memeorandum: Al-Qaeda: the cracks begin to show (Saul F/Times of London)

10:05 AM ET, June 8, 2008

Top Items:

Obama Maps a Nationwide Push in G.O.P. Strongholds — Barack Obama has moved to transform his primary organization into a general election machine, hiring staff members and sending organizers into key states.

Discussion: protein wisdom, Rezko Watch, American Street, The Other McCain, Bang the Drum, Cliff Schecter, The Political Carnival and The Swamp

Dan Balz / Washington Post:

Each Party Is Set to Hunt The Other's Usual Ground — The 2008 general election will pit the best-organized nomination campaign in the history of modern Democratic politics against the battle-tested machinery of the Republican Party, with both Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Sen. John McCain …

Discussion: On Deadline

New York Times:

The Long Road to a Clinton Exit — WASHINGTON — By the time the campaign tracked down the small-city Indiana mayor, Bill Clinton was in a lather. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton had lost the North Carolina primary that evening and was eager to offset it with a win in Indiana.

New York Times:

Clinton Ends Campaign With Clear Call to Elect Obama — Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton made an emotional and unequivocal appeal for her voters to get behind Senator Barack Obama.

Discussion: LewRockwell.com Blog, The Other McCain and The Fix

Mark Penn / New York Times:

The Problem Wasn't the Message — It Was the Money — Perhaps the most frustrating part of losing a close race is thinking about what else you could have done to win. You replay the campaign over and over again in your head. As an adviser to Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, I sure do.

Discussion: Cogitamus and PSoTD

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:

Yes She Did — Senator Clinton did all she needed to do: thanked everyone and unequivocally endorsed and supported Barack Obama. One theme stuck out to me: she essentially said that even though she was careful to avoid ever saying that she was running because she was a woman and that people …

Discussion: Outside The Beltway, PoliGazette, Corrente, Cliff Schecter, Fumbling Toward Divinity, About.com US Politics, Comments from Left Field, Power Line and Crooks and Liars

Hilary Rosen / The Huffington Post:
Gratitude for Hillary — Hillary Clinton gave the speech …

Discussion: MyDD, About.com US Liberal Politics, The Democratic Daily, Taylor Marsh and New York Times

Manu Raju / The Hill:

Bush warns of pay cuts for troops — President Bush on Saturday pressed Congress to approve billions of dollars more for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, warning that failure to quickly act could lead to mass layoffs at the Pentagon and an inability to pay the salaries of troops in combat.

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report, American Street and VetVoice

Saul F / Times of London:

Al-Qaeda: the cracks begin to show — A succession of leading Muslim radicals has condemned the terror group's tactics as its support in Islamic countries falls off dramatically. Is Britain following the pattern? — Abul Taher — Read the original article in The New Republic here

Discussion: Don Surber and Jihad Watch

Michael L. Millenson / Washington Post:

Want Universal Health Care? The Operative Word Is ‘Care.’ — On a recently posted YouTube music video, to a hypnotic bongo beat, rapper MIKE-E knocks out rhymes about . . . universal health care: — You are among the masses/One of 47 million people without health care access …

Discussion: Outside The Beltway, The Glittering Eye and Economist's View

Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:

People vs. Dinosaurs — Question: What do America's premier investor, Warren Buffett, and Iran's toxic president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, have in common? Answer: They've both made a bet about Israel's future. — Ahmadinejad declared on Monday that Israel “has reached its final phase …

Discussion: The Agonist

Adam Fogle / The Palmetto Scoop:

Huckabee knows how to save a life — FORMER ARKANSAS GUV PERFORMS HEIMLICH ON NC LT. GOV. CANDIDATE — The North Carolina State Republican Convention got quite exciting today — and it had nothing to do with politics. — During a pre-event hospitality breakfast, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee …

Discussion: TIME.com and doubleplusundead

Joby Warrick / Washington Post:

Lawmakers Urge Special Counsel Probe of Harsh Interrogation Tactics — Nearly 60 House Democrats yesterday urged the Justice Department to appoint a special counsel to examine whether top Bush administration officials may have committed crimes in authorizing the use of harsh interrogation tactics against suspected terrorists.

Discussion: The Raw Story