CNN's GUT CHECK | for October 11, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

CHRIS CHRISTIE: "If I was in the Senate right now, I'd kill myself," the Republican governor of New Jersey told the Philadelphia Inquirer's editorial board. The response came when Christie was asked what he would do if he was a member of the upper chamber during the current crisis. "This is why I've never had any interest in being in a legislative body."

NO DEAL: HOUSE REPUBLICANS DEBT OFFER falls short of the President's demand to immediately reopen the government. The GOP proposal would temporarily raise the debt ceiling, but it would not lift the shutdown right away. The House vote on a short term debt ceiling could come over the weekend.

SEPARATE THE ISSUES: Republican leaders are pushing to separate the two issues, allowing a vote to raise the debt limit while continuing talks with the White House over a government funding bill that would end the shutdown. This position is similar to what GOP leaders presented to the President Thursday. The aides declined to give specifics on what kinds of conditions GOP leaders were asking to be attached to that spending bill, but say an agreement to reopen the government could come within days.

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for August 2, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

ON ALERT: A State Department travel alert Friday said al Qaeda may launch attacks in the Middle East, North Africa and beyond, as the United States is closing 21 embassies and consulates Sunday as a precaution. – Chris Lawrence. Barbara Starr and Tom Cohen

KENTUCKY SENATE MOVES TO A TOSS UP:

Cook Political Report moves Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s race to a toss up. “#KYSEN GIVEN THAT TWO POLLS SHOW THE RACE WITHIN THE MOE AND WITH GRIMES AHEAD OF MCCONNELL IN BOTH, IT MOVES TO THE TOSS UP COLUMN,” Jennifer Duffy said Friday on Twitter.

MARKET WATCH: Dow and S&P end the week at record closing highs despite disappointing jobs report.

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 31, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

BREAKING: WYDEN SAYS CONGRESS HAS “BEEN ACTIVELY MISLED”… Key senator form the Intelligence Committee tells CNN’s The Lead with Jake Tapper that the NSA lied about monitoring communications. Sen. Ron Wyden: “The fact of the matter is, Jake, on issue after issue, too many of the leaders in the intelligence community have not just kept the Congress in the dark, the Congress has been given inaccurate statement and, in effect, been actively misled.”

TRUCE “IF HE WANTS TO”: A day after calling Gov. Chris Christie the “king of bacon,” Sen. Rand Paul said Wednesday he's open to easing the war of words with his fellow Republican. “I didn't pick this fight with the governor down in New Jersey, but I think people, I think the party does better if we have less infighting, so I would suggest if he wants to ratchet it down, I'm more than happy to,” Paul said. – Jim Acosta and Ashley Killough

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 30, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

RAND PAUL CALLS CHRIS CHRISTIE THE “KING OF BACON”

NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR CHRIS CHRISTIE AT A TUESDAY PRESS CONFERENCE IN FRONT OF LITTLE FERRY FIRE DEPARTMENT: “Senator Paul is accusing us of having a ‘gimme, gimme, gimme’ attitude towards federal spending when in fact New Jersey is a donor state and we get 61 cents back on every dollar we send to Washington, and interestingly, Kentucky gets $1.51 on every dollar they send to Washington. So if Senator Paul wants to start looking at where he’s going to cut spending to afford defense, maybe he should start cutting the pork barrel spending that he brings home to Kentucky at $1.51 for every dollar.”

KENTUCKY SENATOR RAND PAUL RESPONDS ON CNN’S THE SITUATION ROOM: “This is the king of bacon talking about bacon. We have two military bases in Kentucky, and is Gov. Christie recommending that we shut down our military bases? He wants to be this great champion of national defense. What does he want to do shut down military bases in Kentucky? … It is not helping the party for him to pick a war with me. It is a big mistake. It is not very smart. And it is not a good way to grow the party.”

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 29, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

WEINER DROPS TO FOURTH: According to the new poll, Weiner has dropped from first to fourth place in the race for the Democratic nomination. Weiner now has the support of 16% of likely Democratic primary voters, down 10 points from a Quinnipiac poll conducted almost entirely before last Tuesday's news. In that survey Weiner was at 26%, on top of the field of candidates. – Paul Steinhauser

PAUL VS. CHRISTIE HEATS UP: Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky responded to recent criticism of his stance on national security issues on Sunday by calling out New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and GOP Rep. Peter King of New York for asking for federal aid following Superstorm Sandy. “The people who want to criticize me and call me names, they are precisely the same people who are unwilling to cut the spending,” Paul said after a fundraiser. “They are 'Gimme, gimme, gimme all my Sandy money now.' Those are the people who are bankrupting the government and not allowing enough money be left over for national defense.”

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 12, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

WIN ONE FOR JOURNALISTS: “Federal prosecutors can no longer obtain search warrants for information obtained by journalists unless reporters are the subject of a criminal investigation, a Justice Department official said Friday.”- Carol Cratty

MR. PUTIN, CAN YOU LEND A HAND? SNOWDEN SEEKS TEMPORARY ASYLUM IN RUSSIA… NSA leaker Edward Snowden said he was requesting asylum from Russia while he awaited safe passage to Latin America, according to Wikileaks released transcript of Snowden’s remarks to human rights groups. – Phil Black, Laura Smith-Spark and Alla Eshchenko

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 11, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

GOING NUCLEAR: ‘VAST MAJORITY’ OF DEMOCRATS WANT TO CHANGE SENATE RULES, SAYS REID… Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday that his fellow Democrats were supportive of a controversial change to Senate rules that would prevent filibusters against executive branch nominees. “The President deserves to have a qualified team he has selected to help our economy grow. And he needs his whole team, not half of it, or a few that the Senate Republicans let through here and there,” Reid said. “That's not how this works.”

REPUBLICANS CRY FOUL: ‘WORST.LEADER.EVER’… “This is really a sad, sad day for the United States Senate,” Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in regards to the rules changes. “And if we don't pull back from the brink here, my friend, the majority leader, is going to be remembered as the worst leader of the senate ever.”

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 10, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

“IT’S NUTS”: The Cook Political Report’s Jennifer Duffy, speaking to Gut Check about Sarah Palin considering a run for Alaska Senate.

GEORGE W. BUSH IS BACK: “THE SYSTEM IS BROKEN”… Former President George W. Bush at a naturalization ceremony in Dallas: “The laws governing the immigration system aren't working. The system is broken. I don't intend to get involved in the politics or the specifics of policy, but I do hope there is a positive resolution to the debate.”

MARKET WATCH: U.S. stocks end mixed as Fed minutes show ongoing uncertainty over stimulus. Dow dips 9 points. NASDAQ adds 0.5%.

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 9, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

GONE IN 2014: Press Secretary Jay Carney said at the White House briefing on Tuesday that no decision on troop reduction in Afghanistan is imminent, and left open the idea that keeping no troops beyond 2014 is still an option. “We are not committed to troop presence just for troops there,” Carney said. Carney said that the government is committed to bringing the troop level down by 2014 when combat operations are slated to end. Carney said the presence after that time is a matter still being negotiated with the Afghan government.

BUT IS HE BLUFFING? There's no doubt that President Barack Obama has had his fill of Afghan President Hamid Karzai's on-again, off-again negotiations on how many U.S. troops would remain there after 2014. And there's no doubt that the relationship continues to deteriorate, CNN Chief National Correspondent John King said. “So If Karzai doesn't trust his own security forces, you lay this down that we might come back to a zero option, maybe you snap him into thinking, ‘I'd better get to get back to the negotiating table here,’” King said.

FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 8, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

“I CAN IDENTIFY WITH THEM”: Former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry tells us what he thinks about Eliot Spitzer and Anthony Weiner’s attempted comebacks. Scroll down to What Caught Our Eye for more.

PERRY SAYS NO TO FOURTH TERM: Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Monday that he won't run for re-election next year for an unprecedented fourth full term. “The time has come to pass on the mantle of leadership,” he said. The announcement by the Republican governor opens the door to speculation that Perry will make another bid for the White House in 2016.

DEATH ON THE STREETS OF CAIRO: Top Egyptian security officials defended army and police actions in the clashes on Monday in Cairo that led to the deaths of more than 50 people, saying they were defending the Republican Guard headquarters against attackers. Health Ministry official Khaled al-Khatib put the number of fatalities at 51 and said 435 others were wounded when Egyptian security forces clashed with supporters of deposed President Mohamed Morsy and the Muslim Brotherhood outside the headquarters. – Karl Penhaul. Joe Sterling and Ali Younes

FULL POST