memeorandum: ‘Punkin’ the Birthers: Priceless' (David Weigel/The Washington Independent)

8:30 PM ET, August 6, 2009

Top Items:

Sotomayor Confirmed by Senate, 68-31 — WASHINGTON — Voting largely along party lines, the Senate on Thursday confirmed Judge Sonia Sotomayor as the 111th justice of the Supreme Court. She will be the first Hispanic and the third woman to serve on the court.

Discussion: The Politico, Room for Debate, New York Times, US Senator Orrin Hatch, The Nation, Wonkette, Political Byline, The Confluence, Shakesville, Indecision Forever, Corrente, Little Green Links, Reason, Lawyers, Guns and Money, BlueOregon, Feministe, Donklephant and Truthdig

The Note:
Retiring GOP Senators Free to Vote for Sotomayor

Discussion: ABCNEWS, The Politico, The Swamp and Pam's House Blend

The Note: Franken Presides over Sotomayor Vote

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight: Hispanic Votes Not Swaying GOP on Sotomayor

J. Taylor Rushing / The Hill:
Senate confirms Sotomayor, first Hispanic justice

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Raw Story, Minnesota Independent and DownWithTyranny!

msnbc.com:
Senate confirms Sotomayor for high court

Discussion: TBogg, Zandar Versus The Stupid, skippy the bush kangaroo and Big Brass Blog

Tom Bevan / Real Clear Politics:

After 6 Months, More View Obama's Presidency as a ‘Failure’ Than Bush's — A rather surprising finding from the newly released CNN poll. Question three on the national survey of 1,136 adults (which includes an oversample of African-Americans) asks, “Do you consider the first six months …

Discussion: NewsBusters.org and Below The Beltway

Paul Steinhauser / CNN:

Poll: Obama approval drops 7 points over last 100 days — CNN Deputy Political Director — WASHINGTON (CNN) — As President Obama approaches 200 days in the White House, a new national poll shows his approval rating has dropped seven points since the 100-day mark in April.

Discussion: Quinnipiac University, Real Clear Politics, The Moderate Voice, Christian Science Monitor, The Fix, Hot Air, The Page, Washington Monthly and Below The Beltway

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
THEY ALREADY HAVE THEIR CARE.... The CNN poll released yesterday found …

Discussion: Liberal Values

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
The Health Care Generation Gap

Discussion: Ezra Klein

CNN:
CNN Poll: Support for Afghanistan war drops

Discussion: Newshoggers.com

The Huffington Post:

Unions To Take On Conservative Groups Health Care Town Halls — The nation's largest federation of labor organizations has promised to directly engage with boisterous conservative protesters at Democratic town halls during the August recess. — In a memo sent out on Thursday …

Discussion: TPMDC, Gateway Pundit, Erick's blog, The Plum Line, Daily Kos, The Caucus, On Deadline, Politicususa.com, Burnt Orange Report, Napa Valley Register, Washington Monthly, msnbc.com, Washington Post, Atlas Shrugs, American Power, Maggie's Farm and Gathering of Eagles: NY

Moe Lane / Moe_Lane's blog:

Behold those scary, scary swastika-bearing astroturfers. — (Brief summary for those lacking video: Dallas AARP meeting went wrong for organizers when participants refused to sit down, shut up, and applaud Democratic talking points. Organizers then left; meeting continued.)

Discussion: Atlas Shrugs and American Power

Washington Post:
Senate Committee's Bipartisan Health-Care Reform Talks Move Toward Center

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, New York Times, The Treatment, Ezra Klein, Wonk Room, msnbc.com, The Page, Boston Globe, Indecision Forever, AMERICAblog News, The Foundry and The Note

David Weigel / The Washington Independent:

‘Punkin’ the Birthers: Priceless' — It's looking more and more like the forged “Kenyan birth certificate” released by Orly Taitz on Sunday was a prank by a supporter of President Obama. Politijab points to an anonymous blogger at FearlessBlogging, who has uploaded four photos of the original forgery and a mocking declaration:

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, The Jawa Report, JustOneMinute and TPMDC

Jerome R. Corsi / WorldNetDaily:

Obama birth doc update: Kenya sources weigh in — Comparison with similar certificates suggests fakery, WND probe reveals — NEW YORK - The Kenyan birth document released by California attorney Orly Taitz is probably not authentic, according to WND's investigative operatives in Africa …

Discussion: Below The Beltway and TPMDC

Safe. Anonymous. Free.:
Birthers Punk'd! Hoax Kenyan Birth Certificate

Discussion: Salon, Below The Beltway, Confederate Yankee and TPMDC

RealClearPolitics Video Log:

Pelosi: Town Hall Protesters Are “Carrying Swastikas” — Nancy Pelosi claims protesters are “carrying swastikas and symbols like that to a town meeting on healthcare.” VIDEO: Man At Town Hall: “You Need To Get The Government The Hell Out Of Our Way” VIDEO: DNC Web Ad Attacks Protesters …

Discussion: San Francisco Chronicle, Dr. Sanity, Maggie's Farm, Achenblog, Don Surber, Gathering of Eagles: NY, Gateway Pundit, Below The Beltway, The Moderate Voice, Founding Bloggers, PrairiePundit, Newsweek Blogs, Townhall.com, Blue Crab Boulevard, Wake up America, Sister Toldjah and RedState

Steve / Sweetness & Light:
Was Pelosi So Wrong About Swastikas?

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Political Byline and THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS

Michael Andersen / Columbian:
Baird fears foes may plan ‘ambush’

Discussion: Hot Air, Michelle Malkin and The Plum Line

Philip Kennicott / Washington Post:

Obama as The Joker: Racial Fear's Ugly Face — ‘Political’ Poster Turns On Violent Symbolism — Between Jack Nicholson's 1989 portrayal of the Joker in “Batman” and Heath Ledger's 2008 characterization in “The Dark Knight,” something sinister happened to the villain's iconic makeup.

Discussion: Jules Crittenden, Hot Air, Political Byline, No More Mister Nice Blog, Guardian, AmSpecBlog, Moonbattery, Big Hollywood, James Fallows, RedState, Media Research Center, The Huffington Post, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Reason, Neptunus Lex, LewRockwell.com Blog and Wonkette

The Huffington Post:

Anti-Obama Protester Compares President To Nazi In Swastika Sign — In championing the protests being staged at Democratic town halls, the Republican Party faces the obvious danger of becoming defined by the crazier elements of the crowd. So it's hard to imagine GOP higher-ups feeling …

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, American Power, The Politico, Wizbang, The Jawa Report, The Huffington Post, NJDC Blog, IMAO and The Daily Dish

RushLimbaugh.com:

Whose Swastikas, Speaker Pelosi? — BEGIN TRANSCRIPT — RUSH: Greetings to you, music lovers, thrill-seekers and conversationalists all across the fruited plain. Welcome to the leader. I am the Mobfather Rush Limbaugh here at the Excellence in Broadcasting Network and the Limbaugh Institute for Advanced Conservative Studies.

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, Glenn Thrush's Blog and Reason

Washington Times:

White House: ‘War on terrorism’ is over — ‘Jihadists’ and ‘global war’ no longer acceptable terms — It's official. The U.S. is no longer engaged in a “war on terrorism.” Neither is it fighting “jihadists” or in a “global war.” — President Obama's top homeland security …

Discussion: The Jawa Report, Atlas Shrugs, CNN, Pajamas Media, Jihad Watch and Shot in the Dark

David D. Kirkpatrick / New York Times:
White House Affirms Deal on Drug Cost

Discussion: AMERICAblog News, Ezra Klein, Corrente, Firedoglake, RedState, The Huffington Post, Daily Kos, The Confluence, The Treatment, Time, MyDD, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Sunlight Foundation, Swampland, naked capitalism and TPMDC

Pew Research Center:

Many Fault Media Coverage of Health Care Debate — Partisan Divide Over Coverage of “Birther” Allegations — As the fight in Washington over health care reform continues to dominate public attention and media coverage, most Americans are critical of the way news organizations are explaining key elements of the debate.

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, Salon, The Swamp and Brendan Nyhan

David Weigel / The Washington Independent:
Pew Poll: 39 Percent of Republicans Want More Coverage of Obama's Citizenship

Discussion: Atlantic Correspondents, Raw Story, Think Progress and Zandar Versus The Stupid

Rachel Slajda / Talking Points Memo:

CNN Anchor Rips Into Health Care CEO Who's Funding Anti-Reform Effort — A CNN anchor today tore down Rick Scott, the founder of an organization that's been funding anti-health care reform protests and the former CEO of a hospital company that, as Sanchez pointed out, paid $1.7 billion …

Discussion: Think Progress and Zandar Versus The Stupid

Alex Isenstadt / The Politico:

Reid: GOP ‘run by a talk show host’ — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid launched his harshest attack on the Republican Party in months, claiming the GOP is “being run by a talk show host.” — Reid, armed with a patch of Astroturf, slammed Republicans for sponsoring town hall attacks …

Discussion: Knowledge is Power, Hot Air and JammieWearingFool

Carrie Budoff Brown / The Politico:
WH to Dems: Punch back twice as hard

Discussion: The Reaction

Jonathan Martin / Ben Smith's Blog:

Deeds catches a break — Amie Parnes and I report: — In a welcome development for Virginia gubernatorial candidate Creigh Deeds, President Barack Obama decided to travel to a Deeds fundraiser in McLean, Va., Thursday evening by helicopter instead of by motorcade.

Reid Wilson / The Hill:
Obama ratings may be aiding GOP in Virginia

Discussion: RedState

Mark Silva / The Swamp:
Obama's Virginia campaign: Party calls

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

Obama's dissident database could be secret — and permanent — The White House request that members of the public report anyone who is spreading “disinformation” about the proposed national health care makeover could lead to a White House database of political opponents that will be both secret …

Discussion: Fausta's Blog, Power Line, Neptunus Lex, Raw Story, Babalú Blog, Right Wing News, Hot Air and St. Louis Tea Party

Political Punch:
‘Nobody Is Collecting Names’: White House Responds to Charge It's …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, The Hill's Blog Briefing Room, The Hill, Washington Monthly, Wonkette, Hullabaloo, Below The Beltway, Stop The ACLU, TPMDC and Crooks and Liars

ABCNEWS:

U.S. Official: ‘Strong Indications’ Pakistani Taliban Leader Baitullah Mehsud is Dead — U.S., Pakistani Officials Awaiting DNA Tests for “100 Percent” Confirmation — “There is strong indication” that Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud was killed in a CIA drone strike that targeted …

Discussion: The Long War Journal, Don Surber, FP Passport, Hot Air, ATTACKERMAN, The Washington Independent, Jihad Watch and PrairiePundit

Michelle Malkin:

Revolt against AARP in Dallas: “Do you work for us or do we work for you?” — Watch the senior citizen “hooligans” and “civic vigilantes” in Dallas question a condescending AARP representative about Obamacare. Dues-paying members are speaking up about the organization's sellout of its members — and the AARP brass is not happy.

Discussion: And So it Goes in Shreveport, Stop The ACLU and Gathering of Eagles: NY

Gary Fields / Wall Street Journal:

Clunkers Plan Deflates Mechanics — WASHINGTON — Who doesn't like the government's “cash for clunkers” program? Your mechanic, for one. — Owners of automotive repair shops say the program to help invigorate sales of new cars is succeeding at their expense.

Discussion: Lean Left, AmSpecBlog and Betsy's Page

Rasmussen Reports:

Election 2009: New Jersey Governor — New Jersey Governor: Christie Takes 13-Point Lead Again — Republican challenger Chris Christie has regained his 13-point lead over incumbent Democrat Jon Corzine in New Jersey's closely watched gubernatorial race. — A new Rasmussen Reports survey …

Discussion: Taegan Goddard's …

Rasmussen Reports: Krugman Disses Rasmussen Poll - But Forgets to Fact-Check

Erica Alini / Wall Street Journal:

No More Perks: Coffee Shops Pull the Plug on Laptop Users — They Sit for Hours and Don't Spend Much; Getting the Bum's Rush in the Big Apple — A sign at Naidre's, a small neighborhood coffee shop in Brooklyn, N.Y., begins warmly: “Dear customers, we are absolutely thrilled that you like us …

Discussion: Real Time Economics, Gawker and Althouse