Obama Worried About Looking Hawkish, Rand and Hillary Formally Flip Their Parties’ Roles, St. Louis Cop Defends D-Day Tactics: P.M. Links

President Obama frets that
asking Congress for approval to strike against ISIL in Iraq and
Syria might
blemish his insistence that he’s an anti-war kind of guy. Just
a tad late for that, Barry.
The tussle that dare not speak its name: Russian troops and
armor may have crossed Ukraine’s border and battled local forces,
but American and EU officials
balk at calling the situation “war.” It just seems
so…judgmental.
Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) lays the arming and empowering of
ISIL at the doorstep of “interventionists
like former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.” Democrats
shoot back that Paul “blames
America for all the problems in the world.” In politics, this
qualifies as kinky role reversal.
Coming on like a D-Day reenactment was
exactly the right way to deal with protests in Ferguson,
insists St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar. He faces just a
bit of criticism for the cops’ militarized tactics.
The fun may be going out of politics for Senator Harry Reid
(D-Nev.). With his party poised to lose its Senate majority,
analysts predict that he’ll
decline to run for reelection in 2016.
Ailina Tsarnaeva—yes, of those Tsarnaevs—was
arrested in New York City for, allegedly, threatening to bomb a
woman with whom she shares a baby daddy. This family really needs
another go-to for conflict resolution.
GDP actually
grew more than many economists expected in the second quarter,
but the economy still looks sluggish.