memeorandum: Political Center Shrinks in Congress (Naftali Bendavid/Wall Street Journal)

2:25 PM ET, March 1, 2012

Top Items:

In Memoriam: Andrew Breitbart (1969-2012) — With a terrible feeling of pain and loss we announce the passing of Andrew Breitbart. — Andrew passed away unexpectedly from natural causes shortly after midnight this morning in Los Angeles. — We have lost a husband, a father, a son …

Charlie Spiering / Campaign 2012:

Liberals celebrate death of Andrew Breitbart — As news broke this morning of the tragic death of Conservative journalist Andrew Breitbart, liberals celebrated the news on Twitter.

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Balloon Juice, Washington Free Beacon, Booman Tribune, Weasel Zippers, his vorpal sword, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Daily Dish and Randy's Roundtable

Fox News:

Andrew Breitbart dies of ‘natural causes’ — DEVELOPING ... Widely read conservative Internet publisher Andrew Breitbart has died, his attorney confirms. — The websites he founded ran a statement Thursday morning announcing that Breitbart, 43, died “unexpectedly from natural causes” in Los Angeles shortly after midnight.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, American Spectator, MLive.com, Vodkapundit, neo-neocon, Roger L. Simon and Moonbattery

Michelle Malkin:

DEVASTATING: Andrew Breitbart, R.I.P. — I just confirmed with someone close to him that social media entrepreneur and conservative warrior Andrew Breitbart has passed away. — I'm stunned. He was kinetic, brash, relentless, full of fight, the bane of the Left, and a mentor …

Discussion: ABCNEWS, New York Times, Mediaite, NewsBusters.org, Wake up America and The Radio Equalizer, more at Mediagazer »

Brendan Smialowski / ABCNEWS:

Andrew Breitbart: Rick Santorum Mourns Conservative Firebrand — Dalton, GA-After a speech where he focused on mostly social issues and urged Georgians to make this a “two man race” by voting for him on Super Tuesday, the press asked Rick Santorum about the death of Andrew Breitbart.

Discussion: USA Today

Jack Mirkinson / The Huffington Post:

Andrew Breitbart Dead: Conservative Blogger Dies Suddenly At 43 … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Video, Andrew Breitbart, Andrew Breitbart Dead, Andrew Breitbart Dies, Media News — Andrew Breitbart, the conservative blogger and journalist, died suddenly on Thursday morning, according to his website Big Journalism.

Discussion: SQUATLO RANT, TBogg, The Daily Dish, Mediaite, Truthdig and The Heritage Foundation

Yahoo! News:

Click to see more photos — Breitbart was pronounced dead at the UCLA Medical Center shortly after midnight, the Los Angeles County coroner's office told Yahoo News. The cause of death was not immediately known, a spokesman at the coroner's office said. — One of his websites, BigGovernment.com, announced his death early Thursday.

Discussion: NewsBusters.org blogs, The Gateway Pundit and Corrente

Tim Mak / Reuters:
Andrew Breitbart dead at 43

Discussion: Mediaite, msnbc.com, Guardian, RedState, Towleroad News #gay and The Political Carnival

CNN:
Conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart dead at 43

Discussion: L.A. NOW, Wonkette and Library Grape

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Breitbart, RIP — I was ... I am stunned to hear of the death of Andrew Breitbart.

Discussion: Campaign 2012 and National Review

Politico:

Blunt amendment defeated in Senate — The Senate defeated Sen. Roy Blunt's amendment to allow employers to refuse to cover health services Thursday, dealing Republicans a high-profile setback in the fight over the Obama administration's contraception coverage mandate.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, American Prospect, Little Green Footballs, Boston Globe, The Daily What, Mediaite, Indecision Forever and Balloon Juice

Steven Ertelt / LifeNews.com:

Senate Defeats Blunt Amendment to Stop Obama HHS Mandate — The Senate voted today against an amendment to restore the religious liberty protections for employers who don't want to be forced to pay for birth control or drugs that may cause abortions in their employee health plans.

Discussion: protein wisdom, National Review and Hot Air

Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:

Senate Kills Blunt's Anti-Contraception Amendment — By a vote of 51-48, the Senate agreed to table a Republican amendment offered by Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) that would have empowered employers to deny coverage of health services to their employees on the basis of personal moral objections.

Discussion: Shakesville and Lawyers, Guns & Money

msnbc.com:
First Thoughts: Both parties licking their chops over Blunt amendment

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Nebraska Watchdog and Taegan Goddard's …

Philip Elliott / Associated Press:
Romney clarifies his position on Blunt amendment

Discussion: tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com, Religion News Service, USA Today, Washington Monthly and The Daily Dish

Ian Swanson / The Hill:
Senate rejects Blunt amendment to limit birth-control mandate

Discussion: Crooks and Liars

John S. Adams / Great Falls Tribune:

Chief U.S. District Judge sends racially charged email about president — HELENA — Chief U.S. District Judge Richard Cebull on Wednesday admitted to sending a racially charged email about President Barack Obama from his courthouse chambers. — Cebull, of Billings, was nominated …

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

Bush-Appointed Federal Judge Sends Racist, Anti-Obama Email Comparing Interracial Sex To Bestiality — Chief Judge Richard Cebull, a George W. Bush appointee to the federal district court in Montana, admitted yesterday to sending a racist email forward comparing President Obama's conception to sex with a dog:

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Allen McDuffee / Washington Post:

Koch Brothers sue Cato Institute, president — Billionaires Charles and David Koch have filed a lawsuit against the libertarian Cato Institute, its president Edward Crane and a board member, according to court documents obtained by The Washington Post. — The complaint centers on the the handling …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, The Sideshow, The Raw Story and LewRockwell.com Blog

Mike Allen / Politico: Exclusive: Koch brothers launch court fight over Cato

Bill Simmons / ESPN.com - null:

B.S. Report Transcript: Barack Obama — Bill Simmons: Welcome to the White House. Very proud to have the President of the United States of America, Barack Obama, on the B.S. Report. This is your first podcast? — President Barack Obama: This is — well, I used to have my own podcast.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, BuzzFeed, Hotline On Call, Washington Post, SBNation.com, Outside the Beltway, Campaign 2012, Indecision Forever, ESPN, Gawker and Jammie Wearing Fools

David A. Graham / The Atlantic Online:

Reports of the Republican Nominee's Doom Are Greatly Exaggerated — In the last few weeks, the GOP has succumbed to despair about beating Obama. Here are seven reasons he's still vulnerable. — Political journalists like to imagine ourselves as wise, discerning observers of the landscape.

Discussion: Hot Air

David Morgan / Reuters:
63 percent of voters back Obama birth control policy: poll

Discussion: The Political Carnival and Hullabaloo

Lydia Saad / Gallup:
GOP Slightly Ahead in Voting Enthusiasm

Discussion: Firedoglake, Randy's Roundtable, Politico, Hot Air, CNN and Ballot Box

Bill Allison / Sunlight Foundation Reporting Group:

Did lawsuit factor in Olympia Snowe's departure? — Last August, while Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, was in the midst of an intensive round of fundraising for her 2012 reelection bid, a four-year-old civil lawsuit alleging fraud by an education company in which she and her husband are heavily invested became public.

Discussion: Don Surber and Clayton Cramer's Blog

Naftali Bendavid / Wall Street Journal:
Political Center Shrinks in Congress

Discussion: American Prospect and The BLT

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:
Senator Olympia Snowe's Latest Hard Choice: To Quit

Discussion: The New Republic, FiveThirtyEight, Washington Monthly, The Confluence, Daily Kos, Prairie Weather and Hullabaloo

Rasmussen Reports:

National GOP: Romney 40%, Santorum 24%, Gingrich 16%, Paul 12% — Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, coming off his primary wins in Arizona and Michigan, has jumped to a 16-point lead over Rick Santorum in the battle for the Republican presidential nomination.