memeorandum: Western Maryland secessionists seek to sever ties with the liberal Free State (Michael S. Rosenwald/Washington Post)

2:55 AM ET, September 10, 2013

Top Items:

Abby D. Phillip / ABC News:

Syria Could Avoid Attack, Obama says … If Syrian President Bashar al-Assad gives up his chemical weapons, a military strike would “absolutely” be on pause, President Obama said today. — “I consider this a modestly positive development,” Obama told ABC News' Diane Sawyer in an interview …

Discussion: National Review, Taylor Marsh, ABC News, Politico, ThinkProgress, Washington Free Beacon, Business Insider, The Raw Story, The Huffington Post, Washington Wire, The PJ Tatler and Outside the Beltway

Joshua Keating / Slate:

Kerry: Turn Over Your Chemical Weapons Now or Face ... “Unbelievably Small” Consequences — Secretary of State John Kerry's case for a U.S. strike in Syria seems to rest on two assumptions. One, that it is a crucial test for U.S. national security and the values of the civilized world comparable to the rise of Nazi Germany.

Discussion: his vorpal sword, Guardian, Sister Toldjah, Mock Paper Scissors, Zandar Versus The Stupid, Ethics & Public Policy Center, Weasel Zippers, Post Politics, Wake up America, americanthinker.com and Firedoglake

Ashley Killough / CNN:

Obama: ‘Breakthrough’ is possible on Syria — Washington (CNN) — Russia's proposal for Syria to surrender its chemical weapons to international control was a “potentially positive development,” but could be a stall tactic, President Barack Obama told CNN on Monday.

Discussion: NBCNews, The Moderate Voice, NPR, The Week, Connecting.the.Dots, Hit & Run, Hot Air, Rush Limbaugh, Online NewsHour and The Dish

Fox News:

Obama backs off ‘red line,’ opens door to ‘diplomatic track’ on Syria — President Obama on Monday took a sharp turn away from his “red line” threat to Syria on the eve of taking his case to the American people, saying in an interview with Fox News that he's open to negotiations …

Discussion: Mediaite, Washington Wire, Weasel Zippers, Hot Air, Business Insider, Wake up America, The Last Refuge and The PJ Tatler

Scott Pelley / CBS News:

Obama: “I understand” American people aren't with me on Syria strike — (CBS News) WASHINGTON — In an interview Monday, President Obama responded to a surprising late proposal that could head off a military strike against Syria. The Syrians agreed to a Russian proposal to put …

Discussion: CBS DC, Taylor Marsh, National Review, Joe. My. God., Hot Air and CBS New York

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:

Reid delays Senate vote on Syria (Video) — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Monday delayed a vote on using military force against Syria. — Faced with stiffening opposition from Republicans and skepticism from many Democrats, Reid said he would not rush the vote to begin considering …

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Tal Kopan / Politico:

John McCain: John Kerry ‘unbelievably unhelpful’ — Sen. John McCain was not a fan of Secretary of State John Kerry's remarks Monday in London that intervention in Syria would be “unbelievably small,” calling it unhelpful. — “Kerry says #Syria strike would be “unbelievably small” …

Discussion: Mediaite, Washington Free Beacon, The Fix, Business Insider, The Week and Weasel Zippers

Michael R. Gordon / New York Times:
Kerry Says Syria Should Hand Over All Chemical Arms

Michael Kelley / Business Insider:
Vladimir Putin Puts John Kerry In Check On Syria

Discussion: The Huffington Post, RT, Washington Post, Politico, LewRockwell, Let's Try Democracy, CBS DC, VodkaPundit and NPR

Matt Smith / CNN:
Syria chemical arms plan promising 'if it's real,' Obama says

Discussion: The Volokh Conspiracy

Stephen F. Hayes / Weekly Standard:
The Way Out? — Is this the beginning of the White House turn?

Discussion: Guardian and Hot Air

Tal Kopan / Politico:
John Kerry under fire for ‘unbelievably small’ comment

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Mediaite, American Prospect, Taylor Marsh and CANNONFIRE

David E. Sanger / New York Times:
Kerry's Comments on Syria Are a Shift Over Strike

Discussion: The Monkey Cage and msnbc.com

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Always Look Out for the Opportunity

Discussion: USA Today, Daily Kos and The Dish

John Kerry / US Department of State:
Remarks With United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Hague

Discussion: Agence France Presse, Washington Post, ThinkProgress, Hit & Run, The Spectacle Blog, Washington Free Beacon and The Lede

Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Hillary Clinton: Syria's chemical weapon use ‘demands a response’

Discussion: Politico, Taylor Marsh, Weasel Zippers and Firedoglake

Justin Sink / The Hill:
White House to take a ‘hard look’ at Syrian offer on weapons

Discussion: Politico and Weasel Zippers

CNN:
Diplomatic deal? Syria ‘welcomes’ proposal to hand over control of chemical weapons

Discussion: Associated Press, Firedoglake, Los Angeles Times, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Dish, National Review and “The Lid”

Jared A. Favole / Washington Wire:
Hillary Clinton Says ‘Strong Response’ Needed on Syria

Discussion: CBS News, Wall Street Journal and Capitol Report

clickorlando.com:

No charges filed in George Zimmerman's alleged gun threat against wife — George Zimmerman, Shellie Zimmerman say the other was aggressor … LAKE MARY, Fla. - — No charges have been filed against George Zimmerman on Monday as the investigation continues into if he threatened …

Discussion: Gawker, Baltimore Sun, The Hinterland Gazette, ThinkProgress, The Moderate Voice, The Raw Story, iOwnTheWorld.com, addictinginfo.org, The Daily Caller, The Impolitic, Dependable Renegade and Joe. My. God.

Vivian Kuo / CNN:

Zimmerman in police custody in Florida — (CNN) — George Zimmerman was taken into custody Monday after an apparent domestic altercation with his wife and her father at a home in Lake Mary, Florida, police said. — “As of right now, (George Zimmerman) has been placed in investigative detention …

Discussion: Shakesville, Twitchy and Most Recent

ABC News:

George Zimmerman in Custody After Gun Incident … George Zimmerman was released without charges today after his wife called 911 to say Zimmerman punched his father-in-law in the nose and threatened to shoot him and his wife. — Zimmerman, acquitted in July of the murder of teenager Trayvon Martin …

Discussion: Gawker, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Southern Beale, New York Times and Eschaton

USA Today:

Police: Zimmerman wife not pressing charges — Police were called to a home in Lake Mary on Monday after George Zimmerman allegedly threatened his wife and her father with a gun. Lake Mary, Florida Police Department released Shellie Zimmerman's call to 911. — CONNECT

Discussion: Reuters and Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Deirdre Walsh / CNN:

Senior House GOP aides: WH not reaching out to House Republicans — Washington (CNN) - Senior House Republican aides are frustrated that the Obama administration has done little to reach out to rank-and-file House GOP members to make the case for why military action is needed in Syria.

Discussion: Politico, NationalJournal.com, National Review, VodkaPundit, Hot Air and Reuters

Jonathan Allen / Reuters:
President Obama's over-the-top lobbying push

Discussion: Politico, Hit & Run and The Hill

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
U.S. open to Russian chemical weapons proposal

Discussion: CNN, The Moderate Voice and ABC News

John Fund / National Review:
How Not to Win Over Congress

Discussion: protein wisdom, Sister Toldjah, The PJ Tatler and BizzyBlog

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:
White House Makes Clear: We Can Attack Syria Without Congress

Discussion: New York Times, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, ABC News and The Plum Line

Jeremy Herb / The Hill:
King: White House asks GOP members for ways ‘to move the needle’ on Syria

Discussion: Reuters

Pew Research Center for the People and the Press:

Opposition to Syrian Airstrikes Surges — Obama Job Approval Slips into Negative Territory — Over just the past week, the share of Americans who oppose U.S. airstrikes in Syria has surged 15 points, from 48% to 63%, as many who were undecided about the issue have turned against military action.

Discussion: The Fix, Weasel Zippers, Bloomberg, The Dish, Hot Air, Online NewsHour, Yahoo! News, Firedoglake, Business Insider, The Daily Caller, The Plum Line, National Review, Taegan Goddard's …, The Moderate Voice and Washington Free Beacon

Paul Steinhauser / CNN:
Obama hits new low on foreign policy in CNN polling

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and Business Insider

Michael S. Rosenwald / Washington Post:

Western Maryland secessionists seek to sever ties with the liberal Free State — The push by 50 western Virginia counties to secede in 1863, forming West Virginia at the height of the Civil War, was led by a charismatic store-clerk-turned-lawyer who famously urged his supporters: “Cut the knot now!

Discussion: addictinginfo.org, The Daily Caller, The Week, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and GovBeat

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:
Meet The Maryland Republicans Who Want To Secede

Discussion: Washington Post

Kevin Bogardus / The Hill:

Labor, with union membership declining, will woo non-workers — Facing what AFL-CIO chief Richard Trumka called a “crisis” of membership, officials took the dramatic step at their annual convention of adopting a resolution that invites anyone in the country to join, regardless of union affiliation.

Discussion: Power Line

Kevin Drum / Mother Jones:

Let's Please Stop Pretending That Obama is Reluctant to Take Military Action — E.J. Dionne chastises Democrats for not supporting President Obama on Syria: … Wait a second. I realize that Dionne is only talking about Syria here, but in the past five years Obama has (a) …

Discussion: Daily Kos, The Reaction, Washington Post, The Dish, American Prospect and Taegan Goddard's …

Nina Siegal / New York Times:

A van Gogh's Trip From the Attic to the Museum — AMSTERDAM — For roughly a century, the painting “Sunset at Montmajour” was considered a fake. It was stored in an attic and then held in a private collection, unknown to the public and dismissed by art historians.

Discussion: Towleroad News #gay, The Week, Outside the Beltway and Althouse