memeorandum: Obama: Getting Through Irene Will Be ‘Tough Slog’ (Darlene Superville/Associated Press)

12:55 AM ET, August 28, 2011

Top Items:

Obama's Enablers — Meet the mainstream media. — As a rule, the press is the scourge of presidents. They're expected to endure unending scrutiny, mistrust, and badgering—plus hostility if they're Republicans—by a hectoring herd of reporters and commentators in the mainstream media.

Discussion: The Lonely Conservative and White House Dossier

Yahoo! News:

Obama takes charge at hurricane command center — US President Barack Obama warned the US east coast was in for a “long 72 hours” as he led his government's response to Hurricane Irene at a disaster command center in Washington. — Obama on Saturday chaired a meeting at the National …

Discussion: Power Line, ABCNEWS, Weasel Zippers, Scared Monkeys and Wonkette

Darlene Superville / Associated Press:

Obama: Getting Through Irene Will Be ‘Tough Slog’ — President Barack Obama offered moral support Saturday to federal emergency management workers hunkered down for Hurricane Irene's weekend march up the East Coast and 14,000 active-duty and National Guard troops were put on standby for post-storm relief work.

Discussion: CNN and The Lonely Conservative

A.Killough / CNN:

TRENDING: Ron Paul: We don't need FEMA — (CNN) - As Hurricane Irene barrels along the U.S. East Coast, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas said the nation would be much better off without the Federal Emergency Management Agency. — “I live on the Gulf Coast. We put up with hurricanes all the time …

Discussion: The Politico, The Moderate Voice and No More Mister Nice Blog

Kamalwallace / This Just In:

Live blog: Hurricane death toll at 9; Bloomberg: ‘Time for evacuation is over’ — Are you there? Share your story with iReport and be a part of CNN's coverage. — Hurricane Irene continues to crawl north after making landfall Saturday morning in North Carolina.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, USA Today, Guardian, CNN, Gothamist and New York Times

msnbc.com:
Nine dead as Irene churns into Virginia

Discussion: New York Times, Nation Now, The Democratic Daily, The Other McCain, Guardian, The Lonely Conservative, Scared Monkeys, PhotoBlog and Crooks and Liars

New York Times:
Hurricane Irene Pushes North With Deadly Force

Discussion: Metropolis, The Democratic Daily, Gothamist, Runnin' Scared, New York Magazine, The Daily Dish, Guardian, Washington Monthly and The Huffington Post, more at Mediagazer »

CNN:
Strong winds, heavy rain lash N.C. coast

Discussion: This Just In, Gothamist, The Monkey Cage, Hot Air, Online NewsHour, The Moderate Voice, ABCNEWS and New York Times

Mother Jones:

Rikers Island Prisoners Left Behind to Face Irene — “We are not evacuating Rikers Island,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a news conference Friday. Bloomberg annouced a host of extreme measures being taken by New York City in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Irene …

Discussion: Gawker, New York Times, Guardian, Facing South, Focal Point, Truthdig, Runnin' Scared, Gothamist, Mock, Paper, Scissors and The Impolitic

Solitary Watch:
Locked Up and Left Behind: Hurricane Irene and the Prisoners on New York's Rikers Island

Discussion: New York Magazine, New York Times, Runnin' Scared and TalkLeft

Mandy Van Deven / Salon:

Why won't America embrace the left? — In two centuries, the movement's history in America is plagued by failure. An expert explains why — What has the left really accomplished over the past two centuries? FDR's New Deal remains one of the great American success stories.

Discussion: Sky Dancing, The Lonely Conservative and Taylor Marsh

Scott Keyes / ThinkProgress:

BREAKING: Perry Says He Hasn't ‘Backed Off Anything’ In His Book, Still Thinks Social Security Is Unconstitutional — ThinkProgress filed this report from Des Moines, IA. — During a campaign stop in Des Moines, Iowa today, Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) reaffirmed all the views expressed in his book Fed Up! …

Mike Allen / The Politico:

Cheney book: Bush authorized leak on Iraq — Dick Cheney writes in his forthcoming book, “In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir,” that he was surprised to learn that President George W. Bush had personally authorized a leak about Iraq strategy to a Washington Post columnist …

Steven Greenhouse / New York Times:

Old Letter Sheds New Light on Joe Hill Murder Case — At Woodstock, Joan Baez sang a famous folk ballad celebrating Joe Hill, the itinerant miner, songwriter and union activist who was executed by a Utah firing squad in 1915. “I never died, said he” is the song's refrain.

Discussion: Hullabaloo

Damien Gayle / Daily Mail:

Gaddafi 'seen in Zimbabwe on Mugabe's private jet' as Libya rebels march on dictator's home town — Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has fled Libya to Zimbabwe on a jet provided by Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, it was claimed today, as rebels began the march on his home town.

Discussion: The Heritage Foundation, Outside the Beltway and The Gateway Pundit

Somini Sengupta / New York Times:

Man Accused of Stalking via Twitter Claims Free Speech — Even the Buddha of compassion might have been distressed to be on the receiving end of the diatribes that William Lawrence Cassidy is accused of posting on Twitter. — They certainly rattled Alyce Zeoli, a Buddhist leader based in Maryland.