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 …
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Senate rejects Ryan budget — The Senate on Wednesday resoundingly rejected a budget sponsored by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) that calls for significant cuts to future Medicare benefits. — Five Republican senators voted against the ambitious budget plan …
Discussion:
Healthwatch, The Nation, AmSpecBlog, Booman Tribune, Barefoot and Progressive, The Raw Story and Ballot Box

Five GOP senators jump ship in Ryan budget vote — Five Republican senators jumped ship and voted against House Republicans' 2012 budget on Wednesday. — Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) joined four other Republican senators who'd previously announced their opposition to the budget …
Discussion:
msnbc.com, Weasel Zippers and FrumForum


Senate Republicans Vote Overwhelmingly To End Medicare — The GOP continued its bloody walk into the Medicare buzzsaw Wednesday, when 40 out of 47 Senate Republicans voted in support of the House GOP budget, and its plan to phase out and privatize the popular entitlement program.
Discussion:
Jack & Jill Politics and Alan Colmes' Liberaland


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 Hill, Healthwatch, The Note, Nice Deb, Weasel Zippers, The Mahablog, The Gateway Pundit, TPMDC, newsfeed.time.com and FrumForum


About Peter R Orszag — Peter R. Orszag, vice chairman …
Discussion:
Yglesias, Firedoglake, Mother Jones and Wall Street Journal

Senate rejects Ryan budget
Discussion:
CNN, New York Times, The Note, Crooks and Liars and Outside the Beltway

A Blue-Collar Warning Sign
Discussion:
Weekly Standard, Washington Post, Erick's blog, The New Republic, FrumForum and The Reality-Based Community

NY 26: Democrats should thank Paul Ryan
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, Associated Press, JSOnline, The Democratic Daily, The Politico, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog and sisu

Ryan blames NY-26 on Dem ‘scare tactics’
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, Washington Post, National Review, FrumForum, The New Republic, Hotline On Call, Guardian and Indecision Forever


UPDATED: MSNBC's Ed Schultz Calls Radio Host Laura Ingraham A ‘Right Wing Slut’ — Late Update [7:08 pm ET]: MSNBC has suspended Schultz for one week. — MSNBC host Ed Schultz is known for his hyperbolic attacks on Republicans but it looks like he may have crossed the line on his show yesterday …
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Reaction, ThinkProgress, Mediaite, BeggarsCanBeChoosers.com, Gawker, ECHIDNE of the snakes, The Daily Caller, Fox Nation and Salon
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Response to Ed Schultz — Re. the crude comments made about me by Ed Schultz on his radio program: First, I was surprised to learn that Ed Schultz actually hosted a radio show. Is it only available online? Second, I have to get back to recording the audio edition of my new book “Of Thee I Zing.”
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Mediaite, Jezebel, Moe Lane, AmSpecBlog, FrumForum and Weasel Zippers

STATEMENT FROM MSNBC REGARDING ED SCHULTZ — STATEMENT FROM MSNBC REGARDING ED SCHULTZ: — MSNBC management met with Ed Schultz this afternoon and accepted his offer to take one week of unpaid leave for the remarks he made yesterday on his radio program.


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 *** — *** EVENING UPDATE: MSNBC SUSPENDS SCHULTZ FOR ONE WEEK *** — *** BUT IS IT ENOUGH?
Discussion:
NewsBusters.org, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, REPUBLICAN REDEFINED, Wake up America, theblogprof and The Other McCain


Suspect in Shooting of Giffords 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
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Loughner found incompetent to stand trial
Discussion:
USA Today, Reuters, Gawker, The Gateway Pundit, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Page


Judge: Ariz. shooting suspect mentally incompetent
Discussion:
TalkLeft and Pajamas Media

Key Jewish Donor Breaks With Obama — One of the most important Democratic donors in the past two decades, whose generous contributions helped pay for the DNC headquarters in Washington, D.C., has indicated that he will not contribute to President Obama's reelection campaign in 2012, because of the administration's stance on Israel.
Discussion:
Wonk Room, Ben Smith's Blog, Doug Ross and Capital J | JTA
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About Jeffrey Goldberg — Jeffrey Goldberg, a national correspondent …
Discussion:
Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Mondoweiss and Unqualified Offerings

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:
The Raw Story, Ben Smith's Blog, Gawker, Washington Post, Roger Ailes, Washington Examiner and FrumForum
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Signs Grow That Palin May Run — WASHINGTON — Sarah Palin is fortifying her small staff of advisers, buying a house in Arizona — where associates have said she could base a national campaign — and reviving her schedule of public appearances. The moves are the most concrete signals yet that Ms. Palin …


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:
Scared Monkeys, Mediaite, MarketBeat, The Daily Caller, DealBook and TigerHawk, more at Mediagazer »


Have Democrats cracked the code for 2012? — The battle over the federal deficit hasn't flipped in favor of the Democrats. The GOP isn't suddenly at grave risk of losing its House majority. — But after two years of getting pummeled over spending and the size of government …
Discussion:
Power Line and National Review
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Six Months After Midterm Disaster, Hopeful Signs for Democrats
Discussion:
Hot Air, The Huffington Post, Firedoglake, Emptywheel, Washington Post, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Right Wing Nut House, Hit & Run, Opinionator, Public Policy Polling, Michelle Malkin, AMERICAblog News, The Monkey Cage, Booman Tribune, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, GayPatriot, Daily Kos, Feministing, Indecision Forever, The Mahablog, Examiner, Libertarian Leanings, No More Mister Nice Blog and The Reaction

Racism to blame for Obama's problems, key Democrat says — WASHINGTON — House Assistant Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn, the highest-ranking African-American in Congress, on Wednesday blamed most of President Barack Obama's political problems on racism. — Clyburn, who's from South Carolina …
Discussion:
Weasel Zippers and Hot Air


There's a Secret Patriot Act, Senator Says — You may think you understand how the Patriot Act allows the government to spy on its citizens. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) says it's worse than you've heard. — Congress is set to reauthorize three controversial provisions of the surveillance law as early as Thursday.
Discussion:
TPMDC, Emptywheel and Cato @ Liberty


Time to PANIC!!: Second-Quarter Real GDP Growth Looks Slow Enough to Put No Upward Pressure at All on the Employment-to-Population Ratio — Time to push the panic button. — Macroeconomic Advisers is revising their tracking forecast of real GDP growth in the second quarter.
Discussion:
MarketBeat, Paul Krugman, PERRspectives, The Lonely Conservative, The Other McCain and Hullabaloo


AP sources: Army chief picked to head Joint Chiefs — WASHINGTON (AP) — A general installed just last month as the Army's top officer is President Barack Obama's surprise choice to become the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, two people familiar with the selection process said Wednesday.
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Danger Room and Oliver Willis


At What Price the Moon? — JFK challenged Americans to take to the skies half a century ago — but as human space flight embraced rockets rather than reusable spacecraft, what did we lose? — Wikimedia Commons — Fifty years ago, on May 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy stood …
Discussion:
Moe Lane and Pajamas Media

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:
Firedoglake and Daily Kos


EPA Administrator Confirms: No fracking water contamination — The spelling, however, is still in question. Fracking? Fraccing? Fracing? — At a U.S. House Oversight Committee hearing yesterday, President Barack Obama's EPA administrator, Lisa Jackson, admitted the environmental risk …
Discussion:
Pundit Press and Transterrestrial Musings

Emanuel takes stand in Blago trial — for 3 minutes — (David Pierini, Chicago Tribune / May 25, 2011) — Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel spent just three minutes on the stand this morning in the corruption retrial of Rod Blagojevich. — Rod Blagojevich's lawyer, Sheldon Sorosky, began by asking Emanuel his most recent position.
Discussion:
Chicago Sun Times, Top of the Ticket, TalkLeft, Marathon Pundit and CBS Chicago


Herman Cain Says All Americans Deserve Due Process, Opposes Assassinating U.S. Citizens — One of the most controversial national security policies of the Obama administration revolves around the case of radical Yemeni cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S. citizen living in Yemen.
Discussion:
The Atlantic Online, Hit & Run and A Spork in the Drawer