Politics Today: Ted Kennedy Remembered
Politics Today is CBSNews.com's inside look at the key stories driving the day in politics, written by CBS News Political Director Steve Chaggaris:
**Sen. Kennedy dies of brain cancer at age 77…
**Battles over health care, CIA interrogations and the deficit continue
**Afghanistan remains in the spotlight
**Obama's vacation continues
5266166SEN. TED KENNEDY DIES: Statement from the Kennedy family: ""Edward M. Kennedy – the husband, father, grandfather, brother and uncle we loved so deeply – died late Tuesday night at home in Hyannis Port.
We've lost the irreplaceable center of our family and joyous light in our lives, but the inspiration of his faith, optimism, and perseverance will live on in our hearts forever.
We thank everyone who gave him care and support over this last year, and everyone who stood with him for so many years in his tireless march for progress toward justice, fairness and opportunity for all.
He loved this country and devoted his life to serving it.
He always believed that our best days were still ahead, but it's hard to imagine any of them without him."
CBSNews.com Special Report: Ted Kennedy
For five decades, virtually every major piece of legislation to advance the civil rights, health and economic well being of the American people bore his name and resulted from his efforts."
More Reactions from Around the Country and the World
The Boston Globe's Martin F. Nolan writes in the definitive 4,350-word obituary of Kennedy, "Senator Edward M. Kennedy, who carried aloft the torch of a Massachusetts dynasty and championed a liberal ideology during almost a half century in the Senate, but whose personal and political failings may have prevented him from realizing the ultimate prize of the presidency, died Tuesday night at his home in Hyannis Port. He was 77 and had been battling brain cancer."
The Globe's life story of Kennedy.
Read Excerpts from More Obituaries from Newspapers Today
Cape Cod Times' obit. | USA Today | NY Times | Wall Street Journal | Washington Post | Politico | McClatchy Newspapers
Associated Press' David Espo, "Kennedy: Always in the public spotlight":
The Senate vacancy created by Kennedy's death is part of a growing political issue in Massachusetts, an issue Kennedy weighed in on last week.
Last week, Kennedy sent a letter to the governor and the state legislature asking them to change the law to allow Patrick to name a temporary successor – someone that would promise not to run in the special election.
The Boston Herald's Hillary Chabot reports, "[Massachusetts] House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo has given his behind-closed-doors blessing to an effort to hand Gov. Deval Patrick the power to appoint a temporary successor to U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, sources say.
"While DeLeo has been publicly silent on the controversial measure tagged a power play by critics, the speaker indicated his tacit support."
More CBS News Coverage
Excerpts of Famous Kennedy Speeches
Kennedy's Career Forced in Public's Glare
No Immediate Action on Succession
Photo Gallery: Ted Kennedy
Katie Couric Reports On Kennedy's Life
CBSNews.com Special Report: Ted Kennedy
There will be a CBS News special tonight on Ted Kennedy at 8 p.m. ET. Read more information about it here.>
5192102HEALTH CARE: "Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Moran faced a storm at a town hall meeting in his Northern Virginia district Tuesday night, with thousands of shouting activists packed into a high school gymnasium to argue for and against a health care overhaul, flanked by dozens of police officers, television cameras and Washington reporters," reports the Wall Street Journal's Louise Radnovsky.
"Hundreds of supporters of the president yelled, 'Health care reform under attack! What do we do? Stand up, fight back' and 'What do we want? Health care! When do we want it? Now.'
"Others in the audience were just as loud when they booed Mr. Moran as he entered the auditorium, and individual opponents of an overhaul yelled out responses to nearly all of the congressman's remarks."
The Washington Post's Rosalind S. Helderman adds, "Moran called the public option the piece of reform that 'could do the most to bring down long-term medical costs and to adequately insure every American.'
"'Everyone is still free to purchase private insurance,' he said. 'The private insurance companies, we think, will want to be more competitive, and so insurance premiums will probably go down, hopefully to the point where they don't rise anymore.'"
Politico's Erika Lovely, "Jim Moran, Howard Dean face town hall skeptics"
Meantime, CBSNews.com's Stephanie Condon reports, "As congressmen prepare to wrap up their vacations and head back to Washington, liberal advocacy groups are keeping tabs of exactly which members are ready to support a government-sponsored health insurance plan, or 'public option.'
"The groups OpenLeft.com and Health Care for America Now and Democracy for America (founded by former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean) say they have 45 senators on record supporting the public option so far. They are raising money to pressure at least eight more senators currently on the fence to embrace the plan, the New York Times reports. Those senators include Max Baucus of Montana, Kent Conrad of North Dakota, Ron Wyden of Oregon, Thomas Carper of Delaware, Jon Tester of Montana, Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, Bill Nelson of Florida and Mark Warner of Virginia -- all Democrats."
"Conservatives, led by former Vice President Dick Cheney, said the probe wrongly targeted those who helped keep the nation safe after the Sept. 11 attacks and would diminish the ability of the government to safeguard Americans. Civil liberties groups were unhappy that officials from the administration of President George W. Bush were not targeted in the probe. ...
"Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., said the Justice Department inquiry doesn't go far enough. 'The abuses that were officially sanctioned amounted to torture and those at the very top who authorized, ordered or sought to provide legal cover for them should be held accountable,' Feingold said in a statement issued late Monday."
New York Times' Scott Shane and Mark Mazzetti, "Report Shows Tight C.I.A. Control on Interrogations"
Washington Post's Joby Warrick, Peter Finn and Julie Tate, "CIA Releases Its Instructions For Breaking a Detainee's Will"
Politico's Josh Gerstein, "George W. Bush CIA insider key to Obama plan"
Washington Post's Dan Balz, "Obama Dances Awkwardly With Bush Policies"
5264155AFGHANISTAN: "With the deaths of four U.S. soldiers Tuesday, the U.S.-led NATO coalition in Afghanistan now has lost more troops this year than in all of 2008, and August is on track to be the deadliest month for American troops there since U.S. operations began nearly eight years ago," report McClatchy Newspapers' Nancy A. Youssef and Jonathan S. Landay.
"The numbers reflect the rising pace of combat in Afghanistan and come at a difficult time, just as Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, is considering asking for more U.S. troops even as opinion polls show that a majority of Americans think the war in Afghanistan isn't worth the cost."
The Washington Post's Scott Wilson and Joshua Partlow add, "As the Obama administration prepares for a report from its senior field commander that is likely to request additional forces, congressional Democrats, in particular, have begun to question the wisdom of further reinforcements on top of the 62,000 U.S. troops already deployed in Afghanistan, with an additional 6,000 scheduled to arrive by year's end. The criticism comes as international fatalities in Afghanistan have risen to historic highs after a presidential election undermined by Taliban violence and low voter turnout.
"The domestic criticism is largely coming from those in the left wing of Obama's party, who say the president's plan to send more troops, monetary assistance and civilian advisers to Afghanistan does not include a well-defined exit strategy. Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called this week for the first time for Obama to set a 'flexible timetable' to withdraw U.S. forces, saying he is 'not convinced that simply pouring more and more troops into Afghanistan is a well-thought-out strategy.'"
DEFICIT PROJECTION: "The nation would be forced to borrow more than $9 trillion to support President Obama's initiatives and other federal programs over the next decade, the White House said Tuesday, a sharp increase in projected deficits that provided fresh ammunition to critics of the president's sweeping proposal to expand health coverage to the uninsured," reports the Washington Post's Lori Montgomery.
"White House budget director Peter Orszag played down the grim forecast as unsurprising, saying the update merely brings White House projections in line with those of outside experts. He noted that this year's deficit is now expected to approach $1.6 trillion -- the highest on record and the biggest as a percentage of the economy since the end of World War II, but slightly smaller than officials had feared.
"Still, with town hall meetings across the country erupting with bitter complaints about rising federal spending and the fear of greater government intrusion into people's lives, the new projections are likely to complicate Obama's ambitious legislative agenda when Congress returns in September."
New York Times' Jackie Calmes, "Estimate for 10-Year Deficit Raised to $9 Trillion"
"Before their trip to The Sweet Life Café on Circuit Avenue, the couple traveled at about 6 p.m. to a home in East Chop, an area of Oak Bluffs, owned by Valerie Jarrett, an Obama adviser and close friend. The Obamas relaxed and socialized with friends on the deck of Jarrett's oceanfront home within walking distance of the East Chop Beach Club."
Earlier in the day, Mr. Obama hit the links for a second day in a row, this time one of the White House chefs was in his foursome. The Associated Press' Glen Johnson has the skinny.
New York Times' Jeff Zeleny, "One Little-Seen Visitor Is the Talk of the Vineyard"
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