Essential Reads
Essential Reads is your one-stop source for the top stories of the day as reported by your favorite Washington Week panelists. It's a simple way to save time and stay informed about the news you need to know. Check it out every day!
Dec 28, 2012
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Cliff Talks Down to the Wire
By Janet Hook and Carol E. Lee, Wall Street JournalCongress and the White House took small steps toward breaking the budget impasse Thursday, but Democrats and Republicans grew increasingly fearful they won't be able to avert the tax increases and spending cuts known as the fiscal cliff, a prospect that is unnerving consumers and investors.
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Clock Ticks on a Deal Deadline
With Eamon Javers, CNBC Watch more -
Obama Summons Congressional Leaders for ‘Fiscal Cliff’ Talks
By Lori Montgomery and Rosalind S. Helderman, The Washington PostPresident Obama summoned congressional leaders to a Friday summit at the White House in a last-ditch effort to protect taxpayers, unemployed workers and the fragile U.S. recovery from severe austerity measures set to hit in just four days.
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Gay Republicans Take Out Ad Criticizing Hagel
By Helene Cooper, The New York TimesThe White House may not be making any more announcements about President Obama’s new national security team this week, but that hasn’t stopped the anti-Chuck Hagel drumbeat.
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Possible Strike at Docks Would Cripple Key U.S. Ports, Hurt Economy
By Michael A. Fletcher and Brad Plumer, The Washington PostThousands of dockworkers from Baltimore to Houston are threatening to go on strike Sunday over their pay, a move that could throttle an array of key ports and disrupt commerce at a critical juncture for the economy.
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Dec 27, 2012
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Obama, Senators to Discuss Budget Moves
By Alexis Simendinger, Real Clear PoliticsEnding his holiday break early, President Obama expects to be back at the White House by midday Thursday to search with senators for an escape hatch to avert more than $500 billion in tax hikes and automatic spending reductions that take effect next week should Washington fail to act.
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Fiscal Cliff Just Days Away
With John Harwood, CNBC
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Debt Ceiling Nears as Budget Talks Stymied
By Janet Hook and Damian Paletta, Wall Street JournalThe Treasury Department said Wednesday the government would hit its legal borrowing limit by Monday, setting in motion emergency measures to keep the government operating for several more weeks and serving as a reminder that the nation's budget wrangling could continue well into 2013.
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On ‘Fiscal Cliff,’ Obama and Senators Returning to Washington for One Last Attempt at deal
By Lori Montgomery and Paul Kane, The Washington PostWith historic tax increases set to hit virtually every American in five days, President Obama and members of the Senate are headed back to Washington on Thursday to take one last shot at a deal to protect taxpayers and the gathering economic recovery.
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Home Prices Rose Over Past Year, Another Sign that Market is Recovering
By Michael A. Fletcher, Washington PostHome prices saw solid gains over the past year, according to a new report Wednesday, adding to the evidence that the housing market turned a corner in 2012, even in the hardest-hit parts of the country.
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Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi Signs Constitution, Reaches Out to Critics – but No Sale
By Nancy A. Youssef, McClatchy NewspapersEgyptian President Mohammed Morsi enacted a newly passed divisive constitution Wednesday even as he attempted to reach out to opponents in his most conciliatory remarks since voters began considering the document.
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Dec 26, 2012
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Some Urge Boehner: Let Dems Pass Fiscal Cliff Bill
By Charles Babington, Associated Press
In case the public weren't frustrated enough over Congress' failure to resolve the "fiscal cliff," consider this: lawmakers probably could enact a compromise quickly and easily if Republican leaders let Democrats provide most of the votes.
That would give Democrats a bigger voice in the bargain, of course, which the Republican-led House is loath to do. That's why about 10 percent of the House's members — staunch anti-tax conservatives — were able to thwart Speaker John Boehner's bid to pass a narrowly crafted bill that might have strengthened his bargaining hand.
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Republicans Aren't the Only Gun-Control Obstacle
By Beth Reinhard, National JournalPresident Obama’s call for Congress to show the “courage” to consider new gun-control laws was aimed at Republicans, but he faces challenges with members of his own party who have a history of cowering from the gun debate.
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Congress Has Outsized Influence Over Obama's Cabinet
By Reid Wilson, National Journal's HotlineRobert Bork's 1987 nomination to the Supreme Court, and the uproar over his ideology that ultimately led to his defeat, forever changed the process by which the Senate confirms judges. In the 25 years that have followed Bork's nomination, the two parties have fought increasingly bitter battles over high court picks in an effort to tilt the third branch of government their way. In 2002, the Oxford English Dictionary added the verb "to bork" -- to systematically defame or vilify a person, especially in the mass media -- to their lexicon.
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After Benghazi, Reassessing Risk
By Doyle McManus, Los Angeles TimesSoon — perhaps very soon — the Syrian government of Bashar Assad will fall. On that day, and for months after, Damascus will probably be a disorderly and dangerous place, a risky place for American diplomats to be.
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Dec 21, 2012
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Boehner Pins Responsibility for Avoiding ‘Fiscal Cliff’ on Obama, Democrats
By Lori Montgomery and Ed O’Keefe, The Washington Post
House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) sought to shift responsibility Friday to President Obama and the Democratic-controlled Senate to reach an agreement to avert a series of spending cuts and tax hikes after his fellow Republicans delivered a stunning rebuke to Boehner’s own plan to raise taxes on those making more than $1 million.
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Next Move Is Obama’s After Boehner’s Tax Plan Fails
By Jackie Calmes, The New York TimesWith House Republicans’ revolt over their leader’s tax plan the evening before, President Obama on Friday faced the challenge of finding a new tax-and-spending solution — perhaps working now with Senate Republicans — to prevent a looming fiscal crisis in January.
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Obama Names Kerry as Nominee to Replace Clinton at State
By Julianna Goldman, BloombergPresident Barack Obama named Massachusetts Senator John Kerry as his choice to become the next U.S. secretary of state, saying he has the respect and trust of leaders around the world.
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NRA's Wayne LaPierre Calls for Armed Security at Every School
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NRA Offers Free Advice on Arming Schools
By Fawn Johnson, National JournalIt was called a press conference, but it was really a dog-and-pony show. Or rather, a dog-and-ID show. Reporters were required to show ID twice before checking in to a crowded ballroom in a downtown Washington, D.C., hotel, where they had already pre-registered, while sniffer dogs roamed between their legs.
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