Top Items:
New York Times:
A Certificate of Embarrassment — With sardonic resignation, President Obama, an eminently rational man, stared directly into political irrationality on Wednesday and released his birth certificate to history. More than halfway through his term, the president felt obliged to prove that he was a legitimate occupant of the Oval Office.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Power Line, JustOneMinute, AmSpecBlog, The Hill, BuzzFlash.org, American Spectator, Daily Kos, Althouse, Don Surber and Weigel
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The Politico:
A new era of accusation and innuendo — President Barack Obama's appearance Wednesday in the White House briefing room to present a documented rebuttal of suspicions that he was not really born on U.S. soil was more than just a surprise. It was a decisive new turn in the centuries-long American history …
Rachel Rose Hartman / Yahoo! News:
Birtherist response highlights racial undertones of ‘debate’ — During the 2008 campaign, questions about John McCain's birth in the Panama Canal Zone on a U.S. military base prompted some to ask whether McCain was eligible to be president, since the Constitution stipulates that anyone …
Tristero / Hullabaloo:
How Quickly We Forget — While this is a pretty good editorial, this paragraph: … is sloppy and misleading. Portraying Democratic presidents as the invidious “other” is what the extreme right always does. And it's not only quote mainstream unquote Republican leaders who go along with it.
Discussion:
Balloon Juice and Eschaton
Lynn Sweet:
Valerie Jarrett shutting down Trump: No college transcript release. — WASHINGTON—White House senior advisor Valerie Jarrett said President Obama will not release his academic records, commenting a day after Obama put out his “long form” birth certificate and Donald Trump decided to press …
Discussion:
American Power, The Gateway Pundit and Weasel Zippers
Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
Rand Paul has ‘birther’ demand for Trump: Prove you're a Republican — Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Thursday took a swipe at billionaire businessman Donald Trump, demanding to see his “Republican registration.” — While speaking at a breakfast with New Hampshire Republicans one day after …
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Jeff Zeleny / The Caucus:
Rand Paul Questions Trump's Republican Credentials — CONCORD, N.H. - Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, opened a breakfast speech here Thursday at the Merrimack County Republican Committee with a new demand for proof - not of President Obama's citizenship, but of Donald Trump's Republican credentials.
Discussion:
YID With LID, Outside the Beltway, Washington Post, New York Magazine, Clusterstock and The Huffington Post
TMZ.com:
Donald Trump Bristles at Claim He's a Racist
Donald Trump Bristles at Claim He's a Racist
Discussion:
Pam's House Blend and The Raw Story
Alex Alvarez / Mediaite:
Epic: Lawrence O'Donnell Hammers NBC; Demands They Reveal Trump's Future Plans
Epic: Lawrence O'Donnell Hammers NBC; Demands They Reveal Trump's Future Plans
Discussion:
NewsBusters.org, Connecting.the.Dots and Booman Tribune
Associated Press:
Dozens of tornadoes kill 194 in 5 Southern states — PLEASANT GROVE, Ala. (AP) — Dozens of tornadoes spawned by a powerful storm system wiped out entire towns across a wide swath of the South, killing at least 194 people, and officials said Thursday they expect the death toll to rise.
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Mudville Gazette, Scared Monkeys, The Gateway Pundit, New York Times and RedState
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CNN:
At least 268 killed in Southern storms
At least 268 killed in Southern storms
Discussion:
New York Times, Poynter, ABCNEWS, WJLA-TV, Reuters, The Jawa Report, Mediaite, This Just In, New York Magazine and Raw Replay
Lrathke / This Just In:
Live blog: Storms kill 184 in Alabama, 272 across South
Live blog: Storms kill 184 in Alabama, 272 across South
Discussion:
Gothamist, Salon and JammieWearingFool
The Atlantic Online:
Storms, Tornadoes Devastate the South
Storms, Tornadoes Devastate the South
Discussion:
Guardian, The Agonist, Shakesville and DCist
Laura Hudson / ComicsAlliance.com:
Superman Renounces [SPOILER] in ‘Action Comics’ #900 — After recently undertaking a journey to walk — not fly — across the United States in the “Grounded” storyline and reconnect with the country and everyday Americans, Superman appears to be taking another step that could have major implications …
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Scott Thill / Underwire:
Superman Defies God, USA in Action Comics' Landmark 900th Issue
Superman Defies God, USA in Action Comics' Landmark 900th Issue
Discussion:
Pajamas Media
Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Great news: Superman to renounce his U.S. citizenship
Great news: Superman to renounce his U.S. citizenship
Discussion:
Big Hollywood, UrbanGrounds and Right Wing News
Mireya Navarro / New York Times:
Solar Panels Rise Pole by Pole, Followed by Gasps of ‘Eyesore’ — ORADELL, N.J. — Nancy and Eric Olsen could not pinpoint exactly when it happened or how. All they knew was one moment they had a pastoral view of a soccer field and the woods from their 1920s colonial-style house; the next all they could see were three solar panels.
Discussion:
City Room, The Reality-Based Community, Booman Tribune and Balloon Juice
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Matthew Yglesias / Yglesias:
New Jersey NIMBYs Mad That Photovoltaic Panels Are Marring Their Previously Pristine Utility Polls
New Jersey NIMBYs Mad That Photovoltaic Panels Are Marring Their Previously Pristine Utility Polls
Discussion:
Modeled Behavior and Eschaton
Tory Dunnan / WPBF West Palm Beach's Channel 25:
Several Tossed From Congressman's Town Hall Meeting — Heated Debate Stems From West's Position On Medicaid — BOCA RATON, Fla. — Police escorted a number of people out of a town hall meeting Wednesday night — the second night in a row that U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Fla., held what became a heated event.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, The Raw Story, The Gateway Pundit and Raw Replay
RELATED:
Evan Axelbank / WPTV:
Rep. West says Medicare spells end of United States
Rep. West says Medicare spells end of United States
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Wonk Room, ThinkProgress, TPMDC, Talking Points Memo and South Florida Daily Blog
Alex Seitz-Wald / ThinkProgress:
Oklahoma GOP Lawmaker Sally Kern: ‘Blacks’ Don't Work As Hard As White People — The Republican-controlled Oklahoma House of Representatives passed a proposed constitutional amendment yesterday that would eliminate Affirmative Action in state government. The offical GOP reasoning for the change …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, TPMDC, Little Green Footballs, Indecision Forever, Oliver Willis and AMERICAblog News
Catherine Rampell / New York Times:
U.S. Economic Growth Slows to 1.8% Rate in Quarter — The American economy slowed to a crawl in the first quarter, but economists are hopeful that the setback will be temporary. — Total output grew at an annual pace of 1.8 percent last quarter, the Commerce Department said Thursday …
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, BBC, Washington Monthly, Firedoglake, Clusterstock, New York Magazine and Gawker
RELATED:
Marist Poll:
4/28: Obama's Handling of the Economy at All-Time Low — Registered voters nationally are not satisfied with how President Barack Obama is handling the nation's economy. According to this McClatchy-Marist Poll, four in ten voters — 40% — approve of how the president is dealing …
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and MyFox Philadelphia
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Rasmussen Reports:
National GOP Primary Poll: Trump 19% Romney 17% Huckabee 15% — Republican primary voters at this early stage of the game now give billionaire developer Donald Trump the edge over presumptive favorites Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee in the race to be the GOP's presidential nominee in 2012.
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, GOP 12, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and Pajamas Media
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Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
Romney leads by smaller margin in Nevada
Romney leads by smaller margin in Nevada
Discussion:
The Politico, GOP 12, Ballot Box, Conservatives4Palin and The Hill
John Bingham / Telegraph:
Calling animals ‘pets’ is insulting, academics claim — Animal lovers should stop calling their furry or feathered friends “pets” because the term is insulting, leading academics claim. — The researchers say ‘pet’ is demeaning — Domestic dogs, cats, hamsters or budgerigars should be rebranded as …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers, Moonbattery, National Review and Pundit & Pundette
Ben Dimiero / Media Matters for America:
Eric Bolling And The Case Of The Time Traveling Doctor — Last night on Fox Business, Eric Bolling hosted Pamela Geller to discuss in all seriousness whether Obama's long-form birth certificate was “photoshopped.” Geller has been making a fool of herself over Obama's birth certificate for three years now …
Discussion:
Hullabaloo, Mediaite, Wonkette, Holy Bullies …, Fox News, rubber hose and TPMDC
Hamil R. Harris / Washington Post:
Shiloh Baptist Church receives threats after comments from Sean Hannity — Shiloh Baptist Church in the District said it has received threatening phone calls and e-mails after an Easter visit from President Obama and a conservative television commentator's subsequent playing of a videotape …
Discussion:
The Political Carnival, Outside the Beltway, News Hounds and Religion Dispatches
Shane D'Aprile / Ballot Box:
Daniels faces difficult decision on Planned Parenthood funding — Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, who irked many conservatives last year with his call for a “truce” on social issues, has been thrust into the debate over federal funding for Planned Parenthood. — The state's Republican-led legislature …
New York Times:
Honoring Those Who Said No — IN January 2004, Spec. Joseph M. Darby, a 24-year-old Army reservist in Iraq, discovered a set of photographs showing other members of his company torturing prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison. The discovery anguished him, and he struggled over how to respond.
Discussion:
Lawfare, Blog of Rights and Balloon Juice
Bradley Keoun / Bloomberg:
Citigroup Drops Ben Stein Speech After Complaint Jokes Disparaged Women — Citigroup Inc. (C) canceled a planned keynote speech by writer, actor and TV personality Ben Stein after getting a complaint that he told jokes disparaging women at a private-equity conference in Dallas earlier this year.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Gothamist, Salon and Gawker