memeorandum: Vitter blocks Salazar's scheduled pay increase (First Read/msnbc.com)

5:45 PM ET, May 25, 2011

Top Items:

Bill Clinton to Paul Ryan on Medicare Election: ‘Give me a Call’ — ABC News' Jonathan Karl (@jonkarl) reports: — The day after the stunning upset in the special congressional election in upstate New York, Rep. Paul Ryan is a man under fire. — But ABC News was behind the scenes …

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog, The Caucus, Buffalo News, Outside the Beltway, Mediaite, TPMDC, National Review, The Lonely Conservative, The Right Sphere, Weigel, New York Magazine and HotAirPundit

David Frum / FrumForum:

Paul Ryan: 2012's Goldwater? — I used to worry that Sarah Palin would be the Barry Goldwater of 2012. My bad. Paul Ryan is the Barry Goldwater of 2012. — The Goldwater effect continues on this morning after the NY-26 debacle. Henry Olsen of AEI, as smart a political numbers guy …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, The Politico, The Moderate Voice, National Review, The Enterprise Blog and Mother Jones

Raymond Hernandez / New York Times:

Democrat Wins G.O.P. Seat; Rebuke Seen to Medicare Plan — Democrats scored an upset in one of New York's most conservative Congressional districts on Tuesday, dealing a blow to the national Republican Party in a race that largely turned on the party's plan to overhaul Medicare.

Jake Sherman / The Politico:

Newt Gingrich now defending Paul Ryan — Newt Gingrich is resurfacing in the battle over Medicare, but this time on Rep. Paul Ryan's side. — The former House speaker sent a letter to members of Congress Wednesday morning claiming that “Democrats and their allies in the elite media …

Discussion: CNN, The Note, The Hill, Weasel Zippers, The Gateway Pundit, Nice Deb, TPMDC and The Maddow Blog

Jennifer Steinhauer / New York Times:

G.O.P. on the Defensive as Voters Resist Medicare Plan — WASHINGTON — When they proposed just last month to overhaul Medicare, House Republicans were confident that the wind of budget politics was at their backs and that the country's looming fiscal problems provided justification …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, The Note, The Politico, CNN, Washington Post, Minnesota Independent, The Reaction, The Caucus, Hullabaloo and Capital Tonight

Jennifer Epstein / The Politico:

Ryan blames NY-26 on Dem ‘scare tactics’ — Tuesday's special election win by Democrat Kathy Hochul was the result of Democratic scare tactics, and not actually a referendum on the reality of his Medicare plan, House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan said in his first comments after the polls closed in Western New York.

Discussion: The New Republic, The Huffington Post, Washington Post, Guardian, FrumForum, Hotline On Call and Indecision Forever

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:

Six Months After Midterm Disaster, Hopeful Signs for Democrats — Here's what I wrote two weeks ago about the special election in New York's 26th Congressional District, which was won by the Democrat Kathy Hochul Tuesday night: … Ms. Hochul, with most of the vote counted, has 48 percent of the total, so she has met this threshold.

Discussion: Emptywheel, Public Policy Polling, The Huffington Post, Washington Post, The Monkey Cage, Daily Kos, Examiner, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Firedoglake, Booman Tribune, The Mahablog, Salon, Washington Monthly and TPMDC

Peter Orszag / Bloomberg:
About Peter R Orszag — Peter R. Orszag, vice chairman …

Discussion: Yglesias, Firedoglake, Mother Jones and Wall Street Journal

Henry Olsen / National Review:
A Blue-Collar Warning Sign

Discussion: Weekly Standard, Erick's blog, The Reality-Based Community, The New Republic, JSOnline and FrumForum

Ezra Klein / Washington Post:
Wonkbook: Voters like their single-payer health care

Discussion: Kaiser Health News, The Democratic Daily, The Politico, New York Times and Corrente

Budget Committee:
The Facts on Medicare and How to Save It

Discussion: The Foundry, RedState and TPMDC

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Senate to vote on Ryan budget after Dem victory in NY26

Discussion: The Note and Daily Kos

Jeff Cox / CNBC:

CNBC Anchor Mark Haines Dies Unexpectedly at Age 65 — Veteran journalist Mark Haines, a fixture on CNBC for 22 years, died unexpectedly Tuesday evening. He was 65 years old. — Haines, founding anchor of CNBC's morning show “Squawk Box,” was co-anchor of the network's “Squawk on the Street” …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, MarketBeat and DealBook, more at Mediagazer »

Brian Maloney / The Radio Equalizer:

Libtalker Ed Schultz Uses Vulgarity To Attack Conservative Host — DEPRAV-ED — MSNBC'S Schultz: Laura Ingraham's ‘A Slut’ — *** RIP: CNBC'S MARK HAINES, ONE OF THE LAST HONEST BUSINESS JOURNALISTS *** — Bye-bye, Ed Schultz. — We'll especially miss your gigantic ego, unending rage and all-around delightful personality.

Discussion: REPUBLICAN REDEFINED, The Gateway Pundit, theblogprof, The Other McCain and Mediaite

Michelle Malkin:
More misogyny at MSNBC: Neanderthal host attacks Laura Ingraham as a “slut”

Discussion: Mediaite

Benjy Sarlin / TPMDC:
MSNBC's Ed Schultz Calls Radio Host Laura Ingraham A ‘Right Wing Slut’

Discussion: ThinkProgress, TalkLeft, Little Green Footballs and Gawker

Tim Graham / NewsBusters.org: Will MSNBC Suspend Ed Schultz for Calling Laura Ingraham a ‘Right-wing Slut’ and ‘Talk Slut’?

Mark Joyella / Mediaite:
CNBC Reports Anchor Mark Haines Has Died

Discussion: MarketBeat

Marc Lacey / New York Times:

Suspect in Giffords Shooting Ruled Unfit for Trial — TUCSON, Ariz. — A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that Jared L. Loughner was not mentally competent to stand trial on charges of opening fire at a constituent event for an Arizona congresswoman in January, killing 6 and injuring 13.

Discussion: Arizona Republic and Law Blog

Michael Winter / USA Today:
Judge rules Tucson shooting suspect incompetent for trial

Discussion: CNN, The Moderate Voice, This Just In, Outside the Beltway and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Josh Gerstein / The Politico:
Judge to reassess Loughner

Discussion: CNN

John Edwards / Associated Press:
Suspect in Ariz. shooting spree that wounded Rep. Giffords found incompetent to stand trial

Discussion: New York Magazine

Edward Wyatt / New York Times:

Decorum Breaks Down at House Hearing — WASHINGTON — A House committee hearing into the structure of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau disintegrated into heated accusations of lying to Congress on Tuesday, with the panel's chairman accusing Elizabeth Warren of giving misleading testimony …

Discussion: Swampland, naked capitalism, AlterNet, Raw Replay, Washington Wire and Blue Mass Group

Michael McAuliff / The Huffington Post:
Elizabeth Warren Called Liar At CFPB Hearing By Republicans Who Botched Facts On Agency (VIDEO)

Discussion: CNNMoney.com, ThinkProgress, Gawker, Salon, Crooks and Liars, The Maddow Blog, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/* and DownWithTyranny!

Ed Morrissey / Hot Air:
Obama adviser tells Congress she has more important things to do

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, The Lonely Conservative and Weasel Zippers

James Hill / ABCNEWS:

John Edwards: U.S. Green-Lights Prosecution for Alleged Campaign Law Violations Tied to Affair Cover-Up — Former Sen. John Edwards speaks at a campaign rally Jan. 26, 2008, in Columbia, S.C. (Eric Thayer/Getty Images) — The United States Department of Justice has green-lighted the prosecution …

Discussion: The Hill, Hot Air, CBS News, WRAL-TV, The Politico, National Review, Wall Street Journal, Patterico's Pontifications, CNN, Mediaite, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Salon, The Note, Scared Monkeys, Ben Smith's Blog, The Gateway Pundit and Michelle Malkin

Katharine Q. Seelye / New York Times:
Edwards to Face Criminal Charges

Discussion: Law Blog, Above the Law, Indecision Forever, TigerHawk, Prairie Weather, New York Magazine, Mediaite and iOwnTheWorld.com

SpyTalk:

Gingrich wife worked for committee heavily lobbied by Tiffany — At the same time Tiffany & Co. was extending Callista (Bisek) Gingrich a virtual interest-free loan of tens of thousands of dollars, the diamond and silverware firm was spending big bucks to influence mining policy in Congress …

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog, The Raw Story, Taegan Goddard's …, Gawker, Roger Ailes, Washington Examiner, Washington Post and FrumForum, more at Mediagazer »

Felix Salmon:
The Gingriches and Tiffany: When a loan becomes lobbying

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Post, newsfeed.time.com and The Politico

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:

Senate Dems might join rebuff of Obama on Israeli border issue — Senate Democrats are expected to support a resolution intended as a rebuff to President Obama's call for basing Middle East peace talks on the 1967 Israeli-Palestinian borders. — It would be a rare rebuke of the president …

Discussion: The Politico, Washington Post, Hot Air, The Gateway Pundit, Weasel Zippers, Prairie Weather and HotAirPundit

Jeffrey Goldberg / Bloomberg:
About Jeffrey Goldberg — Jeffrey Goldberg, a national correspondent …

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Mondoweiss and Unqualified Offerings

Scott Conroy / Real Clear Politics:

Palin's Secret Weapon: New Film to Premiere in June — Shortly after Republicans swept last November to a historic victory in which Sarah Palin was credited with playing a central role, the former Alaska governor pulled aside her close aide, Rebecca Mansour, to discuss a hush-hush assignment …

Quinnipiac University:

Florida Voters Turn Thumbs Down On Gov. Scott 2-1, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Voters Say Property Insurance Is Getting Worse — Florida voters disapprove 57 - 29 percent of the job Gov. Rick Scott is doing, the worst score of any governor in the states surveyed by Quinnipiac University …

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog and FrumForum

Marc Caputo / MiamiHerald.com:
Poll: Rick Scott among the least-liked governor's in nation

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Oliver Willis

Carrie Budoff Brown / The Politico:

Obama miscues on toast — Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, and U.S. President Barack Obama during a state banquet in Buckingham Palace, London, on Tuesday May 24, 2011. — AP Photo — LONDON - It was all going so well. — But when the time came for President Obama to deliver his toast …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, AmSpecBlog, Taylor Marsh and Salon

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

Walker's numbers continue to get worse — Scott Walker's popularity has continued to decline over the last three months and Wisconsin voters now say they would vote to recall him if there was an election today. They also say they would pick either Russ Feingold or Tom Barrett over Walker in a head to head match up.

Discussion: Daily Kos

Michael Barone / Washington Examiner:

Obama skirts rule of law to reward pals, punish foes — Senior Political Analyst Follow Him @MichaelBarone — Question: What do the following have in common? Eckert Cold Storage Co., Kerly Homes of Yuma, Classic Party Rentals, West Coast Turf Inc., Ellenbecker Investment Group Inc. …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Questions and Observations and AmSpecBlog

Marie Diamond / ThinkProgress:

‘Heckuva Job’ Brownie Criticizes Obama For ‘Toasting The Queen’ During Tornadoes — After violent storms slammed three mid-western states and claimed 14 lives yesterday, President Obama announced he would be returning from his long-planned European trip to visit Missouri on Sunday.

Discussion: News Hounds, Prairie Weather and Balloon Juice

Frances Cronin / BBC:

Egyptian pyramids found by infra-red satellite images — Two new finds are at Saqqara, an older but lesser known pyramid site than Giza — Seventeen lost pyramids are among the buildings identified in a new satellite survey of Egypt. — More than 1,000 tombs and 3,000 ancient settlements …

Discussion: Guardian, The Mary Sue and msnbc.com