memeorandum: Republican congressman: It was worth the fight (CNN)

11:25 AM ET, October 17, 2013

Top Items:

Pew Research Center for the People and the Press:

Tea Party's Image Turns More Negative — Ted Cruz's Popularity Soars among Tea Party Republicans — The Tea Party is less popular than ever, with even many Republicans now viewing the movement negatively. Overall, nearly half of the public (49%) has an unfavorable opinion of the Tea Party, while 30% have a favorable opinion.

Bob Cusack / The Hill:

Winners and losers of the debt-limit fight — The 2013 fiscal showdown was ugly, especially for Republicans. — Both parties have scoffed that there are winners and losers in the debate. — Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) recently said, “This isn't a damn game!”

Discussion: Politico and Reuters

Steve Almasy / CNN:

There's a little pork in that bill: The 5 most surprising provisions in the debt deal — (CNN) — So much for a “clean” bill. The measure passed by Congress to fund the government and raise the debt ceiling also contains some goodies and gifts tucked into the 35-page bill.

Discussion: BizPac Review

Erick Erickson / RedState:

Advancing. Ever Advancing. — Much cynicism has been expressed over the past month about the effort, led by Ted Cruz and Mike Lee, to fight Obamacare. It was about money or defeating Republicans or something other than what it was about — undermining Obamacare with a united front.

Discussion: firstread.nbcnews.com, Commentary Magazine, Right Turn, Rothenblog, No More Mister Nice Blog and Balloon Juice

Todd J. Gillman / Dallas Morning News:

Ted Cruz left with few friends after Obamacare fight fails, government shutdown ends, debt limit rises — Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said he wouldn't try to block the Senate agreement. “There's nothing to be gained from delaying this vote one day or two days. The outcome will be the same,” Cruz said.

Discussion: The Agonist, Sky Dancing, Houston Chronicle and Mediaite

Todd Starnes / Fox News:

American taxpayers betrayed by chicken-hearted RINOs — American taxpayers have once again been trampled by establishment Republicans - a thundering herd of chicken-hearted Republicans in Name Only (RINOs) galloping to the Left. — The debt ceiling deal struck between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid …

Discussion: Reuters and The Right Scoop

Phillip M. Bailey / WFPL:

McConnell-Reid Deal Includes $3 Billion Earmark for Kentucky Project — A proposal to end the government shutdown and avoid default orchestrated by Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic Leader Harry Reid includes a nearly $3 billion earmark for a Kentucky project.

Discussion: Scared Monkeys, Weasel Zippers, The Gateway Pundit, Connecting.the.Dots, Doug Ross, Washington Post, The Lonely Conservative, Pat Dollard, BuzzFeed, The Other McCain, Conservatives4Palin and Politico

CNN:

Republican congressman: It was worth the fight — Washington (CNN) - Rep. Mick Mulvaney, a tea party firebrand, said Thursday the fight that led to a government shutdown was worth it, but he acknowledged the GOP's messaging wasn't as effective. — “Anytime you fight for something …

Discussion: Politico and The Lead with Jake Tapper

Ashley Killough / CNN:
McCain: No more shutdowns, ‘I guarantee it’

Discussion: Politico

ThinkProgress:
One Month After Devastating Floods In Colorado, End Of Shutdown Could Help Bring Relief

Discussion: Michael Bennet and GovBeat

Russell Berman / The Hill:
Republicans grapple with stinging defeat

Discussion: Politico

Washington Post:
Deal buys Democrats and Republicans a little time to find a big fiscal fix

Discussion: The Plum Line, The Fix, Talking Points Memo and Mediaite

Senate Conservatives Fund:
McConnell Deal Includes Kentucky Kickback

Discussion: Washington Post, Politico, The Hill, Independent Journal Review, Talking Points Memo, Liberaland, E2-Wire, ThinkProgress and National Review

Kerry Picket / BREITBART.COM:
Senate Debt Deal Weakens Congress on Debt Ceiling

Discussion: Politico, Power Line, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, National Review, Daily Kos, The Lonely Conservative, VodkaPundit, ThinkProgress, The Week, Hit & Run and The People's View

John Stanton / BuzzFeed:
Shutdown Deal Includes Nearly $3 Billion For Kentucky Dam Project

Discussion: E2-Wire, The Daily Beast, The Week, Power Line and National Review

David Edwards / The Raw Story:
Cruz: It was a ‘remarkable victory’ until Senate Republicans caved on the shutdown

Discussion: Firedoglake

New Jersey Online:

Cory Booker makes history as he defeats Steve Lonegan in U.S. Senate election — NEWARK — Cory Booker's star-quality and his skill at surviving the roughhouse politics of New Jersey's biggest city took him from the mayor's office to the U.S. Senate today in a hard-fought victory over Republican iconoclast Steve Lonegan.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Taylor Marsh and Right Wing Watch

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

Only Four African Americans Have Ever Been Elected To The U.S. Senate In All Of American History — New Jersey voters elected Newark Mayor Cory Booker (D) on Wednesday to the seat once held by the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D). When he is seated, Senator-elect Booker will join Sen. Tim Scott …

Discussion: NBCNews and Shakesville

John Fund / National Review:
Dem ‘Referendum’ on Tea Party Fizzles: Booker Margin in N.J. Barely Half of Obama's in 2012

Discussion: Booman Tribune

Sarah Palin / BREITBART.COM:
ON TO KENTUCKY — Todd and I were proud to stand with Mark Levin …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and Twitchy

Kate Zernike / New York Times:
Booker, Winning Rocky Senate Bid, Gets a Job to Fit His Profile

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Politico and Balloon Juice

Elizabeth Titus / Politico:
Cory Booker wins New Jersey Senate seat

Discussion: Post Politics, Equality Matters, CNN, Ballot Box, Power Line, Yahoo! News, Hot Air, Scared Monkeys and NewsBusters

Russell Berman / The Hill:

Ryan breaks from Boehner, votes ‘no’ — Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) split with his party's leadership and voted against the Senate fiscal agreement on Wednesday night. — In a statement, Ryan called the legislation to reopen the government and lift the debt ceiling “a missed opportunity” to reduce the federal debt.

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, Politico, Talking Points Memo, The Fix, NewsMax.com, The Reality-Based Community and Washington Post

Jonathan Strong / National Review:
The Last Conference — At the last GOP conference meeting …

Discussion: Moonbattery, The Week, Vox Popoli, Fox News, The Lonely Conservative, Ricochet Conversations Feed, No More Mister Nice Blog and The Gateway Pundit

Jennifer Steinhauer / New York Times:
Hands Empty but Spirit Unbowed, House Republicans Take Stock

Discussion: ABC News and Daniel W. Drezner

Dylan Scott / Talking Points Memo:
Conservatives Learned The Wrong Lessons From The Shutdown Debacle

Discussion: The Mahablog

Shane Goldmacher / NationalJournal.com:
GOP Congressman Rips Tea Party Colleagues: 'I'm Not Sure They're Republicans'

Discussion: Connecting.the.Dots, Hot Air, Yahoo! News, Guardian and Washington Examiner

New York Times:

The Republican Surrender — President Obama signed the bill reopening the government and lifting the debt ceiling early Thursday morning. — The Republican Party slunk away on Wednesday from its failed, ruinous strategy to get its way through the use of havoc.

Discussion: Mediaite, The Hinterland Gazette, Daily Kos, Prairie Weather, National Review, Speaker.gov and Sky Dancing

Fox News:
Obama signs bill ending partial shutdown, raising debt ceiling

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, The Right Scoop and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

New York Times:
Republicans Back Down, Ending Crisis Over Shutdown and Debt Limit

Greg Miller / Washington Post:

Documents reveal NSA's extensive involvement in targeted killing program — It was an innocuous e-mail, one of millions sent every day by spouses with updates on the situation at home. But this one was of particular interest to the National Security Agency and contained clues that put …

Discussion: Liberaland, Hot Air, Reuters and The Raw Story

Jonathan Easley / The Hill:

Graham: Polls factored into GOP folding — Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Wednesday that the polling backlash against the Republican Party was one of the reasons Senate Republicans were eager to cut a deal with Democrats. — “Well you can't let 20 or 30 polls cloud you're thinking apparently …

Discussion: Politico and CANNONFIRE

Charles M. Blow / New York Times:
Republican Collapse — Congress has finally worked out a deal …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, The Raw Story, DownWithTyranny!, The Federalist, Real Clear Politics, TheBlaze.com, Hot Air and The Dish

Fox News:
Hume: Tea Party pushed budget stand-off because GOP ‘utterly failed’ to restrain bloated gov't

Discussion: Ace of Spades HQ, Outside the Beltway, The Dish, Mediaite, Independent Journal Review, Wall Street Journal, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and RedState

Marshall Sella / GQ Magazine Online:

The Year of Living Carlos Dangerously — Anthony Weiner's sexting addiction nuked his political career (twice!), endangered his marriage (twice!), and turned him into a walking penis joke (forever!). — Marshall Sella tails Weiner through his doomed campaign for New York mayor …

Discussion: Politico, Talking Points Memo, The Hill, Liberaland, Gawker, The Daily Caller and Politicker

Politico:

House stenographer hauled from floor — A House floor stenographer was abruptly hauled out of the chamber after charging the dais and screaming during Wednesday's late night vote on raising the debt ceiling and funding the federal government. — As the bill sailed toward final passage …