memeorandum: Naturalized citizens are poised to reshape California's political landscape (Teresa Watanabe/Los Angeles Times)

9:30 AM ET, May 11, 2009

Top Items:

Harry, Louise and Barack — Is this the end for Harry and Louise? — Harry and Louise were the fictional couple who appeared in advertisements run by the insurance industry in 1993, fretting about what would happen if “government bureaucrats” started making health care decisions.

Discussion: Prairie Weather, THE WEEK News & Opinion and The Treatment

Dan Eggen / Washington Post:

Former Hospital CEO Rick Scott Leads Opposition to Obama on Health Care — Ads Cite Long Waits In Canada and Britain — The television ads that began airing last week feature horror stories from Canada and the United Kingdom: Patients who allegedly suffered long waits for surgeries …

Discussion: CBS News, Center for American Progress, Associated Press and Democratic Strategist

Washington Post:
Industry Groups Pledge to Stem Health-Care Cost Increases

Discussion: The Hill, Wall Street Journal, Roll Call, New York Times, The Atlantic Politics Channel, Swampland, Commentary and George's Bottom Line

John Fritze / USA Today:
Medical groups aim to cut $2T in health care costs over 10 years

Discussion: Associated Press, ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES and Corrente

Mark Silva / The Swamp:
Obama: Healthcare reform no ‘luxury’

Discussion: Los Angeles Times and The Politico

Tahman Bradley / Political Punch:

Wanda Sykes' Jokes About Rush Limbaugh Prompt Debate — There's some chatter in the blogosphere and on cable TV about comedian Wanda Sykes' routine at the White House Correspondents' Dinner last night, particularly her jokes about conservative talk radio giant Rush Limbaugh.

Michelle Malkin:

The most self-absorbed night in Washington (since the inaugural) — I spent a blissful Mother's Day weekend unplugged and away from the news. So if you're looking for outrage, faux outrage, and extended commentary on all the narcissism and nastiness at the White House Correspondents Dinner, you'll have to look elsewhere.

Discussion: The Hill's Blog Briefing Room

Jonah Goldberg / The Corner:
The WHCD Cont'd — It's funny how criticizing the White House …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, THE WEEK News & Opinion, Salon, Sadly, No!, TBogg and Nikki Finke's Deadline …

Washington Post:

Lawyer: Iran to Free Iranian-American Journalist — Iranian judicial authorities have suspended the remainder of the eight-year jail sentence given to Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi for alleged espionage and will release her Monday, her lawyer said.

Discussion: The Hill's Blog Briefing Room and Taylor Marsh

Nazila Fathi / New York Times:

U.S. Journalist to Be Freed Soon in Iran, Her Lawyer Says — TEHRAN— An Iranian-American journalist who was sentenced to eight years of jail on spying charges for Washington will be released Monday after an appeal court reduced the sentence, her lawyer said.

Discussion: Gateway Pundit

BBC:

Iran ‘to release’ reporter Saberi — An Iran court has cut jailed US-Iranian reporter Roxana Saberi's sentence to two years suspended and she will be freed later on Monday, her lawyer says. — The court heard Ms Saberi's appeal against her original eight-year prison sentence on Sunday, after an international outcry.

Discussion: JONATHAN TURLEY and JammieWearingFool

Attaturk / Firedoglake:

Endless Love — Seeing Dick Cheney state that he prefers Rush Limbaugh to Colin Powell strikes some people as further evidence of the former's shallow depravity. — And they would be correct. Though I'm not interested in defending Colin Powell, who has a lot to defend himself about.

Discussion: The Hill's Blog Briefing Room, Crooks and Liars and The Hill

CQ Politics:
CQ Transcript: Former Vice President Cheney on CBS's ‘Face the Nation’

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Huffington Post, New York Times, The American Scene, American Power, CBS News, Flopping Aces and Think Progress

Sean Lengell / Washington Times:
Cheney: Obama endangers the nation

Discussion: The Corner, Confederate Yankee and Gateway Pundit

CNN:

Gingrich: Pelosi not truthful about waterboarding issue — WASHINGTON (CNN) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has denied she was ever told explicitly that waterboarding had been used on terrorist suspects, “has a lot of explaining to do,” former Speaker Newt Gingrich said Sunday.

Fox News:
Golf Analyst Feherty Sorry for Pelosi Joke in Dallas Magazine

Discussion: JammieWearingFool and HotAirPundit

Mickey Meece / New York Times:

Backlash: Women Bullying Women at Work — YELLING, scheming and sabotaging: all are tell-tale signs that a bully is at work, laying traps for employees at every pass. — During this downturn, as stress levels rise, workplace researchers say, bullies are likely to sharpen their elbows and ratchet up their attacks.

Discussion: American Power, Charlotte Front and Center and Fausta's Blog

Echidne / ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES: The Bully Boys Gals

Ariel Leve / Times of London:

King Abdullah of Jordan's ultimatum: peace now or it's war next year — Richard Beeston and Michael Binyon in Amman — America is putting the final touches to a hugely ambitious peace plan for the Middle East, aimed at ending more than 60 years of conflict between Israel and the Arabs …

Discussion: Israel Matzav, Fausta's Blog and Harry's Place

Richard Beeston / Times of London:
King Abdullah: ‘This is not a two-state solution, it is a 57-state solution’

Discussion: Power Line

Stephen Labaton / New York Times:

Administration Plans to Strengthen Antitrust Rules — WASHINGTON — President Obama's top antitrust official this week plans to restore an aggressive enforcement policy against corporations that use their market dominance to elbow out competitors or to keep them from gaining market share.

Discussion: Think Progress, TalkLeft, Greg Mankiw's Blog, Law Blog, Wall Street Journal and The Page

Bloomberg:

Zardari Says Pakistan Isn't Adding Nuclear Weapons — Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said his country isn't adding to its nuclear arsenal and doesn't have to disclose the location of its weapons to the U.S. — Pakistan is “not adding to our stockpile as such,” Zardari said today on NBC's “Meet the Press” program.