Top Items:
Cameron Joseph / The Hill:
Romney speech falls flat in Detroit — Mitt Romney spoke to several empty seats Friday in Detroit, in a speech that offered Democrats more fodder for their attacks and failed to deliver the major economic address his campaign promised. — Television cameras showed rows of empty chairs …
RELATED:
New York Times:
For Romney, a Message Lost in the Empty Seats — DETROIT — In a major policy speech here, just days before the Michigan primary, Mitt Romney set out on Friday to deliver a sweeping and sober vision for how to revive the American economy. In the end, he delivered something else as well …
Discussion:
The Caucus
Carlos Osorio / ABCNEWS:
Mitt Romney's Ford Field Fumble? — ABC News' David Muir, Michael Falcone and Emily Friedman report: — DETROIT - Standing on the 30-yard line of Detroit's Ford Field, Mitt Romney delivered what was billed as a major economic speech before a crowd of about 1,200 supporters on Friday.
Discussion:
The Reaction, Plutocrap and New York Times
Alex Seitz-Wald / ThinkProgress:
Romney's Stadium Speech Today Dwarfed By Obama Stadium Speech In 2008 — At this very moment, Mitt Romney is holding an event at Ford Stadium which has failed to attract enough people to come even close to filling it up (in fact, you could fit Romney's 1,200 person crowd in the 65,000-seat stadium 54 times over).
Ezra Klein / Washington Post:
Is this why Mitt Romney's stadium is empty?
Is this why Mitt Romney's stadium is empty?
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money and The New Republic
Molly Ball / The Atlantic Online:
With Detroit Debacle, Mitt Romney Steps on His Momentum—Again
With Detroit Debacle, Mitt Romney Steps on His Momentum—Again
Discussion:
Guardian, Donklephant, The Maddow Blog and Erick's blog
Felicia Sonmez / Washington Post:
Mitt Romney: Wife Ann drives ‘a couple of Cadillacs’
Mitt Romney: Wife Ann drives ‘a couple of Cadillacs’
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Firedoglake and Wake up America
Zeke Miller / BuzzFeed:
Romney Boasts: He Has Not One, But Four, American Cars
Romney Boasts: He Has Not One, But Four, American Cars
Discussion:
Politics, Gawker, National Review and The Daily Caller
John Celock / The Huffington Post:
David Albo, Virginia Lawmaker, Says Wife Wouldn't Have Sex Because Of Transvaginal Ultrasound Bill — Virginia's controversial transvaginal ultrasound bill hit one Republican lawmaker close to home. In the bedroom, to be precise. He said a fellow lawmaker's television discussion of the bill cost him sex with his wife.
Discussion:
Towleroad News #gay, Mediaite, Outside the Beltway, Wonkette and Firedoglake
Alexander Burns / Politico:
Newt OK with gay marriage referenda — With same-sex marriage laws passing in Maryland and Washington state and New Jersey headed for a fall referendum on the issue, Newt Gingrich said at the Washington state capitol this morning that he's basically comfortable with states enacting gay marriage laws by popular vote.
Discussion:
JustOneMinute, Mediaite and Alan Colmes' Liberaland
RELATED:
Byron Tau / Politico:
Gregoire: Obama the ‘inspiration’ on gay marriage
Gregoire: Obama the ‘inspiration’ on gay marriage
Discussion:
CNN, Weasel Zippers and ThinkProgress
Ian Duncan / Los Angeles Times:
Maryland Republican: Meeting gay couples left me ‘changed person’
Maryland Republican: Meeting gay couples left me ‘changed person’
Discussion:
Firedoglake, Prop 8 Trial Tracker and Towleroad News #gay
Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Sen. Hutchison hits Obama on job growth, high gas prices — Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Tex.) tried to further the Republican narrative that the president and the Democrat-controlled Senate are impeding job growth and causing a spike in the cost of gasoline.
RELATED:
Jammie Wearing Fools:
Pelosi 2008: Bush to Blame for High Gas Prices; Pelosi 2012: Wall Street to Blame for High Gas Prices
Pelosi 2008: Bush to Blame for High Gas Prices; Pelosi 2012: Wall Street to Blame for High Gas Prices
Discussion:
NewsBusters.org blogs, The Lonely Conservative and Daily Pundit
KochFacts.com:
A Letter to the Obama Campaign — Dear Mr. Messina: — Because every American has the right to take part in the public discourse on matters that affect the future of our country, I feel compelled to respond directly about a fundraising letter you sent out on February 24 denouncing Koch.
Discussion:
Hot Air and The Atlantic Online
James Taranto / Wall Street Journal:
‘Right Wing Lice’ — Bigoted and hateful rhetoric from a New York Times columnist. — A month ago, Charles Blow of the New York Times blocked this columnist on Twitter in reaction to our pointing out that one of his tweets was fallacious. The Blow tweet in that incident was racially charged but offensive only to logic.
Discussion:
Mail Online, Mediaite, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Hot Air and National Review, more at Mediagazer »
Josh Rogin / Foreign Policy:
Exclusive: State Department quietly warning region on Syrian WMDs — The State Department has begun coordinating with Syria's neighbors to prepare for the handling of President Bashar al-Assad's extensive weapons of mass destruction if and when his regime collapses, The Cable has learned.
Discussion:
Hot Air, msnbc.com, Weasel Zippers, New York Times and Taylor Marsh
James Crugnale / Mediaite:
Jeb Bush: The GOP Debates Are ‘A Little Troubling’ — Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush expressed anguish over the rhetoric he's heard in the various 2012 GOP debates. “I used to be a conservative and I watch these debates and I'm wondering, I don't think I've changed …
Discussion:
CANNONFIRE, The Huffington Post and CBS Dallas
RELATED:
Joe Klein / Swampland:
Did Jeb Bush Actually Say That?
Did Jeb Bush Actually Say That?
Discussion:
The Lonely Conservative, The Moderate Voice, Weasel Zippers, UPI and Politico
Jerry Hirsch / Los Angeles Times:
Los Angeles Times launches new membership program — Starting March 5, online readers will be asked to buy a digital subscription at an initial rate of 99 cents for four weeks. Readers who do not subscribe will be able to read 15 stories in a 30-day period for free.
Discussion:
Media Decoder, TechCrunch, The Informer, New York Magazine and Patterico's Pontifications, more at Mediagazer »
Andrew C. McCarthy / National Review:
The Sharia Court of Pennsylvania — the Transcript — I have made a transcript of the Pennsylvania case in which state judge Mark Martin, a Muslim convert and U.S. Army reservist who served in Iraq, relied on a sharia law defense (as well as some evidentiary contortions) …
Discussion:
Hot Air, Vox Popoli, JONATHAN TURLEY, Power Line, Patterico's Pontifications and PoliPundit.com
RELATED:
Kenneth P. Vogel / Reuters:
Rick Santorum speaks at super PAC fundraiser — Rick Santorum on Thursday afternoon slipped away from the campaign trail to speak to a fundraiser for a supportive super PAC, despite denying previous reports that he planned to do so. — The fundraiser drew between 20 and 25 donors …
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice and Alan Colmes' Liberaland
ABCNEWS:
Gingrich Calls Obama's Embrace of Algae Energy ‘Weird’ — FEDERAL WAY, Wash.— Newt Gingrich has been hitting Obama's energy speech since the president delivered it Thursday, calling the speech funny enough to be on SNL and “something worthy of Leno or Letterman.”
Discussion:
Hot Air and The Gateway Pundit
New York Times:
City Teacher Data Reports Are Released — Updated After a long legal battle and amid much anguish by teachers and other educators, the New York City Education Department released individual performance rankings of 18,000 public school teachers on Friday, while admonishing the news media …
Discussion:
New York Magazine, The Atlantic Online and Joanne Jacobs
Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
Romney Takes Michigan Forecast Lead — On Thursday, I warned you to be cautious about assuming that Mitt Romney had retaken the lead from Rick Santorum in Michigan until we saw some concrete evidence for it. Today, it looks like we have some. — A new Rasmussen Reports poll of Michigan gives …
Discussion:
Scared Monkeys, News Desk, Ballot Box, The Spectacle Blog and GOP 12
RELATED:
Kyle Leighton / 2012.talkingpointsmemo.com:
TPM2012 — Why Mitt Romney Might Be Even Weaker Than You Think
TPM2012 — Why Mitt Romney Might Be Even Weaker Than You Think
Discussion:
New York Magazine and Alan Colmes' Liberaland