memeorandum: McCain's one-two Florida punch (Jonathan Martin/The Politico)

10:15 AM ET, January 28, 2008

Top Items:

Author Toni Morrison to Endorse Obama — ABC News' Rick Klein Reports: Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison — who famously declared Bill Clinton to be the nation's “first black president” — is endorsing Barack Obama for president today, an Obama campaign source tells ABC News.

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blogs, TalkLeft, TPM Election Central, Classical Values, IMAO.US and Marc Ambinder

Wall Street Journal:

Obama Gains, But Still Lags In Big States — Barack Obama's overwhelming weekend victory in South Carolina's Democratic primary gives him new momentum in the run-up to the near-national nominating contest a week from tomorrow, known as Super Tuesday. — But Mr. Obama heads into the 22-state showdown as the underdog.

Discussion: The Swamp, protein wisdom, The Caucus, Balloon Juice, TIME, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Outside The Beltway, Real Clear Politics, Taylor Marsh, Donklephant, TalkLeft, HillaryClinton.com and Truthdig

Patrick Healy / New York Times:

Clinton's Camp Seeks Gentler Role for Ex-President — Democrats inside and outside the Clinton campaign on Sunday debated and in some cases bemoaned the degree to which former President Bill Clinton's criticism of Senator Barack Obama last week had inflicted lasting damage on his wife's presidential candidacy.

Discussion: San Francisco Chronicle, Captain's Quarters, TownHall Blog, Comments from Left Field, Right Wing Nut House, The Carpetbagger Report, MSNBC, Sister Toldjah, New York Post, Gateway Pundit, Jules Crittenden, Needlenose, QandO and Associated Press

Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:

Team Obama Is Courting Everybody But the Press — GREENVILLE, S.C. — When reporters filed onto Barack Obama's press plane after his acrimonious debate with Hillary Rodham Clinton last week, one thing was noticeably missing amid the wine and snacks on the Boeing 737.

Discussion: Comments from Left Field and Washington Monthly

New York Times:

Kennedy Chooses Obama, Spurning Plea by Clintons — BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Senator Edward M. Kennedy, rejecting entreaties from the Clintons and their supporters, is set to endorse Senator Barack Obama's presidential bid on Monday as part of an effort to lend Kennedy charisma and connections …

Discussion: Boston Globe, MSNBC, New York Daily News Blogs, The Crone Speaks, NY Daily News, American Street, The Strata-Sphere, Kiko's House, Prairie Weather, Truthdig and The Politico

William Kristol / New York Times:

Desperate Husband — In the run-up to Saturday's South Carolina primary, Bill Clinton repeatedly denounced racial divisions in American politics. Indeed, he said Friday in Spartanburg, Americans are “literally aching to live in a post-racial future." — But Clinton certainly hasn't been hastening that day.

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report, The Campaign Spot and Washington Monthly

Hindrocket / Power Line:

A RUN ON THE BANK — Every indication is that Rudy Giuliani is sinking like a stone in Florida. Barring a miracle, he'll finish either a bit above or a bit below Mike Huckabee. Once Florida Republicans saw that Rudy was dropping in the polls, I think a lot of them jumped ship …

Discussion: Washington Times and Democracy Project

Jonathan Martin / The Politico:
McCain's one-two Florida punch

Discussion: The Swamp, Commentary, The Buzz and Zogby

Zogby:
Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby Poll: McCain Gets Endorsement Boost, leads again in Florida

Discussion: Taegan Goddard's … and TPM Election Central

John M. Broder / New York Times:
McCain, Long a G.O.P. Maverick, Is Gaining Mainstream Support

Discussion: protein wisdom, MSNBC, You Decide 08! and The Fix

John Whitesides / Reuters: McCain edges into Florida lead: poll

Stephen F. Hayes / Weekly Standard:
The War Over the War — McCain and Romney face off over Iraq.

Discussion: TIME: Swampland and The Huffington Post

USA Today: Rudy: Demise rumors are ‘premature’

John Whitesides / Reuters:
Romney climbs into Florida tie with McCain: poll

Discussion: Connecting.the.Dots, PoliBlog (TM), Spin Cycle and AMERICAblog

Michael Abramowitz / Washington Post:

Economy, War To Dominate State of Union — Bush's Challenge May Be Getting People to Listen — For years, President Bush and his advisers expressed frustration that the White House received little credit for the nation's strong economic performance because of public discontent about the Iraq war.

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, Associated Press, Power Line, CNN, NewsBusters.org, The Mahablog and Gateway Pundit

Jacob Weisberg / New York Times:

The Bush Who Got Away — AS George W. Bush prepares to deliver his final State of the Union address, it's worth revisiting the first speech he gave to a joint session of Congress. His valedictory words tonight will provide an opportunity to reflect on the kind of president Mr. Bush was.

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias and Corrente

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:

Echo of First Bush: Good Economy Turns Sour — WASHINGTON — Will George W. Bush be remembered as the president who lost the economy while trying to win a war? — Mr. Bush has spent years presiding over an economic climate of growth that would be the envy of most presidents.

Discussion: The Huffington Post and Brilliant at Breakfast

Washington Post:
Reaching for a Place in History

Discussion: Balkinization and Sadly, No!

Jane Hamsher / Firedoglake:

BREAKING: Hillary Clinton To Vote “No” On Cloture Tomorrow UPDATE: Barack Obama Will Be There Too — According to the Clinton campaign, Hillary Clinton will be in the Senate tomorrow to vote “no” on cloture on the Intel version of the FISA bill. The vote is scheduled to take place at 4:30 pm tomorrow.

Discussion: DownWithTyranny!, CREDO Action, Hullabaloo, UrbanGrounds, Open Left, Daily Kos, D-Day, TalkLeft, Brilliant at Breakfast, Shakespeare's Sister, Buck Naked Politics, First Draft and RADAMISTO

Laura Meckler / Wall Street Journal:

Strategizing for Super Tuesday — Candidates Refine Plans As They Vie for Delegates In Coast-to-Coast Contest — For weeks, presidential candidates have waged battle one state at a time. But now the race enters a new phase, with candidates delving into the complex coast-to-coast contest known …

Discussion: Washington Post and MSNBC

Adam Nagourney / New York Times:
Races Entering Complex Phase Over Delegates

Discussion: Balkinization

Carl Hulse / New York Times:
In Open Nomination, ‘Superdelegates’ May Hold Key to Victory

Discussion: 2008 Democratic …

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

Lessons of 1992 — It's starting to feel a bit like 1992 again. A Bush is in the White House, the economy is a mess, and there's a candidate who, in the view of a number of observers, is running on a message of hope, of moving past partisan differences, that resembles Bill Clinton's campaign 16 years ago.

Discussion: TalkLeft, The Crone Speaks, The New Republic and Redstate

Michael J. Totten:

The Final Mission, Part I — FALLUJAH - At the end of 2006 there were 3,000 Marines in Fallujah. Despite what you might expect during a surge of troops to Iraq, that number has been reduced by 90 percent. All Iraqi Army soldiers have likewise redeployed from the city.

Josh Gerstein / New York Sun:

Clinton Irks Immigrants' Advocates — Immigrant-rights advocates and some Latino leaders are voicing concern at Senator Clinton's campaign-trail rhetoric about swiftly deporting immigrants with a criminal past. — A vow to give the boot to criminal aliens has become an almost daily part …

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blogs and Obsidian Wings