memeorandum: GOP Response To Town Hall Backlash: Ban Recording Devices And Censor Citizen Journalists (Scott Keyes/ThinkProgress)

2:10 PM ET, May 21, 2011

Top Items:

Bonnie Malkin / Telegraph:

Apocalypse not right now: ‘Rapture’ end of world fails to materialise — Reports of the end of the world appeared to have been exaggerated today. — Inhabitants of New Zealand, scheduled to be among the first to meet the apocalypse according to a US fundamentalist preacher …

Discussion: New York Magazine, Left Coast Rebel, The Moderate Voice, Samizdata.net, Connecting.the.Dots and Towleroad News #gay

Jesse McKinley / New York Times:

At Apocalypse Central, Preparing for What Happens, or Doesn't — OAKLAND, Calif. — If Harold Camping and his followers are correct, Gertrude Stein's famous comment about Oakland — that there is no there there — may finally be true. If not, some local churchgoers say they will set …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Salon

David Batty / Guardian:

Apocalypse not now: Rapture fails to happen — Christian doomsday prophet Harold Camping had predicted the world would end at 6pm on Saturday — Christian doomsday prophet Harold Camping looks likely to be less than rapturous after his prediction that the world would end on Saturday failed to materialise.

Discussion: The Raw Story and ReadWriteWeb

New York Times:

Obama's Peace Tack Contrasts With Key Aide, Friend of Israel — WASHINGTON — Five days ago, during a closed-door meeting with a group of Middle East experts, administration officials, and journalists, King Abdullah II of Jordan gave his assessment of how Arabs view the debate within …

Discussion: Booman Tribune, The Nation and White House Dossier

Andrew C. McCarthy / National Review:

Borderline Treachery — Would that the president of the United States were as worried about Arizona's border as he is about “Palestine's.” — There was less fanfare about this latest Obama oration on the future of the Middle East, staged at Foggy Bottom, than there was about his 2009 Cairo speech.

Discussion: Hendrik Hertzberg and Washington Times

Wall Street Journal:
Israeli Leader, Obama Clash

Discussion: Washington Post, The Daily Beast, New York Times, Washington Wire and Gothamist

Jake Tapper / Political Punch:
In Oval Office, Bibi Offers History Lessons to Obama

Discussion: Wizbang, Hot Air, Wonk Room, Power Line, ABCNEWS, Ben Smith's Blog, The Right Scoop, Yahoo! News, Weasel Zippers, The Huffington Post and Washington Monthly

Jeff Dunetz / YID With LID:
SLAM!! Bibi Diplomatically “Slaps” Obama During White House Press Op

Discussion: Sister Toldjah, AmSpecBlog, The Gateway Pundit, Doug Ross, The Moderate Voice, No More Mister Nice Blog, Verum Serum and Left Coast Rebel

Ellen Tumposky / ABCNEWS:

Tucson SWAT Team Defends Shooting Iraq Vet 60 Times — A Tucson, Ariz., SWAT team defends shooting an Iraq War veteran 60 times during a drug raid, although it declines to say whether it found any drugs in the house and has had to retract its claim that the veteran shot first.

Discussion: Big Government, The Sundries Shack, Hit & Run and Pajamas Media

KGUN-TV:
Ex-Marine's lawyer opens up about SWAT, questions Sheriff

Discussion: iOwnTheWorld.com

Allahpundit / Hot Air:

Krauthammer: C'mon, Herman Cain's candidacy is for entertainment purposes only — Via the Right Scoop, I'm not nearly as sure as Kraut is that this is true. If Palin surprises everyone by staying out, Iowa will be wide open for a “true conservative” to emerge.

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, Freedom's Lighthouse and The Lonely Conservative

KETV Omaha's Channel 7:
Herman Cain Announces Run For White House

Discussion: The Right Scoop, Scared Monkeys and The Sundries Shack

Jake Tapper / Political Punch:

White House on War Powers Deadline: ‘Limited’ US Role in Libya Means No Need to Get Congressional Authorization — In an effort to satisfy those arguing he needs to seek congressional authorization to continue US military activity in accordance with the War Powers Resolution …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Don Surber, Weasel Zippers and Vox Popoli

David A. Fahrenthold / Washington Post:
Obama misses deadline for congressional approval of Libya operations

Discussion: Truthdig and Hit & Run

Jamie Klatell / The Hill:
Obama asks Congress for a resolution of support on Libya

Discussion: The Politico, The Page and Taylor Marsh

Scott Keyes / ThinkProgress:

GOP Response To Town Hall Backlash: Ban Recording Devices And Censor Citizen Journalists — The premier political story of the past few months has been the Republican plan to dismantle Medicare and the resulting voter backlash. In town halls across the country, voters are expressing …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Taylor Marsh and Prairie Weather

New York Times:

Backing Her Man With Impressive Resources — PARIS — She was much more famous than her husband, and much wealthier, too. — Now she joins the unhappy club of wives standing by their man in the face of a crescendo of tales of sexual betrayal, spurred in her case by extraordinary …

Discussion: TalkLeft, Reuters, New York Magazine and FrumForum

John O'Connor / The State:

Tough week for Tea Party ends with fizzling rally — The Columbia Tea Party went from Donald Trump to jilted chump after the celebrity businessman canceled his appearance at Thursday's State House rally, and state legislators approved tax breaks and spending that the group opposed.

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, Balloon Juice, The Mahablog, Washington Monthly and The Maddow Blog

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

Keep the Briefs Brief, Literary Justices Advise — WASHINGTON — Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose writing is clear but dry, said her style owed something to Vladimir Nabokov, the author of “Lolita.” — Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, whose opinions can meander, said he aspired …

Discussion: Althouse

JSOnline:

Prosser wins recount in Wisconsin Supreme Court race — Vote margin still at 7,000 plus; Kloppenburg camp considers legal challenge — By Patrick Marley, Larry Sandler and Mike Johnson of the Journal Sentinel — With the weeks-long recount complete, unofficial numbers confirm …

Discussion: Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, Althouse, The Gateway Pundit, No Runny Eggs, The BRAD BLOG and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Lisa Mascaro / Los Angeles Times:

Harry Reid: ‘Foolish’ for Democrats to offer budget plan — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid speaks on Capitol Hill Tuesday. (Brendan Smialowski / Getty Images) — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said it would be “foolish” for Democrats to propose their own federal budget for 2012 …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

Felicia Sonmez / Washington Post:
Cantor: Democrats have no plan to save Medicare

Discussion: GayPatriot, Daily Kos and National Review

Associated Press:

Teen who challenged Bachmann to debate receiving threats — Ann Myers challenged the tea party favorite in a letter dated April 29. After it started getting media attention last weekend, commenters on tea party websites have threatened to publish her home address and some have threatened violence.

Discussion: iOwnTheWorld.com, Mediaite and Alan Colmes' Liberaland