memeorandum: ‘We are wall Street...we are smarter and more vicious than [dinosaurs]’ (Stacy-Marie Ishmael/FT Alphaville)

12:10 PM ET, May 1, 2010

Top Items:

Sarah Palin / Facebook:

Domestic Drilling: Why We Can Still Believe — We've all been shocked and saddened by the tragic events in the Gulf of Mexico. My heart breaks for coastal residents who are facing fears of the unknown impacts of the oil spill. — As an Alaskan, I can speak from the heart about the tragedy of an oil spill.

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, The Huffington Post, Mediaite, Hot Air, The Rachel Maddow Show, Conservatives4Palin.com, CBS News, Riehl World View and Right Now

Ben Raines / Breaking News from the Press-Register:

Leaked report: Government fears Deepwater Horizon well could become unchecked gusher … A confidential government report on the unfolding spill disaster in the Gulf makes clear the Coast Guard now fears the well could become an unchecked gusher shooting millions of gallons of oil per day into the Gulf.

Discussion: Below The Beltway, The Confluence, Washington Post, Donklephant, Dot Earth, SkyTruth, New Orleans Times-Picayune and Achenblog

Ezra Klein:

Oil spill an inside job? — If Rush Limbaugh was on the far left, he'd be a 9/11 truther. As it is, he's on the far right, and has decided to become an oil-spill truther: … Is there literally nothing this man can say that will convince Republicans to disavow him? — Photo credit: By Ron Edmonds/Associated Press

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Donklephant and Mediaite

Helene Cooper / New York Times:

White House Memo: Shadow of Katrina Hangs Over Official Response to Spill — WASHINGTON — There's a world of difference between the impact of an oil spill and a deadly hurricane. And the White House hopes it stays that way. — As President Obama stepped up his administration's response …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Caucus, Media Matters for America, The Hill, The Plum Line and New York Times

New York Times:

BP Is Criticized Over Oil Spill, but U.S. Missed Chances to Act — NEW ORLEANS — As oil edged toward the Louisiana coast and fears continued to grow that the leak from a seabed oil well could spiral out of control, officials in the Obama administration publicly chastised BP America …

Discussion: Gateway Pundit, Pundit & Pundette and Prairie Weather

Mark Silva / The Swamp:

Obama inspecting oil-spill: Gulf crisis — by Mark Silva and updated at 10:05 am EDT — Have we mentioned lately that timing, in politics, is everything? — The White House says today that President Barack Obama will visit the Gulf of Mexico Sunday morning to inspect the effects …

Discussion: D.C. Now

New York Times:

Editorial: Unanswered Questions on the Oil Spill — President Obama has ordered a freeze on new offshore drilling leases as well as a “thorough review” into what is almost sure to be the worst oil spill in this country's history — exceeding in size and environmental damage the calamitous Exxon Valdez disaster in 1989.

Discussion: Doug Ross, Clusterstock, LA Times Environment Blog and NewsBusters.org

Kevin Drum / Mother Jones:
Rush: “I'm Just Noting the Timing Here”

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Newsweek Blogs, Outside The Beltway, Ben Smith's Blog and Paul Krugman

msnbc.com:
BP didn't plan for major spill

Discussion: Reuters, Bloomberg, Associated Press, Crooks and Liars, New York Magazine, Hot Air and The Moderate Voice

RushLimbaugh.com:
Regime SWAT Teams Sent to Gulf

Discussion: Gateway Pundit, Breitbart.tv, Weasel Zippers and NewsBusters.org

NASA Earth Observatory:
Gulf Oil Spill Creeps Towards Mississippi Delta

Discussion: Boston Globe, The Lede, White House.gov Blog Feed, Mashable!, Dot Earth, The Atlantic Online and LA Times Environment Blog

Arizona Republic:

Pinal County Sheriff's deputy shot after traffic stop — A Pinal County Sheriff's deputy was shot in the stomach Friday by an undocumented immigrant off Interstate 8, according sheriff's officials. — Lt. Tami Villar told 12 News that the search and rescue deputy was investigating a load …

Discussion: Scared Monkeys and The Jawa Report

CNN:

Arizona deputy wounded in shooting — (CNN) — A sheriff's deputy in central Arizona was shot Friday afternoon by a suspected drug trafficker, authorities said. — The Pinal County deputy, who was not immediately identified, contacted authorities after being wounded in the desert …

Discussion: The Jawa Report

Manavt / This Just In:

Authorities: Ariz. deputy shot by suspected drug traffickers — [Updated at 11:00 p.m.] A sheriff's deputy in central Arizona was shot Friday afternoon by a suspected drug trafficker, authorities said. — The Pinal County deputy, who was not immediately identified, contacted authorities …

Discussion: Hot Air, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Left Coast Rebel

Nicholas Riccardi / Los Angeles Times:

Arizona lawmakers modify immigration law — Legislators ban race from being used by police as a factor to identify illegal immigrants and require scrutiny only of people who police stop, detain or arrest. — Reporting from Phoenix — The Arizona Legislature has narrowed …

Discussion: Diggers Realm and LAist

Anill / Wonk Room:
EXCLUSIVE: Email From Author Of Arizona Law Reveals Intent …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, TalkLeft, Arizona Republic, Ezra Klein, ImmigrationProf Blog, New York Times, NO QUARTER, Hot Air, Michelle Malkin and Dean's World

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
Baseball players union unhappy with Arizona immigration law

Discussion: CNN

National Enquirer:

OBAMA CHEATING SCANDAL — PRESIDENT OBAMA has been caught in a shocking cheating scandal after being caught in a Washington, DC Hotel with a former campaign aide, sources say. — And now, a hush-hush security video that shows everything could topple both Obama's presidency and marriage to Michelle!

Discussion: Townhall.com, Mediaite, DBKP - Death, Outside The Beltway, Weasel Zippers, Below The Beltway, Wake up America, Freedom's Lighthouse, YID With LID, No Sheeples Here and The Jawa Report

truthout:

Whistleblower: BP Risks More Massive Catastrophes in Gulf — A former contractor who worked for British Petroleum (BP) claims the oil conglomerate broke federal laws and violated its own internal procedures by failing to maintain crucial safety and engineering documents related to one of the firms …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars and Suburban Guerrilla

Susan Saulny / New York Times:

Dressing Mrs. Obama for Success, Then Going Out of Business — CHICAGO — Fashion and politics are seasonal and unpredictable, yet the two came together quite well here for the hometown designer Maria Pinto and Michelle Obama, whose first memorable bursts onto the national scene were often in Pinto creations.

Discussion: JammieWearingFool

Ben Smith / The Politico:

Obama: ‘A guy who doubles down’ — Assessing the Obama administration's mixed record on foreign policy, the grinding problems it faces like Afghanistan and the impasses it has reached on high-priority issues such as the Mideast and China, it helps to start with a historical parallel from the not very distant past:

Discussion: CNN

The Politico:
WHCD A-LIST GUEST LIST

Discussion: Washington Wire and Wilshire & Washington

Josh Kraushaar / The Politico:

Kos poll: Burns by six — Weighed down in his district by low presidential favorability ratings and a health care law that's unpopular there, Pennsylvania Democrat Mark Critz now trails by 6 percentage points in next month's special election for the seat of the late Rep. John Murtha …

Discussion: Daily Kos, Real Clear Politics and Ballot Box

DavidNYC / Swing State Project: PA-12: Dems Trailing in Special to Replace Murtha

Jim Balloch / Knoxville News-Sentinel:

Jury convicts Palin e-mail intruder on two counts; mistrial declared on ID theft — KNOXVILLE - A federal jury this afternoon convicted Sarah Palin e-mail intruder David C. Kernell of felony destruction of records to hamper a federal investigation and misdemeanor unlawfully obtaining information from a protected computer.