House to vote first on Senate plan  —  The House will vote first on an emerging Senate proposal to open government and lift the debt ceiling, a move that would expedite bipartisan legislation developed by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Why we miss Kay Bailey Hutchison  —  Things surely would look far different with Sen. Hutchison in office in the nation's capital  —  Does anyone else miss Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison?  —  We're not sure how much difference one person could make in the toxic, chaotic, hyperpartisan atmosphere in Washington …

S&P: The Shutdown Took $24 Billion Out Of The US Economy  —  The S&P has cut the annualized U.S. growth view closer to 2% from 3%, Bloomberg is reporting.  —  The ratings agency — which recognizes the Senate deal will be approved — says that the shutdown has taken $24 billion out of the economy …

College Women: Stop Getting Drunk  —  It's closely associated with sexual assault.  And yet we're reluctant to tell women to stop doing it.  —  In one awful high-profile case after another—the U.S. Naval Academy; Steubenville, Ohio; now the allegations in Maryville, Mo.—we read about a young woman …

My Next Adventure in Journalism  —  As many of you know, I've had an interest in journalism for some time now.  I've been working on Civil Beat for three years and through my philanthropic work at Omidyar Network and Democracy Fund, we've supported many efforts around the world related to media …

Bridge Burning and Bridge Building  —  House Republicans have signaled they are giving up.  —  They'll merge their ideas with Mitch McConnell's ideas.  The result will be a funded government, raised debt ceiling, and nothing done with Obamacare.  —  Throughout this fight, Harry Reid has outsmarted Mitch McConnell.

Shutdown hurts GOP Senate chances  —  New PPP polls of 6 key Senate races that will determine control of the body after next year's election finds voters extremely unhappy about the government shutdown.  As a result Republicans trail in 5 of the 6 key races and are tied in the 6th.

Carl Bernstein: GOP leadership ‘cancerous’  —  Journalist and author Carl Bernstein said Wednesday that Republican Party leadership is “cancerous” and has put the United States at risk by letting the tea party lead the GOP.  —  “The Republican Party today has become a rabid organization from the top down.

Move On Everybody, It Just Doesn't Matter  —  The ugliness of the GOP schism will probably have a long half life, as various parties feel the need to point fingers and shout “I didn't do it!”  But if at all possible, I think conservatives and Republicans would be well-served by putting …

Limbaugh: GOP Most ‘Irrelevant’ Political Party I Can Remember  —  Rush Limbaugh, prominent conservative radio show host, slammed the Republican party on Wednesday for being “irrelevant,” lamenting that GOP leaders caved during their fight to defund Obamacare.

Sorry, Kids.  We Ate It All.  —  Eventually this shutdown crisis will end.  And eventually the two parties will make another stab at a deal on taxes, investments and entitlements.  But there's one outcome from such negotiations that I can absolutely guarantee: Seniors …

Stop Fretting: The Debt-Ceiling Crisis Is Over!  —  If you're reading the newspapers just now to get caught up on the debt-ceiling crisis, you may have the impression that events are now spinning utterly out of control.  “A day that was supposed to bring Washington to the edge of resolving …

GOP shutdown disaster could give Dems a big lift  —  With the news breaking that John Boehner will allow a House vote on a Senate deal to end the crisis, meaning Republicans surrendered with nothing to show for weeks of crisis brinkmanship, how does that impact GOP fortunes heading into 2014?

Anderson Cooper decides GOP strategist is ‘high’ after he says Cruz is ‘having bunny sex’  —  CNN host Anderson Cooper decided on Tuesday that CNN contributor Alex Castellanos must be “high” after the Republican strategist tried to explain Sen. Ted Cruz' (R-TX) push to shut down the government by saying “he's having bunny sex.”

CONGRESSMAN: ‘CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS’ IF GOP CAVES ON DEBT CEILING  —  GOP lawmaker says that if his party's leadership gives in to Obama, they will have forever altered the checks and balances of the U.S. federal government.  —  On the House floor on Monday, Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) …