memeorandum: Early federal sentencing recommendation for McDonnell: At least 10 years in prison (Matt Zapotosky/Washington Post)

11:05 AM ET, December 13, 2014

Top Items:

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:

Cruz center of Senate meltdown — Sen. Ted Cruz, the firebrand conservative freshman from Texas, has blown up the Senate leadership's plans to have a peaceful weekend by forcing round-the-clock votes on President Obama's nominees and the $1.1 trillion omnibus.

Discussion: Roll Call and Booman Tribune

Andrew Taylor / Associated Press:

First Dems, Now Senate GOP Object to Spending Bill — First it was objections by House Democrats that stood in the way of passage of a $1.1 trillion catchall spending bill. Now it's the Senate Republicans' turn, specifically Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah.

Chris Cillizza / Washington Post:

Worst year: President Obama, for losses at home and crises abroad — In 2014, President Obama's past caught up with him. — His sixth year in office was, inarguably, his worst, when the problems that had been building throughout his second term all came crashing down around him.

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:

Warren makes her mark — Sen. Elizabeth Warren's crusade against the $1.1 trillion spending bill backed by the White House firmly establishes the Massachusetts populist as a powerful player in Washington. — The freshman Democrat took on President Obama and her party's leadership, and appeared to inspire an uprising in the House.

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and PoliticusUSA

Matt Zapotosky / Washington Post:

Early federal sentencing recommendation for McDonnell: At least 10 years in prison … The federal agency that will play a pivotal role in guiding the sentence of former Virginia governor Robert F. McDonnell has recommended that the onetime Republican rising star spend at least 10 years and a month in prison …

Discussion: Political Wire

Jim Tankersley / Washington Post:

Why America's middle class is lost — The middle class took America to the moon. Then something went horribly wrong. — DOWNEY, CALIF. — One day in 1967, Bob Thompson sprayed foam on a hunk of metal in a cavernous factory south of Los Angeles. And then another day, not too long after …

New York Times:

Another Baseless Attack on Health Law — The opponents of the Affordable Care Act have filed another long-shot lawsuit that could undermine health care reform and force many consumers to pay more for health insurance if the suit succeeds. — The Supreme Court has already agreed to hear a separate case …

Discussion: Prairie Weather

William Jordan / YouGov US Opinion Center News:

Americans find some tortures more acceptable than others — Most Americans think torture can be justified, but hardly anyone thinks “rectal feeding” is acceptable — This week saw the release of a long-awaited Senate report detailing the post-9/11 CIA detention and interrogation program …

Discussion: BARE NAKED ISLAM, Instapundit, Hot Air and The Daily Caller

Katie Pavlich / Townhall.com:

Cruel Reality: Obama Paying for Illegal Amnesty With Fees Paid by Legal Immigrants — As the debate rages on Capitol Hill about how to defund President Obama's executive action that gives legal status to 5 million illegal immigrants, it's important to take a look at where the funding for his new amnesty program is coming from.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and John Hawkins' Right Wing News

Bloomberg:

Wall Street's Win on Swaps Rule Shows Washington Resurgence — Wall Street is re-emerging as a force in Washington as it closes in on one of its biggest wins against regulation since the financial crisis. — With must-pass spending legislation making its way through Congress this week …

Discussion: CNNMoney.com, US News, WhoWhatWhy, Bloomberg View, The Hill and Daily Kos

Danny Vinik / The New Republic:
The Week Elizabeth Warren Decided to Run for President

Discussion: Christian Science Monitor, Bloomberg Politics, The PJ Tatler, CANNONFIRE, The Huffington Post, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Fiscal Times, Business Insider, Los Angeles Times, Washington Monthly and Washington Post

Jamelle Bouie / Slate:
Down and Out — The Democratic Party's losses at the state level …

Discussion: Bloomberg Politics and Washington Post

The Catholic Register:

Time to tackle global warming running out, Pope tells climate summit — VATICAN CITY - Tackling the problem of climate change is a serious ethical and moral responsibility, Pope Francis told negotiators from around the world meeting for a climate summit in Lima, Peru. — “The time to find global solutions is running out.

Discussion: FOX News Radio

Ben Kamisar / The Hill:

Ex-CIA director defends rectal rehydration — Former CIA Director Gen. Michael Hayden on Thursday defended revelations from Senate Intelligence Committee Democrats that the agency used rectal rehydration on detainees. — “These were medical procedures,” Hayden said during a tense interview on CNN's “The Lead with Jake Tapper.”

Discussion: Outside the Beltway and FOX News Radio

CNN:
Ex-CIA director slams torture report, defends rectal rehydration as a ‘medical procedure’

Discussion: Daily Kos

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:

The Torture Party: Why Republicans Defend the Most Sadistic Government Program in Recent History — The allegation that the Bush administration used torture had gone from outrageous smear to tired news without ever having passed through the stage of acceptable topic of discussion. — Shares

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money and Prairie Weather

Claudia Lacy / Guardian:

Was my 17-year-old son lynched, in the year 2014? The police still won't tell me — It's hard to think such a thing could still happen in the United States. This is justice? Tell us what happened to Lennon. Tell me what happened to my son — Friday 12 December 2014 10.41 EST

Discussion: Hullabaloo, Washington Post and Raw Story

Sean Davis / The Federalist:

Sabrina Erdely Was Once Disciplined By Stephen Glass For Fabrication — And you thought this whole story couldn't get more bizarre. According to “Penn In Ink,” a collection of essays about the University of Pennsylvania by author Samuel Hughes, Sabrina Erdely (Sabrina Rubin at the time) …

Discussion: Ed Driscoll, The Daily Caller and Hot Air