest Obama outside Phoenix high school — FONT: — Hundreds of protesters wielded signs, chanted slogans and argued with each other Tuesday outside Desert Vista High School in Phoenix, while President Barack Obama spoke about housing and the economy inside.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Balloon Juice, The Democratic Daily, Death and Taxes, Voices, AMERICAblog and FIRST DRAFT

Nick Wing / The Huffington Post:

Obama Protesters Sing ‘Bye Bye Black Sheep,’ Rail Against ‘Half-White Muslim’ In Arizona — A raucous crowd of supporters and protesters from both ends of the political spectrum showed up outside President Barack Obama's appearance in Phoenix, Ariz. on Tuesday, with some of his detractors turning …

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and The Raw Story

The Daily Beast:

Al Qaeda Conference Call Intercepted by U.S. Officials Sparked Alerts — It wasn't just any terrorist message that triggered U.S. terror alerts and embassy closures—but a conference call of more than 20 far-flung al Qaeda operatives, Eli Lake and Josh Rogin report.

Hannah Allam / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Broad U.S. terror alert mystifies experts; 'It's crazy pants,' one says

Discussion: Associated Press, Guardian, Techdirt, Gawker, The Dish, Jihad Watch, Outside the Beltway and Democracy in America

Tyler Cowen / Marginal Revolution:

Is Amazon Art a doomed venture? Let's hope so — I do not think it will revolutionize the art world: … I expect the real business here to come in posters, lower quality lithographs, and screen prints, not fine art per se. And sold on a commodity basis.

Discussion: The Week, Business Insider, ANIMAL, Agence France Presse and The Verge

Ruth Marcus / Real Clear Politics:
The Day Our Earth Stood Still

Discussion: Power Line, National Review, American Spectator and Shot in the Dark

Reuters:

Exclusive: IRS manual detailed DEA's use of hidden intel evidence — (Reuters) - Details of a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration program that feeds tips to federal agents and then instructs them to alter the investigative trail were published in a manual used by agents of the Internal Revenue Service for two years.

Discussion: The Hill, The Verge and Guardian

Nick Wing / The Huffington Post:

Rick Santorum: Liberals ‘Make It Uncomfortable For Students’ To Shower At The Gym — Next time you feel uncomfortable showering at the gym, blame it on liberals and their abortion rights agenda. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum (R) does. — Speaking to anti-abortion group Students …

Discussion: The Raw Story, Right Wing Watch, Death and Taxes, Daily Kos, Jezebel and Advocate

Byron York / Washington Examiner:
Why isn't Rick Santorum the GOP 2016 frontrunner?

Discussion: Slate, The Moderate Voice, The Dish, Outside the Beltway, Washington Monthly, No More Mister Nice Blog, ABC News, Mediaite, Hot Air and Politico

Rasmussen Reports:

Christie Is Candidate GOP Voters Want Least As Their 2016 Nominee — New Jersey Governor Chris Christie holds a narrow lead among Republicans for the party's 2016 presidential nomination, but even more GOP voters say he's the candidate they least want to see nominated.

Discussion: Hot Air, LifeNews.com and Weekly Standard

Blake Neff / Ballot Box:
Christie surges in New Hampshire

Discussion: Reuters

Watchdog.org:

GreenTech courted Obama's Solyndra aide — ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe and three top GreenTech advisers met with the key White House aide responsible for helping bankrupt solar-panel maker Solyndra win federal loans and high-profile presidential support, a Watchdog investigation has revealed.

Discussion: Doug Ross, Hot Air, Watts Up With That? and JunkScience.com

Dan Primack / Fortune:

CNN boss' son quits Cory Booker's startup — Why did a tech startup hire the teenage son of a cable news boss? — FORTUNE — New Jersey senatorial candidate Cory Booker was “not involved at all” in the addition of Andrew Zucker to the advisory board of a tech startup that Booker co-founded, according to a company spokesperson.

New York Times:
Tech Magnates Bet on Booker and His Future

Discussion: Philly.com, NYT Bits, Gawker, Hullabaloo, The Shadow League, DealBook, New Republic, Hit & Run and Booman Tribune

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:

How to win the war over Obamacare — The battle over Obamacare may rage on for years, and it will certainly play a major role in next year's House races. Republicans say that since the law is unpopular, their repeal message must be a winner for them. Dems allow the law is unpopular …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, New Republic and The Hill

Alexis Levinson / The Daily Caller:

Members, staff will keep health-care subsidies under Obamacare — Members of Congress and Hill staffers will not lose their health-care subsidies from the government when Obamacare is implemented because of an exception proposed Wednesday by the Office of Personnel Management.

Discussion: Questions and Observations, The Gateway Pundit, Weasel Zippers, The World's Greatest … and VodkaPundit

David Lawder / Reuters:
Congress wins relief on Obamacare health plan subsidies

Discussion: Sister Toldjah

Betsy Woodruff / National Review:

Texas Tea Partiers Gunning For Gohmert to Primary Cornyn — Louie Gohmert for Senate? That's what a number of Texas tea-party activists are hoping for. They're not happy with Senator John Cornyn, and Katrina Pierson, who serves on the Texas Tea Party Caucus Advisory Board …

Discussion: A plain blog about politics and Ballot Box

Tal Kopan / Politico:

Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski clash over Fox, MSNBC — Co-hosts Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough clashed Wednesday morning on “Morning Joe” over whether there is a difference between Fox News and MSNBC, with Brzezinski calling Fox a “mouthpiece for the Republican Party.”

Discussion: Hot Air, Washington Monthly, Mediaite and The Hill

Maureen Dowd / New York Times:
Reince Is Right — WASHINGTON — Reince Priebus says a lot …

Discussion: Politico, PoliticusUSA, No More Mister Nice Blog and TheBlaze.com

Kyung Lah / CNN:

CNN Exclusive: Two more women come forward, say San Diego mayor harassed them — Photos: San Diego mayor's accusers — (CNN) — The man on the voicemail is flirty and clearly asking for a date. But it's the name on the message that's raising red flags. — “Hi, it's your newly favorite congressman, Bob Filner.

Annie-Rose Strasser / ThinkProgress:

Steve King: Belief In Climate Change Is A ‘Religion,’ ‘Not Science’ — Despite the fact that 97 percent of scientists agree that climate change is real, Rep. Steve King (R-IA) is insistent that it is “not science” and that environmentalists are missing the potential upsides.

Discussion: Messenger News, E2-Wire, Daily Kos and Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Shane Goldmacher / NationalJournal.com:

The Top 10 Lawmakers Who Could Lose a Primary Next Year — The list includes a Santa Claus impersonator-turned congressman and a doctor who slept with his patients. — Incumbency in Congress is a fortress rarely breached, particularly in primaries. In the 2012 elections …

Discussion: The PJ Tatler and Illinois Review

Jason Noble / Des Moines Register:

U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin: Southern senator called President Obama ‘exotic’ in closed-door meeting — U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin provided some behind-the-scenes insight into the partisan animosity that continues to follow Barack Obama in his second term as president. — Harkin, a Democrat …

Discussion: The World's Greatest …, The Political Carnival, The Raw Story and The Daily Caller

Will Ripley / KUSA-TV:

Castle Rock apartment tenants told they must get rid of their guns — His apartment complex, the Oakwood Apartments in Castle Rock, sent out a notice telling all residents to get rid of their guns. — The 77-year-old retired US Marine Corps veteran sent a newstip to 9Wants …

Discussion: protein wisdom and Examiner