memeorandum: Dems go AWOL in class war (Jonathan Martin/Politico)

12:25 PM ET, June 27, 2012

Top Items:

Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania Swinging To Obama, Quinnipiac University Swing State Poll Finds; Voters Back President On Immigration, Split On Economy — This compares to the results of a May 3 Swing State Poll by the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University, showing Obama …

Discussion: Firedoglake, Washington Wire, The Caucus, Ballot Box, Politico, New York Magazine, Hot Air, Guardian, Examiner, GOP 12, Mediaite, CNN, Outside the Beltway, Hotline On Call and Reuters

Wall Street Journal:

Obama Clings to a Narrow Lead — New Poll Shows Him Doing Better Than Romney in Swing States; Both Candidates Face Challenges — President Barack Obama has managed to retain a narrow lead in his race for re-election despite a spate of bad economic news and surging GOP optimism …

Discussion: American Prospect, Business Insider, Washington Wire, Ballot Box, Washington Examiner, Jared Bernstein and CANNONFIRE

Alexander Burns / Politico:
Quinnipiac: Swing states inch toward Obama

Discussion: Washington Wire and americanthinker.com

First Read / msnbc.com:
NBC/WSJ poll: Obama, Romney remain in dead heat

Discussion: American Prospect, The Atlantic Wire, Daniel W. Drezner, Taegan Goddard's …, Daily Kos, The Moderate Voice, The Maddow Blog, Outside the Beltway, Hot Air, NewsBusters.org blogs, CNN, No More Mister Nice Blog and New York Magazine

Samuel P. Jacobs / Reuters:

Democratic campaign chair tells candidates to avoid convention — (Reuters) - The man responsible for getting Democrats elected to the U.S. Congress this fall has a message for his party's candidates: Stay away from the Democratic National Convention. — “If they want to win an election …

Jonathan Martin / Politico:

Dems go AWOL in class war — Labor unions hoped to turn the Wisconsin recall election into a rallying cause for their ailing movement. But a Democratic president couldn't be dragged off the sidelines for the fight. — Anti-Wall Street activists were itching to see JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon bashed …

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money and Althouse

Katherine Eban / Fortune:

The truth about the Fast and Furious scandal — A Fortune investigation reveals that the ATF never intentionally allowed guns to fall into the hands of Mexican drug cartels. How the world came to believe just the opposite is a tale of rivalry, murder, and political bloodlust.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, The Reality-Based Community, Business Insider, msnbc.com and Taegan Goddard's …

Investor's Business Daily:

Issa's Right: Tougher Gun Laws Fast And Furious Goal — Scandal: The head of the House oversight panel suggests the real reason for the administration's invoking executive privilege in the Fast and Furious case is to hide proof that the operation was part of a push for gun control.

Discussion: Questions and Observations and BizzyBlog

Sean Trende / Real Clear Politics:

Why the Whole Health Care Law Is in Jeopardy — The real Supreme Court news on Tuesday wasn't the Arizona immigration decision or even the summary reversal of the Supreme Court of Montana in the “Citizens United 2” case. It was that the chief justice of the United States didn't write any of these opinions.

Discussion: National Review, Right Wing News and Taegan Goddard's Wonk Wire

Elise Viebeck / The Hill:
Justices' personal health struggles may influence their decision

Discussion: Prairie Weather

Jake Sherman / Politico:
GOP plan for ‘Obamacare’: Nothing

Discussion: Reuters, The Maddow Blog, CNN and ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*

Washington Post:
On health care, the public doesn't like its options

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Mother Jones, Associated Press, Pirate's Cove and Roll Call

Charles McGrath / New York Times:

Nora Ephron | 1941-2012: Nora Ephron, Essayist, Screenwriter and Director, Dies at 71 — Nora Ephron, an essayist and humorist in the Dorothy Parker mold (only smarter and funnier, some said) who became one of her era's most successful screenwriters and filmmakers, making romantic comedy hits like …

Discussion: Media Decoder, Guardian, Feministing, PrawfsBlawg, ABCNEWS, The Confluence, Roger L. Simon, BuzzFeed, Shakesville, Poynter, The Huffington Post, Muckety, Althouse, Mashable! and Truthdig, more at Mediagazer »

Adam Bernstein / Washington Post:

Nora Ephron, prolific author and screenwriter, dies at age 71 — View Photo Gallery — Nora Ephron dies: Ephron, who emerged over the past four decades as one of America's warmest and most acute chroniclers of contemporary culture and society, has died. She was 71.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Guardian, New Orleans Times-Picayune, The Daily What and First Draft, more at Mediagazer »

Liz Smith / wowowow:
Liz Smith on Nora Ephron

Discussion: Mediaite, TMZ.com, msnbc.com, Gothamist and Gawker

Jordy Yager / The Hill:

Second House Dem backs measure to place Holder in contempt — Democratic Rep. John Barrow (Ga.) said on Wednesday he plans to vote in favor of placing Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress. — Barrow becomes the second Democrat to publicly announce plans to buck his party …

Discussion: Jammie Wearing Fools and Ballot Box

Deirdre Walsh / CNN:
Boehner: Contempt vote on Holder will proceed

Discussion: Georgia Tipsheet, Weasel Zippers, The PJ Tatler, Nice Deb and Political News and Opinion …

Ryan Mauro / World Threats:
The Other Eric Holder Scandal

Discussion: Doug Ross, Weasel Zippers and Israpundit

Matt Canham / Salt Lake Tribune:
Matheson: Holder should be held in contempt

Discussion: Hot Air, RedState, Power Line, Hotline On Call and Influence Alley

NY Daily News:

Charles Barron won't accept landslide loss in Brooklyn's 8th Congressional District against Hakeem Jeffries — With 54% of precincts reporting, the Associated Press deemed Jeffries the easy winner, 75% of the vote to Barron's 25%. — Charles Barron concession speech at Sistas Cafe in Bed Stuy …

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon and Washington Examiner

Gersh Kuntzman / New York Times:
Hakeem Jeffries Defeats Charles Barron in Bitter Democratic Primary

Discussion: Runnin' Scared and National Review

David Seifman / New York Post:

Mayor rigs wacky A/C to keep his SUV chilled — Who's full of hot air? — Mayor Bloomberg wants to maintain his politically correct credentials on global warming — but hates to get into a hot car when he leaves an air conditioned building. — The solution his aides came up with could easily …

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, National Review, New York Magazine, Jammie Wearing Fools and The Daily Caller

Devin Dwyer / ABCNEWS:

Obama Hails The ‘Miami Heats’ — Unfazed by a partisan spat sparked by his comment on former Red Sox player Kevin Youkilis, President Obama tonight again opined on a professional sports team, publicly praising the NBA champion Miami Heat at a campaign fundraiser in the city.

Discussion: Twitchy, The Hill, Hit & Run, Scared Monkeys, Jammie Wearing Fools, The Spectacle Blog, American Spectator and JustOneMinute

Josh Israel / ThinkProgress:

The 7 Most Anti-Gay U.S. Representatives — Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-KS) - The Most Anti-Gay U.S. Representative — So far this Congress, anti-LGBT Republicans have introduced at least ten major anti-gay bills, resolutions, and amendments in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Discussion: Towleroad News #gay

Adam Peck / ThinkProgress:
EXCLUSIVE POLL: Women's Health Issues Create Surprising Vulnerability For Eric Cantor's Reelection Bid

Discussion: The Political Carnival and Suburban Guerrilla

Thomas Kaplan / New York Times:

Rangel Fends Off Challengers to Win Difficult Primary — Surviving one of the toughest re-election fights of his career, Representative Charles B. Rangel fended off four challengers on Tuesday to win the Democratic nomination for a 22nd term in Congress. — Mr. Rangel's victory capped …

Discussion: The New Republic, City Room, New York Post, News Desk, The Gateway Pundit, New York Magazine and Gothamist, more at Mediagazer »

Paul Kane / Washington Post:
Longtime lawmakers Charles Rangel, Orrin Hatch win primaries

Discussion: msnbc.com and A plain blog about politics

Molly Ball / The Atlantic Online:

Democrats' Money Panic: Is Obama About to Get Swamped by GOP Cash? — Liberals increasingly fear they will be outspent in November the way they were in Wisconsin — and they may be right. — As the Wisconsin recall unfolded, Democrats watched in horrified helplessness as their candidate …

Discussion: Betsy's Page and Instapundit

Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

ACLU to represent KKK group — The American Civil Liberties Union will champion a Ku Klux Klan outfit's right to “adopt” a section of highway in Union County, an ACLU official said Tuesday — on the same day that key members of the KKK group acknowledged they live in a neighboring county.

Discussion: Guardian, Towleroad News #gay, Business Insider and nation.foxnews.com

Walter Russell Mead / Via Meadia:

German Court Declares Judaism A Crime — Hard to believe, but that's what the decision handed down by the regional court in Cologne, Germany means: circumcising a child under the age of consent is a crime, notwithstanding the religious beliefs of the parents.

Discussion: Vox Popoli, Agence France Presse and Ed Driscoll

Aaron Blake / Washington Post:

Oklahoma Rep. John Sullivan loses primary — Rep. John Sullivan (R-Okla.) became the latest incumbent to lose a primary on Tuesday, falling to tea party-backed Jim Bridenstine. — Sullivan survived a 2010 primary after taking time away from Congress, citing his “addiction to alcohol.”

Discussion: Washington Monthly

Ben Geman / The Hill:

Federal court upholds Obama EPA's climate change regulations — A federal appeals court has upheld Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) greenhouse gas regulations, a victory for the Obama administration that's also sure to inflame election-year political battles over the White House green agenda.

Discussion: americanthinker.com, The Gateway Pundit, Mother Jones and The Right Scoop

Amy Bingham / ABCNEWS:

Oreo Pride: Rainbow-Stuffed Cookie Sparks Boycott — America's favorite cookie is stirring up more than milk today after Kraft Foods posted a gay pride Oreo on the cookie's Facebook page. — Oreo posted the photoshopped picture of an Oreo cookie stuffed with rainbow-colored layers …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, newsfeed.time.com, Truth Wins Out, Poynter, The Political Carnival and WJLA-TV