memeorandum: Michelle Obama Blooms in the White House (CBS News)

12:05 AM ET, April 1, 2010

Top Items:

Stall, Baby, Stall — By: NRO Staff — Many Americans fear that President Obama's new energy proposal is once again “all talk and no real action,” this time in an effort to shore up fading support for the Democrats' job-killing cap-and-trade (a.k.a. cap-and-tax) proposals.

Discussion: The Lonely Conservative

Chris Bowers / Open Left:

The politics of Obama's offshore drilling announcement — Here are the two main political implications of the Obama administration's announcement that it will expand offshore drilling: — A compromise with Conservadems While Republicans have been particularly loud in their support …

Discussion: Mother Jones, AMERICAblog News, The Plum Line and Firedoglake

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:

Boehner rebukes Obama offshore drilling plan — President Barack Obama's plan to allow expanded offshore oil and gas exploration won rebuke from the top House Republican on Wednesday. — House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) dismissed the president's plan as not going far enough in opening up U.S. waters for exploration.

Discussion: The New Republic, TPM LiveWire, The Hill, Grist, Guardian, The Washington Independent, Firedoglake, Mother Jones, Open Congress, Taylor Marsh, Gawker and Daily Kos

The Politico: Obama tries triangulation lite

John M. Broder / New York Times:
Obama Details Plan to Open Offshore Areas to Oil Drilling

Discussion: Booman Tribune, Room for Debate, The Caucus, The Huffington Post, Daily Kos, Wall Street Journal, Indecision Forever, San Francisco Bay Guardian, Wonkette, The Hill, The Moderate Voice, The Plum Line, The Washington Independent, Vanity Fair, Political Punch and The Lonely Conservative

Institute for Energy Research:
Obama Energy Announcement: More Imported Oil, Less Domestic Production, Fewer Jobs

Discussion: Power Line

Zaid Jilani / Think Progress:
Bush Official Dan Bartlett Admits Authorizing Offshore Oil Drilling …

Discussion: GOP.gov, Washington Post, The Political Carnival, Climate Progress and The Washington Independent

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:
Drill, Baby, Drill — Welcome to the coastal drilling era:

Marc Ambinder / The Atlantic Online:
Drill, Obama, Drill — For a Democratic president …

Discussion: USA Today, Grist, Swampland, Prairie Weather, Mother Jones and ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*

Michelle Malkin:
Of pipelines and pipedreams: Obama's drilling deception

Discussion: Think Progress, Washington Wire, About.com Conservative …, The Foundry, Hot Air, James Pethokoukis, Wall Street Journal, Left Coast Rebel, Another Black Conservative, Newsweek Blogs, Gateway Pundit, Gothamist, The Moderate Voice and Scared Monkeys

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:
ALL PART OF THE PLAN.... We talked earlier about the Obama …

Discussion: Wonkette, The Washington Independent, Confederate Yankee, Salon, TalkLeft, Washington Post and Say Anything

Jonathan Martin / Ben Smith's Blog:

Tony Perkins urges conservatives to stop giving money to RNC — Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council and an influential social conservative, is urging his members to stop giving money to the Republican National Committee, POLITICO has learned. — “I've hinted at this before …

Discussion: The Note, The Page, Riehl World View, TPM LiveWire and The Washington Independent

Brody Mullins / Washington Wire:

Former GOP Officials Launch Political Group — As troubles at the Republican National Committee continue, a group of former Republican officials are starting an outside political group that could compete with the RNC for wealthy donors and prominence. — The group, American Crossroads …

Discussion: Riehl World View

Mark Preston / CNN:

Conservative leader tells donors to stop giving to RNC — (CNN) - The head of an influential social conservative organization urged supporters Wednesday to stop donating to the Republican National Committee and instead contribute to its own coffers or to candidates with like-minded goals.

Discussion: Taegan Goddard's …, Hot Air and The Political Carnival

Andy Barr / The Politico:
Palin to RNC: Take me off fundraiser

Discussion: Riehl World View

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
RNC cancels Young Eagles events

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Riehl World View and Washington Post

Andy Barr / The Politico:
RNC: Dems do it too, sort of

Discussion: The Daily Caller and Washington Monthly

Yahoo! News:

Palin, Fox News, LL Cool J tangle over phantom interview — Here's a chapter in the culture wars that no one saw coming: Sarah Palin and Fox News facing off against '80s rap star and actor LL Cool J. — Palin makes her hosting debut Thursday night on Fox, as captain of an interview special in Greta Von Susteren's 10 p.m. slot.

Discussion: Show Tracker, Gothamist, The Huffington Post, From Inside the Box, Gateway Pundit, The Hill, Salon, The Atlantic Online, Shakesville and Latest Open Salon Blog

Chris Ariens / TVNewser:

Fox News to Cut Old LL Cool J Interview from New Sarah Palin Show — Actor, rapper LL Cool J was listed as one of the guests on the premiere of Sarah Palin's Fox News series “Real American Stories.” But late last night, LL, aka James Todd Smith, Tweeted that Fox News is “misrepresenting” his appearance.

Discussion: Think Progress, PopEater, Hot Air, Washington Post, Mediaite, The Note, Gawker, CNN, The Daily Caller, Chicago Tribune, The Political Carnival, Michael Calderone's Blog, TPM LiveWire and Conservatives4Palin.com

Melinda Newman / Hitfix:

Like LL Cool J, Toby Keith was unaware of his inclusion in Sarah Palin's show — Like LL Cool J, Toby Keith is slated to appear on “Real American Stories,” a Fox News show hosted by Sarah Palin. Unlike LL Cool J, Keith is still slated to be on the program, but his inclusion was news to him.

Discussion: Mediaite, Ben Smith's Blog, The Political Carnival, Show Tracker, TPM LiveWire, The Daily Caller and TVNewser

ArtsBeat:

Furor Grows Over Celebrity Appearances on Palin Show — Hours after LL Cool J complained that Fox News was recycling an old interview with him for a new program hosted by Sarah Palin, representatives for the country musician Toby Keith, who was also listed as a guest for the show, made a similar charge against the cable channel.

Discussion: Wonkette and TBogg

Matt Corley / Think Progress:
LL Cool J Says Fox News Is ‘Misrepresenting’ …

Discussion: Mediaite, The Huffington Post, NBC Washington, Media Matters for America and News Hounds

New York Times:

Federal Judge Finds N.S.A. Wiretapping Program Illegal — WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the National Security Agency's warrantless surveillance program was illegal, rejecting the Obama administration's effort to keep shrouded in secrecy one of the most disputed …

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, The BRAD BLOG, TalkLeft, Latest Open Salon Blog, Truthdig, The American Conservative and BernardFinel.com

Emptywheel:
Breaking: Judge Walker Grants Summary Judgment Finding Gov't Liable Under FISA

Discussion: Mother Jones and Salon

David Kravets / Threat Level:
Court Says Bush Illegally Wiretapped Two Americans

Discussion: Daily Kos, Crooks and Liars and Swampland

Greg Mankiw / Greg Mankiw's Blog:

Taxes per Person — Some pundits, reflecting on the looming U.S. budget deficits, claim that Americans are vastly undertaxed compared with other major nations. I was wondering, to what extent is that true? — The most common metric for answering this question is taxes as a percentage of GDP.

Discussion: Grasping Reality … and Outside The Beltway

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias: Mankiw's Tortured Tax Logic

John / Verum Serum:

Memo to Paul Krugman and Rep. Van Hollen: My Search Was Not in Vain (Updated) — In last Thursday's column, Paul Krugman admitted to having fun watching “right-wingers go wild.” One of the things that apparently delighted him was this map which Sarah Palin posted on her Facebook page:

Discussion: Gateway Pundit, Nice Deb, Moe Lane, The Corner on National …, Villainous Company, HotAirPundit, Sister Toldjah and Weasel Zippers

Susan Page / USA Today:

Poll: More blame Obama for poor economy, unemployment — WASHINGTON — Americans anxious about unemployment and the economy increasingly blame President Obama for hard times, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds, amid signs of turbulence in November's midterm elections.

Discussion: Riehl World View

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:

Gallup: Majority Says Dem Health Reform Tactics Were “Abuse Of Power” — Yesterday I noted the seemingly odd finding by Gallup that more Americans blame Democrats than Republicans or conservatives for the rash of violence that greeted the passage of the reform law.

Discussion: Grim's Hall, American Power, Left Coast Rebel, GayPatriot and Gateway Pundit

Lydia Saad / Gallup:
Blame Spread Around for Post-Healthcare Vandalism, Threats

Discussion: Power Line, Washington Examiner, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Moderate Voice, Pundit & Pundette, Washington Monthly, The Hill and The Lonely Conservative

Veronique de Rugy / The Corner on National …:

How Is the Stimulus Money Allocated? — By: Veronique de Rugy — Unemployment isn't a factor, but politics is. Your stimulus dollars at work. — Using recipient report data from Recovery.gov, as well as economic and political data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Census Bureau …

Discussion: Hot Air, Wizbang, Say Anything and Townhall.com

CBS News:

Michelle Obama Blooms in the White House — Back in the White House Garden, The First Lady's Popularity is Already Growing by the Bushel — (CBS) The White House garden has done quite well in weathering the wild winter. — The garden has produced 50 pounds of produce before the tulips even came up.

Discussion: NewsBusters.org

Alan Colmes' Liberaland:

Tea Partier Tells Mediaite Racist Sign Was Forged; We Have Him On Record Defending Its Use — Self-proclaimed Tea Party founder Dale Robertson told Tommy Christopher at Mediaite that the infamous photo of him holding a sign with the n-word (which he spelled wrong) is a fake. Reports Christopher:

Discussion: Mediaite and The Washington Independent

Andrew Sabl / The Reality-Based Community:

The Affordable Care act is not a “mandate.” It's government paying for your private insurance when your employer doesn't. — My post on why the ACA will become popular was too long and confusing. Shorter me: — The phrase “individual mandate,” though it explained to wonks …

Discussion: Mother Jones

Jack Shenker / Guardian:

West's Middle East strategy criticised — Exclusive: Ex-nuclear chief says west must rethink Middle East policy as speculation grows he may run for office in Egypt — Western governments risk creating a new generation of Islamist extremists if they continue to support repressive regimes …

Discussion: Rethink Afghanistan War Blog

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

GOP leads in Alabama — It doesn't matter who the Republicans or the Democrats nominate at this point for Governor in Alabama- the GOP candidate will be favored to win this fall. — The Republican leads by anywhere from 5 to 16 points in the eight match ups we looked at.

Discussion: Doc's Political Parlor, Daily Kos and Real Clear Politics

Victor Davis Hanson / The Corner on National …:

Why All the Wounded Fawns? — By: Victor Davis Hanson — Why are charges of racism and political extremism suddenly in the air? — Party politics is always the norm, but what is unusual this time around is the juxtaposition between the once-soaring Obama unity rhetoric of the past …

Discussion: Metablog

Center for Community Change:

Immigrant Leaders Get Commitment From RNC Chairman Steele To Help In Securing Republican Support For Immigration Reform — WASHINGTON - Today, ten leaders with the Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM) met with Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele to discuss the future …

Discussion: Washington Wire and Wonk Room