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Obama's Gloves Are Off — And May Need to Stay Off — Unable once again to score a knockout, Sen. Barack Obama is likely to make his new negative tone even more negative — with a sharp eye on trying to end the Democratic presidential nomination fight after the May 6 primaries in Indiana and North Carolina.
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TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE — HILLARY'S PENNSYLVANIA WIN — Hillary Clinton refuses to die. Having been given up for dead after losing Iowa, she rebounded in New Hampshire. Then a string of 11 straight consecutive losses - followed by a win in Ohio and a tie (in delegates) in Texas.


Gallup Daily: Obama 50%, Clinton 42% Nationally — Clinton and Obama both run within one point of McCain in fall ballot — PRINCETON, NJ — Barack Obama leads Hillary Clinton in national Democratic preferences for the nomination, 50% to 42%, in Gallup Poll Daily tracking from April 20-22.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Salon, The Carpetbagger Report, Real Clear Politics and The New Republic


FIRST THOUGHTS: SECRET TO HILLARY'S SUCCESS — From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro — *** The secret to Hillary's success: So how did Clinton win so decisively last night? The answer is women, specifically white women. They continue to be as important to her success …
Discussion:
Associated Press

RNC CALLS WRIGHT AD ‘NOT APPROPRIATE’ — From NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann — Update to NC Gop anti-Obama ad that references the Rev. Jeremiah Wright... Per the RNC, the national leadership of the Republican Party has been in contact this morning with the North Carolina GOP, urging them to refrain from running the “Extreme” ad.
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McCain, GOP Unhappy With N.C. GOP AD — Sen. John McCain sent this letter to the chairman of the North Carolina GOP this a.m.: … Danny Diaz, the RNC's communications director, in a statement: … There's a sense among some GOP activists that the McCain campaign depresses the base …

NC Republicans Use Rev. Wright Against Democratic Gubernatorial Candidates

McCain implores NC GOP to not air ad
Discussion:
The Daily Dish

In Oklahoma: Henry backs Obama — Gov. Brad Henry, who said earlier he would not endorse a Democratic presidential candidate until this summer's national convention, announced this morning he is supporting Barack Obama. — The endorsement means Obama, a U.S. senator from Illinois …
Discussion:
Marc Ambinder, Open Left, Booman Tribune, Political Machine, The Caucus, Left in the West, Salon, Matthew Yglesias, Donklephant, Political Punch and The Field
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The Next McGovern? — Obama may still get the nomination, but his loss tonight deals a harsh blow to his electibility arguments. — Hillary Clinton won a decisive ten-round decision over Barack Obama in Pennsylvania's Democratic primary, but she didn't score a knockout. The struggle continues.
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Terrorist Fundraisers for Obama — Two years ago, Hatem El-Hady was the chairman of the Toledo, Ohio-based Islamic charity, Kindhearts, which was closed by the US government in February 2006 for terrorist fundraising and all its assets frozen. Today, El-Hady has redirected his fundraising efforts …


Hagee Says Hurricane Katrina Struck New Orleans Because It Was ‘Planning A Sinful’ ‘Homosexual Rally’ — On September 18, 2006, Pastor John Hagee — whose endorsement Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said this past Sunday he was “glad to have” — told NPR's Terry Gross that “Hurricane Katrina was …
Discussion:
The Swamp, The Huffington Post, New Orleans Times-Picayune, Townhall.com and The Carpetbagger Report


‘Basic Instinct’ Director Paul Verhoeven: Jesus Was Son of Mary and a Roman Rapist — In his upcoming biography of Jesus, “Basic Instinct” director Paul Verhoeven will make the shocking claim that Christ probably was the son of Mary and a Roman soldier who raped her during the Jewish uprising in Galilee …

Bill: Stop selling Playboy, Penthouse on base — Concerned that the military is selling pornography in exchange stores in spite of a ban, one lawmaker has introduced a bill to clean up the matter. — “Our troops should not see their honor sullied so that the moguls behind magazines …


$100 fill-ups arrive at gas pumps — COALINGA, California (CNN) — Noel Bosse and Ken Davis watch as the numbers keep spinning at the gas pump — 70 bucks, 80 bucks. Gulp, guzzle, then it stops: $101 for about 25 gallons. — The $100 fill-up has arrived in the United States.

Inmate Count in U.S. Dwarfs Other Nations' — The United States has less than 5 percent of the world's population. But it has almost a quarter of the world's prisoners. — Indeed, the United States leads the world in producing prisoners, a reflection of a relatively recent …

BAD ADVICE FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES — The New York Times joins the growing chorus of left-wing commentators who want to see Hillary Clinton bow out of the presidential campaign. Parroting Keith Olbermann and other stalwarts of the infantile left, the Times, which endorsed Clinton, writes: