Top Items:
Mark Silva / The Swamp:
Obama fingers a ‘gotcha’ debate — Sen. Barack Obama was on the stump today in Raleigh, N.C., the day after his debate in Philadelphia with Sen. Hillary Clinton. Have a look at his body language when he spoke of the sort of debate it was — a “gotcha” fest — and about Clinton being “in her element.”
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Frank James / The Swamp:
Hillary Clinton ‘rescues’ Colbert Report — PHILADELPHIA—Unsuccessful in his attempt to become a presidential candidate in his native South Carolina, comedy show host Stephen Colbert was forced to rely on the — “expertise” of Sen. Hillary Clinton during a taping of tonight's “Colbert Report.”
Discussion:
Ben Smith's Blogs
Byron York / The Hill:
Barack and the bomber — If we're judged by those with whom we associate, here's a question: — Would you rather be associated with a '60s radical who plotted to bomb the Pentagon and to this day believes, as he said a few years ago, “I don't regret setting bombs; I feel we didn't do enough …
Discussion:
The Corner, Betsy's Page, New York Times, alicublog, The Volokh Conspiracy, The American Mind and JustOneMinute
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David Brooks / New York Times:
How Obama Fell to Earth — Back in Iowa, Barack Obama promised to be something new — an unconventional leader who would confront unpleasant truths, embrace novel policies and unify the country. If he had knocked Hillary Clinton out in New Hampshire and entered general-election mode early …
CNN:
Dean: I need a decision ‘now’ — (CNN)— An increasingly firm Howard Dean told CNN again Thursday that he needs superdelegates to say who they're for - and “I need them to say who they're for starting now.” — “We cannot give up two or three months of active campaigning and healing time …
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, Donklephant, Comments from Left Field, Roger L. Simon, Corrente, AMERICAblog and Right Voices
Greg Sargent / TPM Election Central:
George Stephanopoulos Responds To Obama, Defends Handling Of Debate — At some point amid the hailstorm of criticism that greeted ABC's handling of yesterday's Dem debate, moderator George Stephanopoulos received an email — one of the many, many missives about the debate he's received — from an Obama adviser.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Scared Monkeys, The Garlic, The Campaign Spot, Too Sense, American Street, TPMCafe, No More Mister Nice Blog, The New Republic, Hullabaloo, The Reaction, The Carpetbagger Report, Jules Crittenden, Comments from Left Field, Booman Tribune, Cold Fury, Daily Kos, TalkLeft and Gateway Pundit
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Greg Sargent / TPM Election Central:
Obama Criticizes Debate, Says Hillary “Looked In Her Element”
Obama Criticizes Debate, Says Hillary “Looked In Her Element”
Discussion:
Firedoglake
Margaret Talev / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Obama questioner explains why she finds him annoying — WASHINGTON — Nash McCabe is the voter from Wednesday night's presidential debate who noted that Barack Obama doesn't usually wear a flag pin and asked, “I want to know if you believe in the American flag.”
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The Huffington Post:
Joe Scarborough Walks Off MSNBC's “Race To The White House” After Exchange With Rachel Maddow — “Joe didn't walk off. He chose not to participate in the final couple of minutes of the discussion because he felt the conversation didn't fit his role as a political analyst.” — Previously:
Dr. Rusty Shackleford / The Jawa Report:
The Two Wars in Iraq & Mistaken Republican Support for Obama — [T]he root function of language is to control the universe by describing it. —James Baldwin. — Bush screwed the pooch in Iraq. There is a good argument to be made that we should not have invaded in the first place.
Josh Gerstein / New York Sun:
Yale: Student's Art Project Only ‘Creative Fiction’ — A Yale student's bizarre art project in which she claimed to have repeatedly impregnated and induced abortions in herself is a work of “creative fiction,” the university said in a statement this afternoon.
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Matthew Yglesias:
Dirt off Your Shoulder — This business is pretty cool. Somewhere between a dog whistle to the kids and a reverse Sister Souljah. Check out Obama at 2:20: — And now Jay-Z: — Good stuff, thought I guess rap scold Douthat wouldn't approve.
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James Fallows:
This horrible “debate” — As mentioned earlier, family concerns (my father) have trumped other concerns for quite a while. Among various consequences, and in the cosmic sense a trivial one, is the list of items building up that I am looking for a chance to weigh in on …
Zogby:
Newsmax/Zogby Poll: Clinton Edges Ahead in Pennsylvania — UTICA, New York - New York Democrat Hillary Clinton had a good day in the Newsmax/Zogby daily tracking poll ahead of Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary, following a strong debate performance in Philadelphia Wednesday night …
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice
Michelle Malkin:
MoveOn's definition of “hurting the country” — Yes, it's true. The left-wing anti-patriots at MoveOn.org, who didn't think twice about handing jihadists potent ammunition the day before the sixth anniversary of 9/11 with their despicable attack on Gen. Petraeus, are now worried about actions that “hurt the country.”
Jonathan Martin / Yahoo! News:
McCain readies unorthodox campaign — For reasons of financial necessity, personal preference and plain politics, John McCain is gearing up to run one of the least traditional presidential campaigns in recent history. — The problem is that even prominent strategists within McCain's own party wonder …
New York Times:
Benedict Meets With the Victims of Sexual Abuse — WASHINGTON — Pope Benedict XVI came face to face Thursday with a scandal that has left lasting wounds on the American church, holding an unannounced meeting with several victims of sexual abuse by priests in the Boston area.
Raviya H. Ismail / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Bomb kills at least 60 at Iraqi funeral — BAGHDAD, Iraq — BAGHDAD, Iraq _ At least 60 people died Thursday when bombers targeted the funeral of two Sunni Muslim tribesmen who'd belonged to a council that was fighting against al Qaida in Iraq, police said.
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Ryan Grim / The Politico:
Press secretary to the rescue — At 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon, Lee Pitts, the spokesman for Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), saw an unusual e-mail message pop up on the corner of his computer screen: “Please call 911 for me,” the subject line said. — Less than an hour earlier …