memeorandum: Obama puts politics over morals in abdicating presidential authority in Syria (Michael Goodwin/New York Post)

1:15 PM ET, September 1, 2013

Top Items:

Mark Landler / New York Times:

President Pulls Lawmakers Into Box He Made — WASHINGTON — More than once, President Obama has confided to aides that he regards Syria as one of those hellish problems every president faces, where the risks are endless, the choices are all bad, and the pressure to do something is unrelenting.

Discussion: americanthinker.com, Connecting.the.Dots, Booman Tribune and Washington Post

Wall Street Journal:

At the Last Minute, Obama Alone Made Call to Seek Congressional Approval — Change in president's thinking confounded White House insiders — After a 45-minute walk Friday night, President Barack Obama made a fateful decision that none of his top national security advisers saw coming …

Discussion: Power Line, NBCNews, Washington Wire, Booman Tribune and American Power

Yahoo! News:

Obama's history-defying decision to seek Congressional approval on Syria — President Barack Obama, according to background briefings by his aides, reached a fateful decision late Friday afternoon as he strolled along the White House lawn with his chief of staff Denis McDonough.

Discussion: The Atlantic Online

Rose Garden / The White House:

Statement by the President on Syria — THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon, everybody. Ten days ago, the world watched in horror as men, women and children were massacred in Syria in the worst chemical weapons attack of the 21st century. Yesterday the United States presented a powerful case …

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, Guardian, News Desk, The Huffington Post, New Atlanticist, Reuters, msnbc.com, American Spectator, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal, Washington Wire, White House.gov Blog, Outside the Beltway and Telegraph

Michael Goodwin / New York Post:

Obama puts politics over morals in abdicating presidential authority in Syria — As the scheduled time for President Obama's address on Syria came and went yesterday, reporters in the Rose Garden could see him through the Oval Office windows, talking on the telephone.

Jonathan Strong / National Review:
Will the House Authorize a Syria Strike?

Discussion: americanthinker.com and Power Line

Associated Press:
Syria State-Run Newspaper: Obama Move ‘The Start Of The Historic American Retreat’

Discussion: ThinkProgress, PoliticusUSA and Business Insider

Bill Plante / CBS News:
Obama's Syria strike decision aims to get Congress on the record

Discussion: Associated Press

Ashley Killough / CNN:
Kerry: Sarin used in Syria

Discussion: Business Insider, Global Public Square, NBCNews and Politico

Jeff Poor / The Daily Caller:
‘AMATEUR HOUR’: Krauthammer slams Obama's sudden decision to delay Syria strike [VIDEO]

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, Taylor Marsh, American Power, Scared Monkeys and blogs.telegraph.co.uk

Jim Watson / NPR:
Transcript: President Obama Turns To Congress On Syria

Discussion: Crooks and Liars and AL.com

Ian Swanson / The Hill:
Rep. Peter King: Obama ‘abdicating responsibility as commander in chief’

Discussion: CANNONFIRE, The Raw Story, PoliticusUSA, Scared Monkeys, Liberal Values, Sense of Events, New York Times and Althouse

John Bresnahan / Politico:
Obama sends Syria resolution to Hill

Discussion: Balloon Juice, Business Insider, The Hill, Washington Monthly and No More Mister Nice Blog

Ben Smith / BuzzFeed:
President Obama's Big Syria Power Giveaway

Discussion: The Daily Beast, americanthinker.com, The Moderate Voice, Business Insider, The Boston Globe, Wonkblog, WorldViews, The Jawa Report, The Volokh Conspiracy, The Hill and Israel Matzav

NBCNews:
Obama will seek congressional approval before any military action against Syria

Discussion: Hot Air, Associated Press and msnbc.com

Alexandra Jaffe / The Hill:
Kerry to appear on all five Sunday shows

Discussion: Politico and Gawker

BBC:

Sir David Frost, broadcaster and writer, dies at 74 — Veteran broadcaster Sir David Frost has died at the age of 74 after a suspected heart attack while on board a cruise ship. — A family statement said he had been giving a speech aboard the Queen Elizabeth on Saturday night.

Discussion: Guardian, Spectator, TVNewser, Outside the Beltway, NPR and The Reality-Based Community, more at Mediagazer »

Mike Allen / Politico:

WELCOME TO SEPTEMBER! — OBAMA AIDE, ON SEEKING CONGRESSIONAL VOTE: 'We don't want them to have their cake and eat it, too' - JOSH DUBOIS wedding — DEE DEE MYERS, STEVE HILDEBRAND b'day — THE 1 PARAGRAPH TO READ: President Obama will probably win congressional approval for a Syrian strike.

Discussion: TVNewser, Towleroad News #gay, msnbc.com, Mediaite and Hot Air, more at Mediagazer »

CNN:
David Frost, veteran British broadcaster, dies at 74

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and The Week

Brian Stelter / New York Times: David Frost, Who Interviewed Nixon, Is Dead at 74

Marco Giannangeli / Daily Express:

Senior Syrian military chiefs tell captain: fire chemicals or be shot — BRITISH intelligence chiefs have intercepted radio messages in which senior Syrian military chiefs are heard ordering the use of chemical weapons. — Prepared: UN inspectors in gas masks at work in eastern Damascus

Discussion: emptywheel and Israel Matzav

The Presidency:

Former President Nelson Mandela discharged from hospital — Former President Nelson Mandela has this morning, 1 September 2013, been discharged from the Pretoria hospital where he has been receiving treatment. We would like to wish him all the best as he continues his recovery at his Johannesburg home.

Discussion: BBC, Guardian, NBCNews and NPR

Maggie Haberman / Politico:
Bush aide makes Mandela mistake

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Associated Press

Associated Press:

Stork busted as suspected spy in Egypt — Egyptian authorities have detained a stork that a citizen suspected of being a spy because it carried a suspicious electronic device, which is most likely a wildlife tracker. — A migrating stork is held in a police station after a citizen suspected …

Discussion: Red Alert Politics

Mara Gay / NY Daily News:

Anthony Weiner stages a ‘meat’ and greet in Bronx deli — The Democratic mayoral hopeful holds a big Italian sausage and poses with the owner of the Arthur Ave. business — Anthony Weiner is all smiles after getting “The Big Salami” from David Greco (r.), owner of Mike's Deli and Arthur Avenue Trattoria.

Discussion: Red Alert Politics

Sam Baker / The Hill:

ObamaCare marketplaces to open for business in a month (video) — ObamaCare's grand opening is just a month away. — The law's new insurance marketplaces are scheduled to open for enrollment on Oct. 1, and supporters are ramping up a major education and outreach campaign as the date draws nearer.

Discussion: The PJ Tatler

Reid J. Epstein / Politico:

After Syria statement, Obama golfs — Right after shipping responsibility for authorizing an attack on Syria, President Barack Obama returned to his comfort zone: The golf course. — Obama's motorcade left the White House at 2:30 p.m., about 30 minutes after completing his statement.

Discussion: Scared Monkeys, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Fox News and Israel Matzav