memeorandum: The Fed has become a creature of politics (George F. Will/Washington Post)

11:20 AM ET, September 29, 2013

Top Items:

David Frum / david-frum:

Here Comes the Shutdown: Three Reasons It Will Hurt the GOP — Uh oh! A House plan to delay Obamacare has put the government on the brink of a shutdown—for real this time. David Frum on why the infighting is sure to backfire on the Republicans. — The federal government swerved toward …

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette and The Moderate Voice

Robert Costa / National Review:

House GOP Mulls CR with Vitter Amendment — House GOP insiders acknowledge a shutdown is increasingly likely, due to House conservatives' aversion to passing a “clean” continuing resolution that simply funds the government. But the leadership isn't ready to concede defeat, and …

Discussion: Yahoo! News, Talking Points Memo, NationalJournal.com, Taegan Goddard's …, Business Insider and Hit & Run

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

From Bachmann, a persuasive case for why many Republicans don't fear a shutdown — Why have House Republicans pursued their effort to defund, and now to delay, Obamacare so relentlessly, even though they have almost zero chance of success in the face of a rapidly-approaching deadline for shutting down the government?

Discussion: Power Line and Talking Points Memo

Seung Min Kim / Politico:

McCarthy: ‘We are not shutting the government down’ — House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy said Sunday that several options are on the table for House GOP leaders if the Senate tosses the government funding bill back to the chamber without two anti-Obamacare changes approved by the House.

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon and The Hill

Washington Post:

The House GOP's shutdown plan is great news — House Republicans plan to attach a one-year delay of Obamacare to the continuing resolution. That sharply increases the chances of a government shutdown beginning Monday night. — Good. — Speaker Boehner's original plan was to pass …

Discussion: Wonkblog and Prairie Weather

Mike Lillis / The Hill:

House sends stopgap to Senate hours before shutdown (Video) — House Republicans approved a stopgap spending bill that delays ObamaCare in an early-morning Sunday vote that increases the chances of a government shutdown. — The high-stakes GOP move intensifies a game of chicken …

Discussion: NPR, Politico, Real Clear Politics and New York Times

Judd Legum / ThinkProgress:
GOP Congressman Compares Republicans Trying To Take Down Obamacare To Heroes Of 9/11

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Moderate Voice, CNN, Crooks and Liars, Mediaite and The Lonely Conservative

Austin Wright / Reuters:
House GOP moves to protect military pay in a shutdown

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Politico

Stan Collender / Stan Collender's Capital Gains …:
Cliffgate Update: Now A 90% Chance Of A Shutdown

Discussion: CNN, americanthinker.com, Outside the Beltway, The Moderate Voice, Balloon Juice and Hullabaloo

Paul Kane / Washington Post:
House pushes U.S. to the edge of a shutdown

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The PJ Tatler, Wonkblog, National Review, New York Times, Power Line and Taegan Goddard's …

msnbc.com:
House delays Obamacare, pushes US toward shutdown

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, NBCNews, Politico, The Reaction and Daily Kos

Lisa Desjardins / CNN:

GOP adds ‘conscience clause’ to spending bill — Washington (CNN) - House Republicans have added a measure aimed at limiting contraceptive coverage to the spending bill coming up for a vote Saturday night, a spokesman for Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kansas, told CNN. — A senior House leadership aide confirmed that development.

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money, Hot Air, The Gateway Pundit, The Hinterland Gazette, Right Wing News, The Moderate Voice, Pat Dollard, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Little Green Footballs, Outside the Beltway, Firedoglake, Talking Points Memo, The Right Scoop and The Raw Story

New York Times:

Children and Guns: The Hidden Toll — The .45-caliber pistol that killed Lucas Heagren, 3, on Memorial Day last year at his Ohio home had been temporarily hidden under the couch by his father. But Lucas found it and shot himself through the right eye. “It's bad,” his mother told the 911 dispatcher.

Discussion: The Mahablog

Reuters:

As government shutdown looms, Obamacare exchanges still set for launch — It's looking more and more like Tuesday will be a split-screen day: The government will shut down, and Obamacare will open for business. — That's going to annoy a lot of Republicans —because the ones who are pushing …

Discussion: Taylor Marsh

Benjamin Bell / ABC News:

Five Things Former President Clinton Took Away From the 2008 President Election — During an interview with ABC News, former President Bill Clinton was asked by “This Week” anchor George Stephanopoulos about the biggest lesson he learned from the 2008 presidential campaign, in which his wife …

George F. Will / Washington Post:

The Fed has become a creature of politics — Because Ben Bernanke's public persona is as mild as milk, the transformation in American governance in which he has participated is imperfectly understood and hence insufficiently deplored. The change is dramatized by two recent developments.

John Avlon / Telegraph:

American Way: US debt ceiling debacle as Congress threatens to go nuclear — You know things are bad when President Obama thinks he can negotiate with Iran but not Republicans in Congress, writes John Avlon. — For decades, the key question when dealing with the murderous mullahs …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Business Insider and The Reaction

ABC News:

White House: Obama Will Veto House Shutdown Bill — The White House says President Barack Obama would veto House Republican legislation that would delay much of the president's health care overhaul for a year and cancel a tax on medical devices. — The White House statement comes …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers