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Jeb leaves a vacuum. Who fills it? — If you were in Washington watching the Republican debate last night, you might have felt a small tilt in the floor, or heard the plates rattling gently in their cupboards. — That was the sound of the Republican establishment shifting …
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JustOneMinute
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Carly Fiorina is wrong about the Planned Parenthood tapes. I know because I watched them. — Carly Fiorina gave a harrowing description of the Planned Parenthood sting videos at Wednesday's Republican debate. She challenged Barack Obama to watch “a fully formed fetus on the table …
Discussion:
Slate, American Prospect, Salon, Hullabaloo, Daily Kos, RH Reality Check, Washington Post, Refinery29, Business Insider, The Federalist and Mediaite

Trumped: His 14 most memorable debate lines — <p>Donald Trump did it again. After an explosive first debate in which Trump clashed with the moderators and stole the show, the bomb-throwing frontrunner came out swinging at the second Republican debate in Simi Valley, California, on Wednesday.
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ABC News, The Hill, Weekly Standard, Scared Monkeys, Bloomberg.com news and Bloomberg Business


The rest of the field figured out how to make Trump not quite as dominant — SIMI VALLEY, Calif. — Something unusual happened here Wednesday when the Republican presidential candidates met for their second debate: For the first time since he joined the race, Donald Trump wasn't the commanding presence on the stage.
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US News, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Politico, ABC News, WIAT-TV, BuzzFeed, Guardian and Washington Post

Carly's Night — From the beginning of her campaign for president, Carly Fiorina has had to deal with lowered expectations, encapsulated in a frequent question: Aren't you just running for vice president? “People ask that because I'm a woman and I'm not a politician,” she told me earlier this year.
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The Moderate Voice, Washington Post, Horizons, Real Clear Politics, Taylor Marsh, No More Mister Nice Blog and CNN


‘Donald Trump Met His Match in Carly Fiorina’ — 18 political insiders pick the debate's winners and losers — ‘The candidate who made the least of his time was Scott Walker.’ — Wednesday's debate was historic in at least one way: It was the first presidential primary debate in the history …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, International Business Times and Talking Points Memo

GOP insiders: Carly crushed it — <p>Carly Fiorina nailed it in the second Republican debate.</p><p>That's the assessment of GOP insiders in a special edition of the POLITICO Caucus, our weekly survey of the top operatives, activists and strategists in Iowa and New Hampshire.
Discussion:
Mock Paper Scissors


No, Jeb Bush, Your Brother Did Not Keep Us Safe — Jeb looked delusional, but he wasn't alone. — GETTY JUSTIN SULLIVAN — “There's one thing I'll tell you about my brother,” said Jeb (!) Bush. “He kept us safe.” — And everybody cheered. — I ran out of patience long ago with The Great Mulligan.
Discussion:
Business Insider and Eschaton

GOP leaders hope Right to Life can help head off shutdown — WASHINGTON (AP) — Hoping to prevent the Republican uproar over the Planned Parenthood videos from snowballing into a government shutdown, GOP leaders are turning to one of Planned Parenthood's most implacable foes: the National Right to Life Committee.
Discussion:
Erick on the Radio


Carly Fiorina won the GOP debate, but fact checkers will have a field day
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TIME, Talking Points Memo, Slate, Hot Air, Lawyers, Guns & Money and US News

Who Won the Second Republican Presidential Debate?
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Politico, CNN, CBS New York, New York Times, BillMoyers.com and BizPac Review

CBO: Defunding Planned Parenthood means ‘several thousand’ more births
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Politico and LifeNews.com

Trump fails to stampede GOP herd
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ABC News, Daily Kos, The Moderate Voice and Bloomberg Business

Candidates Use Second G.O.P. Debate to Taunt Donald Trump
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Power Line, Vox, Outside the Beltway, Fox News, Politico, The Atlantic, Guardian and Political Insider blog

A Trump lie: He tried to expand casino gambling in Florida
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Bloomberg Business and JustOneMinute

Long Shadow of Donald Trump Dominates Debate He Missed
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The Hill, Hot Air, Politico and Talking Points Memo

‘Look in the Mirror, Fat Boy’
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Bloomberg Business, Hit & Run, Hot Air, Talking Points Memo and Wall Street Journal

Planned Parenthood is a symbol. This is the reality of one Ohio clinic.
Discussion:
The Daily Signal, LifeNews.com and The Federalist


Biden-Warren in 2016? — Until now, my position regarding the 2016 campaign has been to support Hillary Clinton for president and to be extravagantly friendly toward Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and his supporters, who embody the heart, soul and idealism of the Democratic Party at its best.
Discussion:
Politico
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Hillary Clinton Is Stuck In A Poll-Deflating Feedback Loop
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NewsBusters, Bloomberg View and Instapundit


Transcript: Read the Full Text of the Second Republican Debate — Eleven Republican presidential candidates met at the Reagan Library for a primetime debate on CNN. — At the debate were real estate mogul Donald Trump, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker …
Discussion:
NO QUARTER USA NET, Right Wing Watch, Hit & Run, National Review, Hot Air and Informed Comment
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McCarthy, Ryan call for end to Boehner drama — <p>The only two viable potential replacements for John Boehner as speaker of the House say they back the Ohio Republican and will oppose any effort to remove him from power. But other high-ranking Republicans are testing the waters …
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business
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Fearsome fiscal cliff looms for Congress
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Daily Kos, Bloomberg Business, Hot Air and neo-neocon


GOP debate ratings appear to set new CNN record — Wednesday's GOP debate appears to be the highest-rated event in CNN's history, according to preliminary Nielsen ratings. — The prime time debate averaged a 14.7 household rating, indicating that 1 in 7 American homes with TVs tuned in.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Mashable, National Review and The Daily Caller

Ben Carson's shockingly weak debate performance — Dr. Ben Carson delivered what I thought was the worst performance in tonight's GOP presidential debate. Make that debates. He performed more poorly in the main event than even George Pataki did in the preliminary one. — Pataki was listless.
Discussion:
Betsy's Page
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Obama invites suspended Muslim teen to the White House — A Texas teenager who was suspended from school for bringing a homemade clock to class received a 21st century invitation from President Obama on Wednesday to visit the White House. — Instead of making a traditional phone call …
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The Texas Tribune, RH Reality Check and BREITBART.COM
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White House Invites Several Opponents of Catholic Teaching to Greet Pope Francis


Parents of Lonzie Barton arrested in Baker County on drug charges Wednesday night — The parents of Lonzie Barton face drug charges after they were taken into custody Wednesday night in Baker County following an investigation over the last month that involved three separate drug buys, Sheriff Joey Dobson said.
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Daily Mail