memeorandum: Pakistan shuts down U.S. ‘intelligence fusion’ cells (David S. Cloud/Los Angeles Times)

11:45 PM ET, May 26, 2011

Top Items:

Palin's “Exploratory” Campaign: A Nationwide Bus Tour — DES MOINES, Iowa — In a move designed to propel her closer to a presidential run, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will set out on a bus tour of the country on Sunday, making stops at symbolic sites along the way.

Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:

Romney, Palin Lead Reduced GOP Field for 2012 — PRINCETON, NJ — Mitt Romney (17%) and Sarah Palin (15%) now lead a smaller field of potential Republican presidential candidates in rank-and-file Republicans' preferences for the party's 2012 nominee. Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich …

Andy Barr / The Politico:

Sarah Palin to tour East Coast, New Hampshire — Sarah Palin is launching a nationwide bus tour starting Sunday in Washington, a Palin source has confirmed to POLITICO. — The first stop will be at the annual Rolling Thunder motorcycle rally. Palin will then travel up the East Coast …

Discussion: CNN, The Note, Philly.com and Althouse

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

Electoral Consequences of the Rapture — Voters nationally are evenly divided on Barack Obama's job performance at 48% approving and 48% disapproving. Despite the mixed feelings toward him he leads Mitt Romney by 7 at 49-42, Newt Gingrich by 14 at 51-37, and Sarah Palin by 17 at 54-37 in hypothetical match ups.

Discussion: Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, Liberal Values, GOP 12 and The TrogloPundit

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
Wisconsin looks good for Obama

Discussion: JSOnline, Daily Kos, GOP 12 and TPMDC

Aharding / CNN:
Fox News: No change in Palin status

Discussion: Outside the Beltway

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
Sarah Palin to embark on bus tour as presidential speculation builds

Discussion: SarahPAC, Wall Street Journal, Pat Dollard, National Review, Ben Smith's Blog and The Daily Dish

Ben Child / Guardian:
Sarah Palin likened to Joan of Arc in two-hour documentary film

Discussion: Big Government, Politics, Firedoglake, Yglesias, Washington Post and The Moderate Voice

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:

DNC chairwoman doesn't drive American — The chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) appears to drive a foreign car, despite criticizing Republican presidential candidates for supposedly favoring foreign auto manufacturers. — Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) …

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, Top of the Ticket, Weasel Zippers, The Gateway Pundit and RedState

John McCormack / Weekly Standard:
DNC Chair: Republicans Are Waging a ‘War on Women’

Discussion: TPMDC, LifeNews.com and AmSpecBlog

Michael O'Brien / The Hill:
DNC chief attacks GOP field on American ‘exceptionalism’

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Nice Deb, Ben Smith's Blog and The Note

Scott Wong / The Politico:

Patriot Act clears House, Senate — Capping a week of political bickering and parliamentary delays, the House joined the Senate on Thursday to approve a four-year extension of key provisions of the Patriot Act that are set to expire at midnight. — Because President Barack Obama is traveling in Europe …

Discussion: CNN and The Note

Corey Boles / Washington Wire:
Sen. Rand Paul Delays Renewal of Patriot Act Provisions

Discussion: Hit & Run, Outside the Beltway, Left Coast Rebel and The Maddow Blog

Jonathan Allen / The Politico:
Disaster aid under new scrutiny

Discussion: OpEdNews and FrumForum

Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:
Rand Paul's Controversial Gun Records Amendment May Get Patriot Act Vote After All

Discussion: The Politico, Emptywheel, Hot Air, Danger Room, Associated Press and CNN

Walter Russell Mead / Via Meadia:

The Dreamer Goes Down For The Count — I had never thought there were many similarities between the pleasure-loving Charles II of England and the more upright Barack Obama until this week. Listening to his speeches on the Middle East at the State Department, US-Israel relations …

Discussion: American Prospect, Eunomia, Haaretz, Mondoweiss, Transterrestrial Musings, Wake up America, FrumForum and Commentary Magazine

Alex Seitz-Wald / ThinkProgress:
Invoking Hitler, Allen West Accuses Obama Of ‘Conscious, Nefarious, And Malicious Intent’ To Destroy Israel

Discussion: The Daily Pulp and Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Doug Saunders / Globe and Mail:
On Israel, Harper stands alone at G8 summit

Discussion: Politics, Weasel Zippers, Jihad Watch and The Daily Dish

Patricia Sellers / Fortune:

Mark Zuckerberg's new challenge: Eating only what he kills (and yes, we do mean literally...) — Last year Mark Zuckerberg set out to learn Chinese. Now he's determined to get in touch with his food. If the goats, lobsters and chickens of Silicon Valley aren't trembling, they should be.

Discussion: Gawker, Runnin' Scared, Althouse, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Vox Popoli and Gothamist, more at Techmeme »

The Note:

Mitt Romney Sends Leftover Pizza to Obama Chicago HQ — ABC's Emily Friedman (@abcemily) reports: After spending the day in Chicago fundraising, Mitt Romney sat down with small business owners at Gino's East, a pizza joint famous for their deep-dish pizza. — Not wanting any of the leftover slices …

The Hill:

GOP forces Senate pro-forma session, blocking Warren recess appointment — GOP opposition is preventing the Senate from completely adjourning for the Memorial Day recess. — GOP opposition is preventing the Senate from completely adjourning for the Memorial Day recess.

Discussion: Pajamas Media

JSOnline:

Dane County judge strikes down collective bargaining law — By Jason Stein and Patrick Marley of the Journal Sentinel — Madison - A Dane County judge has struck down Gov. Scott Walker's legislation repealing most collective bargaining for public employees.

Discussion: WisPolitics Budget Blog, National Review, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Firedoglake, POWIP, The Volokh Conspiracy, The Hill, Hot Air, Wonkette and Pajamas Media

Steven Greenhouse / New York Times:
Judge Voids Wisconsin Law Curbing Unions

Discussion: Sky Dancing

David S. Cloud / Los Angeles Times:

Pakistan shuts down U.S. ‘intelligence fusion’ cells — Pakistan also tells the U.S. to cut back its troops in the country, in a move amid deepening mistrust after the U.S. raid to kill Osama bin Laden and a CIA contractor's shooting of two Pakistani men. Joints Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen heads to Pakistan for talks.

Discussion: TalkLeft

Greg Miller / Washington Post:
CIA to search bin Laden compound

Discussion: Guardian, Reuters, msnbc.com and Battleland

The Note:

Pawlenty Says If He Were President He Would Sign Paul Ryan's Budget — ABC News' Matthew Jaffe (@JaffeMatt) reports: — After facing criticism in recent days for sidestepping the issue, Tim Pawlenty today in New Hampshire said if he were president and Rep. Paul Ryan's budget proposal came to his desk, he would sign it.

Discussion: TPMDC, Ben Smith's Blog, Washington Monthly, The New Republic, CNN, AmSpecBlog, The Maddow Blog and USA Today

Fuel Fix:
Dick Cheney: Arab uprisings unlikely to disrupt oil flows for long

Discussion: CNN, USA Today, ThinkProgress, Crooks and Liars, Raw Replay, TPMDC, Wonkette, The Politico, The New Editor, The Daily Caller, The Hill, Salon, The Page and FrumForum

James Zilenziger / CNSNews:

$500 Million Obama Administration Program Will Help Kids ‘Sit Still’ in Kindergarten — (CNSNews.com) - Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told CNSNews.com on Wednesday that the administration's new $500 million early learning initiative is designed to deal with children …

Discussion: iOwnTheWorld.com and Don Surber

Matthew Yglesias / Yglesias:

The Growth And Success Of Post-Jewish Zionism — Tanya Somanader has a post about a curious op-ed from Joe Walsh (R-IL) in which he castigates “most American Jews” for our insufficiently hawkish views on Israel. And over the weekend Dan Webster (R-FL) offered a plausible rebuttal …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Israel Matzav, ThinkProgress, PERRspectives and Capital J | JTA

Alex Seitz-Wald / ThinkProgress:

Allen West Suggests Anti-War Congressmen Should ‘Get Shot At A Few Times’ — In the wake of the killing of Osama Bin Laden, the House came closer than it ever has to voting for an end to the war in Afghanistan today when a bipartisan amendment that would have required President Obama …

Discussion: miamiherald.typepad.com, Weasel Zippers and The Daily Pulp

Zaid Jilani / ThinkProgress:

BREAKING: Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin Makes History By Signing Into Law Single Payer Health Care — Last month, the Vermont Senate passed legislation, approved earlier by the House, that would establish a single payer health care system in the state. The legislation would make Vermont …

Discussion: Left in the West, Newshoggers.com and Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Jon Walker / Firedoglake:
Vermont's Road to Single Payer: HHS Waivers Required; You Can Help

Discussion: Consumer Reports News, delawareonline, Sky Dancing and Truthdig

The Note:

John Edwards Meets Privately with Bunny Mellon, Potential Witness in Cover Up Case — ABC's James Hill reports: John Edwards, while facing looming criminal indictment, spent the afternoon in Upperville, Virginia, visiting one of the key players in the alleged scheme to cover-up his affair.

Discussion: CNN and Ben Smith's Blog

The Atlantic Online:

The Greatest Achievement of the Settlers — The settlers of the West Bank have accomplished a great many things: They have built entire towns on previously-barren hilltops; they have created a network of schools, religious institutions and cultural centers that rival their counterparts in Israel proper.

Discussion: THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Pajamas Media and The Daily Dish

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:

In Britain Obama repeats his error on Israel — President Obama is in Europe, supposedly trying to dissuade the Europeans from participating in the Palestinians' attempt to gain statehood without offering peace to Israel. At his press conference he, no surprise to his critics …

Discussion: The White House and Moe Lane

Jennifer Epstein / The Politico:

Clinton walks back debt remarks — Though many in his party have been furiously warning about the dire consequences of failing to raise the debt ceiling, former President Bill Clinton isn't so sure. — “If we defaulted on the debt once for a few days, it might not be calamitous,” …

Discussion: Firedoglake, United States Senator …, Crooks and Liars, Hullabaloo and The Note

David G. Savage / Los Angeles Times:

‘Business death penalty’ for hiring illegal workers is upheld by Supreme Court — The 5-3 decision gives states more authority to act against illegal immigrants. Justices rule that states can take away the business licenses of companies that knowingly hire illegal immigrants.

Discussion: New York Times, CNN, Questions and Observations, The Moderate Voice, American Power, Pat Dollard, Wake up America and Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:

NYSE Tries to Body Slam TPM! — If you're a news editor you'll want to hear this. — The New York Stock Exchange now claims that you have to get their permission (express or implicit) before you use images connected to the New York Stock Exchange. So if you find a wire photo …

Discussion: The Volokh Conspiracy, Yglesias and Balloon Juice, more at Mediagazer »

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis:

Gross Domestic Product, First Quarter 2011 (second estimate); Corporate Profits, First Quarter 2011 (preliminary estimate) — Real gross domestic product — the output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States — increased at an annual rate of 1.8 percent …

Discussion: Washington Post, Daily Kos, Clusterstock and FrumForum