Top Items:
Michael Riley / Bloomberg:
NSA Said to Exploit Heartbleed Bug for Intelligence for Years — The U.S. National Security Agency knew for at least two years about a flaw in the way that many websites send sensitive information, now dubbed the Heartbleed bug, and regularly used it to gather critical intelligence, two people familiar with the matter said.
Ezra Klein / Vox:
Kathleen Sebelius is resigning because Obamacare has won — Obamacare has won. And that's why Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius can resign. — Calls for Sebelius's resignation were almost constant after Obamacare's catastrophic launch.
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Ben Domenech / The Federalist:
Kathleen Sebelius's Resignation Hands Republicans A Golden Opportunity
Kathleen Sebelius's Resignation Hands Republicans A Golden Opportunity
Discussion:
Fox News, NBC News, National Review, Bloomberg View, Mediaite, The PJ Tatler, The Other McCain, The Daily Beast, Washington Post, The Mahablog, Hot Air, Bloomberg and Ed Driscoll
Halimah Abdullah / CNN:
Sebelius steps down — Washington (CNN) — President Barack …
Sebelius steps down — Washington (CNN) — President Barack …
Discussion:
New York Times and The Week
Jonathan Cohn / The New Republic:
The Sebelius Legacy: One Epic Tech Failure, Millions of Newly Insured Americans
The Sebelius Legacy: One Epic Tech Failure, Millions of Newly Insured Americans
Discussion:
Associated Press, Politico, The Atlantic Online, Hit & Run, The Week, Washington Post, The Reaction, Shakesville, Bloomberg View, ThinkProgress, Taylor Marsh and Mediaite
Michael Tomasky / The Daily Beast:
Will Kathleen Sebelius Win in the End? Legacy Tied to Obamacare's Outcome
Will Kathleen Sebelius Win in the End? Legacy Tied to Obamacare's Outcome
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Scared Monkeys, Post Politics, News Desk, The Gateway Pundit, RedState, Firedoglake and BuzzFeed
Marc Fisher / Washington Post:
Social Security, Treasury target taxpayers for their parents' decades-old debts — A few weeks ago, with no notice, the U.S. government intercepted Mary Grice's tax refunds from both the IRS and the state of Maryland. Grice had no idea that Uncle Sam had seized her money until some days later …
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Rush Limbaugh, Hot Air, The PJ Tatler, Consumerist, Gawker, Overlawyered, The Week, Betsy's Page, Balloon Juice and Hit & Run
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Jordan Chariton / TVNewser:
Michael Isikoff Out at NBC News — First on TVNewser: This is Michael Isikoff's last day at NBC News, TVNewser has learned. — Isikoff joined NBC News in 2010 as a Washington, DC-based investigative correspondent, after 16 years with Newsweek. The news comes three months …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo
Conor Friedersdorf / The Atlantic Online:
Why Gay-Marriage Opponents Should Not Be Treated Like Racists — Liberals generally think of themselves as proponents of tolerance, pluralism, and diversity. Some liberals are also eager to stigmatize and punish opponents of gay marriage. Is that a betrayal of their values?
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, National Review, ThinkProgress, The PJ Tatler, Conservatives4Palin and American Spectator
Kyle Smith / New York Post:
Picking Colbert to replace Letterman? CBS really screwed up — Stephen Colbert is a comedy genius because he's perfected the art of saying the opposite of what he believes. — That's right: Stephen Colbert invented sarcasm. — So huzzah for the trailblazing, game-changing …
Discussion:
Daily Kos and The Federalist
Rebecca Shabad / The Hill:
Cruz: Impeach Holder over IRS scandal — Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) says Attorney General Eric Holder should be impeached because the Justice Department has failed to fully investigate the IRS scandal. — “Among other things, Congress should impeach Eric Holder because Eric Holder …
Discussion:
Liberaland
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Kimberley A. Strassel / Wall Street Journal:
The IRS Scandal Comes Into Focus
Mike Levine / ABC News:
Fed-Up Eric Holder Rips Congress: ‘Unprecedented, Unwarranted, Ugly and Divisive’
Fed-Up Eric Holder Rips Congress: ‘Unprecedented, Unwarranted, Ugly and Divisive’
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, ABC News, Power Line and National Review
Tom Kludt / Talking Points Memo:
Here's George W. Bush Telling A Very Dirty Joke At A Civil Rights Summit (VIDEO) — Former President George W. Bush showed off his ribald side on Thursday at a summit commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. — Bush used the event's venue, Lyndon Johnson's presidential library …
Discussion:
Mediaite and Washington Free Beacon
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Patrick Marley / JSOnline:
Mike Ellis drops out of state Senate race — Secretly recorded video revealed discussion of illegal political action committee — By Patrick Marley and Jason Stein of the Journal Sentinel — Madison — State Senate President Mike Ellis dropped out of his re-election race Friday …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Washington Post
McClatchy Washington Bureau:
CIA's use of harsh interrogation went beyond legal authority, Senate report says — WASHINGTON — A still-secret Senate Intelligence Committee report calls into question the legal foundation of the CIA's use of waterboarding and other harsh interrogation techniques on suspected terrorists …
Discussion:
The Dish, American Prospect, The Moderate Voice, The Verge, Guardian, Reuters, Hit & Run, Washington Post and rubber hose
Scott Conroy / Real Clear Politics:
Marsha Blackburn to “Test the Waters” for 2016 Bid — PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Tennessee Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn will consider running for president in 2016 — if she sees an opportunity to do so, an aide to the 7th District Republican told RealClearPolitics.
Discussion:
Hot Air, The Daily Caller, The Other McCain, Taylor Marsh, The PJ Tatler and Liberaland
Joan Walsh / Salon:
Why Stephen Colbert is dangerous — and invaluable — Bill O'Reilly's latest freak-out helps explain why the satirist is so important for the progressive movement — Fox bully Bill O'Reilly used to at least pretend to play along with Stephen Colbert's satire.
Discussion:
NewsBusters
Jay Carney / White House.gov Blog:
President Obama and Vice President Biden's 2013 Tax Returns — Today, the President released his 2013 federal income tax returns. He and the First Lady filed their income tax returns jointly and reported adjusted gross income of $481,098. The Obamas paid $98,169 in total tax.
Discussion:
ABC News, USA Today, The Daily Caller and Washington Post
William Kristol / Weekly Standard:
‘A Disgraceful Act’ — The distinguished intellectual historian Jeffrey Herf, whose Ph.D. is from Brandeis, has written an eloquent and powerful letter to Brandeis president Fred Lawrence. Prof. Herf concludes: … Here's the complete letter, well worth reading in full.
Discussion:
Power Line
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Ayaan Hirsi Ali / Wall Street Journal:
Here's What I Would Have Said at Brandeis
Here's What I Would Have Said at Brandeis
Discussion:
protein wisdom and Israel Matzav
Julie Ray / Gallup:
Global Image of U.S. Leadership Rebounds — Median approval rating of 45% in Asia is highest on record — WASHINGTON, D.C. — After hitting a low point at the end of President Barack Obama's first term, U.S. leadership ratings worldwide rallied in 2013 as he began his second.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly
Tara Culp-Ressler / ThinkProgress:
South Carolina Is Trying To Expand Its ‘Stand Your Ground’ Law To Include Fetuses — On Thursday, a Senate committee in South Carolina voted to expand the state's so-called “Stand Your Ground” law to approve the use of deadly force to protect a fetus. The proposal would grant pregnant women protection …
Discussion:
Herald, Liberaland, The State & TheState.com and Gawker
Samantha Power / US Department of State:
Remarks by Ambassador Samantha Power, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, at a General Assembly Session on Improving Global Road Safety — U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations — Mr. President, colleagues, the United States is pleased to cosponsor and urge …
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Jeryl Bier / Weekly Standard:
U.S. Cosponsors U.N. Resolution to Fight Texting and Driving
U.S. Cosponsors U.N. Resolution to Fight Texting and Driving
Discussion:
United Nations and The Week