memeorandum: Unemployment in Euro Zone Reaches a Record High (David Jolly/New York Times)

11:15 AM ET, April 2, 2013

Top Items:

State Sen. Malcolm Smith, city Councilman Halloran arrested in ‘bribery plot’ to rig mayor race — State Senator Malcolm Smith was arrested at his home in Queens today. — State Sen. Malcolm Smith and city Councilman Dan Halloran were arrested this morning on charges they were plotting …

Discussion: nbcnewyork.com, Business Insider, Capital New York, The Other McCain and Gothamist

William K. Rashbaum / New York Times:

Lawmakers Charged in Plot to Buy Spot on Mayoral Ballot — State Senator Malcolm A. Smith, a contractor and real estate developer who rose to become the first black president of the State Senate, and City Councilman Daniel J. Halloran III were arrested early Tuesday on charges of trying …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Raw Story, Hot Air, The Hinterland Gazette, NewsBusters blogs, Joe. My. God., Gawker and Towleroad News #gay

Greg B. Smith / NY Daily News:
FBI busts Queens state Sen. Malcolm Smith and City Councilman Dan Halloran in mayoral election bribery plot

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon

Washington Post:

Firearms advocates target gun-control measures — Gun-control measures that seemed destined to become law after the school shootings in Newtown, Conn., are in jeopardy amid a fierce lobbying campaign by firearms advocates. — Despite months of negotiations, key senators have been unable …

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Yahoo! News, The Daily Caller, Wall Street Journal and msnbc.com

Peter Applebome / New York Times:

Legislators in Connecticut Agree on Broad New Gun Laws — HARTFORD — More than three months after the massacre of 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., state legislative leaders announced on Monday that they had agreed on what they called the most far-reaching gun-legislation package in the country.

Discussion: BBC, Mediaite, msnbc.com, Taylor Marsh, The Week and The Fix

Susan Haigh / Associated Press:
Conn. lawmakers unveil bipartisan gun control plan

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, The PJ Tatler and CBS New York

Associated Press:
Connecticut lawmakers agree on tough gun control bill

Discussion: Guardian

New York Post:

Outrage 101: Radical jailed in slay now Columbia prof — Former Weather Underground radical Kathy Boudin — who spent 22 years in prison for an armored-car robbery that killed two cops and a Brinks guard — now holds a prestigious adjunct professorship at Columbia University's School of Social Work, The Post has learned.

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, Jammie Wearing Fools, Weasel Zippers, Right Wing News, Fox News Insider and Washington Free Beacon

Kate Brumback / Talking Points Memo:

Guns Are Now Required For Citizens Of Nelson, Georgia — NELSON, Ga. (AP) — Backers of a newly adopted ordinance requiring gun ownership in a small north Georgia town acknowledge they were largely seeking to make a point about gun rights. — The ordinance in the city of Nelson …

Discussion: Mediaite, driftglass and The Raw Story

Annie-Rose Strasser / ThinkProgress:

Georgia Town Passes Mandatory Gun Bill — Late Monday, Nelson, Georgia passed a law called the “Family Protection Ordinance” that requires every adult in the 1,300-person town to own a gun “for purposes of emergency management and general safety of the city.”

Discussion: Associated Press

Adam Beam / The State:

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz to keynote S.C. GOP's Silver Elephant Celebration in May — COLUMBIA, SC — U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz will be the keynote speaker at the South Carolina Republican Party's Silver Elephant Celebration on May 3, according to a source close to the state party.

Discussion: Roll Call, First Read and Ballot Box

Peter Hamby / CNN:
Cruz to test 2016 waters with South Carolina trip

Discussion: Post Politics

Ashley Parker / New York Times:
Graham's Immigration Bid Starts in South Carolina

Discussion: The Plum Line, Mock, Paper, Scissors, The Caucus and The Hill

The Week:

Marco Rubio is right: Don't rush immigration reform — Congress needs to open up the debate to the public — N — o one doubts that momentum has quickly developed for a deal on comprehensive immigration reform and border security. But by rushing to get a deal done and working behind closed doors …

Discussion: Hot Air, Firedoglake, NBC Latino and Politico

Politico:
What Marco Rubio is thinking

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Salon, The National Memo and Power Line

David M. Drucker / GOPpers:
Rubio Says Process Counts in Immigration Overhaul

Discussion: The Plum Line

Facebook:

Senator Tom Carper · 2,803 like this — As our society has changed and evolved, so too has the public's opinion on gay marriage - and so has mine. I pray every day for God to grant me the wisdom to do what is right. Through my prayers and conversations with my family …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, BuzzFeed, Towleroad News #gay and Daily Kos

Colby Itkowitz / Morning Call:
Casey: I support gay marriage

Discussion: Politico, The New Civil Rights Movement, ThinkProgress, Weasel Zippers, Hot Air, Taylor Marsh, Advocate, CNN, The Caucus, Post Politics, Daily Kos, The Hill and Good As You

David Voreacos / Bloomberg:

Donor Says He Sought Menendez on Medicare Without Breaking Law — Salomon Melgen, the Florida political donor at the center of a criminal probe, said he and Senator Robert Menendez are “like brothers” who spoke weekly, yet his companies never benefited and he broke no laws.

Discussion: CNN, The Hill and Politico

New York Times:

Obama to Unveil Initiative to Map the Human Brain — President Obama on Tuesday will announce a broad new research initiative, starting with $100 million in 2014, to invent and refine new technologies to understand the human brain, senior administration officials said Monday.

Discussion: CBS DC

Meghashyam Mali / The Hill: Obama to announce new research initiative to map the human brain

Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:

Sequestration Effects: Cuts Sting Communities Nationwide — WASHINGTON — It's now an article of faith that dire sequestration warnings were overblown. — New studies downsize potential job losses because of the federal budget cuts. Agencies have figured ways to ensure that the more alarming effects …

Discussion: Washington Monthly and A plain blog about politics

Kenneth P. Vogel / Politico:

Clinton 2016 starts with McAuliffe race — Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign begins this year in Virginia. — She hasn't said anything about 2016, but Terry McAuliffe's 2013 gubernatorial campaign is serving as a testing ground for Clinton's clout, operatives and donors.

Discussion: Trail Blazers Blog

Kevin Diaz / StarTribune.com:

‘Man of mystery’ is behind Michele Bachmann campaign cases — From a Ugandan jail cell to the Iowa presidential campaign, secretive evangelist Peter Waldron is no stranger to conflict. — Peter Waldron's journey from a jail cell in Uganda to the inner circle of Michele Bachmann's presidential campaign …

David Jolly / New York Times:

Unemployment in Euro Zone Reaches a Record High — PARIS — Unemployment in the euro zone rose to yet another record high in the first two months of the year, official data showed Tuesday, providing confirmation that the economy remains in a deep freeze. — The jobless rate reached 12 percent …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Balloon Juice and The Heritage Foundation

Jean Eaglesham / Wall Street Journal:

SEC Ex-Chief Lands at Consultant — Schapiro Is Latest Former U.S. Regulator to Join Promontory Financial; ‘No Revolving Door’ — Less than four months after stepping down as the top U.S. securities regulator, Mary Schapiro is joining a consulting firm that has built a reputation …

Discussion: LewRockwell.com Blog, Business Insider and naked capitalism

Pete Kasperowicz / The Hill:

Schumer proposes federal grants to tap maple syrup on private land — Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Monday proposed a new federal grant program aimed at encouraging the development of maple syrup production on privately held land, including land in upstate New York.

Discussion: Weekly Standard

James Hohmann / Politico:

Justin Amash: The House's new Ron Paul — When it comes to the House of Representatives, Justin Amash is the new Ron Paul. — The Michigan congressman, only 32, sees himself as a leader of “the second generation” of Paulites in the lower chamber. Sen. Rand Paul moved quickly to present himself …

Discussion: Hit & Run, Yahoo! News and Power Line

Meenal Vamburkar / Mediaite:

Stewart Destroys Pres. Morsi For Going After 'Egypt's Jon Stewart' After Vowing To ‘Welcome Every Opinion’ — On Monday night, Jon Stewart took to defending Bassem Youssef, who's often known as Stewart's Egyptian counterpart. Youssef recently spoke out to CNN about Egypt's “fascist” …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, WorldViews, The Raw Story and New York Times

David Rogers / Politico:

Big Agriculture flexes its muscle — Yet for all the anger — and belated legal reviews — no one can truly be surprised by the packers' success nor Monsanto's. Indeed the collapse of the traditional appropriations process in Congress may magnify the power of single-interest lobbies …

Discussion: Yahoo! News