memeorandum: Romney takes lead over Obama in national poll (Jonathan Easley/Ballot Box)

9:00 AM ET, May 15, 2012

Top Items:

Lucy Madison / CBS News:

Poll: Romney has slight edge over Obama — CBS News Poll analysis by the CBS News Polling Unit: Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus and Anthony Salvanto. — (CBS News) Presumptive Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has a slight edge over President Obama in the race …

Discussion: Washington Post, Datechguy's Blog, No More Mister Nice Blog, Weasel Zippers, Politico, Hot Air, The Moderate Voice and National Review

New York Times:

Politics Seen in Obama's Same-Sex Marriage Support — WASHINGTON — Most Americans suspect that President Obama was motivated by politics, not policy, when he declared his support for same-sex marriage, according to a new poll released on Monday, suggesting that the unplanned way it was announced shaped public attitudes.

Discussion: The Monkey Cage, ABCNEWS, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, The Huffington Post, The Volokh Conspiracy, American Power, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, PoliPundit.com, The Caucus and Gallup

CNN:

Romney donor pulls support, backs Obama, over same-sex marriage — (CNN) - A well-known, openly gay supporter of Mitt Romney in New York has decided to withdraw his support for Romney and back President Barack Obama instead. — The clincher: Romney's stance on same-sex marriage.

Discussion: Campaign 2012, GOP 12, Catholic Bandita, Good As You, Daily Kos, Guardian, The Daily Caller and The Daily Beast

Jonathan Easley / Ballot Box:

Romney takes lead over Obama in national poll — Mitt Romney holds a 3 percent lead over President Obama nationally in the latest CBS News-New York Times poll. — Romney took 46 percent in the poll, compared to Obama's 43 percent. The 3 percent difference is within the poll's 4 point margin of error.

Discussion: Politico and CNN

Byron York / Campaign 2012:

How Romney will respond to Obama's Bain attack — The Obama campaign has released a new ad holding Mitt Romney responsible for the loss of 750 jobs in the bankruptcy of a steel plant purchased by Romney's Bain Capital in 1993. The ad, which will play in several key states …

Discussion: Washington Post, The Maddow Blog, Politico, The Daily Dish, New York Magazine, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Donklephant, Livewire, National Review, Daily Kos, Business Insider, The Enterprise Blog, msnbc.com, Washington Monthly, Washington Wire, Booman Tribune and No More Mister Nice Blog

CNN:

TRENDING: Jay-Z still has Obama's back — (CNN) - Jay-Z may not be “a huge fan of the [political] system,” but the rapper remains a firm supporter of President Barack Obama. — The rapper said Monday in an interview with CNN's Poppy Harlow he knows little of GOP contender Mitt Romney …

Discussion: Mediaite, Weasel Zippers, Breaking News … and Booman Tribune

Susan Page / USA Today:
Americans more optimistic economy is looking up, poll says

Discussion: Politico, The Page, Ballot Box and Gawker

Zeke Miller / BuzzFeed:
Obama: Romney Is Worse Than John McCain

Discussion: Hot Air and American Power

Olivier Knox / ABCNEWS:
Obama: ‘Americans are on our side’ on same-sex marriage

Discussion: CNN and Yahoo! News

CNN:
BREAKING: Ron Paul to end active campaigning

Discussion: Ron Paul 2012 Presidential …, Politico, Addicting Info, Newsy, Shakesville, Mediaite and The Reaction

Lou Rocco / ABCNEWS:

Obama: JPMorgan Is ‘One of the Best-Managed Banks’ — Just hours after a top JPMorgan Chase executive retired in the wake of a stunning $2 billion trading loss, President Obama told the hosts of ABC's “The View” that the bank's risky bets exemplified the need for Wall Street reform.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Mediaite, Washington Wire, msnbc.com and Business Insider

DealBook:
Red Flags Said to Go Unheeded by Bosses at JPMorgan

Discussion: Prairie Weather

Joe Nocera / New York Times:
Make Banking Boring — Let's begin by stipulating the obvious …

Discussion: ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, Politico, Daily Kos, Balloon Juice, DealBook and Felix Salmon

New York Post:
Break up the banks — The $2 billion trading loss at JPMorgan …

Discussion: FOX News Radio and Newsy

Adam Peck / ThinkProgress:

Right-Wing Lauds Facebook Co-Founder's Decision To Renounce US Citizenship: He's ‘An American Hero’ — Eduardo Saverin, the co-founder of Facebook whose falling out with the company and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg was the subject of the 2010 blockbuster The Social Network …

Discussion: Catholic Bandita, The Huffington Post, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Ezra Klein

John Tamny / Political Economy:

For De-Friending The U.S., Facebook's Eduardo Saverin Is An American Hero — Eduardo Saverin, co-founder of Facebook. (Image credit: via @daylife) — As is well known now, Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin recently renounced his U.S. citizenship. Though no specific reason was given …

Scott Whitlock / NewsBusters.org:

MSNBC's Chris Matthews to Black Pastor: ‘I Hope You Evolve’ — Hardball anchor Chris Matthews, who routinely smears his political opponents as racist, on Monday lectured an African American minister who opposes gay marriage, “I hope you evolve.” The host patronizingly added, “I'm just teasing.”

Discussion: Hot Air, Ed Driscoll and The Gateway Pundit

thehopeconnection.org:
Senior Pastor — Harry R. Jackson, Jr. is senior pastor …

Discussion: nation.foxnews.com and Campaign 2012

William A. Jacobson / Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion:

Is prestigious genealogical society throwing media under the bus on Warren 1/32 Cherokee claim? — There is a new and bizarre twist in the Elizabeth Warren 1/32 Cherokee saga. — As discussed below, Warren's claim to 1/32 Cherokee heritage arose from comments attributed to the prestigious …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, BREITBART.COM, iOwnTheWorld.com, Weasel Zippers, Hot Air, Power Line and Michelle Malkin

Jennifer C. Braceras / Boston Herald:
Defining diversity at Harvard Law

Discussion: Betsy's Page

Jeff Poor / The Daily Caller:
Elizabeth Warren: 'I'm proud of my Native American heritage'

Discussion: JustOneMinute, nation.foxnews.com and The Lonely Conservative

Associated Press:

Obama Courts Private Equity Cash at New York Fundraiser — On the same day his campaign launched an attack on Mitt Romney's record in private equity, President Obama is attending a big-dollar fundraiser at the Manhattan home of one of the industry's top figures.

Discussion: Advocate, ABCNEWS, Weasel Zippers and National Review

ABCNEWS:
Obama Ad Attacks Romney Bain Capital Record

Discussion: Taking Note, Business Insider, Washington Post, Swampland, Los Angeles Times, Campaign 2012, Newsy and Michelle Malkin

Alexander Burns / Politico:
Obama's Bain ad: ‘Like watching an old friend bleed to death’ (Updated)

Discussion: Ballot Box, Liberal Values, Connecting.the.Dots, The Impolitic, The Hill, CNN, Little Green Footballs and Taylor Marsh

Mike Flynn / BREITBART.COM:
DEMS ATTACK ROMNEY OVER LAYOFFS MADE BY OBAMA BUNDLER

Discussion: Politico, ProfessorBainbridge.com, RedState, nation.foxnews.com, Wake up America, BuzzFeed and The Hill

Tom Curry / msnbc.com:

Clyburn seeks ‘national policy’ legalizing same-sex marriages — During an appearance on The Daily Rundown, Rep. James Clyburn, D -S.C., called for a national policy to give legal recognition to marriages between same-sex couples. — Rep. James Clyburn, the House Democrats' third-ranking leader …

Discussion: Breaking News …, Washington Post and Althouse

Associated Press:
RI governor signs order to recognize same-sex marriages performed out of state

Discussion: Bark Bark Woof Woof, Good As You, Advocate, ThinkProgress and Shakesville

Lou Rocco / ABCNEWS:
Obama Faces Questions on Federal Fight for Same Sex Marriage

Discussion: Capital New York and Good As You

Jesus Diaz / Gizmodo:

Kodak Had a Secret Nuclear Reactor Loaded With Enriched Uranium Hidden In a Basement — Kodak may be going under, but apparently they could have started their own nuclear war if they wanted, just six years ago. Down in a basement in Rochester, NY, they had a nuclear reactor loaded …

Discussion: Sky Dancing, Los Angeles Times, Discourse.net and Outside the Beltway

Steven Hayward / Power Line:

Let's Call Them “Hydrocarbon Deniers” — John has already noted what ought to have been above-the-fold news in every newspaper last week—the testimony of the GAO's head of natural resources that the U.S. has recoverable oil shale “about equal to the entire world's proven oil reserves.”

Orlando Sentinel:

George Zimmerman prosecutors file list of witnesses, evidence in Trayvon Martin shooting — SANFORD - As many eagerly awaited the release of never-before-seen evidence in the case against George Zimmerman, members of Special Prosecutor Angela Corey's office provided a preview on Monday in the form of an eight-page document.

Discussion: msnbc.com, ABCNEWS, The Strata-Sphere, DISSENTING JUSTICE and clickorlando.com

Damla Ergun / ABCNEWS:

Obama and Gay Marriage: Opinions Divide, and Sharply — Americans divide essentially evenly in their responses to President Obama's new position on gay marriage, with views more strongly negative than positive and stark divisions across political, ideological and other groups - including a broad gender gap.

Discussion: The Page