Summer sausage

I've been traveling a bit and haven't been very good about blogging. I'm back home and hope to be back in the blogging saddle again soon. Meanwhile, here are a few things that have caught my eye:

• Ezra Klein makes some great points about presidential power, or lack thereof. Also, if you're a bit fuzzy on the whole debt ceiling topic, this primer is quite helpful.
• Jonathan Bernstein, John Sides, and others had an interesting dialogue recently about just who would get the blame next year if Republican recalcitrance on the debt ceiling ended up seriously harming the economy. For my money, I'd say that the president's party still owns the economy, no matter who is most directly responsible for helping or hurting it.
• I'm a fan of Tim Groseclose's work, but I have a hard time buying his claim that if it weren't for media bias, McCain would have defeated Obama by 14 points.
• A friend recently took me on a tour of Gov. Jerry Brown's office and introduced me to his impressive book collection.
• Scott Lemieux has some important details about the McDonald's coffee lawsuit.
• CNN claims that "some Dems" are now supporting Republican women but can't name more than one.
• This is pretty much the most iconic Colorado sculpture ever. And I think my daughter wants this for her next birthday cake.
• The Denver Post has a nice guide for climbing Colorado's 14ers. I hope to try one this summer.
• Man, was "Cars 2" disappointing, especially coming from the one movie company that, at least until now, has refused to phone it in.
• Still not sure what to make of Google+.