memeorandum: Countering Islamic State will be hard in Iraq and harder in Syria, officials say (Rajiv Chandrasekaran/Washington Post)

3:20 PM ET, September 11, 2014

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Struggling to Gauge ISIS Threat, Even as U.S. Prepares to Act — WASHINGTON — The violent ambitions of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria have been condemned across the world: in Europe and the Middle East, by Sunni nations and Shiite ones, and by sworn enemies like Israel and Iran.

Discussion: Slate, BillMoyers.com, Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, Hinterland Gazette, Hot Air, The Mahablog, Mediaite, No More Mister Nice Blog, Prairie Weather, The Huffington Post, Associated Press and American Enterprise Institute

Matthew Duss / American Prospect:

In Fight Against ISIL, Obama Finds Himself Facing Michael Corleone's Dilemma — If you think that American power and leadership is best demonstrated by our ability to blow things up, this probably wasn't the speech for you. While President Barack Obama laid out a number of steps …

Discussion: Firedoglake, Bloomberg View, AEIdeas, The Dish, Washington Post and Hullabaloo

The White House:

Statement by the President on ISIL — My fellow Americans, tonight I want to speak to you about what the United States will do with our friends and allies to degrade and ultimately destroy the terrorist group known as ISIL. — As Commander-in-Chief, my highest priority is the security of the American people.

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Rajiv Chandrasekaran / Washington Post:

Countering Islamic State will be hard in Iraq and harder in Syria, officials say — President Obama's strategy to beat back Islamic State militants spread across Iraq and Syria will depend on far more than U.S. bombs and missiles hitting their intended targets.

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Sarah Palin / Facebook:
War is hell. So go big or go home, Mr. President.

Discussion: Politico, Daily Kos and Hit & Run

Vali R. Nasr / New York Times:
The Grand Strategy Obama Needs

Discussion: VodkaPundit

Mario Trujillo / The Hill: Cheney points finger at Obama's ‘indifference’ for rise of ISIS

Tristyn Bloom / The Daily Caller:

Ted Cruz Booed Off Stage At Middle East Christian Conference [VIDEO] — Sen. Ted Cruz was booed offstage at a conference for Middle Eastern Christians Wednesday night after saying that “Christians have no greater ally than Israel.” — Cruz, the keynote speaker at the sold-out D.C. dinner gala …

Discussion: Wonkette, Politico, Americans Against the …, Mediaite, Washington Post, The Raw Story, Israel Matzav, Gawker, RedState and Washington Free Beacon

Matthew Boyle / BREITBART.COM:

TED CRUZ: HATRED, BIGOTRY, OPPOSITION TO ISRAEL LED TO ME LEAVING EVENT — Reports surfaced Wednesday night that Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) was “booed off the stage” at an event hosted by a purportedly Christian organization. — Cruz, the keynote speaker at the new “In Defense Of Christians” …

Discussion: Vox Popoli and National Review

Alana Goodman / Washington Free Beacon:
Cruz Headlines Conference Featuring Hezbollah Supporters

Discussion: Lebanon Daily Star, The Federalist, Talking Points Memo and Business Insider

New York Times:

Oscar Pistorius Not Guilty of Murder; Still Faces Lesser Homicide Charge — PRETORIA, South Africa — The judge presiding over the trial of Oscar Pistorius, the Paralympic athlete, cleared him of the two most serious murder charges against him on Thursday, almost certainly sparing him a long prison sentence.

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Claire Phipps / Guardian:
Oscar Pistorius verdict live: judge says athlete not guilty of murder

Discussion: Deadspin

Kim Ludbrook / ABC News:
Oscar Pistorius Did Not Intentionally Kill Girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, Judge Rules

Discussion: Gawker, abc7.com and 7online.com

Agence France-Presse:

Turkey refuses US permission for combat missions against ISIS: official — ANKARA: Turkey will refuse to allow a US-led coalition to attack jihadists in neighbouring Iraq and Syria from its air bases, nor will it take part in combat operations against militants, a government official told AFP Thursday.

Discussion: Guardian, Hot Air, New York Times, The Gateway Pundit and Washington Free Beacon

David Corn / Mother Jones:
The ISIS Speech: Obama and the Dogs of War

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Hayes Brown / ThinkProgress:
The Most Discouraging Sentence in Obama's Entire ISIS Speech

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New York Times:

Stop the Anti-Obamacare Shenanigans — SO far, opponents of the Affordable Care Act have lost every major battle to repeal or invalidate it. Some of them are now urging the courts to interpret the health reform law in a way that would guarantee its failure.

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:
The Strange Case Of A Father Who Sued The Obama Administration To Keep His Daughters From Getting Birth Control

Discussion: ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES

Irin Carmon / msnbc.com:
Missouri lawmaker suing to deny daughters birth control access

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Eli Lake / The Daily Beast:

Obama's New War on ISIS May Be Illegal — In a stunning turnaround, the Obama administration is arguing that a law authorizing a war on al Qaeda be used to justify strikes on al Qaeda's foes. — President Obama's new war against ISIS is off to a shaky legal start.

Discussion: Hot Air, Lawfare, Washington Post, Hit & Run, Business Insider, ThinkProgress, The Dish, Reuters and National Review

Jack Goldsmith / TIME:

Obama's Breathtaking Expansion of a President's Power To Make War — President Obama hoped to repeal the Bush-era authorization declaring war on al Qaeda—instead he's expanded it without bound — Future historians will ask why George W. Bush sought and received express congressional authorization …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Washington Examiner, Lawfare, Guardian and Opinio Juris

Peter Sullivan / The Hill:

Poll gives GOP 23-point lead in keeping US safe — The public thinks Republicans will do a better job keeping the U.S. safe by a wider margin than at any time since 2002, according to a Gallup poll. — The poll finds that 55 percent of adults think Republicans will do a better job protecting …

Discussion: Rush Limbaugh and Fox News

Frank Newport / Gallup: Republicans Expand Edge as Better Party Against Terrorism

Randi Kaye / CNN:

New Michael Brown shooting witnesses describe scene — (CNN) — Two men, shocked at what they saw, describe an unarmed teenager with his hands up in the air as he's gunned down by a police officer. — They were contractors doing construction work in Ferguson, Missouri, on the day Michael Brown was killed.

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Perry Stein / City Desk:

Some DCPS Students Were Assigned to Compare George W. Bush to Adolf Hitler — Some D.C. Public School seventh-graders were assigned the rather unpatriotic task this week of comparing Adolf Hitler to former President George W. Bush. But now the school district wants you to know that such …

Discussion: Truth Revolt, Gawker, CBS DC, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, National Review and Business Insider

Robert Costa / Associated Press:
Cleveland's winning bid to host the GOP convention highlights Portman's influence

Discussion: Real Clear Politics, Washington Post and Roll Call

Tara Palmeri / Page Six:

Arnold had Shriver scrubbed from portrait — He scrubbed her from his heart! — Arnold Schwarzenegger was so hot to erase any memory of his marriage to Maria Shriver that he had her face scrubbed from his official portrait as governor of California — and he didn't even care …

Discussion: Politico, Mediaite and Truth Revolt

Hadas Gold / Politico:

Jay Carney's rough first night vs. John McCain — Former White House press secretary Jay Carney is used to battling it out with journalists. But on Wednesday evening he had a new adversary: Sen. John McCain. — In an appearance on CNN as its newest contributor, following President Barack Obama's prime …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Taylor Marsh and Washington Free Beacon

RealClearPolitics Video Log: Fireworks: McCain vs. Carney on Iraq: “It's Not A Matter Of Disagreement; It's A Matter Of Facts”

Amanda Coyne:

Loose Lips: Hell hath no fury like a Palin family visit. Campaigns gear up. Mayor Dan grabs a Tiger by the tail. — About 65 people showed for the fundraiser for gubernatorial candidate Bill Walker and lt. gov. candidate Byron Mallott on Monday night. It wasn't the usual Dem crowd.

Discussion: Liberaland, Wonkette, The Immoral Minority, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, Gawker and The Raw Story

Brent Budowsky / The Hill:

War on women is winning — A warning to the women of America: If Republicans win control of the House and Senate in the midterm elections this fall, it will be a powerful victory for the war on women, with consequences that will be severe and long-term. A large majority of women know this.

Alexandra Jaffe / The Hill:
Dems split on Obama's plans for ISIS

Discussion: Washington Post and Daily Kos

ESPN:

Sources: Ray Rice spat at fiancee — ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Ray Rice spat in the face of Janay Palmer the night he punched her in a hotel elevator, one current and one former security staffer at the Revel hotel told “Outside the Lines.” — Three current or former security staffers …

Discussion: 7online.com, abc7.com, SportsGrid, Robert Littal Presents …, Guardian, CNN, Truth Revolt, The BRAD BLOG and Balloon Juice

Peter King / The MMQB with Peter King:
Goodell Under Siege

Discussion: ProFootballTalk, AMERICAblog News, TMZ.com, The Big Lead, Bloomberg View, Forbes and Deadspin

Sydni Dunn / Chronicle of Higher Education:

Salaita to U. of Illinois: ‘Reinstate Me’ or Brace for Legal Fight — Steven G. Salaita wants to continue fighting for a job at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and he's ready to take legal action if he doesn't get it. — Mr. Salaita spoke publicly on Tuesday for the first time since …

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money and National Review