memeorandum: Michelle Obama comes prepared for a beach day with Barack (Andrew Malcolm/Top of the Ticket)

12:05 PM ET, August 22, 2011

Top Items:

The ‘thank America last’ crowd — Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) issued a joint statement last night on the developments in Libya. It's worth taking a look at the lede. … Remember hearing about the “blame America first” crowd? Well, say hello to the “thank America last” crowd.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, ThinkProgress, The Daily Dish and iOwnTheWorld.com

BBC:

Libya conflict: Fighting rages near Gaddafi compound — Resident Omar describes rebels celebrating and waving opposition flags on Green Square — Heavy fighting is taking place in Tripoli around the compound of embattled Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi after rebels seized control of much of the city on Sunday.

New York Times:

Jubilant Rebels Control Much of Tripoli — TRIPOLI, Libya — Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi's grip on power dissolved with astonishing speed on Monday as rebels marched into the capital and arrested two of his sons, while residents raucously celebrated the prospective end of his four-decade-old rule.

Steve Clemons / The Atlantic Online:

Libya: Huge Win for Libyans, A Win for Obama, Challenges Next — Like Qaddafi, Saddam Hussein was also a horrendous thug whose arbitrary and brutal rule resulted in the deaths of vast numbers of his own citizens — but there is no doubt that taking Saddam out removed one of the effective constraints on Iran.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Guardian, iOwnTheWorld.com, Washington Post and Taylor Marsh

Juan / Informed Comment:
Top Ten Myths about the Libya War

Discussion: Firedoglake, Guardian, New York Times, Daniel W. Drezner and Daily Kos

Aljazeera:
Fighting rages near Gaddafi's compound

Discussion: Babylon & Beyond, Outside the Beltway, Pajamas Media and Guardian

New York Times:
Surveillance and Coordination With NATO Aided Rebels

Discussion: ThinkProgress, National Review, Agence France Presse, Bloomberg, Via Meadia, FP Passport, Pajamas Media, The Daily Dish and Fox News

Alessandra Rizzo / Associated Press:
World urges Gadhafi to surrender, plans future

Discussion: The Reaction

Alexander Burns / The Politico:

Trial lawyers prep for war on Perry — America's trial lawyers are getting ready to make the case against one of their biggest targets in years: Texas Gov. Rick Perry. — Among litigators, there is no presidential candidate who inspires the same level of hatred - and fear - as Perry …

Discussion: Hot Air, GOP 12 and New York Magazine

Ross Douthat / New York Times:

Messing With Texas — Gov. Rick Perry of Texas hasn't lost an election in 10 tries. Among his vanquished opponents, this streak has inspired not only the usual mix of resentment and respect, but a touch of supernatural awe. “Running against Perry,” one of them told Texas Monthly, “is like running against God.”

Discussion: Daily Kos, The Agonist and Sadly, No!

John Heilemann / New York Magazine:
Perry's GOP Shock Treatment

Discussion: msnbc.com, The Politico and New York Times

Michael Barbaro / New York Times:

In the Race to Succeed Weiner, a Surprising Anger at Obama — Of all the places to hear fulminations against President Obama, one of the least expected is the corner of 71st Avenue and Queens Boulevard, in the heart of a Congressional district that propelled Democrats like Geraldine A. Ferraro …

Discussion: New York Post, Hot Air, Hotline On Call, Moe Lane, PolitickerNY, Prairie Weather, JammieWearingFool, White House Dossier, The Lonely Conservative and National Review

Bloomberg:

Wall Street Aristocracy Got $1.2T in Loans — Citigroup Inc. (C) and Bank of America Corp. (BAC) were the reigning champions of finance in 2006 as home prices peaked, leading the 10 biggest U.S. banks and brokerage firms to their best year ever with $104 billion of profits.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, The Big Picture, New York Magazine, The Raw Story, Dependable Renegade, emptywheel, The Heritage Foundation, Hot Air, The Talking Dog, Man Are We Screwed, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Power Line and The Consumerist

Harvey Golub / Wall Street Journal:

My Response To Buffett And Obama — Before you ask for more tax money from me, raise the $2.2 trillion you already collect each year more fairly and spend it more wisely. — Over the years, I have paid a significant portion of my income to the various federal, state and local jurisdictions …

Discussion: NewsBusters.org blogs, UrbanGrounds and The Lonely Conservative

Robert Costa / National Review:

‘She Will Run’ — Ames, Iowa — Political organizer Peter Singleton tells National Review Online that Sarah Palin will likely launch a presidential campaign by the end of September. “I believe that she will run,” he says. “I can't see her sitting this election out.”

Discussion: The Raw Story, The Moderate Voice, The Note, Pajamas Media, RedState, TheBlaze.com, Top of the Ticket, Taegan Goddard's … and Althouse

Scott Conroy / Real Clear Politics:
Tea Party Group Launches Iowa Radio Blitz for Palin Event

Discussion: GOP 12, Conservatives4Palin and Chicago Boyz

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

Just One Week Into His Campaign, Rick Perry Disavows His Nine-Month-Old Book — Last November, Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) published Fed Up, a 240-page ode to tentherism, which argues that everything from child labor laws to the Clean Air Act to Medicare violates the Constitution.

Discussion: Ben Smith's Blog, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, GOP 12, Taegan Goddard's …, Washington Monthly and Swampland

Gretchen Morgenson / New York Times:

Attorney General of N.Y. Is Said to Face Pressure on Bank Foreclosure Deal — Eric T. Schneiderman, the attorney general of New York, has come under increasing pressure from the Obama administration to drop his opposition to a wide-ranging state settlement with banks over dubious foreclosure practices …

Discussion: Firedoglake, The Big Picture, emptywheel, Clusterstock, Gretawire, Hullabaloo, naked capitalism, AMERICAblog News and Suburban Guerrilla

Laura Italiano / New York Post:

DA filing to reveal new ‘bombshells’ about DSK accuser's credibility — She lied about sex. She lied about money. She even lied about lying. — That's the conclusion of Manhattan prosecutors, who promise they'll drop “bombshells” in detailing new credibility issues for the hotel maid …

New York Times:
Strauss-Kahn Case Is Said to Be Set for Dismissal

Discussion: Associated Press, The Politico, Law Blog, Reuters, The Awl and Felix Salmon

Alexander Burns / The Politico:

GOP challenge on Libya: Cheer or not to cheer? — The cheerleading for President Obama's role in the Libya intervention has begun, with former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell crowing on “Morning Joe” that “everyone mocked him, said it wouldn't work” - and now Muammar Qadhafi looks to be on the verge of defeat.

Discussion: msnbc.com and Minnesota Independent

Alexander Burns / The Politico:
Democratic National Committee's new surrogate: Jon Huntsman

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Ricochet Conversation Feed, Weasel Zippers, Campaign 2012, The Caucus and ABCNEWS

Ballot Box:

Wall Street execs turn back on Obama, donate to Romney — Dozens of Wall Street executives who supported President Obama in 2008 have donated to Mitt Romney's presidential campaign this year. — According to a review of fundraising data, 67 people who work in the financial sector and live …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Politics, Prairie Weather and americanthinker.com

Joel Bakan / New York Times:

The Kids Are Not All Right — WHEN I sit with my two teenagers, and they are a million miles away, absorbed by the titillating roil of online social life, the addictive pull of video games and virtual worlds, as they stare endlessly at video clips and digital pictures of themselves and their friends, it feels like something is wrong.

Discussion: NewsBusters.org blogs, Weasel Zippers and Romanticpoet's Weblog

Jeffrey Toobin / New Yorker:

PARTNERS … - POLITICS - PROFILES - THE TALK OF THE TOWN - COMMENT - THIS WEEK'S ISSUE - THE FINANCIAL PAGE - NEWS DESK - THE POLITICAL SCENE

Discussion: SCOTUSblog, Man Are We Screwed, Prairie Weather, The Huffington Post and The Atlantic Online

Andrew Malcolm / Top of the Ticket:

Michelle Obama comes prepared for a beach day with Barack — Ah, family vacation time in an American August, a chance for members to rediscover the joys and pleasures of being together, whether they like it or not. — As soon as President Obama escaped his new million-dollar bus in the Midwest …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

Michael Winerip / New York Times:

Eager for Spotlight, but Not if It Is on a Testing Scandal — WASHINGTON — Why won't Michelle Rhee talk to USA Today? — Ms. Rhee, the chancellor of the Washington public schools from 2007 to 2010, is the national symbol of the data-driven, take-no-prisoners education reform movement.

Discussion: Suburban Guerrilla