memeorandum: Romney Criticizes Obama Foreign Policy Record (Associated Press)

2:55 PM ET, October 1, 2012

Top Items:

A New Course for the Middle East — Restore the three sinews of American influence: our economic strength, our military strength and the strength of our values. — Disturbing developments are sweeping across the greater Middle East. In Syria, tens of thousands of innocent people have been slaughtered.

James Hohmann / Reuters:

Battleground Poll: Race still tight — The presidential race is tight enough nationally that a strong performance in Wednesday's debate by Mitt Romney could put him in the lead. — A new POLITICO/George Washington University Battleground Poll of likely voters shows President Barack Obama ahead 49 percent …

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Hot Air, Power Line, CNN, National Review, Weasel Zippers, The PJ Tatler, First Read, The Daily Caller, Jammie Wearing Fools, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Columbus Dispatch

Washington Post:
Tight race nationally as first debate approaches

Discussion: Firedoglake, Mother Jones, BuzzFeed, Public Policy Polling, The Fix, Politico, Ballot Box, New York Magazine, Wonkblog, Hot Air, Washington Wire, Battleground Watch, The Argo Journal and National Review

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
Sept. 30: Romney Down a Touchdown?

Discussion: The Stranger …, Associated Press and The Moderate Voice

Glenn Thrush / Reuters:

Obama vs. Obama at debates — LAS VEGAS — President Barack Obama's most dangerous opponent in the trio of upcoming presidential debates isn't Mitt Romney. — It's himself. — The president has been working on blunting his barbs nearly as much as he's been trying to sharpen …

Discussion: CNN, ABCNEWS, Sister Toldjah, Washington Wire and First Read

Associated Press:
Romney Criticizes Obama Foreign Policy Record

Discussion: CNN

Reuters:
Mitt Romney advisers clash over Libya

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, Guardian and NewsBusters.org blogs

Paul Bedard / Washington Examiner:

Obama uses Down syndrome to hit Romney … In its latest effort to slap Mitt Romney's “47 percent” comment, the Obama campaign on Monday tapped a young woman with Down syndrome to pull at the heartstrings of undecided voters. — The Obama-Biden campaign's web page featured a “letter of the week” …

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Lauren Peterson / Barack Obama:

Brittany: “A face of one of the 47%” — Hello! My name is Brittany and I live in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. I am 25 years old (but I will be 26 on October 3rd!). I am a registered Democrat and I have been voting since I was 18. I am one of the 47% of Americans who fall under Mitt Romney's definition …

Discussion: The PJ Tatler

Chrystia Freeland / New Yorker:

SUPER-RICH IRONY … - SPORTS - PHOTO BOOTH - DAILY SHOUTS - PAGE-TURNER - DAILY COMMENT - AMY DAVIDSON - JOHN CASSIDY - ANDY BOROWITZ - RICHARD BRODY

Discussion: New York Magazine, Business Insider, The Confluence and DealBook

Felix Salmon:

Victimized billionaires — Why do billionaires feel victimized by Obama? Chrystia Freeland asks that question in the New Yorker this week, and comes back with answers we've all heard before: in short, it's not the policies, it's the rhetoric. — Of course, this doesn't stand up to scrutiny; it never did.

Discussion: Brad DeLong and The Daily Beast

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:

The Paul Ryan Legend Dissipates — Before we discuss our tax plan, I would like to point out that my eyes are extremely blue. — Paul Ryan's selection as Mitt Romney's vice-presidential candidate is subjecting him to all manner of strange new indignities, such as questions about public policy …

Discussion: Keith Hennessey, The Daily Dish, Connecting.the.Dots, Lawyers, Guns & Money and National Review

Penny Starr / CNSNews:

U.S. Gov't Employees Among Top Campaign Contributors to Obama; Bankers Among Top Contributors to Romney — (CNSNews.com) - U.S. government employees and their families have thus far contributed $396,550 to President Barack Obama's reelection campaign, making them one of the top five sources …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

Jeff G. / protein wisdom: “U.S. government employees and their families have been among the top five sources of campaign funds …

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

The Real Referendum — Republicans came into this campaign believing that it would be a referendum on President Obama, and that still-high unemployment would hand them victory on a silver platter. But given the usual caveats — a month can be a long time in politics, it's not over until …

Discussion: Firedoglake, Paul Krugman, Daily Kos, Prairie Weather, Crooks and Liars, Hullabaloo and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Reuters:

The parallel universe where Mitt leads all polls — To talk with any working Republican political operative these days is to hear the same tale of woe: a grim accounting of the past few weeks, a dash of gallows humor and a measure of hope that President Obama is still beatable.

Discussion: rubber hose, ABCNEWS and Booman Tribune

Charles C. Johnson / The Daily Caller:

As college student, Eric Holder participated in ‘armed’ takeover of former Columbia University ROTC office — As a freshman at Columbia University in 1970, future Attorney General Eric Holder participated in a five-day occupation of an abandoned Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) …

Discussion: protein wisdom, The Rightnewz, TBogg, Weasel Zippers, Patterico's Pontifications and Jammie Wearing Fools

Bill Gertz / Washington Free Beacon:

White House Hack Attack — Hackers linked to China's government broke into one of the U.S. government's most sensitive computer networks, breaching a system used by the White House Military Office for nuclear commands, according to defense and intelligence officials familiar with the incident.

Discussion: The Jawa Report, The Raw Story, The Heritage Foundation, Business Insider, americanthinker.com, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Caller and Patterico's Pontifications

Tim Mak / Politico: White House confirms cyberattack

Jeremy Herb / The Hill:

After Obama guidance, Lockheed won't issue layoff notices this year — Lockheed Martin said Monday it will not issue employee layoff notices this year, ending an election-year showdown with the Obama administration. — The company said it based its decision on new guidance issued Friday …

Discussion: Politico, Michelle Malkin, Say Anything and Jammie Wearing Fools

ABCNEWS:

Fast and Furious Scandal: New Details Emerge on How the U.S. Government Armed Mexican Drug Cartels — Pools Of Blood On The Streets Of Villas De Salvarcar After A Massacre In Which Operation Fast And Furious Guns Were Allegedly Used (Univision) — On January 30, 2010 …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Wake up America, PJ Media, Business Insider, Questions and Observations, Nice Deb, Politico, Pirate's Cove, National Review, Weasel Zippers, Pundit & Pundette and Scared Monkeys

Michael A. Walsh / New York Post:

Wheels coming off — Team O's Libya dissembling — With a little more than a month to go before a crucial national election, the wheels are coming off the Obama administration's national-security credentials. — The coordinated attacks on the US consulate in Benghazi …

Discussion: National Review

Craig Unger / Salon:

GOP's October surprise? — Source reveals “Jimmy Carter Strategy” to make Obama seem weak on defense in campaign's final month — According to a highly reliable source, as Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama prepare for the first presidential debate Wednesday night …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Washington Monthly, Mother Jones and The Daily Dish

And / WBUR:

Warren Maintains Narrow Lead In Latest WBUR Senate Poll — Sen. Scott Brown and his Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren prepare for their first debate with moderator Jon Keller on Sept. 20 in Boston. (AP) — BOSTON — The latest WBUR poll of 504 likely voters (PDFs - topline …

Discussion: Blue Mass Group, Taegan Goddard's …, The Fix and Election 2012

Annie Lowrey / New York Times:

Payroll Tax Cut Unlikely to Survive Into Next Year — WASHINGTON — Regardless of who wins the presidential election in November or what compromises Congress strikes in the lame-duck session to keep the economy from automatic tax increases and spending cuts, 160 million American wage earners …

Discussion: FT Alphaville, Outside the Beltway, The Caucus, Wonkblog and Taylor Marsh

Chris Geidner / BuzzFeed:

Supreme Court Denies Appeal From Anti-Gay Marriage Group — National Organization for Marriage may be forced to disclose funders in Maine fight. No action yet on Proposition 8, Defense of Marriage Act cases. — Image by Gary Cameron / Reuters — WASHINGTON, D.C. …

Discussion: The Raw Story

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard / Telegraph:

Another domino falls as Hollande pushes France into depression — If French President François Hollande thinks he can assuage the bond markets by dishing out tax-heavy austerity instead of genuine reform, he has been given very bad advice. — 'Francois Hollande proposes nothing credible …

Discussion: Babalú Blog, Angry Bear and National Review

David Carr / New York Times:

The Media Equation: Challenging the Claims of Media Bias - the Media Equation — In the last few days, conservatives have become agitated about Mitt Romney's drop-off in the polls. So did they think the stumble was because of the ill-fated “47 percent” slip of the lip …

Discussion: NewsBusters.org blogs, protein wisdom, Politico, National Review, The Caucus, The Week, Media Decoder, TVNewser, Instapundit, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Ricochet Conversations Feed, more at Mediagazer »

Jennifer Bendery / The Huffington Post:

Subscribe to the HuffPost Hill newsletter! — Around the Web: — Dem poll: Allen West trailing by 9 in reelection bid — Allen West's internal poll says he leads Murphy, 52-41 — New Allen West ad features Murphy's 2003 mug shot; Murphy camp raises ... Rep. Allen West attacks opponent for bar fight, arrest

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and TheBlaze.com

BuzzFeed:

How The Economy Collapsed (As a Political Issue) — Republicans and Democrats no longer have the same facts. It's the perceptual bias, stupid. — Via: people-press.org — The big issue of the 2012 election — the American economy — has been settled.

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Villainous Company and Riehl World News

BuzzFeed:

Donald Trump's Libyan Hindsight — He made the case for Libya intervention, now he says he knew all along. Prediction: He will not acknowledge the contradiction. — Andrew Kaczynski — a half hour ago — respond

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Ruby Cramer / BuzzFeed:

Quietly, Gillibrand Raises Big Money For Female Candidates — With a wide lead in her own re-election, Kirsten Gillibrand is raising money in the homestretch for female Dems like Claire McCaskill. A machine in the making? — Image by Eric Thayer / Reuters

Discussion: Taylor Marsh

David Shuster / The Huffington Post:

The ‘Live TV’ Suicide: Forgive Shep Smith, But Boycott Buzzfeed … Fox News , General Electric , Shep Smith , Buzzfeed , Car Chase , Journalism Ethics , Live Tv , Media Ethics , Shep Smith Car Chase , Tv Suicide , Media News — In my 23 years in journalism, I've never seen a self-proclaimed …

Discussion: National Review and TheBlaze.com