Muhammed Ali versus George Foreman--Sam Wang vs. Nate Silver

++About the only good thing coming from the government shutdown is the reappearance of Sam Wang. Please read Sam Wang's follow-up posts at elections.princeton.edu. He has gone behind the numbers to project the 2014 House elections. He thinks it is 50-50 now whether the Democrats can take back the House. But his re-emergence provoked Nate Silver, who believes that this too will pass and not make the dent Wang thinks. Wang disagrees because the turn against Republicans is deeper and more systemic than the pseudo-scandals generated against President Obama. Great to read dueling wonks.

++Another good thing from the shutdown has been the pent-up writing we have been hit with. John Judis in the New Republic analyzes the Collapse of the Republican Party. Salon had a great piece on how the South dominates the GOP and its awful implications for the country. Andrew Sullivan at his The Dish analyzes the "nullification of the Obama Presidency" by the Teabaggers and reflects on the bizarre demonstration outside the White House with protestors waving Confederate flags. Charles Pierce at Esquire has been merciless on his analysis of the GOP's shutdown.

++Yes, Virginia,a default would be catastrophic. The financial leaders of the world meeting in Europe warned the United States that default would shake the world. Louie Gohmert says a default of the debt would be an "impeachable" offense. Of course, if President Obama invokes the 14th Amendment it would be seen as an impeachable offense. My suggestion is that the House GOP open the government and lift the debt ceiling and go right into impeachment because that it what the House GOP wanted all along after the election.

++Despite Mark Halperin on "Morning Joe" and Bob Corker and Senator Schumer saying we are close to an agreement on the debt ceiling, I doubt it. We are back to the point where the House GOP is in such chaos,I don't believe they can pass anything in time.

++Rand Paul doesn't think a debt default is a good idea and wants to raise the age of Social Security and cut Medicare as a condition. Paul Ryan wants to prohibit contraceptive coverage for health insurance as a condition of the debt ceiling raise. The House Caucus wanted budget cuts. 

++The Democrats are fighting back by refusing to accept a prolongation of the sequester,which Senator Collins proposed. The Beltway pundits believe this could be an example of Democratic overreach. Ezra Klein had written this past weekend that whatever happens a long term budget deal in the future is dead. Next year, the sequestration cuts begin to take big hunks out of the blotted defense budget. In another world, the Republicans should oppose this. But we are in Superman's Bizarro world.

++John McCain who is apoplectic now appeared on the Sunday Talk shows to urge Democrats to be gracious and give something so the GOP can step down. The conventional wisdom is that there has to be some face-saving gesture for John Boehner so that he keeps his job. "I got to get something out of this." 

++David Plouffe, the mastermind of Obama's 2008 victory, outs a default at 50-50.