memeorandum: Letter From Istanbul, Part 2 (Thomas L. Friedman/New York Times)

1:50 PM ET, June 20, 2010

Top Items:

Carol E. Lee / The Politico:

Obama to keep heat on Barton — As the political aftershocks from Rep. Joe Barton's expression of sympathy for British Petroleum continue, White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel promised Sunday that President Barack Obama hopes to make sure that voters don't forget the gaffe anytime soon.

Discussion: CNN

Reihan Salam / The Daily Beast:

Obama's Shameless BP Shakedown — Blogs and Stories — GOP Rep. Joe Barton spoke the truth when he called the $20 billion agreement between the White House and BP a “shakedown,” writes Reihan Salam. — After taking a serious beating in the press for weeks over its handling of Deepwater Horizon …

Discussion: Riehl World View and Balloon Juice

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:

Dems mount effort to label members of GOP study commitee as ‘The BP 114’ — Democrats sought to bunch together House Republican members of a committee critical of a $20 billion oil spill relief account funded by BP, labeling them “The BP 114.” — Democrats are trying to explicitly tie …

Discussion: Liberty Pundits Blog, Raw Story and The Hill

Bridget Johnson / The Hill:
Obama hits golf course with Biden on another hot, humid weekend

Associated Press:
White House Chief: Yacht Trip Another Gaffe by BP

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Scared Monkeys, Guardian, Political Punch, CNN, Politics Daily, And So it Goes in Shreveport and Washington Post

Carol Morello / Washington Post:

An unexpected result for some census takers: the wrath of irate Americans — This is the scary season for the nation's census takers. — Since they began making follow-up house calls in early May, census takers have encountered vitriol, menace and flashes of violence.

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, Washington Monthly and Althouse

David F. Nesenoff / Washington Post:

I asked Helen Thomas about Israel. Her answer revealed more than you think. — On the night of May 26, I drove down to Washington from New York with my son, Adam, and his friend Daniel. We arrived at 2:30 a.m. and crashed in a hotel. A few hours later, we woke up and coaxed each other to prepare for a day at the White House.

Discussion: Israel Matzav, Don Surber, Elder of Ziyon, Moonbattery and Mediaite

Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:

Letter From Istanbul, Part 2 — I leave Istanbul with four questions that Turks asked me echoing in my head. Forget the answers, just these questions will tell you all you need to understand the situation here. The four questions, which were asked of me by different Turkish journalists …

Discussion: Israel Matzav, The Atlantic Online and Mondoweiss

Lee Smith / Weekly Standard:
The Return of the Ottomans — The sick man of Europe …

Discussion: Israel Matzav and New York Times

Karen Tumulty / Washington Post:

Democrats spend big to lure Obama's minority and young voters back to the polls — As political gambles go, it's a big and risky one: $50 million to test the proposition that the Democratic Party's outreach to new voters that helped make Barack Obama president can work in an election where his name is not on the ballot.

Discussion: Politics Daily, Wake up America, Prairie Weather, Balloon Juice, EconLog and Real Clear Politics

Michael Booth / Denver Post:

Poll: Buck, Bennet lead in U.S. Senate primary races — Ken Buck holds a large lead over Republican primary opponent Jane Norton in the race for Colorado's U.S. Senate seat, a Denver Post/9News poll shows. — Buck, the Weld County prosecutor buoyed by outside TV buys and Tea Party sentiment …

Discussion: Taegan Goddard's …

CNN:

La. lawmakers: Prayer needed to stop oil disaster — You've seen the devastation. Now it's your chance to help. Tune in Monday night for a special “Larry King Live, Disaster in the Gulf: How You Can Help” telethon featuring an all-star panel of guests joining forces in the Gulf region.

Discussion: Latest Open Salon Blog, Taylor Marsh, And So it Goes in Shreveport, Pharyngula and New York Magazine

CBS News:

Al Qaeda Lays Out Conditions for Peace With U.S. — American-Born Militant Spokesman Says Obama Must Withdraw Troops, Stop Backing Israel and Leave Muslims Alone — (CBS/AP) Al Qaeda's American-born spokesman has repeated the terror group's conditions for peace with America in a video released Sunday.

Discussion: Mediaite

Ben Geman / The Hill:

Lieberman warns against ‘false’ energy bill, sees 20 swing votes — Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said Sunday that he sees 20 swing votes in play for including greenhouse gas limits in energy legislation that the White House and Senate Democratic leaders hope to advance this summer.

Discussion: CNN

Bill Quick / Daily Pundit:

The Useful Idiots Begin to Blubber — Instapundit » Blog Archive » PEGGY NOONAN: A Snakebit President: Americans want leaders on whom the sun shines. “Mr. Obama is ... You know, folks like Noonan and Mort Zuckerman whining about Obama, after they praised him, pushed him …

Discussion: The Other McCain and US News

Ben / bsom:

Washington Post Alternate Reality: Public More Concerned About Deficit Than Jobs or Economy Overall — A stunning front-page article in Saturday's Washington Post moves the paper firmly into conservatives' dream universe on deficit policy. “Stimulus plans run up against deficit fears” by Lori Montgomery serves up this whopper:

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and Hullabaloo

Lori Montgomery / Washington Post:
Election-year deficit fears stall Obama stimulus plan

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money and Washington Monthly

Josh Gerstein / Josh Gerstein's Blog:

Former watchdog Walpin loses suit over firing — A federal agency inspector general fired last year by President Barack Obama amid claims of bizarre and incompetent behavior, Gerald Walpin, has lost the first round in his legal bid to win back his job. — On Thursday, U.S. District Court …