memeorandum: The Politics of Grievance — Obama is no longer a post-racial candidate. (Charlotte Hays/The Corner)

3:55 PM ET, March 18, 2008

Top Items:

OBAMA SPEECH IN FULL: A MORE PERFECT UNION — “We the people, in order to form a more perfect union.” — Two hundred and twenty one years ago, in a hall that still stands across the street, a group of men gathered and, with these simple words, launched America's improbable experiment in democracy.

Discussion: Clive Crook, Power Line, TalkLeft, The Daily Dish, The Corner, New York Times, TownHall Blog, Althouse, Little Green Footballs, Ross Douthat, Crooks and Liars, Blog P.I., The Huffington Post, Rocky Mountain News, JustOneMinute, The New Republic, Redstate, Hot Air, Confederate Yankee, Washington Monthly, Riehl World View, protein wisdom, NYCweboy, American Princess, Donklephant, QandO, Taylor Marsh, Macsmind, Outside The Beltway, A Blog For All, NO QUARTER, Wake up America, Roger Ailes, The Caucus, Brave New Films blog, Fausta's blog, FP Passport, Firedoglake, MyDD, The Sundries Shack, Polimom Says, Sweetness & Light, Dick Polman's American Debate, Pam's House Blend, PoliBlog (TM), FREEDOM EDEN, Pandagon, The Strata-Sphere, The Carpetbagger Report, Ankle Biting Pundits, Classical Values, Comments from Left Field, Balloon Juice, The Campaign Spot, Steve Sailer's iSteve Blog, Stop The ACLU, Atlas Shrugs, Joe. My. God., No More Mister Nice Blog and Daimnation!

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:

The Speech — Alas, I cannot give a more considered response right now as I have to get on the road. But I do want to say that this searing, nuanced, gut-wrenching, loyal, and deeply, deeply Christian speech is the most honest speech on race in America in my adult lifetime.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Tom Watson, NYCweboy, Brilliant at Breakfast, Hotline On Call and StephenBainbridge.com

Mark Murray / MSNBC:

FIRST THOUGHTS: OBAMA'S BIG SPEECH — From Chuck Todd and Mark Murray — *** Obama's big speech: The last time a top presidential candidate gave an important speech on a sensitive topic was last December, when Mitt Romney talked about American faith. His speech drew favorable reviews …

Discussion: MyDD and Trailhead

Greg Sargent / TPM Election Central:

Full Text Of Obama's Big Race Speech: A Big Break With Political Precedent — We have a full transcript of Obama's big race speech for you after the jump. He's set to deliver it in Philadelphia within moments. — Reading it, you can't escape the fact that in various ways it represents …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Open Left, Booman Tribune, American Street and Democratic Strategist

Shelby Steele / Wall Street Journal:

The Obama Bargain — Geraldine Ferraro may have had sinister motives when she said that Barack Obama would not be “in his position” as a frontrunner but for his race. Possibly she was acting as Hillary Clinton's surrogate. Or maybe she was simply befuddled by this new reality …

Discussion: protein wisdom, No More Mister Nice Blog, JustOneMinute, baldilocks, Little Miss Attila, Hot Air, Debbie Schlussel, American Thinker, Dr. Sanity and Too Sense

Charles Murray / The Corner:

Have I missed the competition? — I read the various posts here on “The Corner,” mostly pretty ho-hum or critical about Obama's speech. Then I figured I'd better read the text (I tried to find a video of it, but couldn't). I've just finished. Has any other major American politician ever …

Discussion: Ross Douthat, StephenBainbridge.com and Daily Kos

Ben Smith / The Politico:

The speech — He hasn't started speaking yet here in Philly, but Drudge just busted the embargo, so I've posted the text after the jump. — It's quite a speech: autobiographical, embracing complexity, and answering questions about Wright — whose most offensive words, he says …

Discussion: Shakesville, The Confluence and Reason Magazine

Kevin Drum / Washington Monthly:
CHECKING IN WITH THE OTHER SIDE....I thing we can safely assume …

Discussion: The Newshoggers, Hullabaloo and The Carpetbagger Report

John Derbyshire / The Corner:
Obama's Lies — Not so much lies as a sort of slippery sleight-of-mouth.

Discussion: The New Republic

Mark Hemingway / The Corner:
About Obama's Speech

Discussion: The Daily Dish, James Fallows and American Spectator

CNN:
Obama: We can move beyond some of our racial wounds

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Fox News, Associated Press, Ben Smith's Blogs and Donklephant

Jonathan Chait / The New Republic:
The Politics of Obama's Speech

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report

Charlotte Hays / The Corner:
The Politics of Grievance — Obama is no longer a post-racial candidate.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Matthew Yglesias

Jay Rosen / PressThink:
Obama tells the Best Political Team on Television: You Have a Choice

Discussion: MoJoBlog, TPM Election Central and David Corn

Pete Abel / The Moderate Voice: ‘Not This Time’ — I watched most of Obama's speech live on CNN.com.

Taegan Goddard's Political Wire:
On Obama's Speech — Sen. Barack Obama's speech on race …

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blogs, MSNBC and Ross Douthat

Michael Goldfarb / Weekly Standard Blog:
Obama as Mortal: Blame America

Discussion: Washington Post and Ben Smith's Blogs

Stanley Kurtz / The Corner: MoveOn Move In — Obama's speech was thoughtful, powerful …

Kathryn Jean Lopez / The Corner:
It's an Impressive Speech

Discussion: The Opinionator and TownHall Blog

The New Republic: John McWhorter Reviews Obama's Speech

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
The Testing Of Obama

Discussion: JustOneMinute, The New Republic, The Root, Outside The Beltway and protein wisdom

Marc Ambinder:
Reflections On Obama's Speech

Discussion: Bluey Blog

ABCNEWS:
The Note: Black & White Stall

Discussion: MyDD, Blog P.I., The Swamp and Washington Wire

Washington Post:

A McCain Gaffe in Jordan — AMMAN, Jordan — Sen. John McCain, traveling in the Middle East to promote his foreign policy expertise, misidentified in remarks Tuesday which broad category of Iraqi extremists are allegedly receiving support from Iran. — He said several times that Iran …

Discussion: The Newshoggers, Washington Monthly, Marc Ambinder, Obsidian Wings, Wonkette, The New Republic, Daily Kos, The Carpetbagger Report, Taylor Marsh, The BRAD BLOG, The Page, The Impolitic, Cato-at-liberty, Matthew Yglesias, Newsweek and Middle Earth Journal

Matthew Yglesias:
Doesn't Understand Economics, Either

Discussion: Eschaton

Ali / Think Progress:
McCain Conflates Shiite Iran And Sunni Al Qaeda, Needs To Be Corrected By Lieberman

Discussion: Townhall.com and Associated Press

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System:

For immediate release — The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to lower its target for the federal funds rate 75 basis points to 2-1/4 percent. — Recent information indicates that the outlook for economic activity has weakened further. Growth in consumer spending has slowed and labor markets have softened.

Discussion: Economist's View, Portfolio and On Deadline

Marc Ambinder:

More On Imminent Death Of Michigan Primary.... This dispatch from the MIRS News Service in Michigan (no link)

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blogs and Daily Kos

WWJ:
Democratic Re-do Likely Won't Happen

Discussion: TPM Election Central and TalkLeft

Jim Oliphant / The Swamp:

Supreme Court hears historic gun-ban case — In what could be a historic decision, a majority of the Supreme Court Tuesday appeared ready to embrace the view that the Second Amendment creates an individual right to own a gun. — While that conclusion alone could elate many gun-rights supporters …

Discussion: New York Times

Lyle Denniston / SCOTUSblog:
Analysis: Defining a right of self-defense

Discussion: TalkLeft and Sentencing Law and Policy

CNN:

Archives to release Clinton's first lady schedules — WASHINGTON (CNN) — Over 11,000 pages of Hillary Clinton's schedule as first lady are set to be released to the public on Wednesday, the National Archives announced. — The documents are among those the Obama campaign has long said need …

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blogs

John Hawkins / Right Wing News:

Blogging While Female Part 2: Five Women Bloggers Talk About Gender Issues And The Blogosphere — A couple of weeks back, I put together an article called Blogging While Female: 5 Conservative Women Bloggers Talk About Gender Issues And The Blogosphere. — The article and the revelations …