Top Items:
Michael P. Fleischer / Wall Street Journal:
Why I'm Not Hiring — When you add it all up, it costs $74,000 to put $44,000 in Sally's pocket and to give her $12,000 in benefits. — With unemployment just under 10% and companies sitting on their cash, you would think that sooner or later job growth would take off. I think it's going to be later—much later.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Outside the Beltway, Sister Toldjah, Betsy's Page, AmSpecBlog and CARPE DIEM
Ross Douthat / New York Times:
The Marriage Ideal — Here are some commonplace arguments against gay marriage: Marriage is an ancient institution that has always been defined as the union of one man and one woman, and we meddle with that definition at our peril. Lifelong heterosexual monogamy is natural; gay relationships are not.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Hullabaloo, The Awl, TBogg and Sadly, No!
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Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
Marriage and the role of the state — Ross Douthat uses his New York Times column today to put what he undoubtedly considers to be the most intellectual and humane face on the case against marriage equality. Without pointing to any concrete or empirical evidence, Douthat insists …
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
America Goes Dark — The lights are going out all over America — literally. Colorado Springs has made headlines with its desperate attempt to save money by turning off a third of its streetlights, but similar things are either happening or being contemplated across the nation, from Philadelphia to Fresno.
Fox News:
86 Days to Decide: Activists Say Tea Party Imposters Infiltrating Elections — In this April 27 photo, a 'Don't Tread On Me' flag flies over Republican and Tea Party protesters during a rally at Leo O'Laughlin Inc. on the eve of President Obama's visit to Macon, Mo. (AP Photo)
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, Scared Monkeys and Taylor Marsh
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Kenneth P. Vogel / The Politico:
The tea party's growing money problem — Some leading tea party activists are concerned their efforts are undermined by a shortage of cash. AP — Some leading tea party activists are concerned that their efforts to reshape American politics, starting with the 2010 elections …
Discussion:
Washington Wire, Political Byline and Hot Air
Mark Whitehouse / Wall Street Journal:
Some Companies Struggle to Fill Jobs — In Bloomington, Ill., machine shop Mechanical Devices can't find the workers it needs to handle a sharp jump in business. Job fairs run by airline Emirates attract fewer applicants in the U.S. than in other countries.
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, Crooks and Liars, The Glittering Eye, Outside the Beltway and Clusterstock
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Shannyn Moore / The Huffington Post:
Palin's Homer Moment: Celebrity Sarah Confronted by Citizen (WATCH) — I'm really proud of my home town. When I say, “I'm just a girl from Homer” on my blog, radio or television show, I like to think it's not so much self-deprecation as it is a friendly warning.
Discussion:
Think Progress, New York Magazine and Mediaite
New York Post:
A foolish trip — The first lady's well-publicized, expensive vacation in southern Spain last week was a PR gift to her husband's opposition. — After all, we're in the middle of a major recession, with many Americans suffering terribly. President Obama himself, in discussing American economic woes …
Discussion:
NewsBusters.org
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The Politico:
FLOTUS's star power in demand
FLOTUS's star power in demand
Discussion:
BAGnewsNotes, George's Bottom Line and New York Magazine
Frances Martel / Mediaite:
Dem Analyst Kirsten Powers Calls Michelle Obama's Spain Trip ‘Absolutely Tone Deaf’
Dem Analyst Kirsten Powers Calls Michelle Obama's Spain Trip ‘Absolutely Tone Deaf’
Discussion:
Political Byline, Hot Air and kaus.sitebuilder …
Ross Ramsey / The Texas Tribune:
Democrats Duck an Unpopular President — Ever had a date you didn't want to introduce to your mother? — Bill White knows how you felt. The Democratic nominee for governor will campaign today in Midland, Abilene and Alvarado. Where he won't be is in Austin and Dallas …
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, Weasel Zippers and Dallas Morning News
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Shane D'Aprile / Ballot Box:
As President Obama fundraises in Texas, White steers clear
As President Obama fundraises in Texas, White steers clear
Discussion:
CNN, Austin American-Statesman and Houston Chronicle
James Surowiecki / New Yorker:
SOAK THE VERY, VERY RICH — The fight on Capitol Hill over whether to extend the Bush tax cuts is about many things: deficit reduction, economic stimulus, supply-side ideology. But at its core is a simple question: who counts as rich? The Obama Administration's answer is that you're rich …
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, Clusterstock and FiveThirtyEight
NY Daily News:
Republican Party starts to kill its own: S.C. Rep. Bob Inglis ousted for not hating Obama enough — There are landmarks all over our city named after LaGuardia and Javits and Rockefeller, names out of the city's great Republican past, when the party was one of intelligence, not fear-mongering and hate.
Discussion:
The Impolitic and JammieWearingFool
Quinnipiac University:
Dem Gov Primary Too Close To Call As Malloy Closes, Quinnipiac University Connecticut Poll Finds; McMahon Up 22 Points In GOP Senate Primary — The Democratic primary for governor in Connecticut is going down to the wire with businessman Ned Lamont at 45 percent and former Stamford Mayor Dan Malloy …
Discussion:
The Fix, Ballot Box, Weekly Standard, Taegan Goddard's …, Daily Kos, My Left Nutmeg and TPMDC
Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:
Avg. Midterm Seat Loss 36 for Presidents Below 50% Approval — Presidents above 50% lose average of 14 House seats in midterm elections — PRINCETON, NJ — Presidents who retain majority job approval from Americans at the time of midterm elections are much less likely …
Discussion:
Politics Daily and YID With LID
Adam Smith / The Buzz:
Democratic pollster Mark Penn raising money for Charlie Crist — Big-shot Democratic pollster and former Hillary Clinton senior adviser Mark Penn and his wife, Nancy Jacobson, are hosting a $4,800-per-person fundraising reception for Charlie Crist at their Washington home Wednesday. Here's the invite.
Discussion:
Ballot Box, TPMDC, Ben Smith's Blog and The Page
Agence France Presse:
Taliban execute pregnant woman in Afghanistan — HERAT, Afghanistan — The Taliban publicly flogged and then executed a pregnant Afghan widow by firing three shots into her head for alleged adultery, police said on Monday. — Bibi Sanubar, 35, was kept in captivity for three days …
Discussion:
TalkLeft, Weasel Zippers and The Jawa Report
CNN:
Gingrich ramps up Iowa activity — Gingrich is stepping up his activities in Iowa. — Washington (CNN) - With his busy travel schedule and penchant for wading into heated national debates, Newt Gingrich has gotten plenty of presidential buzz. — But the former House speaker is doing …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and The Page
New York Post:
The end of responsibility — This was the rumor last week. It sounds laughable. I don't want to believe it. The Treasury Department denied it. — But when it comes to the Magic Kingdom that is the Obama administration, the fantastical has a way of coming true.
Discussion:
NewsBusters.org and TigerHawk
Mary Garrigan / Rapid City Journal:
Franken visit part fact-finding, part politics — PINE RIDGE — Lakota artist Joe Pulliam thought Sen. Al Franken's visit to the Oglala Lakota Nation Powwow on Saturday was pure politics, and that was just fine with him. — “I liked him from his ‘Saturday Night Live’ days,” Pulliam, 41, said.
Discussion:
The Hill, The Politico, Hotline On Call and GayPatriot
Michael Barone / Real Clear Politics:
Republicans Ask ‘What Do I Do Now?’ — Republicans are starting to think about how to answer the Robert Redford question. — You know the scene. In the 1972 movie “The Candidate,” the Redford character, having won the election, turns to his political consultant and asks, “What do I do now?”
Discussion:
Pajamas Media
David Dayen / Firedoglake:
Party Like It's 1999: Rubinites Trading on a Happy Accident — Paul Krugman is a bit too polite with this comment, methinks: … If he took this a step further, he would add that Rubin and company happened to be around when technology advanced to the point that the Internet boom could take flight.
Discussion:
Paul Krugman, Pajamas Media, Eschaton and Hullabaloo
Kbh / KeithHennessey.com:
Roles of the President's White House economic advisors — The White House has announced that Dr. Christina Romer, Chair of the President's Council of Economic Advisers, will soon resign and return to California. This comes on the heels of Budget Director Peter Orszag's resignation.
Discussion:
A plain blog about politics and Matthew Yglesias