memeorandum: Trump May Reconsider Presidential Bid (Taegan Goddard's Political Wire)

8:20 PM ET, February 21, 2012

Top Items:

SANTORUM'S SATAN WARNING — “Satan has his sights on the United States of America!” Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum has declared. — “Satan is attacking the great institutions of America, using those great vices of pride, vanity, and sensuality as the root to attack …

Discussion: Politico, New York Post, Sister Toldjah, The Caucus, Taylor Marsh, The New Republic, Big Government, Don Surber, Hot Air, The Gateway Pundit, Rush Limbaugh, Daily Kos, Hit & Run, Business Insider, Bloomberg and Ricochet Conversations Feed

Rush Limbaugh:

Santorum Will Have to Answer on Satan — RUSH: I mentioned earlier in the program that Santorum, people have dug deep and they found a speech that he gave back in 2008 in Ave Maria, Florida, at Ave Maria University. Drudge has this plastered up. The Democrats have found it. It's all over the place.

Discussion: Politico

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:

It's not conservative, It's reactionary — A number of social conservatives, sensing that Rick Santorum has hit a trip wire, are complaining that he's being skewered for being a social conservative. That's demonstrably wrong. The nonstop flaps (some of which concern past episodes …

Discussion: Booman Tribune and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Rick Santorum / CNN:

CNN/Time Poll: All tied up in Arizona — Mesa, Arizona (CNN) - On the eve of the final Republican presidential debate before primaries in Arizona and Michigan, as well as the 10 Super Tuesday states, a new survey indicates that Rick Santorum may be closing the gap with Mitt Romney in the Grand Canyon State.

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Ballot Box, The Caucus and TheBlaze.com

Ed Kilgore / Washington Monthly:
Mitt's Friends Open Up New Front on Rick

Discussion: JustOneMinute and Balloon Juice

Wall Street Journal:

Sex, Lies and Rick Santorum — The politics of the double standard on social issues. — When Barack Obama was campaigning for president in 2008, he declared that marriage is between a man and a woman. For the most part, his position was treated as a nonissue. — Now Rick Santorum is campaigning for president.

Discussion: The Caucus, Weekly Standard, The Daily Dish, Foster Friess, Rush Limbaugh, Connecting.the.Dots, Ricochet Conversations Feed and Politico

Rich Lowry / National Review:

The Effrontery of Rick Santorum — The media has unleashed the hounds on Rick Santorum. — He was last seen a step ahead of the braying pack, trying to explain that he hadn't accused President Barack Obama of being a crypto-Muslim. The former Pennsylvania senator criticized …

Discussion: The American Conservative, American Prospect, TheBlaze.com, The Mahablog, Washington Wire, Pundit & Pundette and alicublog

Ed Kilgore / Washington Monthly:

Santorum: “You're Not A Christian” — Defenders of Rick Santorum are very angry that anyone would suggest his “phony theology” comments about the president represented an attack on a fellow Christian's beliefs. Turns out he was a bit more direct about it in an appearance in 2008 …

Steven Bertoni / Money Talks:

Billionaire Sheldon Adelson Says He Might Give $100M To Newt Gingrich Or Other Republican — Sheldon Adelson: The GOP's $25 billion man … Sheldon Adelson plays as stubbornly in politics as he does in business. So the criticisms that he's trying to personally buy the presidential election …

Benjy Sarlin / 2012.talkingpointsmemo.com:

TPM2012 — Two Charts That Should Make Romney Gulp — It's no secret that, as far as frontrunners go, Mitt Romney's never exactly set the grassroots on fire. But his latest fundraising numbers drive home just how weak his small donor appeal is compared to his rivals — and especially President Obama.

Discussion: BillMoyers.com, Campaign 2012, Talking Points Memo and Washington Post

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
Romney's Money Problems

Discussion: Reuters, New York Times, Firedoglake and Washington Monthly

Politico:
Mitt Romney's burn rate a boon for Barack Obama

Discussion: OpenSecrets.org, CNN, Daily Kos, Washington Post, Firedoglake, Business Insider, Outside the Beltway, The Caucus and Reuters

Jonah Goldberg / Los Angeles Times:
Mr. Right eludes the GOP

Discussion: Democracy in America and Marbury

James Crugnale / Mediaite:

Watch Franklin Graham Question President Obama's Faith, Explain Why Mormons Aren't Christian On Morning Joe — On Tuesday, Franklin Graham appeared on Morning Joe and made some statements that threw the show's panel — which included Alex Wagner, Willie Geist, and John Heilemann — into disarray.

Discussion: Religion Dispatches, Thoughts and Rantings, Balloon Juice and Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:
Franklin Graham: Obama May Secretly Be A Muslim, Santorum And Gingrich Are Definitely Christian

Discussion: Gothamist

Becky Bratu / msnbc.com:
Rev. Graham: Obama seen as ‘son of Islam’

Discussion: Washington Wire, Los Angeles Times, Reuters and Associated Press

Erica Werner / Associated Press:
Obama peddles modest American dream

Discussion: Truthdig, Ace of Spades HQ, Weasel Zippers, Belmont Club, AMERICAN DIGEST, The PJ Tatler, Michelle Malkin, Grim's Hall and The Lonely Conservative

Mollie Reilly / The Huffington Post:
Franklin Graham Calls Obama's Religious Beliefs Into Question

Discussion: ABCNEWS and The Gateway Pundit

McKay Coppins / BuzzFeed:

25 Photos Of Mitt Romney Looking Perfectly Normal — Turns out the Republican frontrunner isn't always so buttoned-down. The candidate's daughter-in-law has maintained a mommy blog for years, and it's a treasure trove of candid Romney shots. Allow me to introduce you to Casual Mitt. — McKay Coppins

Discussion: Gawker, Wonkette, Politics and Balloon Juice

Terence P. Jeffrey / CNSNews:
Women Prefer Santorum to Romney by 10-Point Margin, Says Gallup

Discussion: Gallup, Hot Air, weaskamerica.com and protein wisdom

Justin Sink / Ballot Box:
Latest poll shows Santorum leading in see-sawing Michigan race

Discussion: CNN

Alex Altman / Swampland:
TIME/CNN Arizona Poll: Romney Holds Narrow Lead over Santorum

Discussion: Washington Post, Politico, Guardian, National Review and Public Policy Polling

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Affirmative Action Case — WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear a major case on affirmative action in higher education, adding another potential blockbuster to a docket already studded with them. — The court's decision in the new case holds …

Discussion: SCOTUSblog, Los Angeles Times, ACS Blog, American Spectator and Feministing

Andrew Cohen / The Atlantic Online:
At the Supreme Court, Odds Lie Against Affirmative Action

Discussion: Washington Post and msnbc.com

Sam Stein / The Huffington Post:

Santorum in 95: ‘I Was Basically Pro-Choice All My Life, Until I Ran For Congress’ … 2012 Election , Rick Santorum , Elections 2012 , Video , Politics News , Doug Walgren , Doug Walgren Rick Santorum , Reagan Republican , Rick Santorum 2012 , Rick Santorum Abortion , Rick Santorum Pennsylvania …

Discussion: Ballot Box, Business Insider and Wonkette

Felix Salmon:

The improbable Greece plan — Greece is now officially a ward of the international community. It has no real independence when it comes to fiscal policy any more, and if everything goes according to plan, it's not going to have any independence for many, many years to come.

Discussion: Paul Krugman, US Politics, The Huffington Post, The Atlantic Online, Newshoggers.com, Associated Press, Reuters, EU Referendum, Firedoglake, Wall Street Journal, National Review and americanthinker.com

Peter Spiegel / Agence France Presse:
Greek debt nightmare laid bare

Discussion: Via Meadia, National Review, The Atlantic Online, Felix Salmon, New York Times and Political Mojo

Daily Mail:

Didn't get the memo? Hillary Clinton dons lime green shirt for G20 ‘family photo’ while everyone else wears white — It is the fear of every party guest, turning up in an outfit not suited to the dress code. — And unfortunately for Hillary Clinton, her slip up was witnessed by top government officials from across the globe.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and HotAirPundit

Rachel E. Stassen-Berger / Hot Dish Politics:

Redistricting puts Bachmann in 4th, but she says she'll run in 6th — A Minnesota judicial panel on Tuesday released new political district lines that place U.S. Reps. Michele Bachmann, a Republican, and Betty McCollum, a Democrat, into the same congressional district, according to Bachmann's office.

Discussion: Wonkette and Hotline On Call

Cameron Joseph / Ballot Box:
Bachmann shifts House districts with new Minnesota congressional map

Discussion: Politico

Chris Geidner / Poliglot:

Proposition 8 Proponents to Seek Full Ninth Circuit Review — Charles Cooper, the lead attorney for the proponents of Proposition 8, tells Metro Weekly that the proponents of the California marriage amendment will be asking the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to review …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Towleroad News #gay, Law Blog, The Volokh Conspiracy, On Top Magazine Headlines, Joe. My. God., New York Times and Shakesville

Mark Byrne / GQ:

A Senator Without Constituents — Remember Russ Feingold? Lone vote against PATRIOT Act? The half of McCain-Feingold that didn't totally buckle? The progressive hero who lost his Senate seat during the Tea Party wave? GQ shared a few drinks with Feingold the Citizen and talked …

Discussion: The Raw Story

RealClearPolitics Video Log:

Carney: Obama Didn't Turn Down The Keystone Pipeline — White House press secretary Jay Carney first says Republicans “forced” President Obama to deny the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline. Later in his press briefing, Carney says Obama didn't turn down the pipeline.

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, Belmont Club, The PJ Tatler, Weasel Zippers, Conservatives4Palin, The Gateway Pundit and The Lonely Conservative

Taegan Goddard's Political Wire:

Trump May Reconsider Presidential Bid — Donald Trump told CNBC he would “seriously, seriously” consider jumping into the White House race if Rick Santorum wins the GOP presidential nomination. — Said Trump: “Honestly, if Santorum got it, I would seriously, seriously consider it.

Discussion: The Reaction

Robert Wright / The Atlantic Online:

AIPAC's Push Toward War — Late last week, amid little fanfare, Senators Joseph Lieberman, Lindsey Graham, and Robert Casey introduced a resolution that would move America further down the path toward war with Iran. — The good news is that the resolution hasn't been universally embraced in the Senate.

Discussion: Americans for Peace Now and Global Spin

Nadya Labi / The Atlantic Online:

Misfortune Teller — A statistics professor says he can predict crime before it occurs. — RICHARD BERK LIKES to think he knows what criminals will do—even before they know. The statistics professor, who teaches at the University of Pennsylvania, was recently willing to show off his skills.

Michael Tomasky / The Daily Beast:

There Will Be No Saviors for the GOP in 2012 — Prominent Republicans keep hoping for someone to rescue them from its slate of mediocre candidates. But the party's biggest problem is the ideological bloodlust of its base. — The bombshell dropped in Saturday's Playbook …

Discussion: Washington Post, Brad DeLong and thenation.com/blogs/163272