Up kinda late writing a book review of The Invisible Bridge for the next issue of WaMo. Ready now for Perlstein’s next one!

Here are some fresh midday news/views snacks:

* Government withdraws riot police from Hong Kong streets in symbolic victory for pro-democracy protesters.

* Good overview by Michael McDonald of early voting data from Iowa and North Carolina.

* On 60 Minutes Obama admits administration’s early judgment on IS underestimated the group.

* National Review‘s Kevin Williamson allows as how he thinks women and doctors involved in abortions should be executed by hanging. But there’s no “war on women” on the Right, of course.

* Long profile of Steve King by TPM’s Sahil Kapur shows the top nativist is more calculating than many observers believe.

And in non-political news:

* It’s National Coffee Day, with all sorts of joints offering a free cuppa joe.

As we break for lunch, here’s Jerry Lee Lewis performing “Breathless” on American Bandstand in 1958.

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Ed Kilgore is a political columnist for New York and managing editor at the Democratic Strategist website. He was a contributing writer at the Washington Monthly from January 2012 until November 2015, and was the principal contributor to the Political Animal blog.