memeorandum: Adrift in Iowa: Tired Rituals in Tough Times (Frank Bruni/New York Times)

3:50 PM ET, August 14, 2011

Top Items:

Pawlenty Drops Out of Republican Race — Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, left, at Thursday's debate in Ames, Iowa, with Jon M. Huntsman Jr. and Newt Gingrich. — DES MOINES — Tim Pawlenty, the former governor of Minnesota, dropped his bid for the Republican nomination for president …

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:

So much for Sam's Club — The departure of Tim Pawlenty this morning won't have a major impact on a race that had already taken shape without him — that's why he dropped out. — The move makes clear that Texas Gov. Rick Perry has fully seized the space Pawlenty sought to occupy, of the established conservative alternative.

Discussion: The Daily Dish

Political Punch:

Pawlenty Drops Out of Presidential Race After Disappointing Straw Poll Finish — Former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty is dropping out of the Republican presidential contest, after a disappointing third place finish in the Iowa Straw Poll yesterday. — “We needed to get some lift to continue …

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Top of the Ticket, Washington Wire, Washington Post, Wizbang, Radio Iowa, LGBTQ Nation, The Daily What, Online NewsHour, Iowa Caucuses, Washington Monthly, Swampland, TPMDC, The Daily Caller, Daily Kos, The Other McCain and The Political Carnival

John Hinderaker / Power Line:

Farewell to Tim Pawlenty — I agree with Scott's comments on Tim Pawlenty's withdrawal from the GOP presidential race. As a Pawlenty supporter, I am disappointed. But the bottom line is that this year, at least, what Pawlenty was selling wasn't what the Republican base wanted to buy.

Discussion: Hot Air

Jazz Shaw / Hot Air:

T-Paw dropping out; Update: State GOP chair to ask Pawlenty to run for Senate — News began breaking on Sunday morning before most folks had finished their coffee or had even woken up on the left coast. Some fourteen hours after finishing a relatively distant third place to Michele Bachmann …

Discussion: Power Line, Outside the Beltway, Questions and Observations, Donklephant, Ballot Box, The Strata-Sphere and Instapundit

Meghashyam Mali / The Hill:
Bachmann says she can win independents in general election

Discussion: Washington Monthly

Catalina Camia / USA Today:
Tim Pawlenty ends presidential campaign

Discussion: Firedoglake, Moe_Lane's blog, Towleroad News #gay, The Politico and Conservatives4Palin

Frank Bruni / New York Times:
Adrift in Iowa: Tired Rituals in Tough Times

Discussion: National Review, Daily Kos and Washington Post

Toby Harnden / blogs.telegraph.co.uk: 10 things to take away from Ames. What Michele Bachmann's win means

Brian Bakst / Associated Press: Ex-Minn. Gov. Tim Pawlenty ends White House bid

Jon Ward / The Huffington Post:
Ames Win Positions Michele Bachmann As Rick Perry's Top Obstacle To Be Anti-Romney (VIDEO)

Discussion: The Political Carnival

The Politico:
Tim Pawlenty drops out of presidential race

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, CNN, ABCNEWS, Runnin' Scared, Salon, Outside the Beltway and New York Times

Juana Summers / The Politico:
Former rivals praise Tim Pawlenty as he exits

Discussion: CNN and The Caucus

Chris Cillizza / Washington Post:
Michele Bachmann wins the Ames Straw Poll

Discussion: Mother Jones, Scared Monkeys, The Reaction, Prairie Weather, ABCNEWS, A plain blog about politics, Talking Points Memo, The Politico, Mediaite, Hit & Run, nation.foxnews.com, The Note, CNN, Washington Monthly, LewRockwell.com Blog and New York Magazine

Des Moines / Iowa Caucuses:
Michele Bachmann wins Iowa Straw Poll

Discussion: Bloomberg, The Other McCain, The Politico, New York Times, Washington Post, Outside the Beltway and CNN

Michael D. Shear / The Caucus:
Bachmann Wins Iowa Straw Poll

Discussion: Right Wing News, The Daily Dish, CNN and Connecting.the.Dots

Ramesh Ponnuru / Bloomberg:
Bachmann Wins Iowa, For Now: The Ticker

Discussion: Patterico's Pontifications, The Other McCain, Don Surber and GOP 12

Ballot Box:
Bachmann wins Ames straw poll; Ron Paul takes second, Pawlenty distant third

Discussion: CNN, The Note, The Hill, The Huffington Post, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, msnbc.com, GOP 12 and The Moderate Voice

New York Times:

White House Debates Fight on Economy — WASHINGTON — As the economy worsens, President Obama and his senior aides are considering whether to adopt a more combative approach on economic issues, seeking to highlight substantive differences with Republicans in Congress and on the campaign trail rather …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, TalkLeft, Booman Tribune, Clusterstock, The Impolitic, No More Mister Nice Blog and Jared Bernstein

Calculated Risk:
White House Debates Doing Little or Nothing

Discussion: Suburban Guerrilla, Clusterstock, emptywheel and Grasping Reality …

Mark Thoma / Economist's View:
White House Debates Giving Up on Helping the Economy

Discussion: Paul Krugman, Don Surber and Grasping Reality …

CNN:

CNN/ORC Poll: Dem support for Obama's re-election fades — Washington (CNN) - Barack Obama's base is behind another term for the president, according to a new CNN/ORC International poll. — Seven in 10 Democrats say they'd like to see Obama as their party's presidential nominee next year.

Discussion: Israel Matzav

Charles Dameron / Wall Street Journal:

Rick Perry's Crony Capitalism Problem — The presidential candidate's signature economic development initiative has raised questions among conservatives. — Gov. Rick Perry's presidential pitch goes something like this: During one of the worst recessions in American history, he's kept his state “open for business.”

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, The Reality-Based Community, Betsy's Page and Riehl World View

Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:

A Theory of Everything (Sort of) — LONDON burns. The Arab Spring triggers popular rebellions against autocrats across the Arab world. The Israeli Summer brings 250,000 Israelis into the streets, protesting the lack of affordable housing and the way their country is now dominated by an oligopoly of crony capitalists.

Discussion: Hullabaloo and Balloon Juice

Deborah Netburn / Los Angeles Times:

Virginia school district bans Sherlock Holmes book — That's right, Watson, Sherlock Holmes has been banned. That is, one book featuring the detective has been pulled from the sixth-grade reading list in one Virginia school district. — The Albemarle County School Board …

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Outside the Beltway and Roger Ailes

Mike Lillis / The Hill:

Clyburn hopes to use supercommittee post to tackle wealth gap — A leading House Democrat is hoping to use his prestigious seat on the deficit-cutting supercommittee to close the growing gully that divides the rich and the poor in America. — Rep. James Clyburn (S.C.) …

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, Weasel Zippers and The Lonely Conservative

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:

Bachmann sidesteps gay rights questions — Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) was peppered Sunday with questions about her thoughts on gay rights, but largely refused to engage them, arguing that those issues aren't on the front of voters' minds. — “I am running for the presidency of the United States.

Discussion: The Caucus, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and Towleroad News #gay

George F. Will / Washington Post:

JFK's Berlin blunder — Fifty years ago, a metaphor became concrete. Beginning on Aug. 13, 1961, along West Berlin's 27-mile border, the Iron Curtain became tangible in a wall of precast slabs of concrete. It came down 22 years ago, but the story of how it rose, as told in Frederick Kempe's book …