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Who lost Iraq? The Iraqis did, with an assist from George W. Bush — It is becoming increasingly likely that Iraq has reached a turning point. The forces hostile to the government have grown stronger, better equipped and more organized. And having now secured arms …
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The Week, The Dish, The Mahablog and National Review
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On Iraq, let's ignore those who got it all wrong — At noon today, President Obama issued his first statement on the deteriorating situation on Iraq. “This is not solely or even primarily a military challenge,” he said. “The United States will do our part, but understand that ultimately it's …
Discussion:
American Prospect, Politico, Weekly Standard, AEIdeas, emptywheel and ABC News


Obama: ‘We will not be sending U.S. troops to Iraq’ — [Adds breaking news update 12:05 p.m.] — President Barack Obama said Friday that the United States “will not be sending U.S. troops back into combat in Iraq,” but that he would be reviewing a range of other options to support …
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Talking Points Memo, The Lead with Jake Tapper, Hot Air, Liberaland and KFOR-TV

Transcript: President Obama's remarks on the crisis in Iraq
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, TalkLeft and National Review

Prime Minister Maliki Panics as Insurgents Gain
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Politico, Slate, Washington Post, Firedoglake, The Long War Journal, Hit & Run, Daily Kos and Washington Free Beacon


We Never Should Have Left Iraq
Discussion:
Commentary Magazine, Reuters, The Dish, AEIdeas, alicublog, Hinterland Gazette, National Review, Hullabaloo, RedState, Telegraph, Hot Air, Foreign Policy, Washington Post and Gawker

Exclusive: Alarmed by Iraq, Iran open to shared role with U.S. - Iran official
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Informed Comment, Hot Air, Bloomberg View and Blazing Cat Fur

Obama says he will not send troops to Iraq but is considering ‘other options’
Discussion:
Little Green Footballs, Guardian and Weekly Standard

Volunteers flock to defend Baghdad as insurgents seize more Iraqi territory
Discussion:
Rational Irrationality, New York Times, Reuters, Washington Monthly, Agence France-Presse, CNN and AEIdeas

Obama ‘urgently’ considering air assault on targets in Syria and Iraq
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Washington Post, ThinkProgress, The Daily Beast and The Dish

Obama Says He Will Decide on Military Support for Iraq in ‘Days Ahead’
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Politico, The Daily Beast, CNN and JustOneMinute

Iraqi Shiite Cleric Issues Call to Arms Against Sunni Militants
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway and Gawker

ABU DUA: IMPRISONED BY THE US, THE MAN WHO HATES THE WEST MORE THAN OSAMA BIN LADEN AND IS THE DRIVING FORCE BY ISIS

Kurdish peshmerga seize a chaotic victory in Kirkuk
Discussion:
Business Insider, The Dish and RedState

Iraq Is Vietnam 2.0 And U.S. Drones Won't Solve The Problem
Discussion:
National Review

How effective is Isis compared with the Iraqi army and Kurdish peshmerga?
Discussion:
The Dish and Firedoglake

I'm a Democrat and I helped the tea party unseat Eric Cantor — People are baffled today that Rep. Eric Cantor, the House majority leader, lost his job when he lost his GOP primary Tuesday night. A common refrain is, how could this have happened? (Sample headline: “Why Did Cantor Lose?
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TheBlaze.com
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Cochran campaign says senator just joking when claimed ignorance of Cantor loss — Two days after Eric Cantor's primary loss received national attention, Mississippi GOP Sen. Thad Cochran — who's caught in a tight primary race of his own — said he had no idea what happened in Virginia …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Politico, Talking Points Memo, CNN, WJTV and The Week


David Brat and Jack Trammell show unease in the spotlight — ASHLAND, Va. — Before the two professors became overnight political rivals in one of the most improbable, high-profile races in memory, they knew each other best as basketball teammates. — David Brat, the economics professor …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Daily Kos and Washington Post


The absurdity of electing Kevin McCarthy to replace Eric Cantor as House majority leader — HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2014 ELECTIONS ERIC CANTOR KEVIN MCCARTHY DAVE BRAT — If House Republicans respond to the shocking primary defeat of Majority Leader Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va. …
Discussion:
The New Republic, Hot Air, Washington Post, Washington Monthly, New York Times, RedState and Wall Street Journal

Cochran and McDaniel react to Virginia race results
Discussion:
Business Insider, Politico, ABC News, Hullabaloo and ABC News


Chelsea Clinton paid $600K by NBC — Chelsea Clinton earned an annual salary of $600,000 at NBC News before switching to a month-to-month contract earlier this year, sources with knowledge of the agreement told POLITICO. — Clinton, who joined NBC News as a “special correspondent” …


THAD COCHRAN: I GREW UP DOING ‘ALL KINDS OF INDECENT THINGS WITH ANIMALS’ — Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) provided his latest head-scratching comment in public, this time joking he engaged in illicit activities with animals as a child. — “[We'd] get back [to the Pine Belt-Hattiesburg area of Mississippi] …
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Liberaland, New York Times, The Daily Caller, The Week and Riehl World News
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First on CNN: Chamber mounting new effort for embattled Cochran
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Washington Post

Cochran ‘indecent things with animals’ creates buzz
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Hinterland Gazette, The Raw Story, Riehl World News, BuzzFeed, Hot Air and PoliticusUSA


McCain Iraq interview gets heated — Sen. John McCain continued his blistering attack on President Barack Obama's handling of Iraq on Friday, again calling for his entire national security team to be replaced and saying his decisions have been very costly. — “The president wanted …
Discussion:
ABC News, The Daily Beast, Daily Kos, No More Mister Nice Blog and Shakesville


Hillary Clinton's Gay-Marriage Problem — Until 2013, she held a position that lots of Democratic voters now regard as deeply wrongheaded. Some even insist that it is hateful and bigoted. — Hillary Clinton didn't refrain from supporting same-sex marriage for political reasons-prior to last year …
Discussion:
The Dish, Outside the Beltway, Hot Air, NY Daily News, CNN, Wall Street Journal, The Week Magazine and Mediaite
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Hillary Clinton: The Fresh Air Interview
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Ed Driscoll, CBS DC, PoliticusUSA, NewsBusters and BuzzFeed

Hillary Clinton gets testy over gay marriage
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CNN, Taylor Marsh, Althouse, Poynter and NPR


LABRADOR ANNOUNCES CANDIDACY FOR HOUSE MAJORITY LEADER — “I want a House Leadership that reflects the best of our Conference” — BOISE, ID - Rep. Raúl Labrador (R-ID) announced his candidacy today to serve as House Majority Leader. He released the following statement:
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, OnPolitics, Washington Post, Daily Kos, The Week and National Review
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Scott Walker declines to define stand on gay marriage today — For years, Gov. Scott Walker has been a rock-solid proponent of traditional marriage between one man and one woman. — As Milwaukee County executive, he opposed efforts to provide health care benefits to the gay partners of county employees.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Outside the Beltway, The Daily Beast and Daily Kos

Wrongness, OK and Not — USA! USA! NYC! Back from Oxford, but still — as you can see from the posting time — jet-lagged. I have a steakhouse dinner tonight with some business economists; we'll see if I end up face down in my tenderloin. — One of the people I expect to see is Barry Ritholtz …
Discussion:
The Big Picture


The Pitfalls of Peace: The Lack of Major Wars May Be Hurting Economic Growth — It's not because war spending itself is so good. It's because the threat of war can inspire countries to do great things. — Mexico, the World Cup's Luckiest Country — Mexico finished far behind …
Discussion:
The Raw Story, Althouse and Marginal REVOLUTION