memeorandum: Why I'm more worried than Paul Krugman about the U.S. debt burden (James Hamilton/Econbrowser)

3:20 PM ET, March 13, 2013

Top Items:

Florida Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll resigns — Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll has resigned. — The resignation comes two days after Florida Department of Law Enforcement officers interviewed Carroll about her involvement with Allied Veterans of the World, a non-profit that operates internet cafes in Florida.

Discussion: www2.tbo.com, The Moderate Voice, Politico, Joe. My. God., Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Right Wing Watch, Wonkette, The Raw Story, The Shark Tank, CNN, The Hinterland Gazette and Post Politics

MiamiHerald.com:

Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll resigns amid state, federal probe of non-profit veterans group — TALLAHASSEE — Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll abruptly resigned amid law enforcement questions about a Florida Internet sweepstakes company at the center of a nationwide criminal investigation.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Maddow Blog, The Awl, The Daily Caller and Politic365

Tia Mitchell / Tampa Bay Times:
Lt. Gov. Carroll resigns amid racketeering probe

Discussion: First Read

Washington Post:

Obama's approval drops as Americans take a dimmer view of his economic policies — The afterglow of President Obama's reelection and inauguration appears to have vanished as increasingly negative views among Americans about his stewardship of the economy have forced his public approval rating …

Discussion: Power Line, Business Insider, ABCNEWS, Guardian, Daily Kos, Mediaite, Hot Air and Post Politics

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:

The Morning Plum: No, the GOP isn't “winning” the argument over sequester — President Obama is set to meet with House Republicans today, and the air is thick with suggestions that Obama is losing the political battle over the sequester. And indeed, a new Washington Post poll has some toplines that are troubling for the president.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, New York Times, The Impolitic, The Maddow Blog, Prairie Weather and TalkLeft

Matthew O'Brien / The Atlantic Online:

Paul Ryan's Tax Math Just Became More Magical — Paul Ryan's latest budget relies on even bigger unnamed savings — There's something breathtaking about any Paul Ryan budget. There are the savage cuts to healthcare and safety-net spending for the young and poor. The deep cuts to education, research, and infrastructure.

Discussion: New York Times, A plain blog about politics, The Dish, Brad DeLong and PostPartisan

Washington Post:
Obama approval, Congress and the sequester

Discussion: Firedoglake, Daily Kos, msnbc.com, The Fix and The Hill

Ed Kilgore / Washington Monthly:
A Tug O' the Forelock

Discussion: New Republic and Real Clear Politics

Politico:

CPAC muddle mirrors GOP mess — It's not hard to make fun of CPAC. From the presence of Donald Trump to a meaningless straw poll to a cavalcade of fringe-dwelling book merchants, the event has become more carnival than conservative salon. — What is more notable about this year's rendition …

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, The Hill, ABCNEWS, msnbc.com, First Read and TheBlaze.com

Jake Sherman / Politico:

Eric Cantor's move to the middle rankles leaders — Eric Cantor has spent the last four years carefully cultivating his image as a foil to President Barack Obama and the conservative conscience of House Speaker John Boehner. — No more. — The man who once threatened to block emergency aid …

Discussion: UTSanDiego.com, msnbc.com, forum.iop.harvard.edu and The Page

Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Rand Paul: ‘Tolerant’ GOP would have more appeal to young voters

Discussion: Politico and Shakesville

ABCNEWS:

Transcript: President Obama's Exclusive Interview With George Stephanopoulos — GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: — Mr. President, thank you for doing this. — PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: — It's great to be here. — GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: — So, you've done all meetings on Capitol Hill …

Discussion: NationalJournal.com, Mediaite, Michelle Malkin, Right Turn, BuzzFeed, Advocate, Mashable!, Wonkblog, Twitchy, The PJ Tatler, Taylor Marsh, NewsBusters blogs, Politico, Business Insider, Daily Kos, Hot Air, Reuters and National Review

Jonathan Karl / Yahoo! News:
President Obama: There Is No Debt Crisis

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and ABCNEWS

George Stephanopoulos / ABCNEWS:
Obama: Gap Between Parties May Be ‘Too Wide’ for a Grand Bargain on Budget

Discussion: USA Today, Towleroad News #gay, Hawkings Here, Scared Monkeys, The Agonist, The Caucus, Business Insider, Weasel Zippers, Politico and Post Politics

uticaod.com:

Police ID fatal shooting suspect as Kurt Myers of Mohawk — Mohawk police have identified the man suspected of fatally shooting six and wounding two others as 64-year-old Kurt Myers of Mohawk. — Police have not yet apprehended Myers. State police expect to hold a news conference at the Herkimer barracks within the hour.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Gawker, BBC, The Hinterland Gazette, Associated Press, CBS New York, Pressing Issues and Gothamist

Ryan Grim / The Huffington Post:

How Bill Clinton Inspired The 47 Percent Filmmaker — WASHINGTON — Bill Clinton won the presidential election for Barack Obama. But it wasn't his masterful Democratic National Convention speech or the advice he offered the president's reelection campaign.

Discussion: Telegraph, Business Insider, Gothamist, The Week, Mediaite, Rumproast, Gawker, TVNewser, The Caucus and Pressing Issues

Jason Cherkis / The Huffington Post:
47 Percent Filmmaker Had No Health Insurance

Discussion: Daily Kos

Steve Frank / msnbc.com:
EXCLUSIVE: The ‘47% tape’ and the man who revealed the real Mitt Romney

Discussion: Washington Wire, Mother Jones and The Raw Story

Politico:

Missed chance: Obama's tax problem — President Obama faces huge, and probably insurmountable, obstacles to reviving a grand bargain — none higher and more difficult to overcome than his decision to increase taxes by $600 billion in December. — At the time, Obama claimed victory …

Discussion: Roll Call, The Plum Line, Ricochet Conversations Feed, msnbc.com, Right Turn and Weasel Zippers

Politico:
Tense meeting between President Obama, House GOP

Discussion: Guardian

Meghashyam Mali / The Hill:
Obama looking for way to resume White House tours for school groups

Discussion: Politico, Jammie Wearing Fools, CNN, The Daily Caller and Weasel Zippers

Eric Pfeiffer / Yahoo! News:

Alleged North Korean propaganda video: ‘This is how Americans live today’ — A new video has been posted to the Live Leak site that claims to be a North Korean propaganda video showing a dystopian American society. — It's unclear if the translation is accurate, and whether the video did in fact originate in North Korea.

Discussion: The Daily Caller and National Review

Erica Ritz / TheBlaze.com:

NJ MOTHER PRESSURED TO TURN OVER HER GUNS, CHARGED WITH ‘TERRORISTIC THREATS’ AFTER READING THE CONSTITUTION AT TAX DISPUTE ASSEMBLY — Key Points: — Eileen Hart objected to a mandatory re-evaluation of her property value that would drastically increase her tax rates

Discussion: Guns.com, Algemeiner.com and LewRockwell.com Blog

James Hamilton / Econbrowser:

Why I'm more worried than Paul Krugman about the U.S. debt burden — I have been writing recently ([1], [2]) about my paper Crunch Time: Fiscal Crises and the Role of Monetary Policy, co-authored with David Greenlaw (Managing Director and Chief U.S. Fixed Income Economist for Morgan Stanley) …

Discussion: Brad DeLong

Rachel Donadio / New York Times:

Cardinals Elect New Pope — VATICAN CITY — With a puff of white smoke from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel and to the cheers of thousands of rain-soaked faithful, a gathering of Catholic cardinals picked a new pope from among their midst on Wednesday. The name of the new pope …

Discussion: PolicyMic

Paul Owen / Guardian:
White smoke indicates pope has been chosen - live

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Towleroad News #gay

Brian Beutler / Talking Points Memo:

Senate Dems Weigh Consequences For GOP Filibusters Of Key Nominees — Senate Democratic leaders have engaged in preliminary discussions about how to address Republican procedural obstruction, according to a senior Democratic aide, reflecting an awareness that key administration …

Discussion: The Maddow Blog, PostPartisan, Outside the Beltway, Mother Jones, The Dish, DownWithTyranny! and Washington Monthly

Paul Bedard / Washington Examiner:

2016 Hillary-Michelle ‘Dream Ticket’ floated … Hillary Clinton hasn't stepped into the 2016 Democratic presidential primaries yet and there's already buzz growing for the ultimate grrl power ticket: Clinton and first lady Michelle Obama. — “All due respect for President Obama and Vice President Biden …

Discussion: UrbanGrounds, The Gateway Pundit and The Other McCain

ThinkProgress:

Why Aren't More Americans Fired Up About Inequality? — With news of record corporate profits and increased bonuses for those at the top of the financial heap — and on-going income stagnation, job loss, and rising poverty for those in the middle and bottom of the ladder …

Discussion: Prairie Weather and Althouse

William A. Jacobson / Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion:

Talking smack — Team Breitbart: We're going to smack Politico across the face and expose Buzzfeed: … Needless to say, the use of the term “smack” is getting attention, but that's a distraction. — The bigger point is the point I've made here repeatedly over the years about Politico …

Discussion: Washington Examiner and Althouse

Conor Friedersdorf / The Atlantic Online:

Consider the Lobster Claw: Why a Twist on an Arcade Classic Delights and Disturbs Us — The joystick is seized. The claw is positioned within the lobster tank. It descends on your command. Are you sure you want to claim your prize? Arizona resident Nate Ferra loves liberating prizes from arcade claw machines.