Cheat Sheet - The Proxy War Against Hagel

January 08, 2013 NOMINATION 1. The Proxy War Against Hagel Obama's nomination of the former GOP senator for secretary of defense has drawn flak from Republicans and activist groups. But Hagel's not really their target, says Howard Kurtz. Read it at The Daily Beast CHILLING 2. Inside the Delhi Rape The Wall Street Journal presents a reconstruction of the life—and chilling rape and murder—of the young Indian girl who has captured the world's attention. Before her attack, the girl, only 5 feet 3 and 90 pounds and with new white, gold, and red streaks in her hair, had met with a guy friend at the mall to peruse jackets before going to see Life of Pi. She is described as a hardworking young girl who emceed college dance recitals. While studying physiotherapy, she worked at a call center—she slept only a few hours a night. The story also details how a few misguided men went on a "joy ride" on a bus that one of them drove, picked up the girl and her friend, and brutally attacked them. Read it at The Wall Street Journal RAPE 3. Traci Lords's Steubenville Horror The former porn actress was raped in Steubenville, Ohio, when she was 10—a trauma she believes led her into making X-rated movies. She tells Winston Ross the time for silence about rape has passed. Read it at The Daily Beast DEBT CEILING 4. U.S. Could Default on Debt by Feb. 15 A new analysis found that the U.S. government could default on its debt as early as Feb. 15, which is half a month earlier than was originally expected. The analysis by the Bipartisan Policy Center says that the government will be unable to pay its bills starting sometime between Feb. 15 and March 1. The government technically hit the $16.4 trillion statutory debt limit on Dec. 31, but the Treasury Department is able to attempt certain accounting schemes, known as "extraordinary measures," that were expected to put off a default through the first two months of the year. But a spokesperson for the Bipartisan Policy Center said, "Our numbers show that we have less time to solve this problem than many realize." Read it at The Washington Post BLAZE 5. 'Catastrophic' Fires Hit Australia Authorities in Australia have warned of a "catastrophic" fire threat in the state of New South Wales. More than 130 fires were burning across New South Wales on Tuesday, and more than 40 of those had yet to be brought under control. Temperatures are expected to rise to 109 degrees Fahrenheit, and a total fire ban is in effect. Some areas of the state are experiencing winds of 43 mph, which may further fan the flames. No homes have been destroyed, but authorities warned that the threat will last throughout the night. Prime Minister Julia Gillard warned that it was a "dangerous" day and urged people to "stay focused," adding "it is very important that people keep themselves safe, that they listen to local authorities and local warnings." Read it at CNN INSIDER ATTACK Uniformed Afghan Kills British Soldier Injures six others. CENSORED Scuffles Hit Chinese Newspaper Protest As leftists decry "traitor newspaper." JACKPOT Chicago Cops: Lotto Winner Poisoned Had cyanide in system. TIDE Alabama Beats Notre Dame 42–14 For second straight BCS championship win. LOVE STORY Taylor Swift, Harry Styles Break Up After vacation in the British Virgin Islands. GET The Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of news and must-reads from across the Web. You'll love the featured original stories on politics, entertainment, and more from The Daily Beast's diverse group of contributors. GET Culture Beast Weekly cultural recommendations from The Daily Beast. Piers Debates Man Who Tried To Deport Him Piers Morgan remained calm Monday night in the face of a verbal attack from Alex Jones, the co-creator of the official White House petition to deport the CNN host. 'The Republic will rise again when you attempt to take our guns!' Jones warned. More Videos Meet the Class of 2013 by The Daily Beast Ten Coolest New Gadgets by Nina Strochlic Inside the Closets of 'Girls' by Alyssa Rosenberg

ABOUT US | CONTACT US | SUBSCRIBE Copyright 2012 The Newsweek/Daily Beast Company LLC 555 W. 18th Street , New York NY 10011 Privacy Policy

If you are on a mobile device or cannot view the images in this message, click here to view this email in your Web browser. To ensure delivery of these emails, please add thedailybeast@e2.thedailybeast.com to your address book. If you have changed your mind and no longer wish to receive these emails, or think you have received this message in error, you can safely unsubscribe here.