memeorandum: Obama's border Kabuki: Don't believe the hype; Update: Meddling … (Michelle Malkin)

10:15 AM ET, May 26, 2010

Top Items:

After closed-door talks, GOP senator calls Obama ‘thin-skinned’ — President Obama traveled to Capitol Hill on Tuesday for a rare meeting with Senate Republicans, but the 75-minute session yielded little progress on hot-button topics and left some senators with bruised feelings.

Discussion: Associated Press, Politics Daily, Think Progress, Bloomberg, The Nation, msnbc.com, TPM LiveWire, Hot Air, ChattahBox News Blog, The Political Carnival, The Plum Line, Jules Crittenden, Front Row Washington, Wonk Room and Scared Monkeys

Manu Raju / The Politico:

Obama, McCain clash at GOP lunch — President Barack Obama battled with Senate Republicans in a tense closed-door meeting Tuesday, facing tough criticism from his GOP adversaries — including John McCain — on issues ranging from health care to border security.

Discussion: The Swamp, Washington Wire, No More Mister Nice Blog, Commentary, Pundit & Pundette, American Thinker, Another Black Conservative, CNN, Left Coast Rebel, Associated Press, The Note, Hot Air, The Corner on National …, Gateway Pundit, The Hill, Washington Monthly and JustOneMinute

Carol E. Lee / The Politico:

Obama: Day for ‘partnership’ passed — SAN FRANCISCO - President Barack Obama traveled to one of the most liberal enclaves in the country to deliver some of his harshest criticism yet of the Republican Party - attacking the GOP on points where Democrats sense vulnerability, such as energy legislation and immigration reform.

Discussion: Guardian

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:

Senator criticizes Obama's ‘audacity’ in using GOP as ‘props’ — A GOP senator ripped into President Barack Obama at a meeting on Capitol Hill Tuesday, telling him he had “audacity” coming in and using Republican lawmakers as “props.” — Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), the Democrats' partner …

Discussion: Reuters, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Weasel Zippers and FrumForum

Barak Ravid / Haaretz:

Obama sends PM surprise invite to White House meeting next week — Netanyahu will fly to Paris before U.S. trip to participate in an OECD meeting, which Israel has just been invited to join. — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold another White House meeting with U.S. President …

Discussion: Laura Rozen's Blog and Commentary

Charles Babington / Associated Press:
Obama gets an earful in clash with GOP senators

Discussion: JammieWearingFool, Gateway Pundit and Weasel Zippers

Allahpundit / Hot Air:

Chris Christie to teacher: If you don't like my education budget, find a new job — I begged for video on Twitter, my friends, but none is forthcoming. What can I say? I tried. … Elsewhere today, he warned about New Jersey becoming a new Greece. In lieu of a clip of the exchange …

Discussion: Bloomberg, Cassy Fiano and The Anchoress

Herb Jackson / NorthJersey.com:
N.J. Gov. Chris Christie defends cuts, promotes property tax cap in Rutherford

Discussion: Betsy's Page

John Aravosis / AMERICAblog Gay:

Webb to vote no on DADT compromise, blames WH and Gates statements that, he says, told him to vote no — This statement from Democratic Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) is FUBAR beyond all belief. Webb has interpreted the White House and Pentagon statements in support of the DADT compromise as actually …

Discussion: The Washington Independent, Truthdig and Daily Kos

Greg Sargent / The Plum Line:
The decisive action Obama can take

Discussion: The Left Coaster, The Moderate Voice and Hullabaloo

David Rogers / The Politico:
Dems wrestle with W.H. mixed signals

Discussion: New York Times, Open Left, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Eduwonk and ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*

Mike Riggs / The Daily Caller:
Justice Department declines to appoint independent counsel for Sestak case

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Other McCain, Big Journalism, Weasel Zippers, Glenn Thrush's Blog and The Corner on National …

Anne Flaherty / Associated Press:
Senate Republican to back repeal of gay ban

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Huffington Post, Hot Air, The Hill and Boston Globe

David Weigel / Right Now:

Sarah Palin's strange, unprofessional and paranoid grudge — Sarah Palin took to her Facebook account today to inform her readers that Joe McGinniss, an award-winning reporter and author, had rented the house next door. — I saw Ben Smith flag this earlier today but did not really appreciate …

Discussion: protein wisdom, JustOneMinute, NewsBusters.org, Gawker, Balloon Juice, Washington Post, Mediaite and TBogg

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:
Annals of journalistic enterprise

Discussion: Right Now, Hot Air, Another Black Conservative, The Daily Caller, Flopping Aces, Beltway Confidential and Facebook

Dan Popkey / Idaho Statesman:

Labrador upsets Ward, eyes Minnick — Worries about nation's direction motivate many voters in Tuesday's Idaho GOP primary — In a rebuke to the Republican establishment, state Rep. Raul Labrador defeated Vaughn Ward in western Idaho's 1st Congressional District and punched his ticket …

Discussion: Ballot Box, Washington Wire, Right Now, Clayton Cramer's BLOG and NPR Topics

Ben Frumin / TPMDC:
Vaughn Ward: Worst Candidate Ever?

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, skippy the bush kangaroo, Daily Kos, The Fix, Swing State Project, Idaho Statesman, National Review and The Political Carnival

portal.sre.gob.mx:

STATEMENT BY THE EMBASSY OF MEXICO — Regarding the Administration's decision to send 1,200 National Guard servicemen to the US Southern border, the Government of Mexico trusts that this decision will help to channel additional US resources to enhance efforts to prevent the illegal flows …

Discussion: Liberty Central and Gateway Pundit

Michael D. Shear / Washington Post:
Obama to send more National Guard troops to U.S.-Mexico border

Discussion: Cato @ Liberty, Associated Press, Wonk Room, TRAIL BLAZERS, Fausta's Blog, Weekly Standard, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Washington Independent

Randal C. Archibold / New York Times:
National Guard to Help Secure Southwest Border

Discussion: Power Line, The Caucus, Outside the Beltway, Another Black Conservative, New York Times, The Daily Beast, The Politico, Salon, Gateway Pundit, Ben Smith's Blog, Balloon Juice and FrumForum

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:

Obama heckled over 'Don't ask, don't tell' — again — President Barack Obama was heckled by a protester Tuesday night while at a fundraising event for Sen. Barbara Boxer (D) in San Francisco. — The protester was upset with the pace of the repeal of the “Don't ask, don't tell” policy barring openly gay military service members.

Discussion: CNN

Wall Street Journal:
U.S. to Toughen Drill Rules

Discussion: The Caucus, MyFox Philadelphia, Political Punch, Washington Post and The Page

Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:

As Ugly as It Gets — I confess that when I first saw the May 17 picture of Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, joining his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and the Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with raised arms — after their signing of a putative deal …

Discussion: Fausta's Blog, Eunomia and Prairie Weather

Brian Montopoli / CBS News:

Poll Finds Americans Pessimistic, Dissatisfied with Washington — CBS News Poll analysis by the CBS News Polling Unit: Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus and Anthony Salvanto. — Americans are frustrated with nearly everyone in Washington - including President Obama, Congress …

Discussion: Daily Kos, Real Clear Politics, Hot Air, The Atlantic Online, Pollster.com All Content and USS Neverdock

Sabrina Tavernise / New York Times:

U.S. Is a Top Villain in Pakistan's Conspiracy Talk — ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Americans may think that the failed Times Square bomb was planted by a man named Faisal Shahzad. But the view in the Supreme Court Bar Association here in Pakistan's capital is that the culprit was an American “think tank.”

Discussion: The Jawa Report, Who Is IOZ?, At War and The Page

Gallup:

Sub-Saharan Africa Leads World in U.S. Approval — Across 110 countries, median approval was 51% — WASHINGTON, D.C. — Across 110 countries Gallup surveyed in 2009, median approval of U.S. leadership was 51%, up from 34% in 2008. Approval during President Barack Obama's first year …

CNN:

Police chiefs to meet with Holder about Arizona law — Washington (CNN) — Police chiefs from about a dozen cities are scheduled to meet with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder on Wednesday to talk about concerns they have with Arizona's new immigration law.

Discussion: Althouse

The Politico:

EPA chief cancels DSCC appearance — Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson, scheduled to headline a fundraiser for Senate Democrats next week in Manhattan, cancelled her appearance Tuesday afternoon, hours after a POLITICO story about the event sparked Republican criticism …

Discussion: Federal Eye, The Daily Caller and Ben Smith's Blog

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:

Obama backs Phoenix Suns' protest of Arizona immigration law — President Barack Obama lent support on Tuesday night for the Phoenix Suns' protest of their home state's new immigration law. — The president said it was “terrific” that the Suns were socially engaged enough to wage …

Discussion: Washington Post

New York Times:

Panel Suggests Signs of Trouble Before Rig Explosion — In the hours before the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded last month in the Gulf of Mexico, there were strong warning signs that something was terribly wrong with the well, according to a Congressional committee that was briefed on the accident by executives from BP.

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, The Daily Beast, Guardian and Prairie Weather

Brad Stone / New York Times:

Apple Is Said to Face Inquiry About Online Music — SAN FRANCISCO — The Justice Department is examining Apple's tactics in the market for digital music, and its staff members have talked to major music labels and Internet music companies, according to several people briefed on the conversations.

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias, AppleInsider, ChattahBox News Blog and MediaMemo

Jimmy Orr / Top of the Ticket:

Mitch McConnell to Rand Paul: Shut your yapper! — The continuing implosion, better known as Rand Paul's post primary campaign, will be taking a break from self-immolation it appears. — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is telling fellow Kentuckian Paul to shut his pie hole.

New York Times:

U.S. Pledges to Help South Korea in Bid for U.N. Action — SEOUL, South Korea — With political and military tension increasing daily on the Korean Peninsula, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday that Washington would stand beside Seoul as it seeks redress …

Discussion: SWJ Blog and The Page

The Politico:

Vito joins the no-shame game — NEW YORK — Former Congressman Vito Fossella stood outside his house last Thursday, chatting with reporters as his children played nearby. — Two days earlier, the county committee had endorsed him to retake his old Staten Island seat.