memeorandum: Punch thrown as GOP Mackinac confab begins (Paul Egan/Detroit Free Press)

11:55 AM ET, September 18, 2015

Top Items:

Crazy Talk at the Republican Debate — Eleven presidential candidates had three prime-time hours on the national stage on Wednesday to tell the American people why they should lead the country. — Nobody forced them to be there. They were there freely, armed with the best arguments …

Discussion: Hullabaloo

Peggy Noonan / Wall Street Journal:

The Undercard and the Mane Event — Donald Trump's rivals try to give him a haircut, but he ends up trimming himself. — Simi Valley, Calif. — By the time you see this you will have seen the soundbites, quips and cuts. You'll have seen the clashes. So, quickly:

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

Fantasies and Fictions at G.O.P. Debate — I've been going over what was said at Wednesday's Republican debate, and I'm terrified. You should be, too. After all, given the vagaries of elections, there's a pretty good chance that one of these people will end up in the White House. — Why is that scary?

Discussion: Red Alert Politics and Christian Science Monitor

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:

Republican Candidates Promise to Keep Us As Safe As George W. Bush Did — Should we feel comfortable giving the likes of Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio access to conventional weapons? — Wednesday night's Republican presidential debate focused heavily on foreign policy …

Discussion: New York Times, Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality and Bloomberg Business

Jeremy W. Peters / New York Times:
Carly Fiorina Offers Republicans a Pathway to Reach Women

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Jezebel, Politico, No More Mister Nice Blog, Washington Post, NBC News and Towleroad

Michael Grunwald / Politico:
The ‘Everything is Bad’ party

Discussion: Washington Post, DownWithTyranny!, Liberal Values, US News, Esquire and Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality

Congressman Paul Gosar / Townhall.com:

Why I Am Boycotting Pope Francis' Address to Congress — It is difficult to convey the excitement I first felt when it was revealed that His Holiness Pope Francis was invited to Washington D.C. to address the world from the floor of the House of Representatives.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, Raw Story and Mediaite

Katie Valentine / ThinkProgress:

This Catholic Congressman Is Boycotting Pope Francis Because He Talks About Climate Change — When Pope Francis addresses Congress in Washington, D.C. next week, at least one Republican representative won't be in the audience. — Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) wrote a letter in Town Hall …

Politico:

What Is Hillary's Greatest Accomplishment? — Carly Fiorina dared Democrats to name it. 20 top Dems accepted the challenge. — Getty — “If you want to stump a Democrat, ask them to name an accomplishment of Hillary Clinton,” Carly Fiorina quipped at Wednesday's Republican debate.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Taylor Marsh and Erick on the Radio

Ben Schreckinger / Politico:

New data shows Trump fever breaking — Donald Trump looked tired after a grueling Republican debate. He might not be alone.After a summer of spectacle and saturation coverage, signs are accumulating that, for the public and the media, the onset of Trump fatigue has begun.Mentions …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, CBS News, The Gateway Pundit, Bloomberg Business, ABC News, The Hill and CNNMoney

Theodore Schleifer / CNN:

Trump declines to correct questioner who says Obama is a Muslim — Washington (CNN)Donald Trump on Thursday declined to correct a supporter of his who alleged that President Barack Obama is Muslim and not an American. — “We have a problem in this country.

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos, Jezebel, The Pulse 2016, Philly.com, Business Insider, Informed Comment and The Gateway Pundit

Jenna Johnson / Washington Post:
Trump doesn't correct rally attendee who says Obama is Muslim and ‘not even an American’

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, WND, Guardian, Daily Mail, Shakesville, Outside the Beltway, The Gateway Pundit, Politico, Common Dreams and Business Insider

MaryAlice Parks / ABC News:
Trump Lets Comment About Muslims Being ‘Problem’ in US Slide

Discussion: Hot Air, abc7ny.com and Power Line

West Michigan / WEST MICHIGAN POLITICS:

Breaking: Mackinac DRAMA: Top Rubio Leader Tries To Hit John Yob In The Face After Trying To Whip Straw Poll Support — By Brandon Hall — (Email him at WestMiPolitics@Gmail.com — Rich Beeson is Florida Senator Marco Rubio's Deputy Political Director. Beeson may want to learn how to control his alcohol.

Discussion: Detroit News, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story and Guardian

Paul Egan / Detroit Free Press:

Punch thrown as GOP Mackinac confab begins — The first newsworthy incident of the GOP Mackinac conference was a barroom brawl. — CONNECT — A huge Republican political gathering on Mackinac Island got under way Thursday night with a barroom incident in which a top official …

Discussion: Daily Kos, Mediaite and Washington Free Beacon

Nick Gass / Politico:
Rand Paul strategist claims Rubio aide punched him in the face

Discussion: Bloomberg Business

Ryan Lizza / New Yorker:

Donald Trump May Not Have a Second Act — In 1998, David Mamet, the acclaimed playwright, published a short treatise, “Three Uses of the Knife,” on “the nature and purpose of drama.” The book, based on lectures he delivered the previous year at Columbia University, is well regarded …

Discussion: Erick on the Radio

Peter Baker / New York Times:

Finger-Pointing, but Few Answers, After a Syria Solution Fails — WASHINGTON — By any measure, President Obama's effort to train a Syrian opposition army to fight the Islamic State on the ground has been an abysmal failure. The military acknowledged this week that just four or five American-trained fighters are actually fighting.

Discussion: Erick on the Radio, MichelleMalkin.com and Slantpoint

Robin Wright / New Yorker:
Our High-Priced Mercenaries in Syria

Discussion: Prairie Weather and Informed Comment

Julian Hattem / The Hill:

Go ‘nuclear’ to stop Obama's Iran deal, urge 57 House Republicans in letter — Dozens of House Republican lawmakers are making a late stab at pressuring Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to abandon the filibuster on legislation to block the nuclear deal with Iran.

Patricia Zengerle / Reuters:
Last bid to kill Iran nuclear deal blocked in Senate

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Antiwar.com and RedState

Timothy Cama / The Hill:

Summer was the hottest on record — June through August of this year was the hottest summer in recorded weather history, federal scientists said Thursday. — Surface temperatures around the globe were 1.53 degrees Fahrenheit above their average for those months throughout the 20th century …

Discussion: ThinkProgress

NOAA Climate.gov:
Somewhat. Very. Extremely. How likely is it that 2015 will be the new warmest year on record?

Discussion: Guardian and Mashable

Washington Post:

Amid dropping poll numbers, Scott Walker will retreat to focus on Iowa — GOP presidential candidate Scott Walker — who has tumbled from top-tier status amid tepid debate performances and other missteps — will pull back from other early-voting states in favor of a heavy focus on Iowa …