memeorandum: McCain Was in Favor of Talks with Syria, Despite Saying they Were … (Max Bergmann/The Huffington Post)

7:00 PM ET, May 16, 2008

Top Items:

Huckabee jokes about Obama ducking a gunman — (CNN) - During a speech before the National Rifle Association convention Friday afternoon in Louisville, Kentucky, former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee — who has endorsed presumptive GOP nominee John McCain …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, The Huffington Post, Think Progress, Ben Smith's Blogs, Open Left, Balloon Juice, Confederate Yankee, Pandagon, Daily Kos, Hullabaloo, Donklephant and Shakesville

Allahpundit / Hot Air:

Huckabee jokes at NRA conference about someone trying to shoot Obama; Update: Painfully awkward video added — Stupid, and doubtless to receive plenty of attention since it's useful to so many groups. The left will use it as a Larger Truth about the NRA; the media will use it to find …

Discussion: Jonathan Martin's Blogs and TownHall Blog

Andy Barr / The Hill's Blog Briefing Room:

Huckabee Jokes About Obama Getting Shot At — During a speech to the National Rifle Association convention in Louisville, Kentucky Friday, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee joked to the audience that an offstage noise was Barack Obama avoiding gunfire.

Discussion: American Spectator

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blogs:

Obama on McCain: Hypocrisy and fear-mongering — In an appearance in South Dakota just now, Barack Obama came back at yesterday's attacks from George W. Bush and John McCain, accusing them of “hypocrisy, fear-peddling, and fear-mongering.” — He responded first to the charge from Bush …

Discussion: The Swamp, TPM Election Central, Weekly Standard Blog, The Carpetbagger Report, American Street, Slog, Gateway Pundit and The Other McCain

David Brooks / New York Times:

Obama Admires Bush — Hezbollah is one of the world's most radical terrorist organizations. Over the last week or so, it has staged an armed assault on the democratic government of Lebanon. — Barack Obama issued a statement in response. He called on “all those who have influence with Hezbollah” to “press them to stand down.”

Discussion: Commentary, Power Line, Weekly Standard Blog, New York Times, Ben Smith's Blogs, Confederate Yankee, JustOneMinute, Hot Air, Right Wing Nut House, Eunomia, New York Post, democracyarsenal.org, Strange Bedfellows, The American Mind and abu muqawama

New Yorker:

FEVER DREAM TICKETS — That was an astounding speech John McCain delivered this morning in Columbus, Ohio. On almost every issue except Iraq, it was a ringing declaration of rhetorical (though not always substantive) independence from the Bush Administration.

Discussion: The Opinionator, Daily Kos and Firedoglake

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blogs:

McCain campaign responds: ‘Hysterical diatribe’ — This general election campaign is getting off to a rollicking start. — From McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds: … Oddly, McCain's response also contained the claim he'd distorted Defense Secretary Robert Gates' willingness to meet the leaders of Iran …

Discussion: The Caucus, The New Republic, The Swamp, Salon, The Jed Report and Balloon Juice

John McCain / CNN:
Obama: Bush and McCain ‘have a lot to answer for’

Discussion: michellemalkin.com, The Moderate Voice, Top of the Ticket, American Power and If I Ran the Zoo

Marc Ambinder:
Obama: Bush-McCain “Have a Lot To Answer For.”

Discussion: The Daily Dish

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:

Bush Rebuffed on Oil Plea in Saudi Arabia — RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — With the price of oil hitting record highs, President Bush used a private visit to King Abdullah's ranch here Friday to make a second attempt to persuade the Saudi government to increase oil production and was rebuffed yet again.

Discussion: Washington Post, The Huffington Post, MarketWatch, Climate Progress, Washington Monthly, American Street, The American Conservative and Hoffmania!

Marc Ambinder:

The White House Changes Targets — Ed Gillespie, gaggling to reporters today in Saudi Arabia, said that the White House really meant to Get Carter, not Obama:

Discussion: Weekly Standard Blog, Sister Toldjah, TownHall Blog and Open Left

Peggy Noonan / Wall Street Journal:

Pity Party — Big picture, May 2008: — The Democrats aren't the ones falling apart, the Republicans are. The Democrats can see daylight ahead. For all their fractious fighting, they're finally resolving their central drama. Hillary Clinton will leave, and Barack Obama will deliver a stirring acceptance speech.

Discussion: Pajamas Media, New York Times, the talking dog, James Wolcott's Blog, The Strata-Sphere, Macsmind, American Street, Donklephant, Wonkette, Real Clear Politics, protein wisdom, Vox Popoli, Jezebel and Amygdala

John Fund / Wall Street Journal:

Flirting With Disaster — Republicans are shellshocked over losing a third House seat in a special election this year. Much as a series of special-election defeats by Democrats in 1994 augured that the first midterm election of the Clinton years would be bad for the party …

Discussion: Booman Tribune, Eunomia and Air America Radio blogs

Jonah Goldberg / The Corner:

The Long Night of an Obama Presidency — Reading this piece about the Edwards endorsement of Obama, a cold shiver went down my spine. As scary as a Deval Patrick appointment as AG would be (I've long thought he would be Obama's likely choice), the suggestion that John Edwards …

Discussion: Political Radar and American Street

Michelle Cottle / The New Republic:

What Went Wrong? — The exclusive story of Hillary's fall, as told by the high-level advisors, staffers, fundraisers, and on-the-ground organizers who lived it. — Endings are rarely as joyous as beginnings—and in the case of a long, wearing, and ultimately disappointing campaign, they can be downright brutal.

Discussion: Democratic Strategist, The Other McCain, Swampland, Ben Smith's Blogs, Real Clear Politics and The Daily Dish

The New Republic:

Jeffrey Rosen on the Gay Marriage Ruling — Many are celebrating yesterday's decision by the California Supreme Court to legalize gay marriage in the state; others are bracing for a referendum battle; and some, cooped up in campaign offices, are trying to figure out how best to play it.

Discussion: The American Scene

Dahlia Lithwick / Slate:
Who You Calling Activist? — CALIFORNIA'S GAY-MARRIAGE DECISION …

Discussion: Power Line, Outside The Beltway, Bench Memos, The Daily Dish, MSNBC and The Volokh Conspiracy

CNN:

Edwards flatly rules out running with Obama — (CNN) — Seeing John Edwards and Barack Obama on the same stage earlier this week left political pundits buzzing: Could these two be an unbeatable presidential ticket? — They appeared to have natural chemistry — something Edwards …

Discussion: DownWithTyranny!, MyDD and Open Left

Libby Copeland / Washington Post:

Belittled Woman — At some point along the way, Hillary Clinton became “poor Hillary” and it stuck. — She went up against a charmer who once made an audience cheer just by blowing his nose (poor Hillary), and she lost states and delegates and she bet on a filly that died (poor Hillary) …