memeorandum: 2008: 9/24 straw poll results (Kos/Daily Kos)

5:30 PM ET, September 24, 2007

Top Items:

Iran's president on Israel, nukes and gays — NEW YORK (CNN) — Columbia University President Lee Bollinger excoriated Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday, going through a long list of documented actions and remarks by the firebrand Iranian leader and his government.

Discussion: The Jawa Report, Hot Air, NY Daily News, Thought Theater, The Daily Gut, The American Princess, The Van Der Galiën Gazette and Shakespeare's Sister

Sewell Chan / New York Times:

Iranian Leader, Calling Introductory Remarks Insulting, Addresses Columbia — President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran completed his appearance by thanking his audience. "I ask Almighty God to assist all of us to work hand in hand for a future filled with peace, justice and brotherhood," he said.

Discussion: The Washington Note, Eunomia, Gothamist and AMERICAN DIGEST

Catherine Donaldson-Evans / Fox News:

Ahmadinejad Speaks of Love, Kindess, Beauty and God in Speech to National Press Club — Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said during his remarks to the National Press Club Monday that the world needs to build a better future "based on peace and security of all humanity," …

T-Steel / The Moderate Voice:

An apology is in order! — Silly, Silly Man! — Those who sharply criticized Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs President Lee C. Bollinger for inviting Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak owe him a galaxy sized apology. You know who you are so I'm not naming names/blogs/media outlets.

Allahpundit / Hot Air:

Video: There are no gays in Iran, says Ahmadinejad — I've got Bollinger's surprising, much-lauded speech coming up, but enjoy this as a snack. Some rare derisive laughter from the audience greets this little pearl. — Maybe it was a translation error and he meant "There will be no gays in Iran"?

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, protein wisdom, Jihad Watch, Stop The ACLU, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler

Michael Slackman / New York Times:
U.S. Focus on Ahmadinejad Puzzles Iranians

Discussion: CNN, Feministe, The Van Der Galiën Gazette, Open Left and Hoffmania!

Michelle Malkin:
Mahmoudapalooza: The madman comes calling; Update: A Columbia/nutjob quid pro quo?

David M. Schizer / law.columbia.edu:
STATEMENT BY DAVID M.SCHIZER RE: SIPA INVITATION TO MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD

Discussion: Washington Times, Power Line, Israpundit, The Democratic Daily, No More Mister Nice Blog, Macsmind, Townhall.com and Wake up America

The Hill:
Let Ahmadinejad Speak! — Do we believe in free speech or not?

Discussion: The Swamp

The Big Trunk / Power Line:
COLUMBIA'S DISGRACE, PART 7

Discussion: Weekly Standard, No More Mister Nice Blog and Armavirumque

Jacob Gershman / New York Sun:
Legislatures May Act on Columbia

Discussion: Think Progress, On Deadline, The Volokh Conspiracy, City Room, Gothamist, The Anonymous Liberal, NY Daily News, New York Post and Israel Matzav

Mark Silva / The Swamp:
Iranian on Israel: 'We do not recognize that regime'

Discussion: CNN Political Ticker

Bill Sammon / Examiner:

Examiner Exclusive: President predicts GOP will keep control of White House after 'tough race' in 2008 — Washington, D.C. (Map, News) - President Bush, for the first time, is predicting that Hillary Rodham Clinton will defeat Barack Obama in the Democratic presidential primaries.

Discussion: Washington Wire, Brendan Nyhan, The Corner, The Carpetbagger Report, The Swamp, TPM Election Central, DownWithTyranny!, The Politico, CNN Political Ticker, The Debate Link, The Van Der Galiën Gazette, WTF Is It Now?!?, The Trail, The Raw Story and Connecting.the.Dots

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:

DON'T MISS THAT MEME — As you can see in our feature story over on the right, the White House's new line is that Barack Obama may be too "intellectually lazy" to run a serious presidential campaign let alone be President of the United States. — But don't think this allusion to generations …

CNN Political Ticker: The Donald: Time for Bush to go into 'hiding'

Yeas & Nays:
Dick Cheney: Don't forget me when I'm gone

Discussion: TIME: Swampland and Think Progress

Ben Smith / The Politico:

Clinton campaign kills negative story — Early this summer, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign for president learned that the men's magazine GQ was working on a story the campaign was sure to hate: an account of infighting in Hillaryland. — So Clinton's aides pulled a page from the book …

Discussion: TIME: Swampland

David Paul Kuhn / The Politico:

Podhoretz secretly urged Bush to bomb Iran — President Bush and Karl Rove sat listening to Norman Podhoretz for roughly 45 minutes at the White House as the patriarch of neoconservatism argued that the United States should bomb Iran's nuclear facilities. — The meeting was not on the president's public schedule.

Discussion: Think Progress, MSNBC, Death, The Raw Story, Daily Kos and The Sundries Shack

Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:

New York Times Says It Violated Policies Over MoveOn Ad — After two weeks of denials, the New York Times acknowledged that it should not have given a discount to MoveOn.org for a full-page advertisement assailing Gen. David H. Petraeus. — The liberal advocacy group should have paid $142,000 …

Discussion: QandO and Horses Mouth

Horses Mouth:
Clark Hoyt, the public editor of The New York Times …

Discussion: The Fix, Firedoglake and TPM Election Central

Washington Post:

U.S. Aims To Lure Insurgents With 'Bait' — A Pentagon group has encouraged some U.S. military snipers in Iraq to target suspected insurgents by scattering pieces of "bait," such as detonation cords, plastic explosives and ammunition, and then killing Iraqis who pick up the items, according to military court documents.

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, Greatscat!, Confederate Yankee, Daily Kos, Comments From Left Field, Balloon Juice, The Newshoggers, The Strata-Sphere, UrbanGrounds, The Heretik, CBS News, Rook's Rant, Main and Central, BlondeSense and The Swamp

The Raw Story:

Chemical weapon disaster 'led to Syria strike' — Israel did not strike a nuclear weapons facility in Syria on Sept. 6, instead striking a cache of North Korean missiles, current and former intelligence officials say. — American intelligence sources familiar with key events leading …

Discussion: Booman Tribune and Liberty Pundit

Brent Budowsky / The Hill:

Democrats Answer to Republican Resolution Regarding MoveOn.org — Sens. Jim Webb (Va.), Jack Reed (R.I.), Daniel Inouye (Hawaii) and every other Democrat who has served in uniform should go the Senate floor together and call for a vote on a resolution similar to the following:

Discussion: Make Them Accountable and TPMCafe blogs

Justin Hart / My Man Mitt.com:

If Columbia is not ashamed of the decision... ... then why did they blacken out the podium and the backdrop? — See these heavily-branded events from the same Columbia U. World Leader Forum: — Dr. Ivo Sanader, Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia, — Evo Morales, the first indigenous president of Bolivia