memeorandum: New Guidelines Ahead of Ashcroft Testimony (Philip Shenon/New York Times)

9:55 AM ET, March 11, 2008

Top Items:

Brian Ross / ABCNEWS:

It Wasn't the Sex; Suspicious $$ Transfers Led to Spitzer — Officials Say Spitzer Is ‘Client 9’ in a Federal Complaint Against the Prostitution Ring — The federal investigation of a New York prostitution ring was triggered by Gov. Eliot Spitzer's suspicious money transfers …

Scott Horton / Harper's:

The Spitzer Sex Sting: A Few More Questions — It looks like the Bush Justice Department just bagged themselves another Democratic Governor. Here's the New York Times on the story: … On the other hand, ABC News this evening offers a starkly different account of how the investigation got launched.

New York Times:

Mr. Spitzer's ‘Private Matter’ — New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer could not have been more wrong in his brief public appearance after the world learned that he was suspected of patronizing a prostitution ring. He did not just betray his family in a private matter.

Discussion: Newsday, NY Daily News, New York Post, New York Sun, PrairiePundit, Hot Air, Real Clear Politics, GINA COBB, JammieWearingFool, WCBS-TV and TalkLeft

Jane Hamsher / Firedoglake:

Some Questions About the Spitzer Incident — ABC is reporting that Eliot Spitzer came under the attention of the Feds because his bank reported “suspicious money transfers” to the IRS. The Justice Department brought it to the FBI's Public Corruption Squad, who looked into it and found …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The RBC, Harper's, Off the Kuff, Shakesville, Marc Ambinder, DownWithTyranny!, Democrats.com and Mercury Rising

Wall Street Journal:

Spitzer's Rise and Fall — One might call it Shakespearian if there were a shred of nobleness in the story of Eliot Spitzer's fall. There is none. Governor Spitzer, who made his career by specializing in not just the prosecution, but the ruin, of other men, is himself almost certainly ruined.

Discussion: City Room, PrairiePundit, BizzyBlog and TigerHawk

William K. Rashbaum / New York Times:

Revelations Began in Routine Tax Inquiry — The rendezvous that established Gov. Eliot Spitzer's involvement with high-priced prostitutes occurred last month in one of Washington's grandest hotels, but the criminal investigation that discovered the tryst began last year in a nondescript …

Discussion: Spin Cycle, Washington Post and Hullabaloo

New York Times:

Spitzer Said to Be Weighing Resignation — ALBANY — Gov. Eliot Spitzer continued to weigh whether to resign early Tuesday, a day after law enforcement officials said he was a client of a high-end prostitution ring broken up last week by federal authorities.

Discussion: Democratic Strategist, Law Blog, On Deadline, NY Daily News, The Carpetbagger Report, The Politico, Hotline On Call, New York Sun, American Street, American Spectator, alicublog, New York Post, ABC 7 Eyewitness News, Connecting.the.Dots, Opinions You Should Have, News Hounds and Bluey Blog

Michelle Malkin:

Left and right agree: Eliot Spitzer must go — Cover of today's NYPost. — A survey of this morning's lead editorials in the NY press shows a bipartisan consensus: Eliot Spitzer has to go. Both left and right bristled at Spitzer's brief, arrogant, remorseless, and dishonest statement …

Discussion: City Room, New York Post and Riehl World View

Noam Scheiber / The New Republic:
Eliot Spitzer As Alexander Portnoy

Discussion: Time

Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
Who cares if Eliot Spitzer hires prostitutes?

Discussion: New York Times, Associated Press, michellemalkin.com, Jezebel, Moonbattery, Redstate, CNN, Slate, Riehl World View, The Reaction and TRAIL BLAZERS

Tim Graham / NewsBusters.org:
Early MSNBC Pundits Defend Spitzer, Lash Out at Prudish America

Discussion: Moonbattery and Roger L. Simon

Dan Collins / protein wisdom:
Mr. American Hypocrite Weighs In

Discussion: Pajamas Media, Dealbreaker, Megan McArdle and Associated Press

Mike Segar / ABCNEWS:
POLITICAL SEX SCANDALS REDUX

Discussion: Washington Post, A Blog For All, CNN, The Corner and Wizbang

Digby / Hullabaloo:
Mann-date

Discussion: Firedoglake, D-Day and Attytood

Maria Gavrilovic / CBS News:

Obama Accuses Clinton of Using “Republican Tactics” — From CBS News' Maria Gavrilovic: — JACKSON, MISS. — Barack Obama continued to go after Hillary Clinton this evening, accusing her of using “Republican tactics” against him. — “When in the midst of a campaign you decide to throw …

Discussion: Hot Air, Sister Toldjah, The Trail, The Moderate Voice, Gateway Pundit, Corrente and The Fact Hub

Clarion-Ledger:

Clinton or Obama? Mississippi's time to decide — Despite election fervor, moderate turnout expected — A close race between Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama will draw more voters to the polls today than the last presidential primary, state officials predict.

Discussion: Real Clear Politics

Charles Babington / Associated Press:

Obama hopes for win in Mississippi — JACKSON, MISS. —Mississippi Democrats are deciding the last in a series of presidential contests between Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton before the two rivals settle in for a six-week battle to win Pennsylvania.

Discussion: The Caucus, Associated Press and New York Times

Jeff Zeleny / The Caucus:
Obama Hits Back on V.P. Chatter

Discussion: URGENT AGENDA and The Page

Richard Cohen / Washington Post:

How the Democrats Could Lose — By official count, The Post's 10th most e-mailed column of 2007 was published last June under the headline “How the GOP Could Win.” It said that the Republican Party would promote national security as the salient issue of the campaign, making a silk purse …

Discussion: Booman Tribune

Mark Karlin / BuzzFlash.org:
The John McCain for President, Hillary Clinton for Vice President …

Discussion: Blogcritics Comments and The RBC

Eric Lichtblau / New York Times:

House Steers Its Own Path on Wiretaps — WASHINGTON — In continued defiance of the White House, House Democratic leaders are readying a proposal that would reject giving legal protection to the phone companies that helped in the National Security Agency's program of wiretapping without warrants …

Discussion: Hold Fast

Thomas de Zengotita / The Huffington Post:
Why The Spitzer Scandal Should Work For Obama

Discussion: Blogs of War

William Branigin / Washington Post:
House Panel Sues to Force Bush Aides to Table

Discussion: Political Machine and cab drollery

Jeff Bliss / Bloomberg:

Obama-Clinton Race Creates Security Concerns for Secret Service — The political passions stirred by the Democratic presidential battle between the possible first black nominee and the possible first woman are also stirring security concerns on the part of the U.S. Secret Service.

Discussion: Unfogged

Orlando Patterson / New York Times:

The Red Phone in Black and White — ON first watching Hillary Clinton's recent “It's 3 a.m.” advertisement, I was left with an uneasy feeling that something was not quite right — something that went beyond my disappointment that she had decided to go negative. Repeated watching of the ad on YouTube increased my unease.

Discussion: Prairie Weather, Dean's World and Don Surber