Blame for Both Sides as Possible Government Shutdown Approaches  —  Tea Party Reps Say Stick to Principles, Even if Shutdown Results  —  If the federal government shuts down because Republicans and the Obama administration fail to agree on a budget, there will be plenty of blame to go around.

Ted Cruz: The Distinguished Wacko Bird from Texas  —  In less than a year, Texas Republican Ted Cruz has become the most despised man in the U.S. Senate.  He's been likened to Joe McCarthy, accused of behaving like a schoolyard bully, and smeared by senior members of his own party.

Nationalities of Kenya shopping mall gunmen unknown  —  NAIROBI — Kenyan security forces on Monday seized control of a luxury shopping mall that had been attacked by Islamist militants, but officials said some assailants remained hidden inside stores in the mall and little was known …

Lower Health Insurance Premiums to Come at Cost of Fewer Choices  —  WASHINGTON — Federal officials often say that health insurance will cost consumers less than expected under President Obama's health care law.  But they rarely mention one big reason: many insurers are significantly limiting …

Ted Cruz scrambles to salvage strategy  —  Ted Cruz and his allies are fighting a battle they will almost certainly lose in the Senate this week.  —  The freshman Republican from Texas, along with Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and some vocal House conservatives, pushed House Republican leaders …

A Mayoral Hopeful Now, de Blasio Was Once a Young Leftist  —  The scruffy young man who arrived in Nicaragua in 1988 stood out.  —  He was tall and sometimes goofy, known for his ability to mimic a goose's honk.  He spoke in long, meandering paragraphs, musing on Franklin D. Roosevelt, Karl Marx and Bob Marley.

Bush: Obama should play golf  —  Former President George W. Bush said President Obama should not be criticized over his frequent golf outings.  —  Former President George W. Bush said President Obama should not be criticized over his frequent golf outings.

Graham: ‘Allahu akbar’ is a ‘war chant’  —  Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Monday said “allahu akbar” is a “war chant” that sends him running for cover.  —  “When somebody yells ‘allahu akbar’ in the Middle East, I duck,” the senator said on Fox News radio.

Egypt court bans all Muslim Brotherhood activities  —  (Reuters) - An Egyptian court on Monday banned the Muslim Brotherhood from carrying out any activities in the country and ordered the seizure of the group's funds, widening a campaign to debilitate the Islamist movement of deposed President Mohamed Mursi.

E.W. Jackson says non-Christians are engaged in ‘some sort of false religion’  —  At a morning sermon Sunday in Northern Virginia, Republican lieutenant governor candidate E.W. Jackson, a Chesapeake pastor, said people who don't follow Jesus Christ “are engaged in some sort of false religion.”

Opinion: Defunders are playing Russian roulette with GOP, writes ex-senator  —  Most Americans these days are simply ignoring Republicans.  And they should.  —  The self-promotional babble of a few has become the mainstream of Republican political thought.  It has marginalized the influence of the party to an appalling degree.

Free to Be Hungry  —  The word “freedom” looms large in modern conservative rhetoric.  Lobbying groups are given names like FreedomWorks; health reform is denounced not just for its cost but as an assault on, yes, freedom.  Oh, and remember when we were supposed to refer to pommes frites as “freedom fries”?

A Girl And A .22  —  Last Wednesday, I drove out to GAT Guns in East Dundee, Illinois, about an hour northwest of Chicago.  Located down the street from Santa's Village Azoosment Park (the day I drove by, beyond the over-sized candy cane-framed entrance, the park was still and silent) …

Lois Lerner retires from IRS  —  Embattled IRS official Lois Lerner is retiring from the agency effective Monday, two congressional aides told POLITICO.  —  Lerner sparked the IRS scandal in May when she acknowledged that the agency wrongly targeted tea party groups applying for a tax exemption.

Ed Marksberry Announces Independent Bid for Kentucky U.S. Senate Race  —  Saying Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes isn't speaking to progressives or their issues, Kentucky U.S. Senate candidate Ed Marksberry is dropping out of the primary to run as an independent.

Dick Cheney and The One Shot Antelope Hunt  —  msevren@k2tv.com, facebook.com/michaelsevren  —  Dick Cheney's hunt ended without a bang as the Remington team won.  —  “The Remington team where the only team that was successful with all three of their hunters,” said Terry Martin, President of the One Shot Hunt Club.

CASD in crisis after racially-charged text messages surface  —  The abrupt departure of the Coatesville Area School District superintendent and another senior administrator came two weeks after numerous exchanges of inappropriate and racially-charged text messages were discovered …

The Mower Gang: #Anarchy in Detroit, Part I  —  We all know Detroit's in trouble: A bankrupt city full of crumbling houses, abandoned factory buildings, and a dwindling population.  —  But while politicians, unions, and investors slug it out in bankruptcy court and grasp for their share …