memeorandum: Holder unsure if enhanced interrogation techniques led to bin Laden's death (Cristina Marcos/The Hill)

4:55 PM ET, May 3, 2011

Top Items:

Josh Gerstein / The Politico:

White House modifies Osama bin Laden account — The White House backed away Monday evening from key details in its narrative about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, including claims by senior U.S. officials that the Al Qaeda leader had a weapon and may have fired it during a gun battle with U.S. forces.

Sara Reardon / ScienceInsider:

Geographers Had Predicted Osama's Possible Whereabouts — Could Osama bin Laden have been found faster if the CIA had followed the advice of ecosystem geographers from the University of California, Los Angeles? Probably not, but the predictions of UCLA geographer Thomas Gillespie, who …

Discussion: Yglesias, Outside the Beltway, GOOD and L.A. NOW

Drudge Report:

WHITE HOUSE TO RELEASE BIN LADEN DEATH PHOTO — President Obama decided Tuesday morning to release at least one photo showing Osama Bin Laden's death, a top source claims. — The images, being described as ‘graphic’, are bound to stir emotions in the east and the west …

Discussion: Guardian, Runnin' Scared, TPMDC, MyFox Orlando, Weasel Zippers, Outside the Beltway, Pajamas Media and Right Wing Watch

Washington Post:

Osama bin Laden killing gives Obama quick but limited ratings boost — In the immediate aftermath of the targeted killing of Osama bin Laden, President Obama's approval rating has jumped higher, with big increases in the number of Americans giving him high marks on dealing with terrorism and the situation in Afghanistan.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Liberal Values, Salon, New York Magazine, Daily Kos, TPMDC, Outside the Beltway, Prairie Weather, Gawker and National Review

Massimo Calabresi / Swampland:

CIA Chief Breaks Silence: Pakistan Would Have Jeopardized bin Laden Raid, ‘Impressive’ Intel Captured — In his first interview since commanding the mission to kill Osama bin Laden, CIA chief Leon Panetta tells TIME that U.S. officials feared that Pakistan could have undermined the operation by leaking word to its targets.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Agence France Presse, The Hill, Outside the Beltway, The Hill, ABCNEWS, Politics, Mediaite, The Page, Time and Mother Jones

Taegan Goddard's Political Wire:

Students Predicted Bin Laden's Location Two Years Ago — A UCLA geography class predicted in 2009 that there was an 88.9% chance that Osama bin Laden was hiding out in Abbottabad, Pakistan, where he was killed on Sunday, Science Insider reports. — “Based on information from satellites …

New York Times:

Behind the Hunt for Bin Laden — President Obama and members of his national security team receiving an update on Sunday. A classified document in front of Hillary Rodham Clinton was blurred before this photo was released. More Photos » — WASHINGTON — For years …

Telegraph:

WikiLeaks: Bin Laden's courier ‘trained 9/11 hijack team’ — The courier who led American special forces to Osama bin Laden's hideout was an al-Qaeda computer expert who helped train the 9/11 hijack team, according to leaked US government files. — A section on the file …

Discussion: minx.cc, The Jawa Report, Big Peace, Emptywheel, Pajamas Media, The Politico, RedState, The Gateway Pundit, TalkLeft, American Power and POWIP

Martha Raddatz / ABCNEWS:

Osama Bin Laden's Death Picture Readied for Release — President Obama and national security officials are considering releasing a photo of Osama bin Laden's corpse today, a source told ABC News. — Obama will head to Ground Zero Thursday to meet with 9/11 families.

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog, CNN, UNCOVERAGE.net, Poynter, UrbanGrounds, Politics and The Big Picture

Pew Research Center for the People and the Press:

Public “Relieved” By bin Laden's Death, Obama's Job Approval Rises — OVERVIEW — The public is reacting to the killing of Osama bin Laden with relief, happiness and pride. And Americans overwhelmingly credit the U.S. military and the CIA for the success of the operation.

Discussion: Politics, TPMDC, Public Opinion Strategies, Daily Kos, Hotline On Call and The Raw Story

Gschwarzcnn / CNN:

CNN Poll: Bin Laden killing gives Obama boost on terrorism & Afghanistan approval — Washington (CNN) - President Barack Obama is seeing a boost in his poll numbers on how he's handling terrorism and the situation in Afghanistan, thanks to his Sunday announcement that Osama bin Laden has been killed, according to a new national survey.

Discussion: The Hill, The Politico, USA Today and New York Magazine

CBS News:

Bin Laden skull blown apart, official says — Infamous al Qaeda leader shot above left eye in U.S. raid, blowing away part of his skull — WASHINGTON - Osama bin Laden was shot above his left eye and the bullet blew away part of his skull, a U.S. official says. He was also shot in the chest.

Discussion: Associated Press, ABCNEWS, LewRockwell.com Blog, The Nation, The Gateway Pundit, Left Coast Rebel, CANNONFIRE, UrbanGrounds, Pirate's Cove and CBS News

Asif Ali Zardari / Washington Post:

Pakistan did its part — Pakistan, perhaps the world's greatest victim of terrorism, joins the other targets of al-Qaeda — the people of the United States, Britain, Spain, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Turkey, Yemen, Kenya, Tanzania, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Algeria — in our satisfaction …

Discussion: New York Times, Salon, Danger Room, Reuters, TPMDC, The Politico, AmSpecBlog, Politics, Guardian, ABCNEWS, Wall Street Journal, Firedoglake, Gawker, Sweetness & Light, New York Magazine, Informed Comment and FrumForum

David Jackson / USA Today:
Obama aide: Bin Laden not armed when killed

Discussion: Washington Post and FrumForum

Jake Tapper / Political Punch:
Source: White House Discussing Release of OBL Photograph Today

Discussion: News Desk, The Note, Guardian, Weasel Zippers, Nice Deb, Proof Positive, Left Coast Rebel, Runnin' Scared, National Review and ABCNEWS

Brian Beutler / TPMDC:
GOP's Tortured Logic: How We Got Osama Bin Laden

Discussion: Facebook, Emptywheel, ThinkProgress, tpmmuckraker …, Guardian, Weigel, Mediaite, Swampland, Sky Dancing, Big Peace, The Daily Dish, Mother Jones, Shakesville, Talking Points Memo and Washington Monthly

David Morgan / Reuters:
U.S. believes it can now destroy al Qaeda

Discussion: Simply Left BehindThe … and The Page

Mona Eltahawy / Guardian:
No dignity at Ground Zero | Mona Eltahawy

Discussion: Maggie's Notebook and The Other McCain

Cristina Marcos / The Hill:
Holder unsure if enhanced interrogation techniques led to bin Laden's death

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Mj Lee / The Politico:
Was killing bin Laden legal?

Discussion: Oliver Willis, ABCNEWS and Salon

Ariel Zirulnick / Christian Science Monitor:
Osama bin Laden's burial at sea: critics range from 9/11 families to militants.

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Gothamist, National Review, Simply Left BehindThe …, Sky Dancing and Mother Jones

Staciacnn / The 1600 Report:
Even more details on the OBL photos

Discussion: Pundit Press

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
Obama's poll numbers get bounce following bin Laden's killing

Discussion: CNN and Ballot Box

Mike Allen / The Politico:
Osama bin Laden raid yields trove of computer data

Discussion: CNN, The AfPak Channel, Pajamas Media, Next Media Animation, Washington Post, Danger Room, Reaganite Republican, Outside the Beltway, The Huffington Post, iOwnTheWorld.com, Don Surber, Maggie's Notebook, AmSpecBlog and The Hill, more at Techmeme »

BBC:
Pakistan admits Bin Laden intelligence failure

Discussion: Mediaite, The Daily Beast, Washington Post, Reuters, ProPublica, Sweetness & Light, Emptywheel, Guardian and Foreign Policy, more at Mediagazer »

Brian Beutler / TPMDC:
Senate Intel Chair: Torture Did Not Lead To Bin Laden In Any Way

Discussion: Indecision Forever, JustOneMinute, Associated Press and The Reality-Based Community

CNN:
Bin Laden unarmed when killed, White House says

Discussion: Washington Post, The Politico and Global Public Square

Kevin Bogardus / The Hill:
Pakistan looks to lobbyists for help on bin Laden fallout

Discussion: The Politico and The Caucus

Ryan J. Reilly / tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com:
Administration Backs Off Tale Of Osama Bin Laden Using Wife As Human Shield

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

Washington Post:
Obama's victory lap

Discussion: The Caucus, New York Times, Fox Nation, POWIP, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, protein wisdom and Right Wing News

The Atlantic Online:

Out of Osama's Death, a Fake Quotation Is Born — Shortly after I posted my piece on feeling curiously un-thrilled about Bin Laden's death, the following quote came across my twitter feed: … I admire the sentiment. But something about it just strikes me as off, like that great Marx quote …

Discussion: newsfeed.time.com, The Daily Caller, NewsReal Blog, USNI Blog and Gawker, more at Techmeme »

Megan McArdle / The Atlantic Online:
Anatomy of a Fake Quotation

Discussion: Salon, Moe Lane and The Blaze, more at Mediagazer »

Ben Smith / Ben Smith's Blog:

Palin splits with neocon advisers — Sarah Palin has parted ways with the neoconservative foreign policy advisers who had been writing speeches and advising her on policy since she joined the McCain campaign. — An aide to Palin, Tim Crawford, confirmed that Orion Strategies' Randy Scheunemann …

Discussion: The Politico, Eunomia, Israpundit, Taylor Marsh, The Note, The Washington Note, Conservatives4Palin, TBogg and GOP 12

Steve Benen / Washington Monthly:

RICE'S LIMITED VIEW OF HISTORY.... I'm going to hope she just misspoke and didn't actually mean this. … Really, she said that. It's on video. — Fox News' Brian Kilmeade argued that it would be “nice” for President Obama to invite George W. Bush to join him at Ground Zero on Thursday.

Discussion: Political Correction RSS

Lee Fang / ThinkProgress:

Tea Party Billionaire David Koch Disses Donald Trump As Motivated By Publicity, ‘Not Qualified’ — Speaking with the New York Daily News at a party on Saturday night, petrochemical billionaire David Koch dismissed Donald Trump as “not really qualified to be President.”

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog

Howard Fineman / The Huffington Post:
Obama Gets Osama: Goodbye Vietnam

Discussion: Pajamas Media and NewsBusters.org

Lauraklairmont / CNN:

Lineup set for first GOP debate; big names take a pass — Washington (CNN) - The lineup for the first Republican presidential debate of the 2012 cycle is all but set, a GOP source told CNN Tuesday. — Thursday's debate in Greenville, South Carolina, sponsored by Fox News …

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Michael O'Brien / Ballot Box: Romney enjoys healthy lead over GOP field in Florida

Philip Klein / Washington Examiner:

BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL — Obama White House doesn't show up to House probe into its lack of transparency — Senior Editorial Writer Follow Him @Philipaklein — The Republican-led House Energy and Commerce's subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations is holding a hearing …

Discussion: The Other McCain and AmSpecBlog

Tony Romm / The Politico:
Private White House tweets, emails, Facebook posts targeted

Discussion: The Note

Colin Firth / CBS News:

President Obama to appear on “60 Minutes” Sunday — Will appear in his first and only interview since the killing of Osama bin Laden — President Obama has agreed to sit down with “60 Minutes” correspondent Steve Kroft for his first and only interview since the killing of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and The Page