memeorandum: Ickes Throws Down the Gauntlet on What Constitutes a Majority of the Delegates (Krooney/The Page)

10:00 PM ET, May 6, 2008

Top Items:

First Glance At The Exits: Democratic Party Cracking Up? — Here's what jumps out at me from the first wave of exit polls that have been released to the Edison-Mitsofky consortium: — Forget the horse race numbers for a moment: if the surveys are accurate, the polarization within the Democratic Party has reached critical levels.

Discussion: The New Republic, Democracy in America, Gallup, Comments from Left Field, American Street, The Reaction, Washington Post, The Strata-Sphere, THE LIBERAL JOURNAL, Salon, RIGHTWINGSPARKLE, Pajamas Media, TPM Election Central, Commentary, Spin Cycle, NO QUARTER, Zogby and Don Surber

Jennifer Parker / ABCNEWS:

Obama Solidly Routs Clinton in N.C. — Democratic Senators Battle for Potentially Decisive Victory in Indiana — As expected, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has solidly won the North Carolina primary, ABC News projects, while he and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, remain locked in a tight race in Indiana.

Discussion: The Swamp, The Moderate Voice, Taegan Goddard's …, Political Radar, TPM Election Central, Drudge Report, The Field, JammieWearingFool, AMERICAblog, Truthdig and MyDD

CBS News:

Clinton, Obama In Battle For Indiana, N.C. — Heavy Turnout In Crucial Primaries That Could Bring Clarity To Democratic Presidential Race — (CBS/AP) Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama battled in the Indiana and North Carolina primaries on Tuesday, the last big-delegate prizes left …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, CNN, ABCNEWS, Marc Ambinder, The Raw Story, FiveThirtyEight.com, Pollster.com, Fox News, Political Machine, BizzyBlog, Commentary, Salon and Facing South

Indianapolis Star:

‘Hardcore’ Republicans voting Democrat — 10:51 AM — ‘Hardcore’ Republicans voting Democrat — The two precincts at Broad Ripple Family Center selected Republican Jon Elrod over Democrat Andre Carson in March's special election for U.S. Congress. But by 9 a.m., just 21 voters …

Discussion: The Other McCain, The Caucus, Comments from Left Field, On Deadline, Spin Cycle, The Primary Source, The Page, Charlotte Observer and MyDD

Associated Press:

Early IN, NC exit poll highlights — Highlights from preliminary results of exit polling Tuesday in the Indiana and North Carolina Democratic primaries for The Associated Press and television networks: — WORRIED ABOUT THE ECONOMY — The economy was on voters' minds in Democratic primaries in Indiana and North Carolina.

Discussion: Wonkette, The Primary Source, Eunomia, The American Conservative and FiveThirtyEight.com

Gary Langer / ABCNEWS:

EXIT POLL: Wright Controversy Casts Shadow on Ind., N.C. Races — In Both States, Three-Quarters or More Say They Decided Before Last Week — Preliminary exit poll results indicate that just under half of Democratic primary voters in Indiana and North Carolina alike call the controversy surrounding …

Discussion: Fox News, TalkLeft, The Page, CNN, michellemalkin.com, MSNBC, TownHall Blog, The Daily Dish, Pollster.com and Pajamas Media

Hillary Clinton / CNN:

Exit polls: Half of Clinton's supporters won't back Obama — (CNN) — Just how badly is the Democratic Party divided? — According to the exit polls, half of Clinton's supporters in Indiana would not vote for Obama in a general election match up with John McCain.

Discussion: Firedoglake, DownWithTyranny!, Democrats.com, Talking Points Memo and TPM Election Central

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blogs: Limbaugh Democrats? — I've been pretty skeptical of the existence …

Taegan Goddard / Political Insider:
Beware of the Exit Polls

Discussion: Political Arithmetik, Hot Air, protein wisdom and The Nation

Foon Rhee / Boston Globe:
Limbaugh issues orders for Indiana

Discussion: Sadly, No!, Top of the Ticket, Reason Magazine, The Moderate Voice, Wake up America, Salon and AMERICAblog

The Campaign Spot:
First Word From HuffPo Sources, Not Mine: Obama NC +12; Hillary IN +7

Discussion: Real Clear Politics and Comments from Left Field

Sam Stein / The Huffington Post: Exit Polls: Limbaugh Effect Seems To Rear Its Head

The New Republic:
Measuring the Limbaugh Effect

Discussion: Salon, The Jed Report and American Spectator

Michael Goldfarb / Weekly Standard Blog:
Exit Polls

Discussion: Pollster.com

Mark Murray / MSNBC:
FIRST THOUGHTS: BEGINNING OF THE END?

Discussion: Political Insider and AMERICAblog

Will Bunch / Philly.com:

Team Hillary warns of Obama “October surprise” — The early results are suggesting a healthy win for Barack Obama in North Carolina and a much narrower win, maybe 52-48 or so, for Hillary Clinton in Indiana. That won't end her campaign — nuclear obliteration wouldn't do that at this point but it makes Clinton's mission even harder.

Discussion: The Daily Dish and Daily Kos

Krooney / The Page:

Ickes Throws Down the Gauntlet on What Constitutes a Majority of the Delegates — Clinton delegate honcho tells The Page that his camp believes 2,209 — not 2,025 — is the magic number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination because they're counting Michigan and Florida.

Discussion: Hotline On Call and TPM Election Central

John R. Wilke / Wall Street Journal:

FBI Agents Raid Work, Home Of Special Counsel's Bloch — WASHINGTON — Federal Bureau of Investigation agents raided the Office of Special Counsel here, seizing computers and documents belonging to the agency chief Scott Bloch and staff. — More than a dozen FBI agents served grand jury subpoenas shortly …

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report, At-Largely, DownWithTyranny!, Law Blog, The BRAD BLOG, Prairie Weather, Think Progress and Majikthise

Ari Shapiro / NPR:

FBI Searches Office of Special Counsel Building — Listen: Ari Shapiro Discusses the Raid on ‘Day to Day’ — · FBI agents on Tuesday raided the offices of Special Counsel Scott J. Bloch, who oversees protection for federal whistleblowers. The agents seized computers and shut …

Discussion: Washington Blade, Firedoglake, The Moderate Voice, Crooks and Liars, Mercury Rising, TPMMuckraker and The Hill's Blog Briefing Room

David Stout / New York Times:
F.B.I. Raids Office of Special Counsel

Discussion: Pam's House Blend

Human Events:

Two GOP Losses That Validate a National Pattern — These two special elections validate a national polling pattern that is bad news for Republicans. According to a New York Times/CBS Poll, Americans disapprove of the President's job performance by 63 to 28 (and he has been below 40% job …

Discussion: Eunomia, Tales from the Trail, The Swamp, The New Republic, Washington Monthly, BackyardConservative, Top of the Ticket, Washington Wire, DCCC, AMERICAblog, The Washington Independent, HorsesAss.Org, MoJoBlog, MSNBC and The Moderate Voice

Jackie Kucinich / The Hill:
Gingrich warns GOP of ‘real disaster’ this fall

Discussion: Don Surber and Preemptive Karma

Townhall.com:
Newt Gingrich on Barack Obama's association problems, John McCain's …

Discussion: The Huffington Post

Deborah Hastings / Associated Press:

Indiana nuns lacking ID denied at poll by fellow sister — About 12 Indiana nuns were turned away Tuesday from a polling place by a fellow bride of Christ because they didn't have state or federal identification bearing a photograph. — Sister Julie McGuire said she was forced to turn away …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, MSNBC and Hullabaloo

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
NOT A BUG, A FEATURE ...

Discussion: The BRAD BLOG, The Trail, At-Largely and Seeing the Forest

David Kurtz / Talking Points Memo:

FOX NEWS FOLLIES — Watch as the Fox News political team dissects class in America during tonight's election coverage: — I watch Fox so you don't have to — but I lose a little piece of my soul every time. — Late Update: They just can't let it go! The Fox News crew refines its class stereotypes:

Discussion: Think Progress and Too Sense