memeorandum: Economy? What Economy? — ST. PAUL, Minn. — Maybe it's … (Harold Meyerson/Washington Post)

1:25 PM ET, September 3, 2008

Top Items:

Another Controversy for Sarah Palin — Former Police Chief Says He Was Fired for Challenging Palin's Campaign Contributors — Gov. Sarah Palin is already facing ethical questions over her firing of the Alaska public safety commissioner, and now she faces questions over the firing of a longtime local police chief.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Confederate Yankee, JammieWearingFool and Political Machine

Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:

McCain Strategist Blasts Media — Top Aide Says News Organizations Are ‘on a Mission to Destroy’ Palin — Sen. John McCain's top campaign strategist accused the news media Tuesday of being “on a mission to destroy” Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin by displaying “a level of viciousness and scurrilousness” …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Think Progress, NewsBusters.org, American Street, Media Blog, TVNewser, Tennessee Guerilla Women, Sweetness & Light, Taylor Marsh, Lonewacko and Commentary

Jack Shafer / Slate:

MCCAIN CREATES A DISASTER STORY FOR THE NEWS-STARVED PRESS. — The news abhors a vacuum. Politicians, public-relations disinformers, media consultants, and other spin artists may think it's wise to suppress the elemental force that is the news. But when the news breaches the container it's been stuffed into, mayhem results.

Discussion: The Anonymous Liberal

Mike Allen / The Politico:

McCain: Palin more qualified than Obama — Mounting a ferocious defense of his embattled running mate, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said he is buying a TV ad arguing that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has more experience than the Democratic presidential nominee, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.).

Discussion: Yahoo! News, Associated Press, Comments from Left Field, Spin Cycle, Hot Air, Wizbang and Commentary

William Yardley / New York Times:

Palin's Start in Alaska: Not Politics as Usual — WASILLA, Alaska — The world arrived here more than a century ago with the gold rush and later the railroad. Yet one aspect of American life did not come to town until 1996, the year Sarah Palin ran for mayor and Wasilla got its first local lesson in wedge politics.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Edge of the American West, Real Clear Politics, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Welcome To The PalinDrome, Don Surber, No Blood for Hubris, MSNBC, RADAMISTO and AMERICAblog News

Washington Post:

Before Speech, Running Mate Gets Some Coaching — Since Sunday night, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has been holed up in her suite in the Hilton Minneapolis while a parade of Sen. John McCain's top advisers have briefed her on the nuances of his policy positions, national politics and, above all …

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, The Caucus, TRAIL BLAZERS, Argghhh!, Newsweek Blogs, Donklephant, TIME.com, PoliticalBase.com Blog, Time and MSNBC

Dan Balz / Washington Post:

Aides Say Team Interviewed Palin Late in the Process — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was not subjected to a lengthy in-person background interview with the head of Sen. John McCain's vice presidential vetting team until last Wednesday in Arizona, the day before McCain asked her to be his running mate …

Discussion: MSNBC, Washington Wire, The Moderate Voice, Crooks and Liars, Firedoglake, Corrente, democracyarsenal.org, Emptywheel, Jonathan Martin's Blogs, NY Daily News, Taylor Marsh, Daily Kos, The Other McCain, TIME.com and Alas, a blog

Wall Street Journal:

GOP Tightens Image Control As Palin Prepares for Debut — ST. PAUL, Minn. — The McCain campaign scrambled to take control of the public debate over vice-presidential pick Sarah Palin, canceling her public appearances and teaming her with high-powered Republican operatives as she prepared …

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Washington Wire, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Washington Monthly, New York Post, New York Times, Christian Science Monitor and Real Clear Politics

Wall Street Journal:

The Beltway Boys — Even as the Obama camp ponders how best to handle John McCain's veep pick of Sarah Palin, the high priests and priestesses of the media have marked her as an apostate. The Beltway class is in full-throated rebellion against a nondomesticated conservative who might pose …

Discussion: Hot Air, Wolf Howling and Commentary

Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:

The War Against the Press — I've talked to many political professionals over the years who were mad at the media, or me in particular. — But I've never quite had a conversation like the one Tuesday night with Steve Schmidt. — He was absolutely furious as he unloaded on the journalistic community …

Discussion: The New Republic, Wonkette, The Daily Dish, Achenblog and PoliticalBase.com Blog

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:

FINELY AGED WHINE — There's quite a tear-jerking piece in the Post by Howard Kurtz today about the McCain campaign's wailing about the media treatment of their botched veep roll-out ... Schmidt, by the way, is one of the most hard-boiled GOP operatives and Rove proteges around.

Discussion: The Huffington Post

Rachel D'Oro / Associated Press:
Bristol Palin's boyfriend heads to convention

Discussion: Associated Press, The Australian, New York Times, Newshoggers.com, No More Mister Nice Blog, JammieWearingFool, TBogg and TalkLeft

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
Well, I Did Something Right — Thanks to Stephen Hayes:

Discussion: Sonny Bunch

The New Republic: Are the Attacks on Palin Sexist?

Byron York / The Corner: What Palin Will Do Tonight

Patrick Buchanan / Real Clear Politics: McCain Pick is Paying Off Big Time

Lindsey Ellerson / Live Blogging:
How Palin is Playing in the Supermarket Aisles

Discussion: Political Radar, Macsmind and Blue Gal

Stephen F. Hayes / Weekly Standard:
The Media Descend to a New Low

Discussion: Weekly Standard Blog, michellemalkin.com, Booman Tribune, NewsBusters.org, Dr. Melissa Clouthier, Bob McCarty Writes, The Foundry and The Sundries Shack

Victor Davis Hanson / The Corner:
Why Do We Like Palin?

Discussion: American Power and Dr. Sanity

Los Angeles Times:
Vetting of Palin is raising questions

Discussion: Jezebel

Patterico's Pontifications:
Why the Press Claims, Falsely, that Sarah Palin Wasn't Vetted …

Discussion: Legalities

Jonathan Martin / The Politico:
McCain lashes out at press over Palin

Discussion: Associated Press, National Review, Hot Air, Reuters and Yahoo! News

Betsy Newmark / Betsy's Page:
Trashing a conservative woman

Discussion: michellemalkin.com and Patterico's Pontifications

Rachel Paula Abrahamson / Us Weekly:
Sarah Palin: Political Opponent Recalls Being Ridiculed

Discussion: NewsBusters.org

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:

The Angry Left — I don't have the credentials necessary to go to the actual convention, but according to folks I've talked to it's been low energy in the Xcel Energy Center and a not-exactly-packed house. Indeed, President George W. Bush didn't even bother to show up in person to deliver …

Discussion: Outside The Beltway and The Daily Dish

Nate / FiveThirtyEight.com: Today's Polls, 9/2 — It looks like Barack Obama may have gotten …

Joe Klein / Swampland:
The Republicans Tonight

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Post and Spin Cycle

Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:

Obama Met With Fox News Executives — At a secret meeting with Barack Obama three months ago, Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes says, he tried to clear the air with the Democratic senator by saying that his organization was determined to be fair but would not be “in the tank” for Obama's campaign.

Discussion: NewsBusters.org and TVNewser

Jeff Zeleny / The Caucus:
Obama to Appear on Fox on Thursday Night

Discussion: Outside The Beltway and Don Surber

AndrewHalcro.com:

The real politics of the Bridge to Nowhere.... With all the debate surrounding the Bridge to Nowhere earmark, I offer you a campaign photo from 2006 when the Bridge to Nowhere was considered the Bridge to Somewhere by one candidate seeking votes from the people of Ketchikan.

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Matthew Yglesias, The Politico, Spin Cycle and The Jed Report

Michelle Cottle / The New Republic:

Palin's Handling of Other People's Pregnant Teens — Obviously, from the perspective of a progressive, there is much to dislike about Sarah Palin's politics. But this tidbit in today's WaPo strikes me as particularly offensive: … I'm sorry, but a politician who opposes abortion …

Discussion: Think Progress, Washington Post, Hot Air, Jezebel, MoJoBlog and War and Piece

Ben Smith / The Politico:

Jewish voters may be wary of Palin — ST. PAUL, Minn. — Barack Obama has struggled for 18 months to lock down the support of a traditionally Democratic group, Jewish voters. — In the past week, John McCain may have helped Obama with his Jewish problem by choosing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate.

Discussion: Ta-Nehisi Coates, The Daily Dish, Ben Smith's Blogs, Boston Globe, Political Punch, Founding Bloggers, Harry's Place, The Volokh Conspiracy, Pharyngula, Booman Tribune, Daily Kos and Buck Naked Politics

Spengler / Asia Times:

How Obama lost the election — DENVER - Senator Barack Obama's acceptance speech last week seemed vastly different from the stands of this city's Invesco Stadium than it did to the 40 million who saw it on television. Melancholy hung like thick smog over the reserved seats where I sat with Democratic Party staffers.

Discussion: Clayton Cramer's BLOG