Good morning! Happy World Mental Health Day! Here are some of the things we’re reading, which this week aren’t necessarily helping with our mental health…
Day 10…
- Cracks seem to be appearing in the Republican coalition, as leadership seeks a way out with a clean short-term debt limit hike, reports Dana Bash for CNN.
- At TNR, Jonathan Cohn notes that Paul Ryan is simply lowering the ransom with his latest offer, and says Democrats still can’t pay it.
- Lots of triumphalism about this Gallup Poll showing the GOP with the lowest favorability rating ever recorded. But at WaMo, Ed Kilgore cautions that conservatives who think the party’s not fighting hard enough may be driving the decline.
- Meanwhile, Ted Cruz conducts his own poll and finds that he’s WINNING!
- Heritage Action has been propelling the showdown, but now they’re pulling out of the fight, reports Howard Fineman at the HuffPo. Steve Benen thinks he sees a trend developing.
- At Salon, Katie McDonough notes that the shutdown is endangering victims of domestic violence as shelters close down or limit hours.
- Big Business is finding that it’s losing its grip on the Republican Party, report Eric Lipton, Nicholas Confessore and Nelson Schwartz for the NYT.
- And Ana Marie Cox ridicules Fox News’ coverage of the fiasco at The Guardian.
And in other news…
Caught and released –> Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan was kidnapped by a militia and then released several hours later. He’s been under fire since US Special Forces arrested a suspected al Qaeda operative in the country last weekend, reports Abigail Hauslohner for the WaPo.
Casual workers –> TAP’s Robert Kuttner warns that we’re returning to a 19th century economy where economic security was reserved for a rarified few.
Unpaid, unprotected –> Court finds that unpaid intern can’t sue for sexual harassment because she wasn’t an employee, reports Vanessa Wong for (the “Lifestyle” section of) Bloomberg BusinessWeek.
Losing the family home –> MoJo’s Dana Liebelson on an Eskimo teenager who’s suing Alaska for failing to address the climate change that’s making his village disappear.
They can indict a ham sandwich –> At AlterNet, Anna Simonton looks at how the FBI uses grand juries to intimidate political dissidents.
Still at war –> The Nation’s George Zornick finds a silver lining in the shutdown: veterans issues are reminding Washington that soldiers are still dying in Afghanistan.
Command expansion –> Ohio’s Republican Governor, John Kasich, is considering expanding Medicaid through an executive order after he was stymied by his legislature, reports Dylan Scott for TPM.
Preventing more Gosnells –> At MSNBC, Irin Carmon looks at a new California law that will make abortion safer by increasing access.
Right to your own opinion, not facts –> LAT Letters Editor Paul Thornton explains to outraged crazy people why he doesn’t give their letters claiming that climate change is a hoax any space.
Issa’s witch hunt –> Things got weird at a Congressional hearing on the IRS when a witness was asked if she is a witch. Igor Volsky with the story for ThinkProgress.
Stewart’s moment –> At TNR, Laura Bennett says the shutdown “was made for Jon Stewart,” and gathers some of his best clips.
What are we missing? Tell us in the comments!
