memeorandum: Judge a Tax Plan by Its Loopholes (James B. Stewart/New York Times)

3:10 PM ET, March 24, 2012

Top Items:

Now witness claims TRAYVON attacked Zimmerman: Anonymous onlooker told police neighbourhood watch captain was provoked... as friends insist teen was not violent and protests mount — Trayvon Martin may have attacked a Neighborhood Watch captain before the man shot dead the unarmed teen …

Discussion: Riehl World View, American Power and Instapundit

Maggie Haberman / Politico:

Newt calls Obama's Trayvon Martin comments ‘disgraceful’ — Per POLITICO's Ginger Gibson, Newt Gingrich accused President Obama of playing race: … Obama has gotten some criticism for discussing a pending legal matter. But the question of whether Martin's race was a factor in his death …

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Taylor Marsh, Dallas Morning News, Fox News, Whiskey Fire, Booman Tribune, The Moderate Voice, Mediaite, Balloon Juice, CNN and Wake up America

Charles P. Pierce / Esquire:

Trayvon Martin and the End of Excuses — We have become a nation in which children have become expendable. Trayvon Martin is just the most recent example. — We executed children in this country until long after the rest of the world — except Iran — thought that was a good idea.

Discussion: msnbc.com, ThinkProgress, The Mahablog, Media Matters for America and CNN

CNN:

Zimmerman's lawyer: ‘Stand your ground’ doesn't apply in Trayvon Martin case — For more on the investigation into the Florida teen's shooting death, watch “Trayvon Martin Killing” at 7 ET Saturday night on CNN. — Sanford, Florida (CNN) — A lawyer for the man at the center …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Outside the Beltway and Runnin' Scared

Matthew Shelley / NationalJournal.com:

Gingrich Calls Obama Comments on Trayvon Martin Shooting ‘Disgraceful’ — Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich — Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich harshly criticized President Obama for commenting on Trayvon Martin's race as he extended condolences to the 17-year-old shooting victim's parents on Friday.

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Little Green Footballs and BuzzFeed

Rene Lynch / Los Angeles Times:
Trayvon Martin case: ‘Blacks are under attack,’ says Jesse Jackson

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, White House Dossier, americanthinker.com and The Right Scoop

Stephanie Condon / CBS News:
Obama: “If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon”

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, The Huffington Post, Associated Press, Truthdig and Corrente

Mollie Reilly / The Huffington Post:
Newt Gingrich: ‘Elite Media’ Is Covering Up Obama's ‘Muslim Friends’

Discussion: msnbc.com, No More Mister Nice Blog, Outside the Beltway, Balloon Juice, Politico and The Raw Story

New York Times:

Maher's Attacks on Women — To the Editor: — Re “Please Stop Apologizing,” by Bill Maher (Op-Ed, March 22): — We're both women who have worked in Democratic politics and the media for decades and find Bill Maher's misogynist treatment of women candidates deeply disturbing.

Discussion: Mediaite, Conservatives4Palin and The Loyal Opposition

Jerusalem Post:

'French teacher asked minute's silence for Merah' — French education minister calls for English teacher's suspension after she called Toulouse killer a “victim.” — By REUTERS/France 2 Television — France's education minister called for disciplinary proceedings against a teacher …

Discussion: americanthinker.com, Scared Monkeys, Weasel Zippers and Jihad Watch

Chuck Bennett / New York Post:
Horror movies — The Muslim fanatic who killed seven people …

Discussion: PJ Media, Weasel Zippers and Atlas Shrugs

Ben Geman / The Hill:

White House was all-hands-on-deck as Solyndra collapse neared — Several key White House offices were involved with the Obama administration's messaging plans and other preparations as the collapse of the taxpayer-backed solar company Solyndra was imminent, newly released documents show.

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, Hot Air, White House Dossier, Left Coast Rebel, Weasel Zippers, Ed Driscoll, americanthinker.com and The PJ Tatler

Paul Conner / The Daily Caller:

Conservatives hijack #ILikeObamacare hashtag on Twitter — Conservatives on Twitter today quickly hijacked the #ILikeObamacare hashtag, which had been launched by President Barack Obama's campaign to highlight supporters of the Democrats' signature health care reform law.

Discussion: Wake up America, Washington Wire and The Caucus

David Maraniss / Washington Post:

Clinton and Obama: Presidential parallels — David Maraniss, an associate editor of The Post, is the author of “First in His Class: A Biography of Bill Clinton” and the forthcoming “Barack Obama: The Story.” This is the second column in an occasional series on the 2012 presidential candidates' political lives.

Discussion: The Political Carnival

Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:

Danish TV Host Mocks Obama for His Rhetoric — “Maybe the copy key got stuck on the presidential speechwriter's keyboard.” — Thomas Buch-Andersen, host of the Danish TV show Detektor, mocked President Obama's political rhetoric in a recent episode. “Obama used a metaphor from boxing …

Discussion: Wake up America, The Right Scoop, americanthinker.com, Mediaite, Conservatives4Palin and BuzzFeed

Washington Post:

Mexico's middle class is becoming its majority — QUERETARO, Mexico — A wary but tenacious middle class is fast becoming the majority in Mexico, breaking down the rich-poor divide in a profound demographic transformation that has far-reaching implications here and in the United States.

Discussion: The Huffington Post