Taking this step depends on two men: President Obama and Senator Max Baucus, chair of the Senate Finance Committee. Both men want to leave an important legacy, and both are in a unique political position: they still possess real political power, but neither will ever face another election. (Obama, of course, is limited to two terms, and Baucus has just announced that he will retire.) Acting together, the two of them could completely change the odds of enacting a carbon tax this year.

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On Guantánamo  

Facing questions about the ongoing hunger strike at Guantánamo, Obama said he was "not surprised there are problems," saying that he continues to believe the U.S. should prioritize closing Guantánamo, as it is "not necessary to keep America safe, is expensive, hurts our relationships with allies and is a recruitment tool for extremists."

Obama said he planned to "go back to" his efforts in 2008 to close Guantánamo, saying: "I am going to reengage with Congress to make the case that this is not in the best interest of the American people," calling the detention facility and the indefinite detention of people who have not been tried or charged "contrary to who we are, contrary to our interests, and it needs to stop."

On Syria

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The organizing body pledges to run the maration next year. Here's the complete statement from Thomas Grilk, Executive Director of the Boston Athletic Association.

The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) extends its deepest sympathies to all those who were affected by Monday's tragic events. Those who lost their lives and were injured are in our thoughts and prayers.

It is a sad day for the City of Boston, for the running community, and for all those who were here to enjoy the 117th running of the Boston Marathon. What was intended to be a day of joy and celebration quickly became a day in which running a marathon was of little importance.

We want to express our deepest gratitude to all of the B.A.A. medical personnel and volunteers and the City of Boston’s first responders who reacted so courageously to help save lives. Special thanks to the loyal Boston Marathon community – over 8500 volunteers, 1000 medical personnel, the organizing committee, and hundreds of thousands along the race route – who make the experience what it is for all our runners, who are hurting today.

We would like to thank the countless people from around the world who have reached out to support us over the last 24 hours.

We are cooperating with the City of Boston, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and all federal law enforcement officials in the investigation and the effort to bring those responsible for this tragedy to justice, so we are limited in what information we can provide.

Boston is strong. Boston is resilient. Boston is our home. And Boston has made us enormously proud in the past 24 hours. The Boston Marathon is a deeply held tradition – an integral part of the fabric and history of our community. We are committed to continuing that tradition with the running of the 118th Boston Marathon in 2014.

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But a new report from Goldman Sachs economists puts the Obama decision in an even harsher light. The federal deficit is coming down rapidly on its own. In a piece entitled, “The Rapidly Shrinking Federal Deficit,” Goldman notes that the deficit averaged 4.5 percent of GDP in the first calendar quarter, compared to 10.1 percent in fiscal year 2009. The reasons are faster economic growth, higher taxes and reduced government spending.

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Anyway, initial responses ranged from the incoherent—”I don’t see this as fundamental entitlement reform as much as clarifying a statistic which does happen to save money” (Paul Ryan)—to the opportunistic “Let’s set aside our differences and come together on things we can agree on” (Eric Cantor saying let’s do CPI but not the higher tax revenues in the budget)—to the faux-outraged House GOP campaign chair Greg Walden who labeled the President’s budget a “shocking attack on seniors.”

It’s that last part where things got weird today.  As the WaPo reports, Boehner and Cantor are distancing themselves from Walden, since they want these cuts.  And the very conservative Club for Growth…

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Here is the president’s idea of shared sacrifice among the many and the few (courtesy of Dean Baker):

Barack Obama proposes a painful hit to middle-class and working-class seniors, in return for an increase on taxes on the rich so small that they will hardly notice. Bargain? Yes. Grand? Not so much.

By legitimating changes that could lead over time to the conversion of Social Security into a means-tested program for the elderly poor only, Barack Obama has proven himself to be a true and worthy successor of his predecessor, George W. Bush.

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As travel arrangements were set,

Rafalca had reason to fret,

When Romney explained,

To get to the Games,

She'd be strapped to the roof of the jet!

Pete DeVriese

Oakland, Calif.

The Romney's were off with a start.

Regrettably, Seamus had farts.

So into the crate,

If he makes it that's great.

If not, Mitt will sell off the parts.

Michael Peterson

Willowbrook, Ill.

Mitt’s not vulgar, profane or salacious.

He would never offend! Good gracious!

But in unctuous perfection,

He seeks his election,

In a manner sublimely mendacious.

Quentin Sullivan

Haverhill, Mass.

Paul Ryan is sure that it's true.

All abortions are wicked to do.

Not for rape, or incest,

Even death - Paul knows best.

For a zygote's worth much more than you.

Paul Bamborough

Norway

RNC speakers begin to assemble,

And their rhetoric starts to dissemble.

From Rubio to Ryan.

There'll be no shortage of lyin'.

Causing fact-checkers all over to tremble.

Jim Brown

Scarsdale, N.Y.

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Of course, Messina’s reaction to the debt-ceiling deal had to do with politics, not policy, but it’s still revealing. “After the August debt-limit crisis … our numbers were, you know, historically low,” the political whiz said.

Indeed. After Obama and GOP leaders made a deal to avert a default – resulting in the ugly sequester cuts that are currently taking their toll on the economy as well as on Obama’s popularity – the president’s approval rating reached an all-time low. Gallup tracking polls had him at 39 percent in mid-August, which was the first time he’d dipped below the treacherous 40 percent mark as president.

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Here is something else that makes the former vice president's eldest daughter really mad: that President Obama is "the most radical man ever to occupy the Oval Office" who has "launched a war on religious freedom" and has effectively told America's enemies that they can "attack us with impunity" and "suffer no consequences."

Want the short version? Obama is making THE SKY FALL.

Barring the possibility that Cheney's editorial in Friday's Wall Street Journal is an exquisite piece of satire, it appears the former Bush State Department official lacks a certain self-awareness.

Let's consider Cheney's assessments of the Obama administration's record.

On foreign policy:

The president has so effectively diminished American strength abroad that there is no longer a question of whether this was his intent.

On Libya:

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As you know, I last attended the Gridiron dinner two years ago.  Back then, I addressed a number of topics — a dysfunctional Congress, a looming budget crisis, complaints that I don’t spend enough time with the press.  It’s funny, it seems like it was just yesterday. (Laughter.)

The transcript, when read sober, was hardly more inspiring. Parentheticals asserting laughter and applause appeared on the official White House transcript and could not be independently verified:

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Bad enough. If the spending cuts go through next week our fragile economy will slow further, causing more unemployment and misery. When consumers don’t have the money to buy enough to keep the economy moving, and government pulls back this much, businesses can’t justify keeping people on.

Yet the silence is deafening.

Republicans won’t deal. Obama has already cut $1.5 trillion out of the budget but Republicans insist on far more. They want the White House to propose major cuts in Social Security and Medicare.

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For women, a critical voting bloc who helped deliver his second term, the president checked off many important boxes. He spoke about ending violence against women, guaranteeing them equal pay, preventing teen pregnancy, providing working families with more daycare and early child education, and promoting military women in combat roles. He also acknowledged that women around the world are drivers of prosperity and must be empowered if we hope to reduce global poverty and secure emerging democracies.

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And while Obama talked deficit reduction early in the speech, it was much less detailed and central than in most of his other big national speeches. “Deficit reduction alone is not an economic plan,” he said, stating what should be obvious, but often isn’t inside the Beltway. He even went partway toward greater accountability on his controversial drone program – although he didn’t use the word "drones" – promising to work with Congress on oversight and transparency. Not enough, but a start.

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With new friends like John Bolton, who recently praised President Obama’s targeted killing policy as “consistent with and really derived from the Bush administration approach to the War on Terror,” Obama needs some old-fashioned enemies. Just in time, Dick Cheney breaks his months of silence with a slashing, over-the-top speech denouncing Obama’s national security nominees as “second-rate” and charging, again, that he’s making the country less safe.

"The performance now of Barack Obama as he staffs up the national security team for the second term is dismal," Cheney said in comments to about 300 members of the Wyoming Republican Party reported by the Associated Press on Sunday.

"Frankly, what he has appointed are second-rate people," he said, for the positions of secretary of state, secretary of defense and CIA director -- John Kerry, Chuck Hagel and John Brennan, to be precise.

Predictably the top neocon had the toughest words for Defense nominee Hagel, even though they’re both Republicans. Cheney joined the realm of conspiracy theorists by suggesting that Obama picked Hagel so he has “a Republican that he can use to take the heat for what he plans to do to the Department of Defense." That’s a new one.

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Tomasky opened by admitting that whenever he’s evaluating a politician’s actions, he’s always written “with part of my brain focused on the question of what I would do if I were in Politician X’s position. This line of thought came so naturally to me that I imagined everyone did this. But I guess everyone doesn’t.”

No, everyone doesn’t. I do sometimes, and not others. But it’s a worthwhile thought exercise. Tomasky continues, noting that he’d just read the targeted killing white paper, and:

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Now the 31-year-old, who has been Barack Obama's head speechwriter for seven years, is stepping down. The L.A. Times reports that after March 1, the young writer is likely to pursue a career in screenwriting, following the footsteps of former White House staffer, now "1600 Penn" writer, Jon Lovett. Obama adviser David Plouffe told the LA Times that Favreau would be well-equipped for a career in Hollywood. "He can write comedy, history, drama, suspense," Plouffe said. "He's got the whole range."

Favreau, however, plans to stay in Washington for the time being and has not commented on his departure. He will be replaced by Chicago native Cody Keenan, who the Times reports "is known for his handling of heartbreak and sadness."

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In a recent interview with The New Republic magazine, Obama said "yes" when asked if he has ever fired a gun. He said "we do skeet shooting all the time," except for his daughters, at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland.

The White House photo released Saturday is dated Aug. 4, 2012, and shows Obama shooting at clay targets on the range at Camp David.

The rifle is cocked in Obama's left shoulder, his left index finger is on the trigger and smoke is coming from the barrel.

Obama is pushing a package of gun-control measures in response to the Newtown, Conn., school shooting.

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Much of the transcript delves into Washington minutiae like Speaker of the House John Boehner’s ability to control his Republican caucus and the media’s flawed desire to find moral equivalence between the parties. But it also contained a few more far-reaching revelations. Here are five:

1. On the difference between Democrats and Republicans:
"Democrats, we've got a lot of warts, and some of the bad habits here in Washington when it comes to lobbyists and money and access really goes to the political system generally. It's not unique to one party. But when it comes to certain positions on issues, when it comes to trying to do what's best for the country, when it comes to really trying to make decisions based on fact as opposed to ideology, when it comes to being willing to compromise, the Democrats, not just here in this White House, but I would say in Congress also, have shown themselves consistently to be willing to do tough things even when it's not convenient, because it's the right thing to do. And we haven't seen that same kind of attitude on the other side."

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"Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law," the president said.

But as an 11-year-old trans girl, Sadie couldn't help thinking something important was missing from his speech: transgender rights.

So she put pen to paper and wrote an addendum for the president, hoping to tell him a little about her experience of growing up trans:

"The world would be a better place if everyone had the right to be themselves, including people who have a creative gender identity and expression. Transgender people are not allowed the freedom to do things everyone else does, like go to the doctor, go to school, get a job, and even make friends.

Transgender kids like me are not allowed to go to most schools because the teachers think we are different from everyone else. The schools get afraid of how they will talk with the other kids' parents, and transgender kids are kept secret or told not to come there anymore. Kids are told not to be friends with transgender kids, which makes us very lonely and sad.

When they grow up, transgender adults have a hard time getting a job because the boss thinks the customers will be scared away. Doctors are afraid of treating transgender patients because they don't know how to take care of them, and some doctors don't really want to help them. Transgender patients like me travel to other states to see a good doctor.

It would be a better world if everyone knew that transgender people have the same hopes and dreams as everyone else. We like to make friends and want to go to school. Transgender people want to get good jobs and go to doctors like they are exactly the same. It really isn't that hard to like transgender people because we are like everyone else."

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The push to tighten up gun laws stretched across political lines -- including a dramatic 18-point increase among Republicans. A majority of independents now also back stricter gun laws.

As reported by the Times:

The idea of requiring background checks on all gun purchases, which would eliminate a provision that allows about 40 percent of guns to be sold by unlicensed sellers without checks, was overwhelmingly popular. Nine in 10 Americans would favor such a law, the poll found — including 9 in 10 of the respondents who said that there was a gun in their household, and 85 percent whose households include National Rifle Association members.

A ban on high-capacity magazines, like the 15- and 30-round magazines that have been used in several recent mass shootings, was supported by more than 6 in 10, and by a majority of those who live in households with guns. And just over half of all respondents, 53 percent, said they would support a ban on some semiautomatic weapons.

After the mass shootings at Virginia Tech in 2007 and Tucson in 2011, polls found that 47 percent of Americans favored stricter gun laws.

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