memeorandum: Teen gets letter from the Vice President (Ashley Reynolds/WKYT-TV)

11:10 AM ET, May 19, 2010

Top Items:

The GOP's special failure — All the evidence pointing to monster Republican House gains this fall—the Scott Brown upset win in Massachusetts, the scary polling numbers in once-safely Democratic districts, the ever-rising number of Democratic seats thought to be in jeopardy—was contradicted Tuesday.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Think Progress, Sister Toldjah, Ballot Box, Balloon Juice, Maggie's Farm, The Corner on National … and AMERICAblog News

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:

‘WHERE IS THE WAVE?’.... Arguably the most important election yesterday wasn't a primary race, but rather, the congressional special election in Pennsylvania's 12th — a contest to fill the vacancy left by the late Rep. Jack Murtha (D). — Observers in both parties considered the race something of a bellwether.

Discussion: The Impolitic, CBS News, Discourse.net, Eschaton, The Note and ABCNEWS

New York Times:

Specter Defeat Signals a Wave Against Incumbents — WASHINGTON — Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, who left the Republican Party a year ago in hopes of salvaging a 30-year career, was rejected on Tuesday by Democratic primary voters, with Representative Joe Sestak winning the party's nomination …

Reuters:

Activists seize control of politics — For any politician with the usual instincts for self-protection, the lessons of Tuesday's primaries could not be more clear: This could happen to you. — Arlen Specter lost in Pennsylvania even though the party-switching Democrat was recruited and backed by a sitting president.

Discussion: Washington Post, The Politico, Commentary, Taegan Goddard's … and Associated Press

Alexander Burns / The Politico:

Sestak, Paul score wins as Lincoln faces runoff — Upstart Senate candidates claimed two stunning victories in primary elections Tuesday night as Pennsylvania Rep. Joe Sestak denied incumbent Democrat Arlen Specter renomination to a sixth term and Kentucky insurgent Rand Paul easily bested …

Discussion: The Swamp, CNN, Outside The Beltway, Questions and Observations, Another Black Conservative, Taylor Marsh, Scared Monkeys, FiveThirtyEight, Democratic Strategist, Philly.com, LewRockwell.com Blog and Hit & Run

Marc Ambinder / The Atlantic Online:

Is Rand Ron's Son? Or the Most Powerful Republican in the Woooorld? — Rand Paul is in the spotlight tonight. He's enjoying Scott Brown-like status as the Most Powerful Republican In The World. And look: he says he represents the Tea Party movement. So that must be the end of it, right?

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, Outside The Beltway, Connecting.the.Dots, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Impolitic, PostPartisan and Hot Air

Andy Barr / The Politico:

Arlen Specter warns of tea party ‘take over’ — As voters considered his fate throughout Pennsylvania, Sen. Arlen Specter warned on Tuesday that without him Democrats may not be able to fend off a tea party “takeover.” — “What you see happening across the country is that the tea party organization …

Discussion: Left Coast Rebel, Another Black Conservative, Scared Monkeys, CNN, The Corner on National …, Weasel Zippers, Michelle Malkin, Tammy Bruce and Pundit & Pundette

Jay Cost / HorseRaceBlog:
No, This Isn't an “Anti-Incumbent” Year

Discussion: The Save Jersey Blog and Hot Air

Thomas M. Defrank / NY Daily News:
Sen. Arlen Specter's primary loss continues bad 2010 for President Obama, Democrats

Discussion: Washington Monthly

Washington Post:
Sen. Arlen Specter loses Pennsylvania primary; Rand Paul wins in Kentucky

Discussion: msnbc.com, PostPartisan, Ezra Klein, The Hill, Washington Monthly, What's New, The Plum Line, Courier-Journal, USA Today, The Faster Times and Wall Street Journal

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:
How (and why) Arlen Specter lost

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Washington Post, Gawker and OpenSecrets.org

ABCNEWS:
Tea Party Supporter Rand Paul Defeats GOP Favorite in Kentucky

Discussion: Townhall.com, Associated Press, The Politico, Another Black Conservative and CNN

Katharine Q. Seelye / New York Times:
After 30 Years and Party Switch, Career Curtain for Specter

Discussion: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Adam Nagourney / The Caucus:
Blogging the Primaries — Primary elections in three states today …

Discussion: Eunomia, Talking Points Memo, New York Times, New York Times and Daily Kos

David M. Halbfinger / New York Times:

Shays Watched as Blumenthal's War Claims Evolved — HARTFORD — Former Representative Christopher Shays of Connecticut, a Republican who says he is a good friend of Richard Blumenthal's, said in an interview Tuesday that he had watched with worry as Mr. Blumenthal gradually embellished his military record over the years.

Discussion: Hot Air, Unfogged, The Atlantic Online, Balloon Juice, The Daily Caller, The Eye, Newsweek Blogs, Democratic Strategist, DISSENTING JUSTICE, The Fix, Commentary and AmSpecBlog

New York Times:
Blumenthal's Vietnam Claims Grew in Time, Colleague Says

Discussion: Washington Wire, Outside The Beltway, Capitol Watch, Hartford Courant, Betsy's Page, Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair, The Eye, PostPartisan, Hot Air and Newsweek Blogs

New York Times:
Mr. Blumenthal's Misdirection — There are few sins less forgivable …

Discussion: NewsReal Blog, Jules Crittenden, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Real Clear Politics, Associated Press, Scared Monkeys, Right Pundits, Law Blog, PostPartisan and The Swamp

Larry Pressler / New York Times:
The Technicality Generation

Discussion: Questions and Observations, Newsweek Blogs, Vox Popoli, The Daily Beast, The Plum Line and NPR

James Hohmann / The Politico:
VFW leader rips Blumenthal

Discussion: Mudville Gazette and RedState

Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Uh oh: Media not rallying to Blumenthal's side after press conference

Discussion: Gateway Pundit, Jules Crittenden, Breitbart.tv and New York Times

Alex Rodriguez / Los Angeles Times:

Pakistan arrests army officer linked to Times Square bomb suspect — The major's involvement with Faisal Shahzad remains unclear, but authorities say the two met in Islamabad and were in cellphone contact. — Reporting from Islamabad, Pakistan — Investigators have arrested …

Discussion: Gothamist, Weasel Zippers, New York Times and Wall Street Journal

Dina Temple-Raston / NPR:
Jamaican Imam Said To Inspire Times Square Suspect

Discussion: The Jawa Report and Counterterrorism Blog

CNN:
Official: Times Square bomb suspect eyed other targets

Discussion: Jihad Watch

Patrick Gavin / The Politico:

HOUSE PASSES BEER RESOLUTION — While most of Washington was focused on Tuesday's election results, the House was busy doing something else: Passing a resolution about beer. — House Resolution 1297, sponsored by Rep. Betsy Markey, supports “the goals and ideals of American Craft Beer Week.”

Discussion: JONATHAN TURLEY and Don Surber

Jim Oliphant / The Swamp:

Elena Kagan: Money in the bank? — White House staffers deliver Elena Kagan's questionnaire responses to the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday. (AP/Harry Hamburg) — by David G. Savage — Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan says she has $1.76 million in assets …

Discussion: CNN and SCOTUSblog

New York Times:
Thesis Is Window on Roots of Kagan's Legal Creed

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, The Caucus, Law Blog, The Politico, CNN, Main Justice, Liveshots, ABCNEWS, Political Punch, Lynn Sweet and Balkinization

Chris Bowers / Open Left:

Crotchety Progressive Rant — I am outraged by this, because this is outrageous. — And yet, where are the street protests in response to this outrage? No, not those protests—we need bigger ones. There should be hundreds of thousands of people out there protesting this. Every day.

Discussion: Dennis the Peasant and TalkLeft

Bloomberg:

Conspiracy of Banks Rigging States Came With Crash — A telephone call between a financial adviser in Beverly Hills and a trader in New York was all it took to fleece taxpayers on a water-and-sewer financing deal in West Virginia. The secret conversation was part of a conspiracy stretching across …

Discussion: naked capitalism, Booman Tribune, Balloon Juice, The Glittering Eye, Clusterstock, Suburban Guerrilla and DealBook

Steve Krakauer / Mediaite:

Campbell Brown Leaving CNN After Network Grants Release From Contract (UPDATE) — Mediaite has learned CNN has granted anchor Campbell Brown's request to be let out early from her contract. — She has agreed to stay on and anchor the 8pmET hour until a replacement is found. Updated with statements.

Discussion: New York Times, Don Surber, Wonkette and Commentary

Brian Stelter / Media Decoder:
Campbell Brown to Leave CNN

Discussion: Mediaite and Romenesko

Myglesias / Matthew Yglesias:

Resultsblogging II: PA-12 — Former John Murtha staffer Mark Critz's win in the PA-12 House election is just straight-up embarrassing for Republicans. The Democratic strategy was straight out of the 2006/2008 playbook. Find a moderately conservative House district and run a somewhat heterodox Democrat.

Discussion: TalkLeft

Dana Milbank / Washington Post:

Scandals in the House Republican Class of 1994 — When was it, exactly, that the Republican revolution merged with the sexual revolution? — With each passing year, the class notes for the famous House Republicans Class of '94 get more lurid. The latest entry was submitted Tuesday morning by Rep. Mark Souder (Ind.).

Discussion: Daily Kos

New York Times:

Clients Worried About Goldman's Dueling Goals — “Questions have been raised that go to the heart of this institution's most fundamental value: how we treat our clients.” — Lloyd C. Blankfein, Goldman Sachs's C.E.O., at the firm's annual meeting in May — As the housing crisis mounted …

Discussion: The Awl, Gothamist, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, naked capitalism, Washington Post, Balloon Juice and The Baseline Scenario

Robert Stacy McCain / The Other McCain:

PA-12 LIVE Election Results; UPDATE: Democrat Wins; Burns Concedes — Election results online here. — 11:30 p.m. ET: Well, everybody else has gone to drown their sorrows, but I've still got to hit a late deadline for The American Spectator. A defeat is always harder to report than a victory.

Discussion: National Review, Right Now, alicublog, Gateway Pundit, Conservatives4Palin.com and American Spectator

Smitty / The Other McCain:
PA-12: Shoe Leather Update. Burns Victory? …

Discussion: Big Government, Real Clear Politics, Right Now and National Review

Allahpundit / Hot Air:

Video: The most depressing commencement address ever? — I'm posting this for one reason only: If Specter wins, the blow will fall so heavily on some of us that it could prove fatal unless we're prepared for it first. Consider this preparation. After you watch, you'll be so bummed …

Discussion: JammieWearingFool, theblogprof and The Daily Caller

J.P. Freire / Beltway Confidential:

DOJ Voting Rights attorney resigns over Black Panthers stonewalling — A trial attorney with the Department of Justice's Voting Rights Section has resigned, citing concerns about the government's refusal to prosecute a case involving voter intimidation by the New Black Panther Party.

Discussion: Main Justice and Commentary