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McConnell Throws in Towel on DHS Fight, but Reid Is Waiting for Boehner to Cave (Updated) — Reid is holding out for more. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call) — Updated 5:20 p.m. | In an extraordinary sequence of events, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell offered Democrats exactly …
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GOP gets bad news on ObamaCare repeal plan — The Senate's chief referee has dealt a significant setback to conservatives who want to send an ObamaCare repeal bill to the president's desk this year. — GOP sources say Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has raised red flags …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Bloomberg View, Politico and Daily Kos


Story Highlights — Medicaid expansion, state exchanges linked to greater reductions — No state reported a statistically significant increase in uninsured — Nationwide, full-year uninsured rate drops 3.5 points from 2013 to 2014 — This story is part of Gallup's annual …
Discussion:
US News, Daily Kos, PoliticusUSA, Washington Post and Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times

If SCOTUS kills Obamacare subsidies, Republicans don't have an exit strategy
Discussion:
US News and Washington Monthly


Obama: Keystone pipeline bill ‘has earned my veto’ — WASHINGTON — President Obama vetoed a bill Tuesday that would have approved the Keystone XL pipeline, making good on a threat to reject a proposal embraced by Republicans as a jobs measure but opposed by environmentalists as contributing to climate change.
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Obama will quickly veto Keystone bill
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ABC News, Politico, Bloomberg Business, ABC News, Forbes, Daily Kos and PoliticusUSA

Most Keystone oil would stay in U.S., study says
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ThinkProgress, National Geographic, The Daily Caller and Politico

Mitch McConnell endorses Rand Paul's call for GOP presidential caucus in Kentucky
Discussion:
Hit & Run and Political Wire

Federal Officials Close Investigation Into Death of Trayvon Martin — The Justice Department announced today that the independent federal investigation found insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights charges against George Zimmerman for the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin on Feb. 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida.
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PoliticusUSA, Shakesville and Mashable
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Trayvon Martin: DOJ Set to Announce No Charges Against George Zimmerman … While the public waits for a Justice Department announcement over two separate investigations spurred by the summer shooting of an unarmed teenager in Ferguson, Missouri, the department is going to first announce its findings in the killing of Trayvon Martin.

Justice Dept. Won't Charge George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin Killing
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway and Common Dreams


The disappeared: Chicago police detain Americans at abuse-laden ‘black site’ — The Chicago police department operates an off-the-books interrogation compound, rendering Americans unable to be found by family or attorneys while locked inside what lawyers say is the domestic equivalent of a CIA black site.
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The Atlantic Online, BizPac Review, Techdirt, msnbc.com, The PJ Tatler, Business Insider, Common Dreams, Mediaite, The Verge, Booman Tribune, The Intercept, Shakesville and Hit & Run


Ron Paul: Black Caucus Only Against War Because They Want That Money For Food Stamps — “They are really against war because they want all of that money to go to food stamps for people here.” — w.soundcloud.com — Former Republican Rep. Ron Paul, the father of potential presidential candidate Rand Paul …
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The Daily Banter, FreakOutNation and Booman Tribune
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Ron Paul: Congressional Black Caucus opposes war because they want food stamps
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Hullabaloo


Democratic FCC commissioner balks at net neutrality rules — A Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission wants to narrow the scope of new net neutrality rules that are set for a vote on Thursday, The Hill has learned. — Mignon Clyburn, one of three Democrats on the FCC …
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The Verge, The Daily Caller and RedState, more at Mediagazer »
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As Republicans Concede, F.C.C. Is Expected to Enforce Net Neutrality


Former L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa won't run for U.S. Senate — Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced Tuesday that he would not enter the race for Barbara Boxer's seat in the U.S. Senate, leaving state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris as the only major candidate.
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Washington Post, KTLA and Political Wire
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My grandfather came to this great state more than 100 years ago and I have had the privilege of serving its people for the last two decades, from our state capitol in Sacramento to L.A.'s City Hall, as a legislator and chief executive. I have worked hard to create solutions to the important issues facing our state.
Discussion:
Politico, KQED News and Washington Post

Walker breaks out in national GOP race — PPP's newest national Republican poll finds a clear leader in the race for the first time: Scott Walker is at 25% to 18% for Ben Carson, 17% for Jeb Bush, and 10% for Mike Huckabee. Rounding out the field of contenders are Chris Christie and Ted Cruz at 5% …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, Hot Air, Althouse and The Daily Caller


Eric Garner's daughter on Al Sharpton: 'He's all about the money' — Al Sharpton (left) and Erica Snipes. — Al Sharpton is all about the Benjamins, a daughter of police chokehold victim Eric Garner claims in a bombshell videotape. — Erica Snipes tees off on the reverend as interested primarily …


Nevada Lawmaker Says Cancer Is A Fungus, Recommends Simply Washing It Out — CREDIT: AP Photo/Cathleen Allison, File — Nevada Assemblywoman Michele Fiore (R) wants to reform the rules of end-of-life medical care so that more cancer patients can simply flush out their disease using baking soda.
Discussion:
Ralston Reports and Raw Story


Black conservatives seek to draft Condoleezza Rice for Senate race — The Black Conservatives Fund wants to draft former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for a Senate bid in 2016, as they argue she represents the GOP's best chance to win a Senate seat in deep-blue California.
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Politico, Bloomberg Business, Washington Post, FOX News Radio and Balloon Juice


Durbin: Selma Anniversary Should Give GOP Pause About Opposing Loretta Lynch — Race and a top nomination for the Obama cabinet. — The nomination of Loretta Lynch for attorney general has not moved through the Senate quite as quickly as Democrats had hoped.
Discussion:
US News and The Daily Caller


Broward deputy drags cuffed woman through courthouse hallway by her feet … Get unlimited digital access. 99¢ for 4 weeks.
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WSVN-TV, Hit & Run, Talking Points Memo and Raw Story

Do Voters Believe Obama Loves America? — U.S. voters overwhelmingly say they love this country, but one-out-of-three doesn't believe President Obama feels that way. — The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 35% of Likely U.S. Voters agree with this statement …
Discussion:
Washington Times and The Daily Caller


Hugh Hewitt to moderate first GOP presidential debate — Radio talk-show host Hugh Hewitt will moderate the first Republican presidential debate as part of a partnership between Salem Media Group and CNN. The debate will take place Sept. 16 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California.
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Bloomberg Business, Washington Examiner, PR Newswire, Washington Post, Talking Points Memo and National Review

Marijuana Is Now Legal In Alaska, The 3rd U.S. State With Legal Pot — Alaska's voter initiative making marijuana legal takes effect Tuesday, placing Alaska alongside Colorado and Washington as the three U.S. states where recreational marijuana is legal. The new law means people over age 21 …
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Anchorage Daily News, Reuters, The Daily Caller, Common Dreams, Post On Politics and New York Magazine


As Cuba Shifts Toward Capitalism, Inequality Grows More Visible — HAVANA — The river where Jonas Echevarria fishes cuts through neighborhoods brimming with new fine restaurants, spas and boutiques, springing up in Cuba's accelerating push toward private enterprise.
Discussion:
Hit & Run


Growing Support for Campaign Against ISIS - and Possible Use of U.S. Ground Troops — Shifting Views on How Best to Defeat Global Terrorism — The public has grown more supportive of the U.S. fight against ISIS, as about twice as many approve (63%) as disapprove (30%) …
Discussion:
Politico and Washington Free Beacon