memeorandum: The delayed attack on Syria is good for Britain

4:35 AM ET, September 2, 2013

Top Items:

Hill briefing: Uphill battle for Obama on Syria — President Barack Obama faces a clear uphill battle in swaying skeptical lawmakers of the merits of military action in Syria, as top officials were dispatched to Capitol Hill Sunday to make the administration's case.

Discussion: PoliticusUSA, Weasel Zippers, No More Mister Nice Blog and The World's Greatest …

Ed O'Keefe / Post Politics:

After classified briefing, lawmakers skeptical on Syria attack — Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), the dean of the Senate, told reporters after a classified briefing Sunday on the situation in Syria, that the administration's request for U.S. military intervention would not pass the Congress as written because it is too broad.

Discussion: The World's Greatest … and Booman Tribune

Ben Geman / The Hill:

Senate to rework Obama's Syria order — Members of the Senate plan to narrow President Obama's authorization request for military action in Syria, Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) said Sunday. — Leahy told reporters about the planned rewrite of the resolution after attending …

CBS News:

Face the Nation transcripts September 1, 2013: Kerry, McCain, Kaine, and Chambliss — (CBS News) Below is a transcript of “Face the Nation” on September 1, 2013, hosted by CBS News' Major Garrett. Guests include: Secretary of State John Kerry, Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., Tim Kaine, D-Va. …

Discussion: BREITBART.COM, Weasel Zippers and Jihad Watch

Timothy Heritage / Reuters:
Analysis: Putin sees chance to turn tables on Obama at G20

Discussion: Washington Post and Crooks and Liars

CNN:
Text of draft legislation submitted by Obama to Congress

Discussion: National Review, The Monkey Cage, Taylor Marsh, Opinio Juris, The Volokh Conspiracy, Foreign Policy, Lawfare, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Washington Post

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

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

Discussion: NBCNews, PoliticusUSA, ThinkProgress, Business Insider and CNN

Washington Post:
Sarin gas used in Syria attack, Kerry says

Discussion: Greenville News, Post Politics, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Wonkblog and WorldViews

New York Times:

President Seeks to Rally Support for Syria Strike — WASHINGTON — The Obama administration began a full-press campaign on Sunday for Congressional approval of its plan to carry out a punitive strike against the Syrian government. — The lobbying blitz stretched from Capitol Hill …

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette, Gawker, JustOneMinute and Booman Tribune

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: Liberal Values and The Moderate Voice

Wall Street Journal:
At the Last Minute, Obama Alone Made Call to Seek Congressional Approval

Discussion: Associated Press, CBS News, Power Line, Washington Wire and Booman Tribune

BBC:

Fukushima radiation levels ‘18 times higher’ than thought — Radiation levels around Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant are 18 times higher than previously thought, Japanese authorities have warned. — Last week the plant's operator reported radioactive water had leaked from a storage tank into the ground.

Discussion: Booman Tribune, The Agonist, NPR and Eschaton

Reuters:

Egypt's Morsi to stand trial on charges of ‘inciting killing and thuggery’ — 14 other Brotherhood members to also face charges of incitement to murder. — Deposed Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi is to stand trial on charges of committing and inciting violence, a state prosecutor decided on Sunday …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and Guardian

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

Surprising Friend of Gay Rights in a High Place — The San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus sang “Give 'Em Hope” for a revered and in some ways surprising guest who shared a California stage with them last month: Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. — Justice Kennedy was in San Francisco …

New York Times:

Drug Agents Use Vast Phone Trove, Eclipsing N.S.A.'s — For at least six years, law enforcement officials working on a counternarcotics program have had routine access, using subpoenas, to an enormous AT&T database that contains the records of decades of Americans' phone calls …

Discussion: Mashable, The Verge and Gawker

Khaled Abu Toameh / Jerusalem Post:

Hamas slams Egyptian plan to create buffer zone with Gaza — Egyptians protest after homes demolished to create buffer zone; Hamas official says Egyptian move could “solidify the blockade.” — The Hamas government said Sunday it was “surprised” to hear that Egypt is planning to create …

Discussion: Israel Matzav, Israpundit and Associated Press

Boris Johnson / Telegraph:

The delayed attack on Syria is good for Britain - and the PM — By postponing military action, MPs did the right thing - and paid tribute to David Cameron — Well, that was quick, wasn't it? Over in a flash, eh? I mean Britain's period of global irrelevance — the humiliating epoch …

Discussion: Guardian and BBC