memeorandum: Obama Calls Californian Kamala Harris ‘Best Looking’ Attorney General (Arlette Saenz/ABCNEWS)

10:55 AM ET, April 5, 2013

Top Items:

Jackie Calmes / New York Times:

In Obama Budget, Social Programs Face a Cutback — WASHINGTON — President Obama next week will take the political risk of formally proposing cuts to Social Security and Medicare in his annual budget in an effort to demonstrate his willingness to compromise with Republicans and revive prospects …

Discussion: protein wisdom, Yahoo! News, News Desk, naked capitalism, msnbc.com, DownWithTyranny!, First Read, Angry Bear, americanthinker.com, TalkLeft, Library Grape and New York Magazine

Zachary A. Goldfarb / Washington Post:

Obama budget would cut entitlements in exchange for tax increases — President Obama will release a budget next week that proposes significant cuts to Medicare and Social Security and fewer tax hikes than in the past, a conciliatory approach that he hopes will convince Republicans to sign onto …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, ThinkProgress, Crooks and Liars, The Plum Line, Hot Air, susiemadrak.com and Prairie Weather

CEPR:

President Obama Proposes a Bigger Hit to Seniors Than to the Rich — It might have been worth making this point in an article on President Obama's budget proposal that tells readers of his plan to cut Social Security by reducing the annual cost of living adjustment.

Discussion: Firedoglake

Associated Press:

Obama Budget Proposes Social Security Cuts — WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's proposed budget will call for reductions in the growth of Social Security and other benefit programs by including a proposal to lower cost-of-living adjustments to government social safety net spending, a senior administration official says.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, CANNONFIRE, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Business Insider and Associated Press

Mark Felsenthal / Reuters:

Obama budget to offer program cuts, seek deficit deal: official — (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will offer cuts to Social Security and other entitlement programs in a budget proposal aimed at swaying Republicans to compromise on a deficit-reduction deal, a senior administration official said on Friday.

Discussion: CNN and KUOW

Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:

Obama Budget: Administration Explains Why It Started With A ‘Compromise Proposal’ — NEW YORK CITY — President Barack Obama's budget, which will be introduced on Wednesday, takes a political position that some of his base is bound to bemoan. Rather than present an outline of progressive priorities …

Ryan Grim / The Huffington Post:

Jim DeMint: ‘69.5 Million Americans’ Are Dependent On Government — Former Sen. Jim DeMint, the new president of the Heritage Foundation, began work there Thursday with a letter to the group's staff outlining his vision for the organization. Mitt Romney would find much to admire in it.

Discussion: Shakesville and The Heritage Foundation

Paul Krugman: Desperately Seeking “Serious” Approval

Sheldon Alberts / The Hill:
White House: Obama ready to deal on entitlements in budget

Discussion: CNN and Booman Tribune

Pam Belluck / New York Times:

Judge Orders Morning-After Pill Available for All Ages — A federal judge has ruled that the Unites States government must make the most common morning-after pill available over the counter for all ages, instead of requiring a prescription for girls 16 and under.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, LifeNews.com, Joe. My. God., The Raw Story, americanthinker.com, Gawker, The Volokh Conspiracy and Feministing

Elise Viebeck / The Hill:

Federal judge lifts restrictions on sale of morning-after pill — A federal judge has ordered the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to lift age and other restrictions on the sale of the morning-after pill, making the drug available to women of all ages over the counter.

Discussion: Politico

Neil Steinberg / Chicago Sun Times:

Roger Ebert dies at 70 after battle with cancer — Except for those he hated. — For a film with a daring director, a talented cast, a captivating plot or, ideally, all three, there could be no better advocate than Roger Ebert, who passionately celebrated and promoted excellence in film …

Discussion: Macleans.ca, Kotaku, Hit & Run, Ed Driscoll, No More Mister Nice Blog, Althouse, Vodkapundit, Joe. My. God., The Raw Story, The Reaction, The Week, Stinque, Mediaite, Taylor Marsh and Outside the Beltway, more at Mediagazer »

ThinkProgress:
The Five Best Things Roger Ebert Said About Politics

Discussion: The Week

Douglas Martin / New York Times:
ROGER EBERT | 1942-2013: Roger Ebert, Movie Critic of the Mainstream, Dies at 70

Discussion: The Impolitic, Booman Tribune, Colorlines and The Mahablog

Wall Street Journal:

U.S. Economy Adds Just 88,000 Jobs — Unemployment Rate Falls One-Tenth of a Percentage Point to 7.6% — WASHINGTON—U.S. employers added jobs at the slowest pace in nine months in March, suggesting weakening economic growth as higher taxes and government spending cuts start to have an impact.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and Taegan Goddard's …

Catherine Rampell / New York Times:
U.S. Adds Only 88,000 Jobs; Jobless Rate Falls to 7.6%

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Via Meadia, msnbc.com, Real Time Economics, The Week, Outside the Beltway, Daily Kos and The Hugh Hewitt Show

Joe Weisenthal / Business Insider:
GIGANTIC MISS: JUST 88K NEW JOBS, UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FALLS TO 7.6%, DOW FUTURES OFF 150

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Forbes, Calculated Risk, Wonkblog and Balloon Juice

Arlette Saenz / ABCNEWS:

Obama Calls Californian Kamala Harris ‘Best Looking’ Attorney General — President Obama assessed the beauty of California's attorney general Kamala Harris, calling her “the best looking attorney general,” during remarks at a fundraiser in Atherton, California.

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Mediaite, Hot Air, americanthinker.com, msnbc.com, Yahoo! News and The Hinterland Gazette

BuzzFeed:
The 13 Hottest Attorneys General

Discussion: Post Politics, The Week, Washington Wire, Salon, PostPartisan, The Daily Beast and Gawker

Scott Wilson / Washington Post:
Obama rekindles talk about boys club after comment about California attorney general

Discussion: The Week and Shakesville

Stephanie Baker / Bloomberg:

Blair Scorned at Home Builds Business Empire Abroad — Blair Builds Business Empire, Embraces Philanthropy — On a snowy morning in the middle of February, Tony Blair, looking trim from his four- to five-times- a-week workout regime, is sipping coffee in his office in London's Mayfair district.

Discussion: Telegraph, Press Association and BBC

Alex Leary / Tampa Bay Times:

Bill Nelson reverses opposition to gay marriage — Sen. Bill Nelson has reversed his opposition to gay marriage, becoming the latest senator to do so. Now, only six Democrats in the chamber are opposed to gay marriage. — In a statement to the Tampa Bay Times editorial board, he wrote:

Discussion: Politico, Post Politics, ThinkProgress, Taylor Marsh, Firedoglake, Hot Air, The Hill, Joe. My. God., Towleroad News #gay, msnbc.com, The Reaction and New York Times

Michael Winter / USA Today:

Holmes' doctor warned police before Colo. theater attack — Newly released documents say a psychiatrist warned police that accused Colorado theater gunman James Holmes had homicidal thoughts and was a danger to the public. Holmes is accused of killing 12 people on July 20th. (April 5)

Discussion: JustOneMinute and Hot Air

Arlette Saenz / ABCNEWS:

Scott Brown Won't Rule Out New Hampshire Senate Bid — Image credit: Will Wrobel/The Telegraph/AP Photo — ABC News' Arlette Saenz, Michael Falcone and Elizabeth Hartfield report: — Former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown told reporters Thursday night that he is not ruling out a run …

Discussion: Associated Press, americanthinker.com, The Week and The Daily Caller

Philip Collins / The Times:

Labour can't win if it's on Mick Philpott's side — The voters have decided that we spend too much on welfare. Miliband must offer them more than silence in reply — Labour might easily lose, in 2015, an election it really ought to win and the reason will be that it didn't understand what voters told it in 2010.

Discussion: Guardian, BBC and Marbury

Adam Serwer / Mother Jones:

Cuccinelli Campaign Won't Say If He's Committed Any Crimes Against Nature — The campaign of Virginia state attorney general Ken Cuccinelli won't say if he's committed any crimes against nature. — Cuccinelli, who is running to be Virginia's next governor, recently petitioned a federal court …

Discussion: Joe. My. God. and The National Memo

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:

Elizabeth Colbert Busch: Spring training over for rookie — For months, rookie South Carolina congressional candidate Elizabeth Colbert Busch has had the luxury of kicking back and watching Republicans fight among themselves. With a big hand from her famous brother, comedian Stephen Colbert …

Discussion: msnbc.com and CNN

Numbers / Pew Research Center for the People …:

Majority Now Supports Legalizing Marijuana — OVERVIEW — For the first time in more than four decades of polling on the issue, a majority of Americans favor legalizing the use of marijuana. A national survey finds that 52% say that the use of marijuana should be made legal while 45% say it should not.

Justin Sink / The Hill:

Inhofe: Prepare pre-emptive strike ‘right now’ on North Korea — Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) said that the United States should be prepared to launch a pre-emptive strike “right now” against North Korea, warning that its “deranged” president Kim Jong-Un could attempt a nuclear attack on America.