memeorandum: Afghan officials accuse U.S. of snatching Pakistani Taliban leader from their custody (Washington Post)

11:45 AM ET, October 12, 2013

Top Items:

John Boehner: No deal with White House — On Saturday morning, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) told House Republicans in a closed meeting that there is no deal to reopen the government and hike the debt ceiling, and no negotiations going on with the White House, according to two sources present.

Discussion: National Review and Business Insider

Burgess Everett / Politico:

Ted Cruz confronts President Obama at White House — Sen. Ted Cruz confronted President Barack Obama over his health care law during a meeting at the White House Friday attended by dozens of GOP senators. — Cruz told Obama that any deal to reopen the government must also provide relief for those negatively affected by Obamacare.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, CNN, Connecting.the.Dots, PoliticusUSA and The Gateway Pundit

Joe Picard / The Hill:

Boehner reports no progress as focus shifts to Senate plan — Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) told House Republicans on Saturday morning that there has been little progress in negotiations with the White House to avert a U.S. default and end the government shutdown.

Discussion: Liberaland

Washington Post:
Congressional Republicans rush to develop plan to reopen government

Discussion: The Heritage Foundation, Income Investing, Post Politics and The Lonely Conservative

Peter Schroeder / The Hill:
Obama tells Senate GOP he's willing to talk ObamaCare changes

Discussion: Washington Wire

Hunter Walker / Talking Points Memo:

'She's Got Really Hot Breasts, Man!' Lonegan Aide Bashes Booker With X-Rated Rant — A top aide to Republican New Jersey Senate hopeful Steve Lonegan went into decidedly not-safe-for-work territory when TPM asked why he thinks his candidate has been gaining on Democratic opponent Cory Booker in recent polls.

Discussion: Metropolis, Politico, MoreMonmouthMusings, Mediaite, Gothamist, RH Reality Check, The Raw Story, Gawker and ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES

Dana Milbank / Washington Post:

Cruzification of the GOP — When a poll came out this week showing that the government shutdown was putting Republican Mike Coffman in danger of losing his Colorado congressional seat, the lawmaker responded with the serenity of martyrs through the ages. — “Whatever the consequences …

Discussion: Salon, No More Mister Nice Blog and Los Angeles Times

Jonathan D. Salant / Bloomberg:
Budget Battle Ends Soon With Tea Party Loss: King, Corker

Discussion: The Raw Story, The Daily Caller and Talking Points Memo

Caitlin MacNeal / Talking Points Memo:

Rep. Pete King: Obama Should Donate To Ted Cruz — Rep. Peter King (R-NY) said Friday that Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) has done so much to unintentionally boost Obamacare's popularity with his crusade to defund it that President Obama should thank Cruz with a campaign donation.

Discussion: Pirate's Cove

Jonathan Bernstein / A plain blog about politics:
Ted Cruz? Winnowed, Probably

Discussion: Business Insider

Daniel Larison / The American Conservative:
Ted Cruz's Debacle

Discussion: National Review

Brendan Sasso / The Hill:

Obama rules out short-term debt ceiling hike — President Obama signaled Saturday that he wouldn't accept the Republicans' offer for a short-term increase in the nation's debt limit. — “It wouldn't be wise, as some suggest, to just kick the debt ceiling can down the road for a couple months …

Discussion: Jammie Wearing Fools

MJ Lee / Politico:
Gene Sperling: GOP has plenty of leverage without default threat

Discussion: The New Republic, CNN and Hullabaloo

Brandon Bailey / Mercury News:

Mark Zuckerberg buys four houses near his Palo Alto home — PALO ALTO — Living the fantasy of every homeowner who's faced the prospect of a nuisance project next door, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg has bought four homes adjacent to his own 5-bedroom crash pad in one of Palo Alto's toniest neighborhoods.

Discussion: NBCNews, Guardian, Gawker and Mashable

Bluegrass Politics:

Amid shutdown thaw, McConnell says it's time for ‘come together’ moment — WASHINGTON — As the stand-off over the federal government shutdown appears to be thawing, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Friday that it is time for a “come together” moment.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Taegan Goddard's … and Talking Points Memo

Paul Dacre / Guardian:

Why is the left obsessed by the Daily Mail? — The Guardian has published an extensive critique of the Daily Mail and its reporting of Labour, press regulation and the Snowden leaks. We invited Mail readers to join in that debate. Paul Dacre, editor-in-chief, asked for the opportunity to comment.

Discussion: BBC and Spectator

New York Times:

2 States Plan 2-Tier System for Balloting — PHOENIX — Barred by the Supreme Court from requiring proof of citizenship for federal elections, Arizona is complying — but setting up a separate registration system for local and state elections that will demand such proof.

Discussion: Balloon Juice

Joe Wurzelbacher / Joe For America:

America Needs a White Republican President — Admit it. You want a white Republican president again. — Now before you start feeling like you're a racist, understand you are not. — Follow Joe For America on Facebook! — Wanting a white Republican president doesn't make you racist, it just makes you American.

Discussion: The New Civil Rights Movement, The Hinterland Gazette, Crooks and Liars, The Raw Story and Liberaland

Brendan Sasso / The Hill:

Court: NSA can continue sweeping phone data collection (Video) — The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court has granted the National Security Agency (NSA) permission to continue its collection of records on all U.S. phone calls. — The Office of the Director of National Intelligence announced …

Discussion: ODNI Newsroom Feed, Liberaland, Politico and Prairie Weather

Darren Goode / Politico:

States pony up to open national parks, sights — The Grand Canyon, Statue of Liberty and Mount Rushmore are all open for business again — at least for about a week. — The three iconic national symbols will be at least temporarily reopened after the states of Arizona …

Discussion: CNN

Lee Enterprises / Helena Independent Record:
Bullock: Montana won't pay to open national parks

Discussion: E2-Wire and GovBeat

Andrew Kirell / Mediaite:

Piers Morgan Expected to Lose 9PM Hour on CNN; Bill Weir to Move In? — Earlier this morning, we reported that Nightline anchor Bill Weir was departing ABC News for other pastures. — TVNewser beat us to the punch on the news that his new role is with CNN. But that is only part of the story.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, TVNewser, NewsBusters and The Daily Caller, more at Mediagazer »