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Ted Cruz, House Republicans Meet in Secret at Tortilla Coast — Sen. Ted Cruz met with roughly 15 to 20 House Republicans for around two hours late Monday night at the Capitol Hill watering hole Tortilla Coast. — The group appeared to be talking strategy about how they should respond …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos and Business Insider
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What Barack Obama, Republicans get with a deal — It's not a perfect deal for the White House — but it's a worse deal for Republicans. — Democrats won't say it too loudly just yet, but the emerging budget agreement leaves Republicans with remarkably little to show for forcing …


Pressure rising on Boehner — Speaker John Boehner, who has wrestled with an unruly pack of conservatives for months, will soon be faced with an uncomfortable choice: Pass an emerging bipartisan Senate deal to lift the debt ceiling and fund the government, or don't — and risk massive political and economic consequences.
Discussion:
Politico, National Review, ThinkProgress, NBCNews, USA Today, Business Insider, Associated Press, Mashable, Firedoglake and BuzzFeed

Reid, McConnell near deal to end shutdown, raise $16.7T debt limit — An emerging Senate deal would raise the nation's $16.7 trillion debt ceiling until mid-February, according to Senate aides. — There were conflicting claims on how long the extension would last, with one aide saying …


House Conservatives Revolt — Later this morning, House Republicans will meet in the Capitol's basement. The chief topic of conversation: the emerging Senate deal. But before the meeting even begins, House conservatives are bashing it behind the scenes, and they're pushing the leadership to reject the compromise.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Washington Monthly, The Plum Line, Business Insider, Prairie Weather and The Hill

Ted Cruz: Unsure if he'd block vote on Senate deal
Discussion:
Slate, ThinkProgress, The Fix, The World's Greatest … and Power Line

Senate Leaders in Striking Distance of a Deal
Discussion:
Washington Wire, Taegan Goddard's …, BBC, The Week and Washington Post

Senate Debt Limit Framework Emerges (Updated)
Discussion:
Roll Call, Heritage Action for America and First Read

Ted Cruz Could Force a Debt Default All by Himself
Discussion:
Slate, Post Politics, Hot Air, The Week, Politico, The Fix, Patterico's Pontifications, Outside the Beltway, Booman Tribune and Washington Post


NSA collects millions of e-mail address books globally — The National Security Agency is harvesting hundreds of millions of contact lists from personal e-mail and instant messaging accounts around the world, many of them belonging to Americans, according to senior intelligence officials …
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The default has already begun — The big question in Washington this week is whether, in the words of the NYT, we're going to see “a legislative failure and an economic catastrophe that could ripple through financial markets, foreign capitals, corporate boardrooms, state budget offices and the bank accounts of everyday investors”.
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Senators Near Fiscal Deal, but the House Is Uncertain — WASHINGTON — Senate leaders neared the completion Monday night of a bipartisan deal to raise the debt ceiling and end the government shutdown while the rest of the world braced for the possibility of an American default that could set off a global financial disaster.


Ugly rebel yell in front of the White House — If you want to curdle the blood of an African American and send a message of menace without resorting to burning a cross on the lawn or marching around in white sheets all one need do is wave the Confederate flag.
Discussion:
FIRST DRAFT, National Review, Twitchy, Firedoglake, DCist and The Week
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Sarah Palin: Barack Obama flirts with impeachment
Discussion:
The Reality-Based Community, Liberaland and Des Moines Register

Million Vet March Organizers: We Were ‘Hijacked for Political Gain’
Discussion:
msnbc.com, Little Green Footballs and Daily Kos


13 THINGS THAT DEFINE THE NEW AMERICAN CENTER — It is bigger than you think... An exclusive Esquire-NBC News survey shows us that everything we are told about politics in America today—that there is no middle ground between left and right, blue and red, us and them—is wrong.
Discussion:
NBCNews and Real Clear Politics

Panetta rebukes Obama's handling of shutdown — Leon Panetta served in Washington with nine presidents, starting with Lyndon Johnson. He has been a member of Congress, Office of Management and Budget director, White House chief of staff, director of the Central Intelligence Agency and secretary …
Discussion:
Politico, Right Turn, The Daily Caller, Hot Air, Taegan Goddard's … and Washington Wire


'The Kelly File's' surge is legit, Nielsen says — MSNBC had questioned Fox News show's 100% ratings increase — Megyn Kelly hosts the Fox News Channel's new show “The Kelly File.” — Nielsen has conducted an investigation into the ratings for Megyn Kelly's new Fox News Channel show …
Discussion:
Politico, TVNewser, Weasel Zippers, Mediaite, TheBlaze.com and Independent Journal Review


Three GOP Faces Who Are Outshining Their Party — Paul, Christie and Ryan Manage to Improve Their Standing During the Shutdown — At this point, it's both an understatement and a statement of the obvious to say the government-shutdown showdown hasn't been good for the Republican Party.
Discussion:
First Read and ABC News


British authorities break up terror plot — British law enforcement agencies averted a plot to orchestrate a large-scale terror attack similar to the assault on Kenya's Westgate mall, an official said Monday. — Police were questioning four men in their 20s on suspicion of terrorism …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and Jihad Watch


A tea party exit would be a blessing for GOP — Editor's note: David Frum, a CNN contributor, is a contributing editor at The Daily Beast. He is the author of eight books, including a new novel, “Patriots,” and a post-election e-book, “Why Romney Lost.” Frum was a special assistant to President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2002.
Discussion:
PoliticusUSA and The Dish