memeorandum: Public financing of judicial elections worked. Too bad North Carolina ditched the system. (Lee Drutman/Vox)

2:45 PM ET, September 18, 2015

Top Items:

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: Washington Monthly, Talking Points Memo, Mediaite, Washington Post, Raw Story and Balloon Juice

Francis X. Rocca / Wall Street Journal:

Vatican Disputes White House Guest List for Papal Visit — Invitations to transgender activists, first openly gay U.S. Episcopal bishop and activist nun to White House event prompt pushback — On the eve of Pope Francis's arrival in the U.S., the Vatican has taken offense …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Hot Air, Guardian, Mediaite, RedState and Althouse

Katie Valentine / ThinkProgress:
Catholic Congressman Will Skip Papal Address To Congress, Cites Climate Change

Discussion: OnPolitics and NPR

John Patrick Yob / Facebook:

Last night I went to a bar on Mackinac Island for the GOP Mackinac Conference. I ran into a guy named Rich Beeson, who frankly I didn't even know who it was at first because he isn't relevant in our political world. Anyway, he is Marco Rubio's national campaign manager.

Discussion: ABC News, Washington Post, Detroit News, New York Post, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, Mashable, Guardian, Hot Air, Mediaite and The PJ Tatler

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: Business Insider, Daily Mail, Washington Free Beacon and Daily Kos

Kyle Cheney / Politico:
Rand Paul strategist claims Rubio aide punched him in the face

Discussion: Bloomberg Business

Ryan Felton / Guardian:
Marco Rubio official punching Rand Paul adviser caught on security video

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Naked Politics

Catherine Thompson / Talking Points Memo:
Rubio Staffer Allegedly Punches Rand Paul Aide In The Face At Michigan Bar

Discussion: Lansing State Journal

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: The Moderate Voice, Washington Post, The PJ Tatler, Daily Kos, NPR, Refinery29, Full Feed, Jezebel, Common Dreams, Talking Points Memo, The Pulse 2016, Informed Comment, Philly.com, Business Insider and The Gateway Pundit

Pamela Geller / BREITBART.COM:
Ahmed Mohamed and the ‘Islamophobia’ Clock

Discussion: Washington Post, USA Today, Raw Story, WJBF-TV, The Intercept, LiberalAmerica.org, No More Mister Nice Blog, Pamela Geller, Jihad Watch and Right Wing Watch

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

Discussion: Bloomberg Business, abc7ny.com, Hot Air and Power Line

WND:
O'Reilly jumps on WND terror-training camp report

Discussion: Vox, Guardian, Washington Post and Pamela Geller

Arturo Garcia / Raw Story:
Irving police chief admits: Cops knew Ahmed Mohamed didn't have a bomb when they arrested him

Discussion: Liberaland, Guardian, Hullabaloo, Shakesville, msnbc.com and Refinery29

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

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

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: The Atlantic, LiberalAmerica.org, Hullabaloo, Shakesville, Erick on the Radio and Washington Monthly

Gabriel Debenedetti / Politico:
Pro-Clinton super PAC sees $25 million haul since July

Discussion: Bloomberg Business

New York Times:

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: RedState, Daily Kos, Prairie Weather and Politico

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: JustOneMinute, New York Post, Red Alert Politics, Christian Science Monitor, Washington Post and Liberal Values

Peggy Noonan / Wall Street Journal: The Undercard and the Mane Event

Sarah Ferris / The Hill:

House votes to freeze federal funding for Planned Parenthood — The House on Friday voted along party lines to freeze federal funding for Planned Parenthood after weeks of escalating tension surrounding its use of fetal tissue. — In a 241-187 vote, nearly all Republicans …

Discussion: Politico, Jezebel, Daily Kos and BarbWire.com

Hannah Levintova / Mother Jones:
Republicans Hate Planned Parenthood but Want to Put One of Its Backers on the $10 Bill

Discussion: Raw Story, Right Wing Watch, Hullabaloo, Liberaland and Slantpoint

CNN:
Clinton: Republican debaters 'really don't have much else to say'

Discussion: Daily Kos, Vox and RedState

Scott Wong / The Hill:

Smith-Schock ties attract scrutiny — Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.) joined his close friend Aaron Schock on campaign and government trips and exotic vacations in 2014 that are being scrutinized by federal investigators looking into alleged spending abuses by the former congressman, who resigned in March.

Discussion: Political Wire

Julian Hattem / The Hill:
Go ‘nuclear’ to stop Obama's Iran deal, urge 57 House Republicans in letter

Discussion: neo-neocon

McKay Coppins / BuzzFeed:

Sources: Scott Walker's Donors Are Circulating Rumor About Campaign Manager — As Scott Walker's presidential bid founders, some in the candidate's orbit are participating in a whisper campaign against his top strategist and campaign manager, Rick Wiley. — A number of Walker's donors …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Vox, RedState, The Hill, Progress Pond and Real Clear Politics

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: Hot Air, New Yorker, Erick on the Radio, MichelleMalkin.com and Washington Free Beacon