Top Items:
The Caucus:
Santorum Suspends Presidential Campaign — Updated Rick Santorum suspended his presidential campaign on Tuesday, bowing to the inevitability of Mitt Romney's nomination and ending his improbable, come-from-behind quest to become the party's conservative standard-bearer in the fall.
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Daniel Strauss / The Hill:
Santorum exits presidential race — Rick Santorum will drop out of the presidential race Tuesday afternoon, a campaign consultant told The Hill, essentially guaranteeing Mitt Romney the GOP nomination. — Santorum will announce that he is suspending his campaign at an event in his home state …
Discussion:
CNN, CBS News, Michelle Malkin, Politico, protein wisdom, ABCNEWS, Donklephant, The Other McCain, Wake up America, neo-neocon, GOP 12 and Pirate's Cove
Washington Post:
Obama holds key leads on Romney, as economy malaise looms over reelection bid — With the general-election campaign beginning to take shape, President Obama holds clear advantages over Mitt Romney on personal attributes and a number of key issues, but remains vulnerable to discontent …
Discussion:
BuzzFeed, Hot Air, American Prospect, The Hill, ABCNEWS, Nice Deb, Hullabaloo, Little Green Footballs, Yahoo! News, msnbc.com, ThinkProgress, Los Angeles Times, Swampland, Shakesville, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, 2012 Decoded, The Maddow Blog, Politico, GOP 12, Taegan Goddard's …, The Page, Washington Monthly, CNN, Ballot Box, Campaign 2012, Vodkapundit, New York Magazine, American Power, Ezra Klein, Washington Wire, Conservatives4Palin and Pew Research Center …, more at Mediagazer »
Chris Moody / Yahoo! News:
Rick Santorum ends presidential campaign after conceding to Mitt Romney in phone call — After calling Mitt Romney to say he is ending his presidential campaign, Rick Santorum announced the end of his presidential campaign Tuesday during a press conference in Pennsylvania, his home state.
Politico:
Rick Santorum drops 2012 campaign for president — Rick Santorum announced Tuesday afternoon that he is ending his campaign for the presidency, effectively closing out the GOP primary season and cementing Mitt Romney's status as his party's presumptive nominee.
Discussion:
CNN, The New Republic and NetRight Daily
Washington Post:
Rick Santorum to drop out of the presidential race — Rick Santorum will announce Tuesday that he is suspending his presidential campaign, all but bringing to a close the 2012 GOP presidential contest and formally handing the nomination to Mitt Romney, according to an official close to the campaign.
Discussion:
CNN, Gawker, CANNONFIRE, Weasel Zippers, New York Magazine, Truth Wins Out, ThinkProgress and The Huffington Post
Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
Obama leads Romney by 13 in Colorado — Barack Obama's opened up a 13 point lead on Mitt Romney in Colorado at 53-40. He's gained 11 points in the state since December when he led just 47-45. — The formula for Obama's gains is the same in Colorado as it is everywhere.
Discussion:
Ballot Box, The Colorado Independent and Taegan Goddard's …
Michael Gerson / Washington Post:
How Romney can solve his woman problem
How Romney can solve his woman problem
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, The Mahablog, Booman Tribune, Ricochet Conversations Feed, Fox News, Roll Call and The Huffington Post
Steve Benen / Associated Press:
Santorum stands down — A week ago today, Rick Santorum …
Santorum stands down — A week ago today, Rick Santorum …
Discussion:
Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Campaign 2012, RedState, ThinkProgress and The Barrometer
Mj Lee / Politico:
Herman Cain drops Newt Gingrich, ready to back Mitt Romney
Herman Cain drops Newt Gingrich, ready to back Mitt Romney
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, The Hill, Indecision Forever, LifeNews.com, Liberal Values and New York Magazine
Jamelle Bouie / American Prospect:
Rick Santorum Finally Calls It Quits
Rick Santorum Finally Calls It Quits
Discussion:
No More Mister Nice Blog
Darius Dixon / Politico:
George W. Bush: Wish tax cuts not in my name — George W. Bush said Tuesday that he wishes the tax cuts originally approved under his watch didn't carry the burden of his family name. — “I wish they weren't called the Bush tax cuts,” the former president said as he kicked off …
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Steve Schaefer / Exile On Wall Street:
George W. Bush: I Wish They Weren't Called The Bush Tax Cuts — Former U.S. President George W. Bush called for pro-growth tax policies to create a more robust private sector Tuesday morning in a rare public appearance. — Growing the public sector is easy, Bush said, “just raise taxes.”
Discussion:
Mediaite, The Maddow Blog, GILL REPORT, The Raw Story and Dependable Renegade
The Fox Mole / Gawker:
Announcing Our Newest Hire: A Current Fox News Channel Employee — What follows is the inaugural column of a person we are calling The Fox Mole—a long-standing, current employee of Fox News Channel who will be providing Gawker with regular dispatches from inside the organization.
Discussion:
Little Green Footballs, ABCNEWS, Crooks and Liars, Politico, BuzzFeed, TVNewser and JIMROMENESKO.COM, more at Mediagazer »
Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
The Bogus Obamacare-Deficit Study — Little did Obama know there is no Medicare crisis. — The Washington Post has an apparent blockbuster story today. It reports that a new study finds that Obamacare will increase the budget deficit, not decrease it, as the Congressional Budget Office has found:
Discussion:
Ezra Klein, Paul Krugman, ACS Blog, National Review, Brad DeLong and Lawyers, Guns & Money
RELATED:
Lori Montgomery / Washington Post:
Health-care law will add $340 billion to deficit, new study finds
Health-care law will add $340 billion to deficit, new study finds
Jeanne Lambrew / White House.gov Blog:
Official Sources Agree: The Affordable Care Act Reduces the Deficit
Official Sources Agree: The Affordable Care Act Reduces the Deficit
Discussion:
Mercatus, ABCNEWS and nation.foxnews.com
BuzzFeed:
Paul Ryan Claims Secret Democratic Support — They'd come out for his budget but fear they'd “get killed. Ryan on Romney: An “earnest ... throwback to the '50s. Ryan with Romney on April 3. — (Getty Images / Scott Olson) — House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan told reporters in New York today …
Discussion:
American Prospect, The Brody File, Politico, Washington Monthly, Weekly Standard, Hot Air, Indecision Forever, Daily Kos, GOP 12, Mother Jones and Swampland
Jeffrey Lord / American Spectator:
Huckabee Show Opens With Staged Caller — Wow. — As we often say here: you just can't make it up. — Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee took his first phone call of his new talk radio call-in show yesterday. From “Mike in San Francisco.” Remember: the show is being positioned …
Discussion:
Politico, GOP 12, Mediaite and Riehl World View
John Cook / Gawker:
New York Times Reporter Blasts Boss In Email to 150 of His Best Friends — A few weeks ago, New York Times science and health reporter Don McNeil sent out a scathing email to colleagues attacking Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. for piloting a “ghost ship” and running off to the Himalayas …
Discussion:
New York Magazine and The Daily Caller, more at Mediagazer »
Kate Zernike / New York Times:
Report Disputes Christie's Basis for Halting Tunnel — Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey exaggerated when he declared that unforeseen costs to the state were forcing him to cancel the new train tunnel planned to relieve congested routes across the Hudson River, according to a long-awaited report …
Matt Stoller / Republic Report:
Corruption Responsible for 80% of Your Cell Phone Bill — Last year, a new company called Lightsquared promised an innovative business model that would dramatically lower cell phone costs and improve the quality of service, threatening the incumbent phone operators like AT&T and Verizon.
Discussion:
Suburban Guerrilla and Crooks and Liars
Dallas Voice:
TX minister: Gays will destroy Democratic Party — Denis Dison at the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund alerts us to this letter from a Houston minister attacking Lane Lewis, the openly gay former president of the Houston GLBT Political Caucus who's running for Harris County Democratic Party chair.
Discussion:
ThinkProgress
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Michael A. Memoli / Los Angeles Times:
Obama faces pressure over same-sex marriage
Obama faces pressure over same-sex marriage
Discussion:
Associated Press, Minnesota Public Radio and The Maddow Blog
Zeke Miller / BuzzFeed:
Clooney Gave So Much To Obama, The Campaign Had To Return Some Of It He accidentally gave $5000 more than the legal limit. — Actor George Clooney arrives for the State Dinner in honor of British Prime Minister David Cameron at the White House on March 14, 2012.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller
RELATED:
Lisa Hirsch / ETonline.com:
Exclusive: George Clooney to Host Obama Fundraiser
Exclusive: George Clooney to Host Obama Fundraiser
Discussion:
msnbc.com and Weasel Zippers
Scott Jaschik / Inside Higher Ed:
Study suggests students grow less interested in promoting racial understanding — By — One stereotype about college is that the experience encourages students to be more interested in diversity and promoting racial understanding. To some this is a great virtue of higher education …
Discussion:
Maggie's Farm, Gawker, National Review, Clayton Cramer's Blog and Instapundit
Maureen O'Connor / Gawker:
‘I May Give Up Writing and Work as a Butler’: Interview with John Derbyshire — After publishing an article advising his children to avoid black people, writer John Derbyshire lost his column at uber-conservative magazine The National Review and weathered a firestorm of outrage this weekend.
Discussion:
rightwingwatch.org, The Atlantic Wire, First Draft, The Spectacle Blog, Vox Popoli and National Review
Centers for Disease Control:
NCHS Data Brief — Number 89, April 2012 — Birth Rates for U.S. Teenagers Reach Historic Lows for All Age and Ethnic Groups — Brady E. Hamilton, Ph.D., and Stephanie J. Ventura, M.A. — Key findings — Data from the Natality Data File, National Vital Statistics System
Discussion:
Hit & Run, thechart.blogs.cnn.com, Economix, Ezra Klein and TheGazette
Ashley Judd / The Daily Beast:
Ashley Judd Slaps Media in the Face for Speculation Over Her ‘Puffy’ Appearance — Ashley Judd's ‘puffy’ appearance sparked a viral media frenzy. But, the actress writes, the conversation is really a misogynistic assault on all women. — The Conversation about women's bodies exists largely outside …
Discussion:
Taylor Marsh, Guardian, The Lonely Conservative, The Other McCain, The Moderate Voice, ABCNEWS, Jezebel, ThinkProgress, Shakesville, Feministing, The Jane Dough and BuzzFeed