Good morning and happy Mole Day! Here are some of the stories we’re looking at this morning at Moyers & Company HQ…
Rabioso! –>Mexico isn’t terribly pleased with the revelation that the NSA hacked the e-mail accounts of its current and former presidents, reports Tim Johnson for McClatchy. ALSO: AlterNet has a big feature on the money behind the national security state.
Tea party shackles –> At The Hill, Eric Wasson asks whether Paul Ryan can cut a deal in the latest round of budget negotitations.
They want cooler heads –> Tea party firebrand Mike Lee is facing a backlash in Utah, of all places, reports Phillip Rucker in The Washington Post. ALSO: Bloomberg reports that the nation’s largest trucking association, fed up with the tea partiers’ refusal to fork over highway funds, is considering shifting its support away from the GOP.
No white hats –> The Nation’s Bob Dreyfuss reports that we’re having trouble finding moderates in Syria to attend peace talks.
Nobody really knows –> The Sunlight Foundation’s Kaitlin Devine tries, and fails, to figure out exactly how much Healthcare.gov cost. Concludes that we need contracting reform.
We may get to pay for their fraud –> Over at Politico, Kim Dixon and Brian Faler report that the final $13 billion settlement with JPMorgan may be worded in such a way that the bank can write much of it off of its tax bill.
First the pope, now this guy –> Evangelical leader Russell Moore says churches should pull back from politics because the culture wars are alienating people. Neil King, Jr. reports for The Wall Street Journal.
Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy –> The electoral fortunes of Virginia Attorney General Ken “Cooch” Cuccinelli are crashing like a meteor, writes Ed Kilgore at Washington Monthly.
Some campaign cash doing good? -> William Cohan reports for Bloomberg that a hedge fund billionaire is teaming up with Bill McKibbon to pressure lawmakers to tackle climate change.
58 for 420 –> According to Gallup, public support of marijuana legalization is soaring — up 10 points in just the last year to 58 percent.
Is there a hospital for wounded talking points? –> The Washington Post’s Glenn Kessler makes mincemeat out of the shopworn claim that we have zillions of dollars in “unfunded liabilities.”
Epic trolling –> You really have to read the story, by Josh Rogin in The Daily Beast, of a White House advisor who took to Twitter and just tortured the DC political elite.
Someone is really in the doghouse –> Man forgets to book the venue for his wedding, tries to save himself by calling in a bomb threat to get the place evacuated and is now going to jail for a year.
What are you reading this morning? Share in the comments!
