The official blog of The Daily.

Download the app for the full interactive experience.

hypervocal: Maybe not the best place for a HUGE gun ad, directly next to your story on the Newtown shooting. They did apologize — read it here.  ::headdesk::

hypervocal:

Maybe not the best place for a HUGE gun ad, directly next to your story on the Newtown shooting. They did apologize — read it here. 

::headdesk::

We don’t even need Scrooge or the Grinch this year. Washington is ready to ruin everybody’s Christmas over the fiscal cliff.  Bernanke told reporters yesterday that the fiscal cliff, a combination of steep tax increases and spending cuts set to kick in Jan. 1, is already bringing down the already-fragile economy. Businesses aren’t investing and consumers aren’t buying because of the uncertainty of a deal between Republicans and the White House. And House Speaker John Boehner told his GOP colleagues that they need to be prepared to stay in the nation’s capital — quite possibly until New Year’s Eve — to be able to cast a vote if a budget agreement is struck.

We don’t even need Scrooge or the Grinch this year. Washington is ready to ruin everybody’s Christmas over the fiscal cliff. 

Bernanke told reporters yesterday that the fiscal cliff, a combination of steep tax increases and spending cuts set to kick in Jan. 1, is already bringing down the already-fragile economy. Businesses aren’t investing and consumers aren’t buying because of the uncertainty of a deal between Republicans and the White House.

And House Speaker John Boehner told his GOP colleagues that they need to be prepared to stay in the nation’s capital — quite possibly until New Year’s Eve — to be able to cast a vote if a budget agreement is struck.

Since Cory Booker reportedly may challenge New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, we stacked up the two politicians side-by-side.

Ashley Judd’s next role could be as a real-life U.S. senator. 

The Hollywood actress has her sights set on running against the Senate’s top Republican, Mitch McConnell. 

These congressmen will never cave. They’re going to get the support of the people … They will become heroes.
Ron Paul tells The Daily that Republicans shouldn’t try to tame the Tea Party — because it’ll only make them angry. 

It’s Obama vs. the House GOP!

Here’s a side-by-side comparison of their fiscal cliff proposals. 

theweekmagazine: In 1860, an 11-year-old girl wrote to Abe Lincoln, suggesting he grow a beard. He not only responded, he obliged. “Hon A B Lincoln… Dear Sir My father has just home from the fair and brought home your picture and Mr. Hamlin’s. I am a little girl only 11 years old, but want you should be President of the United States very much so I hope you wont think me very bold to write to such a great man as you are. Have you any little girls about as large as I am if so give them my love and tell her to write to me if you cannot answer this letter. I have got 4 brothers and part of them will vote for you any way and if you let your whiskers grow I will try and get the rest of them to vote for you you would look a great deal better for your face is so thin. All the ladies like whiskers and they would tease their husbands to vote for you and then you would be President. My father is going to vote for you and if I was a man I would vote for you to but I will try to get every one to vote for you that I can I think that rail fence around your picture makes it look very pretty I have got a little baby sister she is nine weeks old and is just as cunning as can be. When you direct your letter direct to Grace Bedell Westfield Chautauqua County New York.  I must not write any more answer this letter right off Good bye Grace Bedell” Lincoln responded a few days later:  “Miss Grace Bedell My dear little Miss  Your very agreeable letter of the 15th is received — I regret the necessity of saying I have no daughters — I have three sons — one seventeen, one nine, and one seven years of age — They, with their mother, constitute my whole family — As to the whiskers, having never worn any, do you not think people would call it a piece of silly affectation if I were to begin it now?  Your very sincere well wisher, A. Lincoln” While he made no promises about the beard to Bedell, he stopped shaving and allowed the beard to grow not long after their exchange and was elected as the 16th president of the United States a few weeks later. On his inaugural train ride from Illinois to Washington, D.C., the president-elect stopped in Bedell’s hometown of Westfield, N.Y., and asked to meet her.

theweekmagazine:

In 1860, an 11-year-old girl wrote to Abe Lincoln, suggesting he grow a beard. He not only responded, he obliged.

“Hon A B Lincoln…

Dear Sir

My father has just home from the fair and brought home your picture and Mr. Hamlin’s. I am a little girl only 11 years old, but want you should be President of the United States very much so I hope you wont think me very bold to write to such a great man as you are. Have you any little girls about as large as I am if so give them my love and tell her to write to me if you cannot answer this letter. I have got 4 brothers and part of them will vote for you any way and if you let your whiskers grow I will try and get the rest of them to vote for you you would look a great deal better for your face is so thin. All the ladies like whiskers and they would tease their husbands to vote for you and then you would be President. My father is going to vote for you and if I was a man I would vote for you to but I will try to get every one to vote for you that I can I think that rail fence around your picture makes it look very pretty I have got a little baby sister she is nine weeks old and is just as cunning as can be. When you direct your letter direct to Grace Bedell Westfield Chautauqua County New York. 

I must not write any more answer this letter right off Good bye

Grace Bedell”

Lincoln responded a few days later: 

“Miss Grace Bedell

My dear little Miss 

Your very agreeable letter of the 15th is received — I regret the necessity of saying I have no daughters — I have three sons — one seventeen, one nine, and one seven years of age — They, with their mother, constitute my whole family — As to the whiskers, having never worn any, do you not think people would call it a piece of silly affectation if I were to begin it now? 

Your very sincere well wisher,

A. Lincoln”

While he made no promises about the beard to Bedell, he stopped shaving and allowed the beard to grow not long after their exchange and was elected as the 16th president of the United States a few weeks later. On his inaugural train ride from Illinois to Washington, D.C., the president-elect stopped in Bedell’s hometown of Westfield, N.Y., and asked to meet her.

(Source: theweek.com)

President Obama made it clear yesterday that he’s fed up with a do-nothing Congress and won’t be intimidated by GOP attacks. At his first news conference since being re-elected, Obama dared Republicans to raise taxes on the richest Americans, and slammed two powerful GOP lawmakers for picking on his U.N. ambassador, challenging them to “go after me” instead. With another four years in the White House stretching before him, a stern Obama took Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham to task for their “outrageous” swipes against Ambassador Susan Rice. Rice has been under fire for remarks she made days after the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. She called the assault, in which Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed, a “spontaneous” act spawned by protests against an anti-Islam film. She later corrected herself, saying that intelligence subsequently had determined that it was a terrorist attack. “If Sen. McCain and Sen. Graham and others want to go after somebody, they should go after me,” Obama told reporters in the East Room of the White House. “And I’m happy to have that discussion with them. But for them to go after the U.N. ambassador, who had nothing to do with Benghazi, and was simply making a presentation based on intelligence that she had received, and to besmirch her reputation is outrageous.”

President Obama made it clear yesterday that he’s fed up with a do-nothing Congress and won’t be intimidated by GOP attacks.

At his first news conference since being re-elected, Obama dared Republicans to raise taxes on the richest Americans, and slammed two powerful GOP lawmakers for picking on his U.N. ambassador, challenging them to “go after me” instead.

With another four years in the White House stretching before him, a stern Obama took Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham to task for their “outrageous” swipes against Ambassador Susan Rice.

Rice has been under fire for remarks she made days after the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. She called the assault, in which Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed, a “spontaneous” act spawned by protests against an anti-Islam film. She later corrected herself, saying that intelligence subsequently had determined that it was a terrorist attack.

“If Sen. McCain and Sen. Graham and others want to go after somebody, they should go after me,” Obama told reporters in the East Room of the White House. “And I’m happy to have that discussion with them. But for them to go after the U.N. ambassador, who had nothing to do with Benghazi, and was simply making a presentation based on intelligence that she had received, and to besmirch her reputation is outrageous.”

We asked columnist Michael Maiello to paint us a picture of what left-leaning folks think America could look like in 2016, after four more years of Obama.  It’s August 2016, and Barack Obama is finally beginning to waddle like a lame duck. But wow, has he had a busy and productive four years. The White House race in 2012 was a hard-fought contest after a first term marked by long stretches of gridlock and inertia. Even many liberals wondered if Obama was incapable of getting things done. It’s safe to say that no one wonders that anymore. For those of us who backed the president in ’08 and ’12 and support his main policy objectives, we’ve gotten all that we ever could have hoped for. His second term will go down in the history books as a golden age for liberal politics in America. Just as Ronald Reagan fundamentally changed the country as a conservative leader in the ’80s, Obama has done so as a progressive three decades later. Of course, not everyone is happy about it — including lots of Republicans. But we’re not worried about them or their complaints in this essay. This is about taking stock of all the ways in which Obama has transformed America in his second term. So step into the time machine and get ready to see what change really looks like. Read more. 

We asked columnist Michael Maiello to paint us a picture of what left-leaning folks think America could look like in 2016, after four more years of Obama. 

It’s August 2016, and Barack Obama is finally beginning to waddle like a lame duck. But wow, has he had a busy and productive four years.

The White House race in 2012 was a hard-fought contest after a first term marked by long stretches of gridlock and inertia. Even many liberals wondered if Obama was incapable of getting things done. It’s safe to say that no one wonders that anymore.

For those of us who backed the president in ’08 and ’12 and support his main policy objectives, we’ve gotten all that we ever could have hoped for. His second term will go down in the history books as a golden age for liberal politics in America. Just as Ronald Reagan fundamentally changed the country as a conservative leader in the ’80s, Obama has done so as a progressive three decades later.

Of course, not everyone is happy about it — including lots of Republicans. But we’re not worried about them or their complaints in this essay. This is about taking stock of all the ways in which Obama has transformed America in his second term.

So step into the time machine and get ready to see what change really looks like.

Read more. 

What would happen to the U.S. economy if it careens over the fiscal cliff.