memeorandum: David Corn Has Showdown in Barnes & Noble (Betsy Rothstein/FishbowlDC)

3:14 AM ET, March 21, 2012

Top Items:

Brian Montopoli / CBS News:

CBS News early Illinois exit polls: 4 in 10 Romney, Santorum voters “have reservations” — (CBS News) More than four in ten of the people who voted for Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum in Tuesday's GOP primary in Illinois “have reservations” about their choice, according to early CBS News exit polls.

Discussion: The Other McCain, Guardian, Taylor Marsh, Firedoglake, The Reaction, CNN, Indecision Forever, FiveThirtyEight, Politico and GQ

Alexander Burns / Politico:

Illinois primary results: Mitt Romney crushes Rick Santorum — Mitt Romney crushed Rick Santorum in the Illinois primary Tuesday night, padding his delegate lead and once again forcing his Republican opponents to find another moment to mount a guerrilla challenge to his campaign.

Discussion: CNN, Scared Monkeys and Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog

Robin Bravender / Politico:

Rick Santorum in the black — Rick Santorum's campaign is in the black, thanks to his $9 million haul in February. — The former Pennsylvania senator ended last month with $2.6 million in the bank and just over $900,000 in debt, according to campaign finance filings released Tuesday.

Discussion: The Right Scoop

Timothy Stenovec / The Huffington Post:
Illinois Primary 2012 Results MAP (REAL-TIME DATA)

Discussion: Los Angeles Times and Campaign 2012

Jonathan Tilove / New Orleans Times-Picayune:
Survey: Rick Santorum has sizable lead over Mitt Romney heading into Saturday's La. primary

Discussion: Guardian, Los Angeles Times, GOP 12 and Balloon Juice

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
Polling on Romney's ‘dog problem’

Discussion: Ballot Box, Wonkette and New York Magazine

Matt Negrin / ABCNEWS:
Mitt Romney Projected to Win Illinois Primary, Santorum Second

Discussion: Politico and Mediaite

Fox News:
Romney wins Illinois GOP primary, inches closer to nomination

Discussion: Washington Post, msnbc.com, The Huffington Post, Christian Science Monitor, The Moderate Voice, The Lonely Conservative and Patterico's Pontifications

Elizabeth Williamson / Washington Wire:
2012 GOP Wives More Popular Than Husbands

Discussion: Hot Air

New York Times:
Romney Wins Easily in Illinois, Exit Polls Show

Discussion: News Desk, The Daily Beast, The Caucus and Chicago Tribune

Gary Langer / ABCNEWS:
Better-Off, Better Educated Voters Boost Romney in Illinois

Discussion: Politico

Jonathon M. Seidl / TheBlaze.com:

RICK SANTORUM REACTS TO OBAMA ALLOWING DAUGHTER TO VACATION IN MEXICO: ‘SET AN EXAMPLE’ — On Tuesday's Glenn Beck program, Rick Santorum responded to the news that the president allowed his 13-year-old daughter, Malia, to vacation in Mexico, despite a recent State Department travel warning for the country.

Discussion: BuzzFeed, ABCNEWS, Mediaite, Indecision Forever, GOP 12 and Outside the Beltway

BuzzFeed:

Story About White House Scrubbing Obama Daughter Travel Story Has Now Been Scrubbed — Citing security concerns, Politico removes a detail about Malia Obama's trip to Mexico. Point taken. — The White House's campaign to scrub a story from the internet yesterday about Malia Obama's trip …

Discussion: Media Decoder, The Caucus, BuzzFeed, The Volokh Conspiracy and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »

Benjy Sarlin / 2012.talkingpointsmemo.com:
TPM2012 — Rick Santorum: President Obama Shouldn't Let Daughter Go To Mexico (VIDEO)

Discussion: Little Green Footballs and International Business Times

Jonathon M. Seidl / TheBlaze.com:
WHITE HOUSE ADMITS TO ASKING NEWS AGENCIES TO PULL MALIA OBAMA VACATION STORY

Discussion: Politico, ABCNEWS, Weasel Zippers, National Review, The PJ Tatler, The Raw Story, Wonkette and Wizbang, more at Mediagazer »

Montreal Gazette:
Obama's daughter spends spring break in Mexico

Discussion: The Raw Story and NewsBusters.org

Derek Thompson / The Atlantic Online:

The Budget Wars: Why Obama and the GOP Are Light-Years Apart — If it seems like Republicans and Democrats are on different planets with their approach to budgeting, it's because they really are providing answers to completely different questions. — “This isn't just about math …

Discussion: his vorpal sword, American Prospect and Campaign 2012

Jennifer Yingling / The Hill:
‘We have the votes’ to pass this budget in House, says the GOP's Paul Ryan

Discussion: Booman Tribune

Washington Post:
Paul Ryan's budget is bad politics. Just ask Republicans.

Discussion: National Review, Politico, The Hill, New York Times, Daily Kos, Hot Air, Budget Committee, The Spectacle Blog, Newsy, msnbc.com and DownWithTyranny!

Ezra Klein:
Paul Ryan's budget: Should the poor pay for deficit reduction?

Discussion: Washington Post, Slate, CBO's Publications, ThinkProgress, The New Republic, PERRspectives, New York Magazine, Guardian, Washington Monthly, The Hill and Balloon Juice

Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Reid: Sen. Wyden against Medicare reforms in Ryan budget

Discussion: Politico and ThinkProgress

Budget Committee:
The Path to Prosperity Budget: Your Country. Your Future. Your Choice.

Discussion: Townhall.com, ThinkProgress, ABCNEWS and American Prospect

Charles Johnson / Little Green Footballs:

Fox News Commenters React to Trayvon Martin: ‘Good Shot Zimmy’ — I don't even know what to say about this any more; the comments about Trayvon Martin at Fox News are just unbelievable. — Here's the article: Department of Justice Opens Investigation Into Case of Black Teenager Killed by Neighborhood Watch Captain |

Discussion: Fox News, Hullabaloo and Booman Tribune

Emily Bazelon / Slate:

Why Trayvon Martin's Killer Remains Free — Florida's self-defense laws have left Florida safe for no one—except those who shoot first. — Trayvon Martin was shot and killed in a gated community in Sanford, Fla., by George Zimmerman. Zimmerman has not been charged. — family handout

Discussion: New York Times, The Raw Story, News Desk, The Huffington Post, Orlando Sentinel, The Lede, Change of Subject, Lawyers, Guns & Money and The Mahablog

Frances Robles / MiamiHerald.com:
Lawyer: Girl on phone with Trayvon Martin moments before he was shot

Discussion: iWatch News by The Center …, Daily Kos and The Mahablog, more at Mediagazer »

Betsy Rothstein / FishbowlDC:

David Corn Has Showdown in Barnes & Noble — MSNBC Contributor and Mother Jones' Washington Bureau Chief David Corn apparently got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. — He was spotted in the Barnes & Noble at Union Station throwing a fit because his new book — his fifth …

Discussion: Don Surber, small dead animals and Instapundit

John Celock / The Huffington Post:

Abortion Bill: Arizona GOP Legislator Says Women Should Witness Abortions … REACT: — FOLLOW: — Arizona Republicans, Abortion, Abortion Rights, Anti-Abortion, Arizona Politics, Video, Arizona Democrats, Arizona Legislature, Birth Control, Matt Heinz, Women's Health …

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Angry Black Lady Chronicles

Arizona Republic:
Arizona lawmaker wants to go further on abortion laws

Discussion: Angry Black Lady Chronicles

Ben Geman / The Hill:

GOP lawmaker entertains Obama ‘birther’ notions — Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.), a top member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, on Tuesday said he's not yet convinced that President Obama's birth certificate is legitimate. — “I am, shall we say, looking at all the evidence,” …

Discussion: ABCNEWS, ThinkProgress, Angry Black Lady Chronicles, CNN and The Raw Story

Glenn Thrush / Politico:

Romney econ adviser posts deport-seniors joke on blog — Greg Mankiw, the Harvard professor who serves as one of Mitt Romney's top economic advisers, has managed to take a shot at two key constituencies - Hispanics and seniors - in a single linked post on his popular economics blog.

Discussion: Greg Mankiw's Blog and 24Ahead

Blue Texan / Crooks and Liars:

CBS's Mark Knoller Falsely Claims Debt Has Increased More Under Obama Than Bush — Mark Knoller is the White House correspondant for CBS Radio, and a first-class right-wing tool. Monday night, he posted an article titled, “National debt has increased more under Obama than under Bush,” …

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Michelle Malkin, iOwnTheWorld.com and Hit & Run

The 1600 Report:

Obama to fast track southern portion of Keystone XL Pipeline — President Obama plans to announce in Cushing, Oklahoma Thursday that his administration will expedite the permit process for the southern portion of the Keystone XL pipeline, a source familiar with the president's announcement tells CNN.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Hot Air, ThinkProgress and Fuel

Mitch Mitchell / Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

Davis: ‘Homemade explosive device’ sparked fire outside Fort Worth office — A “homemade explosive device” was used to spark a small fire outside the Fort Worth office of state Sen. Wendy Davis, the senator said in a late-night news conference Tuesday. — Davis, D-Fort Worth …

Discussion: The Raw Story, The Daily Caller and Off the Kuff

Sam Baker / The Hill:

Supreme Court faces an unprecedented healthcare frenzy — The frenzy generated by the Supreme Court's arguments on the healthcare reform law next week is likely to dwarf anything the court has ever seen. — Lawmakers and interest groups plan to stage protests and events outside the court nearly nonstop …

Discussion: Reuters

Cameron Joseph / Ballot Box:

Rep. Kinzinger defeats Manzullo; victory a relief for GOP leaders — Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) defeated Rep. Don Manzullo (R-Ill.) in Tuesday's primary — a big win for the rising GOP star and a relief for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), who had endorsed Kinzinger despite howls from Tea Party groups.

Discussion: Politico