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6:30 PM ET, September 23, 2013

Top Items:

Pew Research Center for the People and the Press:

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.

Discussion: NPR, Hot Air, Post Politics, Talking Points Memo, p m carpenter's commentary and Taegan Goddard's …

Steve Liesman / CNBC:

Most Americans against defunding Obamacare: Survey — A solid majority of Americans oppose defunding the new health care law if it means shutting down the government and defaulting on debt. — The CNBC All-America Economic Survey of 800 people across the country conducted by Hart-McInturff …

Discussion: Hot Air, msnbc.com, Washington Post, Post Politics, Daily Pundit, Washington Wire, Taegan Goddard's …, Conservative Intelligence … and The Dish

Jonathan Bernstein / American Prospect:

The Day after Shutdown — So it's October ... or maybe it's six or ten weeks later, after a short-term continuing resolution has come and gone. The clock strikes midnight, Congress has failed to fund the government, and the next day it shuts down. — What happens next?

Discussion: Washington Monthly, PostPartisan, The Plum Line and A plain blog about politics

Sen. Ted Cruz / Real Clear Politics:

The Path to Victory — Just a few weeks ago the Washington establishment said the Republican-led House of Representatives could never pass a funding bill that would keep the government open while defunding Obamacare. They were wrong. — All across the country Americans spoke up, asking Congress to stop this terrible law.

Discussion: Politico, The Plum Line, Mediaite, The Week, ABC News, ABC News, Yahoo! News, msnbc.com and National Review

Frank Newport / Gallup:
Americans' Desire for Gov't Leaders to Compromise Increases

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Real Clear Politics, The Moderate Voice and The Fix

Jason Zengerle / GQ Magazine Online:

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.

Kevin Drum / Mother Jones:
Ted Cruz Announces That He Will Filibuster House Bill That Defunds Obamacare

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, The Moderate Voice, msnbc.com, BOR, Fox News, The Dish, Balloon Juice, PoliticusUSA, Twitchy, Mediaite and Politico

Burgess Everett / Politico:
Ted Cruz scrambles to salvage strategy

Discussion: CNN, Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos, FreedomWorks blogs, Roll Call, New York Times, The Mahablog, BREITBART.COM, Reuters, USA Today, Taegan Goddard's …, WJLA-TV, PoliticusUSA and The Gateway Pundit

Washington Post:

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 …

Discussion: The Agonist and Simply Left BehindThe …

Jamie Dettmer / The Daily Beast:
Were Americans Among the Al-Shabab Nairobi Mall Attackers?

Discussion: Yahoo! News, American Spectator, New York Times, Hit & Run, TIME, Taylor Marsh, NPR, Business Insider, Real Clear Politics, CNN and The Moderate Voice

NBCNews:
‘Bodies everywhere’: Survivor stories emerge as Kenya mall siege goes on

Discussion: msnbc.com

Reuters:
Smoke pours from Kenya mall as forces ‘close in’

Discussion: Associated Press, The PJ Tatler, Crooks and Liars, CNN, neo-neocon, The Week, USA Today, Guardian and New York Times

Michael Pearson / CNN:
Kenyan police vow to ‘finish and punish’ Westgate Mall terrorists

Discussion: Global Public Square, National Review, The Dish, Guardian, NBCNews, FP Passport and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

New York Times:
Kenyan Forces Push Assault as Mall Standoff Continues

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Guardian, BBC, NBCNews, The Other McCain, Gawker and Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Robert Pear / New York Times:

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 …

Discussion: Hot Air, Washington Post, Politico, The Feehery Theory, Corrente, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Wonkblog, Flopping Aces, Sister Toldjah, The Heritage Foundation, National Review, Washington Free Beacon, Twitchy, Marginal Revolution and Seeing the Forest

Paul Steinhauser / CNN:

How long can Hillary Clinton wait? — Washington (CNN) — When it comes to 2016, Hillary Clinton is in no rush to decide about another run for the White House. — This amid mounting speculation that Clinton will launch another bid, and with everything she says, and every move she makes …

Discussion: ABC News, Fox News, Shakesville and KTLA 5

New York Magazine:
Hillary in Midair — Her former staffers argue that she managed …

Discussion: Daily Kos and Runnin' Scared

First Read:
First Thoughts: The next eight days

Discussion: CNN, American Prospect, Politico, Reuters and Taylor Marsh

Michael Laris / Washington Post:

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.”

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Mediaite and Outside the Beltway

Justin Sink / The Hill:

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.

Discussion: CNN, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Politico and Mediaite

Rebecca Shabad / The Hill:

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.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, The Raw Story and Talking Points Memo

Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Graham: ObamaCare ‘sucks’

Discussion: Politico and Talking Points Memo

Javier C. Hernández / New York Times:

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.

Discussion: National Review, Politicker, Booman Tribune, Weasel Zippers and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Chris Conover / Forbes:

Obamacare Will Increase Health Spending By $7,450 For A Typical Family of Four — It was one of candidate Obama's most vivid and concrete campaign promises. Forget about high minded (some might say high sounding) but gauzy promises of hope and change. This candidate solemnly pledged on June 5 …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Bookworm Room, Politico, USA Today and Shakesville

Daily Local News:

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 …

Discussion: The Raw Story, Mediaite and The Other McCain

Judd Gregg / The Hill:

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.

Discussion: A plain blog about politics and Talking Points Memo

Lauren French / Politico:

Lois Lerner still Hill's favorite piñata — Lois Lerner is the political piñata that Congress still loves to whack months after she awkwardly acknowledged that the IRS wrongly scrutinized conservative groups for years. — Her sudden retirement on Monday after 12 years at the agency won't change that.

Discussion: White House Dossier

Zach Weissmueller / Reason:

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 …

Discussion: Hit & Run, Daily Pundit and TheBlaze.com

Rebecca Evans / Daily Mail:

'If they found me, I'm white... so I'm dead': Survivors reveal how gunman executed non-Muslims - after asking them to name Prophet Mohammed's mother — Survivors said they saw fellow shoppers mercilessly executed after being singled out as non-Muslim — Shoppers said people were lined …

Discussion: Ed Driscoll, americanthinker.com and Daily Pundit

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

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”?

Discussion: RH Reality Check and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

In Supreme Court Opinions, Web Links That Go Nowhere — WASHINGTON — Supreme Court opinions have come down with a bad case of link rot. According to a new study, 49 percent of the hyperlinks in Supreme Court decisions no longer work. — This can sometimes be amusing.

Discussion: Prairie Weather and The Volokh Conspiracy

Pew Hispanic Center:

Population Decline of Unauthorized Immigrants Stalls, May Have Reversed — 1. Overview — The sharp decline in the U.S. population of unauthorized immigrants that accompanied the 2007-2009 recession has bottomed out, and the number may be rising again. As of March 2012 …