memeorandum: Is Ukraine the Cold War's final episode? (George F. Will/Washington Post)

2:00 PM ET, February 20, 2014

Top Items:

Ted Cruz / CNN:

Ted Cruz assails fellow Republicans senators for ‘trickery’ — Beaumont, Texas (CNN) - Sen. Ted Cruz accused his own Republican leadership of “trickery” in trying to force a “show vote” on raising the debt ceiling last week, warning Republicans will get “clobbered in the polls” for not standing up for principle.

Discussion: Mediaite, his vorpal sword, Trail Blazers Blog, Post Politics, The Daily Caller, Talking Points Memo and TIME

Mario Trujillo / The Hill:

Cruz: I didn't want to throw GOP under bus — Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said on Wednesday that he did want to throw any of his colleagues under the bus by forcing a 60-vote threshold on a bill to increase the debt ceiling earlier this month. — Cruz said in a CNN interview that he heard …

Dana Davidsen / CNN:
Ted Cruz slams GOP leadership for ‘show vote’ on debt ceiling

Discussion: The Dish and Politico

Deirdre Walsh / CNN:
Cruz disagrees with Nugent, but doesn't rule out campaigning with him

Discussion: Politico and PoliticusUSA

CNN:

Truce crumbles amid gunfire in Ukraine, protesters claim 100 dead — Are you in Ukraine? Send us your photos and experiences but please stay safe. — Kiev, Ukraine (CNN) — A shaky truce crumbled Thursday as gunfire erupted at Independence Square, the center of anti-government protests …

Discussion: The Other McCain, Jammie Wearing Fools, The Jawa Report, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Joe For America

Reuters:
Ukraine truce shattered, death toll tops 50

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Herald, Hit & Run, BBC, The Dish, News Desk, The Week, New York Times, Trust.org, National Review and The New Republic

George F. Will / Washington Post:
Is Ukraine the Cold War's final episode?

Discussion: CANNONFIRE, americanthinker.com and Althouse

Washington Post:
Despite truce, new fighting erupts in Kiev; at least 50 reported killed

Discussion: Guardian, Hot Air, The Hugh Hewitt Show, Post Politics and The PJ Tatler

New York Times:
As Deaths Rise in Kiev, So Do Fears Ukraine Will Use Troops

Discussion: BuzzFeed, Democracy in America, Business Insider, Althouse and The Lede

Wall Street Journal:

McNider and Christy: Why Kerry Is Flat Wrong on Climate Change — It was the scientific skeptics who bucked the ‘consensus’ and said the Earth was round. — In a Feb. 16 speech in Indonesia, Secretary of State John Kerry assailed climate-change skeptics as members of the “Flat Earth Society” …

Discussion: White House Dossier and Hot Air

Seumas Milne / Guardian:

Deniers grasp that markets can't fix the climate — The refusal to accept global warming is driven by corporate interests and the fear of what it will cost to try to stop it — It's an unmistakable taste of things to come. The floods that have deluged Britain may be small beer on a global scale.

Discussion: Washington Monthly

WJHL-TV:

Bachmann has confidence tea party can best Clinton in 2016 — With less than a year left in her fourth and final term in Congress, it's a little early for an exit interview, but not too early to get the views of Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., on issues dear to a “founding mother” …

Samantha Lachman / The Huffington Post:
Michele Bachmann's Bad News For Hillary Clinton: People 'Aren't Ready' For A Female President

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Shakesville

Quinnipiac News + Events:
Release Detail — February 20, 2014 - Clinton Sweeps 2016 Ohio Field …

Discussion: CNN, Politico, Real Clear Politics and Prairie Weather

Howard Fischer Capitol / Arizona Daily Star:

Arizona Senate: Business owners can cite religion to refuse service to gays — PHOENIX — State senators voted Wednesday to let businesses refuse to serve gays based on owners' “sincerely held” religious beliefs. — The 17-13 vote along party lines, with Republicans in the majority …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, ThinkProgress, Joe. My. God. and Towleroad News #gay

Dylan Scott / Talking Points Memo:
Arizona Senate Passes Bill Allowing Anti-Gay Discrimination

Discussion: The Raw Story, Associated Press, Balloon Juice and WSMV-TV

Emily Heil / The Reliable Source:

Robin Wright: D.C. reporters sleep with sources — Actress Robin Wright has apparently gained much insight into the inner workings of Washington through her research into her “House of Cards” character - the malevolent Second Lady Claire Underwood. — For instance, she gleaned this little gem …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Hot Air, Politico and Mediaite

Dylan Byers / Politico:

‘House of Cards’ is really bad — The second season of Netflix's “House of Cards” was a pretty big let down. The storylines were preposterous. The principle characters were flat and cliched. The efforts at narrative transgression, either violent or sexual, were pathetic and unconvincing.

Discussion: FishbowlDC

Beth Reinhard / NationalJournal.com:

CPAC Welcomes Gay-Rights Groups After Years of Exclusion — Meet the kinder, gentler Conservative Political Action Conference. — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, snubbed last year after palling around with President Obama, is coming. So is GOProud, the gay-rights group that was banned …

Discussion: Mediaite, Slate, Poliglot, Politico, Hot Air, Daily Kos, Towleroad News #gay, ABC News, Washington Blade, Joe. My. God. and VodkaPundit

Chris Geidner / BuzzFeed:
GOProud Founder Chris Barron Quits Board Over CPAC Flap

Discussion: Daily Kos and Joe. My. God.

Caitlin Flanagan / The Atlantic Online:

The Dark Power of Fraternities — A yearlong investigation of Greek houses reveals their endemic, lurid, and sometimes tragic problems—and a sophisticated system for shifting the blame. — One warm spring night in 2011, a young man named Travis Hughes stood on the back deck …

Discussion: The Awl

Sahil Kapur / Talking Points Memo:

Four Reasons The GOP Has A Huge Advantage In The 2014 Elections — For all their internal divisions and long-term worries as a party, political scientists and historical trends give Republicans a clear edge in the upcoming 2014 congressional elections. — Forget Obamacare …

Discussion: The Plum Line, The Moderate Voice and Washington Monthly

Alan Berube / Brookings Institute:

All Cities Are Not Created Unequal — In December 2013, President Obama gave a speech on economic mobility, in which he called income inequality and lack of upward mobility “the defining challenge of our time.” — That challenge is front and center in America's big cities today.

Discussion: GovBeat

Annie Lowrey / New York Times:
Study Finds Greater Income Inequality in Nation's Thriving Cities

Discussion: Gothamist

Kurtis Lee / The Spot:

Rep. Jared Wright leaves loaded handgun in House committee room — In the moments after lawmakers and visitors cleared a committee room Feb. 6 following a debate on concealed handgun permits, Rep. Jonathan Singer found a black canvas bag under the table where lawmakers sit.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Shakesville

Sean Trende / Real Clear Politics:

How Likely Are Democrats to Lose the Senate? — A few weeks ago, I produced two Senate analyses. One focused on the relationship between the president's job approval, the fate of Senate Democrats during the 2010 and 2012 elections, and what that would mean if this relationship continues through 2014.

Discussion: Washington Post and Democratic Strategist

Audrey M. Dacosta / Caracas Chronicles:

19F - The Night Venezuela Finally Imploded — Tonight, Venezuela is seeing a spasm of violence that's unlike anything the country has experienced since 1989. Information is fragmented, since an almost complete media black-out is in place, but you don't need the media to hear your neighbor's screams.

Discussion: Venezuela News And Views and Babalú Blog

Ryan Grim / The Huffington Post:

Here's Why Obama Can't Get Democrats To Back His Trade Deal — WASHINGTON — The veal pen is becoming a dangerous place. — U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman — President Barack Obama's top trade official — ventured into it Tuesday evening, meeting with a group of liberal leaders …

Discussion: Booman Tribune

Sequoia Capital:

Four Numbers That Explain Why Facebook Acquired WhatsApp — WhatsApp Co-Founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton — Earlier today, Facebook announced its acquisition of WhatsApp for $16 billion. It's a spectacular milestone for the company's co-founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton, and their remarkable team.

Discussion: MoneyBeat, DealBook, Facebook, TechCrunch, Mashable and Business Insider, more at Mediagazer »

Associated Press:

Joe Biden: Obamacare enrollment may miss mark — MINNEAPOLIS — Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday that it would be a good start for the federal health care law if 5 million to 6 million people sign up by the end of March, an acknowledgement that enrollments might fall significantly short …

Discussion: CNN, Mediaite, americanthinker.com and NewsBusters