Check out Mini-memeorandum for simple mobiles or memeorandum Mobile for modern smartphones.
11:30 AM ET, March 12, 2009

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Ben Smith / The Politico:
Steele backs off abortion remarks  —  RNC Chairman Michael Steele said today that despite telling an interviewer he supports “individual choice” and state-level decisions on abortion, he in fact opposes abortion and supports a Constitutional ban.  —  Steele said in a statement through an RNC spokesman:
RELATED:
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
TIMEBOMB, POSTDATED THREE WEEKS?  —  Ever since I read Michael Steele's trainwreck interview with GQ that came out yesterday, I've been wondering, he thought this was a good moment to give a let it all hang out interview?  —  Remember, this is the one where he appeared to forget in real …
Lisa Depaulo / Men's Fashion, Men's Clothing …:
The Reconstructionist  —  Michael Steele, the embattled new head of the Republican Party, on whether he'd be in this job if he were white, why he left the seminary for the GOP, and where his diminished party goes from here  —  I met Michael Steele in his office at the RNC several weeks into his new job …
Rachel Weiner / The Huffington Post:
Michael Steele: Abortion Is An “Individual Choice”
David S. Broder / Washington Post:
The Country's Loss  —  The Obama administration has just suffered an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the lobbyists the president vowed to keep in their place, and their friends on Capitol Hill.  The country has lost an able public servant in an area where President Obama has few personal credentials …
Discussion: The Daily Dish and Commentary
RELATED:
Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
The distorting effect of anonymity  —  (updated below)  —  In response to the criticisms I wrote last week of the widespread and baseless grants of anonymity by journalists, Julian Sanchez responds that, while he largely agrees with the objections I raise, it is a more complicated problem …
Washington Post:
Blame the ‘Lobby’  —  FORMER ambassador Charles W. Freeman Jr. looked like a poor choice to chair the Obama administration's National Intelligence Council.  A former envoy to Saudi Arabia and China, he suffered from an extreme case of clientitis on both accounts.
John Podhoretz / Commentary:   Allow Me to Twirl My Evil Moustache (or Payess, If You Know What I Mean)
Charles Lane / PostPartisan:
The Real Chas Freeman
Discussion: Jeffrey Goldberg
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Obama's honeymoon bliss fading  —  President Obama's honeymoon is beginning to fade.  —  Members of Congress and old political hands say he needs to show substantial progress reviving the economy soon.  —  Some Democrats have started to worry that voters don't and won't understand …
RELATED:
Phil Izzo / Wall Street Journal:
Obama, Geithner Get Low Grades From Economists  —  U.S. President Barack Obama and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner received failing grades for their efforts to revive the economy from participants in the latest Wall Street Journal forecasting survey.  —  The economists' assessment stands …
Margaret Carlson / Bloomberg:   Inside Man Geithner Shines When He's Offstage: Margaret Carlson
Lisa Schiffren / The Corner:
Young Miss Palin  —  A mere ten weeks or so after the birth of their baby, Bristol Palin and her co-parent, Levi Johnston, have split up.  There will be no marriage.  According to the AP, and Mr. Johnston, it was a mutual decision.  The same article manages to note that Bristol is devastated.
Discussion: Associated Press
RELATED:
Ben Smith / The Politico:
FBI raids office of D.C. tech officer  —  Federal agents this morning are searching the office Washington, D.C.'s Chief Technology Officer.  —  The search is part of “an ongoing investigation,” said a spokeswoman for the FBI's D.C. Field Office, Lindsay Gotwin, said.
Discussion: DCist
Jimmy Orr / Christian Science Monitor:
New Limbaugh billboard slogan announced - creativity was not considered  — E-mail a friend - Print this - Letter to the Editor - Republish - - Get e-mail alerts - RSS  —  Setting a world record today for beating a dead horse, the Democratic National Committee will announce they've selected …
Discussion: Michelle Malkin and Don Surber
Maria Recio / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Obama: Troop move to Mexican border under consideration  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama weighed in Wednesday on the escalating drug war on the U.S.-Mexico border, saying that he was looking at possibly deploying National Guard troops to contain the violence but ruled out any immediate military move.
Wall Street Journal:
Obama Makes Use of Signing Statements  —  WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama signed a $410 billion spending bill Wednesday that includes thousands of pet projects inserted by lawmakers, even as he unveiled new rules to restrict such so-called earmarks.  —  At the same time …
Sam Cage / Reuters:
RPT-FEATURE-Corporate oil booms in low-tax Switzerland  —  * Companies seek Swiss domiciles despite tax row  —  * U.S. political climate may be helping  —  * Appeal as corporate location may outlast offshore dispute  —  The tidy towns and mountain vistas of Switzerland are an unlikely setting for an oil boom.
Discussion: Say Anything
Quinnipiac University:
Christie Opens 9-Point Lead Over Corzine In NJ Gov Race, Quinnipiac University New Jersey Poll Finds; Prosecutor's Experience Helps Challenger  —  Christopher Christie, the Republican challenger in this year's New Jersey Governor's race, leads Democratic incumbent Gov. Jon Corzine 46 …
BBC:
Iraqi jailed for Bush shoe attack  —  An Iraqi journalist hailed as a hero in the Arab world for throwing his shoes at former US President George W Bush has been jailed for three years.  —  Muntadar al-Zaidi had pleaded not guilty as his trial resumed in Baghdad, telling the judge: “My reaction was natural, just like any Iraqi.”
Washington Times:
GREGG: Old image of cost-cutting is out  —  The term “budget” usually conjures up images such as setting limits in order to help individuals, families and businesses spend within their means and avoid running up unaffordable debts.  —  But not anymore.  Under the Obama administration …
The Politico:
Second stimulus?  Never heard of it!  —  Nancy Pelosi said this week that she's keeping the door open for a second stimulus bill.  —  She may be the only one.  —  As the nation continues to shed jobs, an increasing number of economists are saying Congress will need to pump more money into the economy this year.
Discussion: CBS News, The Swamp and New York Times
ABCNEWS:
Pelosi Travel Abuse?  Case Not Proved  —  Watchdog Group Criticizes House Speaker for Travel Perks, but Records Don't Agree  —  The treasure trove of documents obtained by Judicial Watch from the Department of Defense regarding Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's use of military aircraft …
Muriel Kane / The Raw Story:
Hersh: ‘Executive assassination ring’ reported directly to Cheney  —  Investigative reporter Seymour Hersh dropped a bombshell on Tuesday when he told an audience at the University of Minnesota that the military was running an “executive assassination ring” throughout the Bush years …
 
 
 Archived Page Info: 
This is a snapshot of memeorandum at 11:30 AM ET, March 12, 2009.

View the current page or another snapshot:


 
 See Also: 
memeorandum: site main
memeorandum River: reverse chronological memeorandum
memeorandum Mobile: for phones
memeorandum Leaderboard: memeorandum's top sources
 
 Subscribe: 
memeorandum RSS feed
memeorandum on Mastodon
 
 
 More Items: 
New York Times:
U.S. Seeks New Afghan Supply Routes, Even in Iran
Discussion: Weekly Standard
Margot Roosevelt / Los Angeles Times:
California panel urges ‘immediate action’ to protect from rising sea levels
Discussion: The Huffington Post and L.A. Now
Alexander G. Higgins / Associated Press:
Roche to take over Genentech for $47 billion
Discussion: The Moderate Voice
Bloomberg:
Madoff Life in Prison Means Inmates Who Blame Money Man for Crash
Discussion: TalkLeft and CNBC
Associated Press:
Greek terror group: Citibank attacked over crisis
Discussion: Gateway Pundit
Theodore Postol / New York Times:
Defensible Missile Defense
Discussion: Outside The Beltway
 Earlier Items: 
J. Taylor Rushing / The Hill:
Frenemies Dodd and Lieberman make nice
Mary Ann Akers / The Sleuth:
Meet Jay Carney, the Veep's Chief Spokesman
Richard Pérez-Peña / New York Times:
As Cities Go From Two Papers to One, Talk of Zero
Discussion: MediaFile
Wall Street Journal:
Obama's $80 Billion Exaggeration
Discussion: Betsy's Page
K. Daniel Glover / Accuracy in Media:
A Dereliction Of Journalistic Duty
Tony Mauro / LAW.com:
TOP JOBS  —  Justice Souter Describes ‘Annual Intellectual Lobotomy’ During Court Term
Discussion: Althouse