memeorandum: U.S. Relaxes Some Restrictions for Counterterrorism Analysis (Charlie Savage/New York Times)

9:45 AM ET, March 23, 2012

Top Items:

NBC's Andrew Rafferty / msnbc.com:

Santorum: GOP better off with Obama than ‘Etch A Sketch’ Republican — SAN ANTONIO, TX — Rick Santorum today suggested it would be better to stick with President Obama over a candidate that might be “the Etch A Sketch candidate of the future” — a shot at chief rival Mitt Romney.

Discussion: The Reaction, Taylor Marsh, BuzzFeed, today.yougov.com News, Power Line, American Spectator, Rumproast, Hullabaloo, Politico, Guardian, Ballot Box, Hot Air and Rasmussen Reports

Michael A. Memoli / Los Angeles Times:

Santorum suggests Obama preferable to ‘Etch-A-Sketch’ Romney — Rick Santorum holds an Etch-A-Sketch as he speaks during a campaign stop in San Antonio, Texas. (Eric Gay / Associated Press / March 22, 2012) — Rick Santorum's latest attempt to use a Mitt Romney aide's “Etch-A-Sketch” …

Discussion: Shakesville, Don Surber, BuzzFeed, Mediaite, Ricochet Conversations Feed and Bangor Daily News, more at Mediagazer »

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

Santorum leads in LA and other notes... Rick Santorum is headed for a commanding win in Louisiana on Saturday. We find him with 42% to 28% for Mitt Romney, 18% for Newt Gingrich, 8% for Ron Paul, and 2% for Buddy Roemer. — It's interesting to look at these numbers in the context of last week's results in Alabama and Mississippi.

Discussion: New Orleans Times-Picayune, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Politico, Taegan Goddard's … and The Atlantic Online

CBS DC:
Santorum: Might As Well Have Obama Over Romney

Discussion: GOP 12, Pundit & Pundette, YID With LID, iOwnTheWorld.com, Erick's blog, The Agonist, Michelle Malkin, New York Magazine and Fox News

Mike Lillis / Ballot Box:
Rep. King: GOP hopefuls not fighting hard enough for balanced budget

Discussion: CNN

Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Santorum: Maybe America's better off with Obama than taking a risk on an “Etch-a-Sketch” candidate

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Washington Examiner, The Right Scoop, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and Democracy in America

Matt Townsend / Bloomberg:
Etch A Sketch Maker Doubles After Romney Aide Mention

Discussion: New Orleans Times-Picayune, MarketBeat, Mashable!, CNN, Washington Post, The Huffington Post, US Politics and Wall Street Journal

Mario Tama / ABCNEWS:
Santorum Suggests Obama Beats an ‘Etch A Sketch’ Candidate

Discussion: Hot Air, The Daily Caller, msnbc.com and Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog

Jim DeMint / CNN:
DeMint calls for GOP assessment of race, praises Romney

Discussion: Washington Post, Campaign 2012, Politico, The Lonely Conservative, Washington Monthly and GOP 12

Christopher Peleo-Lazar / Hotline On Call:
Etch A Sketch Stock Jumps After Romney Adviser's Comment

Discussion: Politico, Washington Post, Daily Kos, Wall Street Journal, The Raw Story, The Hill, BuzzFeed, Towleroad News #gay, FishbowlDC, Mashable! and Swampland

Maureen O'Connor / Gawker:

James O'Keefe's Panty-Stealing ‘Rape Barn’ Sex Scandal — It's a right-wing rabble-rouser showdown! Jazz-handed pimp impersonator James O'Keefe is at “#WAR” with a former Project Veritas colleague who is now blogging an O'Keefe tell-all involving stolen panties, drugged beers, a “rape barn …

Tommy Christopher / Mediaite:

Former James O'Keefe ‘Accomplice’ Reveals ‘Barn Incident’ And Harassment Complaint — Last week, we reported that Nadia Naffe, self-described “accomplice” to conservative activist James O'Keefe , had begun publishing a multi-part tell-all series of posts to her blog.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Crooks and Liars and Daily Kos

NADIA NAFFE: Part II: The Barn Incident

msnbc.com:

Florida governor appoints new prosecutor in Trayvon Martin case — Gun control advocates say the Florida law that authorizes using deadly force to stop someone from committing a serious crime also encourages violent behavior. NBC's Pete Williams reports. — By msnbc.com staff

Discussion: Reuters, Booman Tribune, Crooks and Liars and The Moderate Voice

Judd Legum / ThinkProgress:

EXCLUSIVE: Sanford Commissioners Who Voted In Support Of Police Chief To Face Recall — SANFORD, FL — Two Sanford city commissioners who, amidst widespread outrage at the police investigation of Trayvon Martin's death, sided with police chief Bill Lee at a meeting last night …

Discussion: Washington Post, Los Angeles Times and The Huffington Post

MiamiHerald.com:
Embattled Sanford police chief steps down; special prosecutor named

Discussion: msnbc.com, The Moderate Voice, WESH-TV, Firedoglake, Shakesville, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and CBS News

Andrew Restuccia / The Hill:

Obama heckled during energy speech in Ohio — A heckler interrupted President Obama's speech on energy policy Thursday at Ohio State University. — The president, looking frustrated, stopped speaking and addressed the man — “Sir. Im here to speak to these folks. You can hold your own rally.

Meenal Vamburkar / Mediaite:
Pres. Obama To Heckler: 'You Can Hold Your Own Rally. You're Being Rude'

Discussion: CBS News

Carrie Budoff Brown / Politico:

5 things Dems got wrong on health care — President Barack Obama and his Democratic allies thought their political assumptions were airtight during the yearlong battle to overhaul the health care system. — Voters would reward them, they thought, even if Democrats muscled a bill through without Republican support.

Discussion: Ezra Klein, ABCNEWS, New York Times and Balloon Juice

Chris Stirewalt / Fox News:
Obama tries to spread blame on Solyndra, Keystone

Discussion: americanthinker.com, ABCNEWS and Right Wing News

Daily Mail:

SUSPECT ‘KIDNAPPED MAN’ AND THEN ‘WALKED AROUND CITY WITH SWORD IN HIS HAND’ — Suspected serial killer Mohammad Mera, who broke out of an Afghanistan jail in 2008 as part of a mass Taliban escape, once kidnapped another man, it has been reported. — A close family friend …

Discussion: CANNONFIRE

New York Times:

U.S. Inches Toward Goal of Energy Independence — MIDLAND, Tex. — The desolate stretch of West Texas desert known as the Permian Basin is still the lonely domain of scurrying roadrunners by day and howling coyotes by night. But the roar of scores of new oil rigs and the distinctive acrid fumes …

Discussion: The Hill, ThinkProgress, CNNMoney.com, Green and Prairie Weather

Alexander Bolton / Ballot Box:

Specter says he might vote for Romney — Former Sen. Arlen Specter (Pa.) says he might vote for Mitt Romney in November, depending on which version of Romney shows up for the general election. — “I'm going to wait to see which Romney it is,” said Specter in an interview with The Hill at his elegant apartment in Georgetown.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, NY Daily News, Washington Post and GOP 12

Larry J. Sabato / Sabato's Crystal Ball:

Tilting the Toss Ups - the Eight Races That Will Decide the Senate — Ah, the Senate. The battle for control fascinates us — and all election observers — because there are so many intriguing races and personalities. Yet, as we update our ratings today and move in a new direction …

Discussion: Washington Monthly

Charles Krauthammer / Washington Post:

Obamacare: The reckoning — Obamacare dominated the 2010 midterms, driving its Democratic authors to a historic electoral shellacking. But since then, the issue has slipped quietly underground. — Now it's back, summoned to the national stage by the confluence of three disparate events …

Discussion: Power Line, Weekly Standard and Betsy's Page

Economist:

Self-sustaining stimulus — Larry Summers says fiscal stimulus can pay for itself — WHEN he was at the Treasury nearly 20 years ago Larry Summers would counsel President Bill Clinton on the merits of “stimulative austerity”: cut deficits, and interest rates will fall by enough to produce stronger economic growth.

Marty Graham / Reuters:

Marine sergeant faces discipline for Facebook critique of Obama — (Reuters) - The Marine Corps has initiated disciplinary action against a Marine sergeant for comments he posted on his “Armed Forces Tea Party” Facebook page criticizing President Barack Obama, a spokesman said on Thursday.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice