WEEKLY NEWS ROUNDUP FROM MOTHER JONES 30MAI14

POLITICAL MOJO FROM DAVID CORN, KEVIN DRUM, AND THE NEWS TEAM MOTHER JONES May 30, 2014 TOP STORY Documents Show the VA Debacle Began Under George W. Bush By Mariah Blake According to VA inspector general reports and other documents that have gone overlooked in the current firestorm, federal officials knew about the scheme at the heart of the scandal—falsifying VA records to cover up the long wait times for medical care—years before Obama became president. [READ MORE] MOST READ Gun Activists Flaunting Assault Rifles Get Booted From Chili's and Sonic Big Dairy Is Putting Microscopic Pieces of Metal in Your Food Hurricane Amanda Just Set an Ominous New Record The Truth About Bug Spray TOP IN SOCIAL MEDIA This Is What It's Like Arguing With Gun Nuts on the Internet 10 Pro-Gun Myths, Shot Down This Ice Sheet Will Unleash a Global Superstorm Sandy That Never Ends What Is Boko Haram, and Why Do Its Members Kidnap Schoolgirls? IN OTHER NEWS NSA Fires Back at Snowden and Claims His Email Didn't Raise "Concerns About Wrongdoing" By Dana Liebelson The National Security Agency is firing back against former contractor Edward Snowden, who insists he reported his concerns about illegal surveillance activity directly to the agency in writing before leaking his treasure trove of super-secret documents. [READ MORE] THIS WEEK'S NEWS ROUNDUP 7 Pieces of Timeless Wisdom From Maya Angelou Maya Angelou, acclaimed poet, author, and civil rights activist, died Wednesday at the age of 86. Here's what she told Mother Jones nearly 20 years ago. Starbucks, Wendy’s, Applebees, Jack in the Box, Chipotle, Chili's, and Sonic have all now told gun rights activists to get rid of their guns or get lost.  Since early April, any effort to help the unemployed has been slowed by House Republicans. The first eastern Pacific hurricane of 2014 set a new intensity record. Here's why we could see even stronger storms before the year is over.  And here are all the states refusing to crack down on prison rape. Happy Friday? [READ MORE] CHART OF THE WEEK: Silicon Valley Firms Are Even Whiter and More Male Than You Thought [READ MORE] QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow Are Pissed at This WaPo Critic Over UCSB Shooting Column [READ MORE] Become a fan of Kevin Drum on Facebook. Follow Kevin Drum on Twitter Follow David Corn on Twitter