FROM THE BLOGS:

NRCC cites Te'o in attacking Senate Dems
Derek Wallbank at Bloomberg's Political Capital blog highlights a jab mentioning Notre Dame football player Manti Te'o the National Republican Congressional Committee sent at Senate Democrats.

On congressional pay
Sahil Kapur of Talking Points Memo reviews whether the 27th Amendment of the Constitution allows withholding lawmakers' pay unless they pass a budget.

In defense of nude scanners
Wesley J. Smith argues that nude scanners at airports "should actually reduce" unnecessarily invasive procedures by the TSA.

Pete Peterson predicts markets will panic on debt crisis ... sooner or later
Suzy Khimm at Ezra Klein's Wonkblog interviews Pete Peterson, formerly a member of President Nixon's Cabinet and a founding partner of the Blackstone group.

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

House GOP to vote next week on three-month increase to debt limit
House Republicans will vote next week on a three-month increase of the debt ceiling, reports The Hill's Russell Berman.

Whole Foods CEO walks back 'fascism' comment
Whole Foods Market CEO John Mackey reportedly regrets calling President Obama's healthcare law "more like fascism." The Hill's Elise Viebeck has more.

FROM THE BLOGS:

House GOP told to stop talking about rape
Post Politics's Rosalind Helderman and Ed O'Keefe report that House Republicans were told that controversial comments about rape and abortion were battering their brand

Obama loves to quote Reagan
Digital First Media's Ryan Teague Beckwith finds that the 44th president frequently cites the 40th when arguing his case

Former CIA legal adviser questions targeted killing
Mother Jones's Adam Serwer uses former Senate staffer Vicki Divoll to illustrate "one of the key paradoxes of the Obama administration"

Confused arguments about the NRA and criminals
The Corner's Robert VerBruggen says the argument that the NRA is supporting criminals is littered with holes

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

Ryan: House discussing short-term hike to debt ceiling
The idea is to buy time for broader deficit-reduction negotiations with Democrats, The Hill's Russell Berman reports

Immigration advocates promise to put 'muscle' behind reform push
Pro-immigration reform groups are revving up efforts to force leaders to tackle legislation, The Hill's Cameron Joseph reports

FROM THE BLOGS:

Dem rep seeks to change Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) is proposing a new law in recognition of Aaron Swartz. The legislation, which Lofgren posted on Reddit, would make significant changes to the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, Reason's Scott Shackford writes.

Wolf hires Goolsbee
A top donor for President Obama tapped Austan Goolsbee, the former chairman of Obama's Council of Economic Advisers, to join a new economic advisory firm, reports Michael J. De La Merced at Dealbook.

Guantanamo Bay protests at the Supreme Court
David Silbey of the Edge of The American West blog caught a group of protesters at the Supreme Court calling for closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay.

The Hastert Rule and the 113th Congress
Sarah Binder at The Monkey Cage wonders if the Hastert Rule is actually dead now.

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

Obama against the NRA
President Obama and the National Rifle Association positioned for a confrontation on gun policy, reports The Hill's Justin Sink.

Republicans characterize new Obama gun proposals as 'power-grab'
Responding to the president's new proposals to reduce gun violence, Republicans accused Obama of making a power-grab. The Hill's Mike Lillis has more.

FROM THE BLOGS:

Senators doing it right
Sen. Charles Schumer's (D-N.Y.) announcement that he will support former Sen. Chuck Hagel's (R-Neb.) nomination for secretary of Defense advances the story of exactly how Hagel will be confirmed, writes Jonathan Bernstein at his A Plain Blog About Politics. 

In Georgia, a blueprint for battling ObamaCare
The New Republic's Jonathan Cohn profiles a Georgia state legislator battling the implementation of the Obama administration's healthcare reform law. 

The Galactic Empire responds to the White House's response to the Death Star petition
StarWars.com responded to the President Obama's response to a petition to build a Death Star, according to Rob Bricken at io9. 

'Pauline Kael potheads'
Rod Dreher at The American Conservative meditates on mainstream pot use.

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

Dem Rep. Sanchez: Passing new gun restrictions will be tough sell in House
Passing new gun legislation will be especially difficult in the House of Representatives, Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) said Tuesday, reports The Hill's Jordy Yager.

FROM THE BLOGS:

GOP embraces nuclear gerrymandering
TPM's Josh Marshall says Republicans faced with a shrinking voter base are looking to rig the electoral college.

Donald Trump releases video in support of Netanyahu
Gateway Pundit's Jim Hoft praises the real estate mogul for throwing his support behind the Israeli prime minister.

Derider-in-chief
Slate's Dave Weigel says that President Obama used his press conference Monday to browbeat his opponents in the new Congress.

Averting default
The National Review argues the threat of default is leverage for Democrats — not Republicans — as the parties ready for another battle over spending.

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

House kills amendment to offset Sandy with spending cuts
The vote split Republican leadership, but the amendment was ultimately defeated, The Hill's Pete Kasperowicz reports.

Pelosi slams Boehner on DOMA legal defense
The House minority leader said the Speaker has committed $3 million to a legal effort to protect the legislation, The Hill's Sam Baker reports.

FROM THE BLOGS:

The neocons' fight over Chuck Hagel
Cato's Christopher Preble argues that the confirmation of Hagel could represent a breaking point for neoconservatives' grip on the Republican Party

Obama dares GOP to kill the hostage
Daily Intel's Jonathan Chait says that it appears protracted negotiations over a grand debt deal have finally come to a head

Entitlement era winding down?
National Review's Michael Barone contemplates what could be next for the American economy

Obama debt-ceiling strategy hinges on GOP sanity
Salon's Robert Reich says the president is gambling by assuming that Republicans will bow to public pressure

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

Geithner: US could default by mid-February
In a letter to House Speaker John Boehner and other leaders, Geithner urged lawmakers to raise the $16.4 trillion limit quickly, The Hill's Erik Wasson reports

Polls show voters favor broad range of new gun measures
Americans support a variety of options, including background checks, an assault-weapon ban and placement of armed police in schools, The Hill's Justin Sink reports

FROM THE BLOGS:

Hagel opponents meet resistance
Peter Beinart at The Daily Beast says Chuck Hagel's nomination has been railroaded by slanderous charges of anti-semitism.

How can they justify voting for Hagel?
Jennifer Rubin at Right Turn says Chuck Hagel's "noxious" personal views should disqualify him for Defense secretary.

Jack Lew's revolving door
Tim Carney at The Washington Examiner traces President Obama's nominee for Treasury secretary from K Street to Wall Street to the Treasury.

Obama's opportunities
Howard Fineman at the Huffington Post looks at the challenges and opportunities the president faces in his second term.

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

Freshman lawmaker threatens impeachment over gun rights
Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Texas) said Monday he would "seek to thwart" executive action by President Obama in regard to gun laws, reports Jonathan Easley.

Rep. King livid over Sandy amendments
“Every dollar is needed. There have never been offsets before to emergency aid,” King told The Hill's Erik Wasson.

FROM THE BLOGS:

Senate Reform 101: The case against the constitutional option
Gregory Kroger at The Washington Monthly makes the case against senators changing their chamber's rules on the first legislative day of Congress.

The gun control bubble pops
Evidence suggests the White House has been trying to lower the bar on what it could achieve on gun reform, writes Jonathan S. Tobin at Commentary.

Through a glass darkly
Nobody seems to agree with what's wrong with "Zero Dark Thirty," David Cole writes at Foreign policy.

Fracking industry calls foul on EPA extension
Jillian Kay Melchior at The Corner reports on the Environmental Protection Agency extending its period for public comments on a new report on franking.

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

Senate Dems: We'll back Obama if he raises debt limit unilaterally
Senate Democrats say they will support President Obama if he decides to increase the debt limit unilaterally, reports The Hill's Alexander Bolton.

Kirsten Gillibrand and the Hagel lobby
Chuck Hagel, Obama's nominee for secretary of Defense, reached out to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand earlier in the week, according to Capital New York's Reid Pillifant.

FROM THE BLOGS:

Can Republicans win a government shutdown?
David Harsanyi at Human Events breaks down the politics of the upcoming budget battles.

New voices for the GOP in 2013
Ed Morrissey at The Fiscal Times looks at five candidates to shape the GOP in the coming year.

The facts on guns, schools, and violence
Nick Gillespie at Reason looks at the statistics behind the gun rights battle.

On spending, Obama doesn't get it
Tom Bevan at Real Clear Politics highlights Obama's recent remark that federal spending isn't a problem.

OTHER NEWS SOURCES:

Pastor for Obama's inaugural drops out over anti-gay sermon
The Georgia-based pastor Louis Giglio will not deliver the benediction at President Obama's inauguration this month, reports Justin Sink.

Obama nominates 'low-key master of policy' Lew for Treasury
President Obama on Thursday officially nominated his Chief of Staff Jack Lew to be the next secretary of the Treasury, reports Erik Wasson.