memeorandum: GOP lawmakers equate birth-control mandate with Pearl Harbor, 9/11 (Elise Viebeck/The Hill)

9:20 PM ET, August 1, 2012

Top Items:

Chicagoans hungry to flip the bird to Rahm, nicely — Some of you asked just what the scene's like on Chick-fil-A appreciation day in Chicago, home to #ChicagoValues, and the city at the heart of the controversy over Chick-fil-A after our mayor congratulated an alderman in shutting the company …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Business Insider, The PJ Tatler and Sense of Events

Martinsburg Journa:

Chick-fil-A in Martinsburg deemed safe after bomb threat — MARTINSBURG - Police and fire crews closed down the Chick-fil-A on Foxcroft Avenue in Martinsburg for nearly three hours following a bomb threat that was called in just before 1 p.m. today. — The caller mentioned that a “device” had been placed within the restaurant.

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Chicago Sun Times, protein wisdom, Fire Andrea Mitchell! and The Other McCain

Glenn Reynolds / Instapundit:

FLIPPING THE BIRD TO RAHM: Chicago Chick-Fil-A Mobbed. — More here. And John Lucas sends this picture of the Chick-Fil-A in Maryville, TN. I saw a similar traffic jam outside another Chick-Fil-A near my house. — And, in Massachusetts, Hundreds Wait For Lunch At Burlington Chick-Fil-A.

Discussion: Boston Herald, GayPatriot, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Blazing Cat Fur, American Power and Sense of Events

Jackie Wellfonder / Twitchy:

Boycott fail redux: Citizens, Santa unite for Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day; Photos show huge success … Today is “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day” and, boy, is it ever! As Twitchy reported last week, the Left's attempted boycott of Chick-fil-A has been a huge fail. That failure got even bigger today.

Discussion: Hot Air, Michelle Malkin, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The PJ Tatler, Sister Toldjah, Fire Andrea Mitchell!, The Daily Caller and American Power

CNN: Chick-fil-A restaurants become rallying points for supporters

John Roberts / Fox News:
Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day brings out supporters, protesters

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Unqualified Offerings, The Lonely Conservative, Hot Air and The Other McCain

Brookings Institute:

On the Distributional Effects of Base-Broadening Income Tax Reform — This paper examines the tradeoffs among three competing goals that are inherent in a revenue-neutral income tax reform—maintaining tax revenues, ensuring a progressive tax system, and lowering marginal tax rates.

Discussion: New York Times, Slate, Washington Wire, The New Republic, New York Magazine, Paul Krugman, Business Insider, AEIdeas, Washington Monthly, Politico, Daily Kos, Balloon Juice, CNN, Lean Forward and Planet Washington

Lori Montgomery / Washington Post:

Study: Romney tax plan would result in cuts for rich, higher burden for others — View Photo Gallery — Romney continues overseas tour: After stopping in London to visit with British leaders and attend the opening of the 2012 Summer Olympics, the Republican presidential candidate continues …

Discussion: Daily Kos, Blog For Arizona, Business Insider, Indecision Forever, Politicker, The Hinterland Gazette and Associated Press

Benjy Sarlin / Livewire:

Romney Camp Cited Same Think Tank They Now Denounce As ‘Liberal’ — The Romney campaign is pushing back against a new study from researchers at the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center suggesting Mitt Romney's tax proposals would actually increase taxes for a whopping a 95% of Americans …

Discussion: Balloon Juice, Daily Kos and ThinkProgress

Olivier Knox / ABCNEWS:
Obama hammers Romney tax plan in Ohio

Discussion: CNN and Taegan Goddard's …

Steve Benen / msnbc.com:
Romney's middle-class tax hike

Discussion: Booman Tribune and Business Insider

Washington Free Beacon:

Senor 1, Mitchell 0 — Romney senior adviser defended Gov. Mitt Romney's comments about the effect of culture on Palestine — rather than economics — in an exchange with Andrea Mitchell Wednesday on “Morning Joe.” — ANDREA MITCHELL: Dan, if Gov. Romney had made those points in that speech …

Discussion: Fire Andrea Mitchell!

Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:

Andrea Mitchell Taught a Lesson — Dan Senor, a foreign policy advisor to Mitt Romney, explained to MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell what the Republican presidential candidate said about the Palestinians and culture: — Here's the transcript, courtesy of the Washington Free Beacon:

Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:
Why Not in Vegas?

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, JOSHUAPUNDIT, Gawker, Hullabaloo, ThinkProgress, Elder of Ziyon, Moe Lane, The Raw Story, Israel Matzav, CNN and American Prospect

Marc A. Thiessen / Washington Post:
There was no Romney gaffe in Israel

Discussion: AEIdeas, protein wisdom and The Lonely Conservative

Quinnipiac University:

Obama Hits 50% In Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Quinnipiac University/CBS News/New York Times Swing State Poll Finds — Word format Crosstabs by State — Watch Video: Assistant Director Tim Malloy discusses poll results — Clip Information and Download: — FLV File - Download For Website (1920x1080 / 125MB)

New York Times:
Polls Give Obama Edge in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Florida

Jon Ward / The Huffington Post:
Mitt Romney's Auto Bailout Ad Tries To Tie Obama To Job Losses

Discussion: Lean Forward, Daily Kos, ThinkProgress, The Caucus, ABCNEWS and The Buzz Florida Politics Feed

Elise Viebeck / The Hill:

GOP lawmakers equate birth-control mandate with Pearl Harbor, 9/11 — House Republicans called the Obama administration's birth-control mandate “religious bigotry” and compared it to the events of Pearl Harbor and Sept. 11, 2001. — The heated remarks came at a press conference marking the mandate's first day.

Discussion: his vorpal sword, ThinkProgress, theGrio, Washington Monthly, Addicting Info, Wonkette, Outside the Beltway and Balloon Juice

First Read / msnbc.com:
Republican likens contraceptive mandate to Pearl Harbor, 9/11

Discussion: The Raw Story, William K. Wolfrum Chronicles, The Hinterland Gazette, Daily Kos and Lean Forward

Pema Levy / tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com:
TPMDC — GOP Rep: Contraception Mandate Is An Attack Like 9/11 And Pearl Harbor

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Applesauce

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

Five Things Everyone Should Know About GOP Senate Candidate Ted Cruz — Ted Cruz will protect this golf course from the United Nations and George Soros — Today, Texas Republican primary voters selected Ted Cruz as their candidate to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX).

Discussion: The New Republic, No More Mister Nice Blog, Washington Post, Little Green Footballs, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Balloon Juice, Washington Examiner, Prairie Weather and New York Times

Erik Eckholm / New York Times:
Man in the News: Ted Cruz Poised to Be Senate's Tea Party Intellectual

Discussion: Washington Monthly, A plain blog about politics, The Other McCain, Hullabaloo, Joe. My. God., The Gateway Pundit and Wake up America

Russell Goldman / ABCNEWS:
Mitt Romney Better Move to Right, Says Emboldened Tea Party

Discussion: The Brody File, Taegan Goddard's … and ABCNEWS

Fox News:
Palin fires back at Cheney: ‘The mistake would have been not answering the call’ to be VP

Discussion: ABCNEWS, PoliticusUSA and Crooks and Liars

BuzzFeed:

Wendy's Sign Angers Liberals; Wendy's Tweet Angers Conservatives — Moderates remain uninsulted, but give it a few hours. — This message was displayed on numerous North Carolina Wendy's signs this morning. — Source: i.imgur.com — The sign, and its implied support of Chick-fil-A's stance …

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Towleroad News #gay, Moonbattery and The Gateway Pundit

Tarini Parti / Politico:

Rubio: Don't tax Olympic medals — Sen. Marco Rubio is offering the Fab Five, Missy Franklin, Ryan Lochte and all the other American Olympic medalists more than just a pat on the back. He's trying to keep the IRS off their backs. — Rubio (R-Fla.) introduced today The Olympic Tax Elimination Act …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, The Hill, DCist and The Daily Caller

Hugh Johnson / Americans for Tax Reform …:
Win Olympic Gold, Pay the IRS

Discussion: Weekly Standard, ABCNEWS, The Strata-Sphere, Mediaite, TheBlaze.com, Tax Break, Outside the Beltway, Questions and Observations, National Review, The Daily Caller, NewsBusters.org blogs and Fire Andrea Mitchell!

Michelle Fields / The Daily Caller:

Michele Bachmann: Dead author Gore Vidal's ‘snotty, mocking attitude’ made me a conservative — Minnesota Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann told The Daily Caller Wednesday that author Gore Vidal's “snotty, mocking attitude” helped her realize she was a conservative. — Vidal died on Tuesday of pneumonia.

Discussion: Mediaite, alicublog and The Raw Story

David A. Graham / The Atlantic Online:
Video of the Day: Gore Vidal vs. William F. Buckley in 1968

Discussion: New York Times, Mediaite and Alan Colmes' Liberaland, more at Mediagazer »

Hollie McKay / Fox News:

Ann Romney slammed for $990 Shirt, Michelle Obama praised for $6,800 jacket — Back in May, Ann Romney, wife of Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, wore a $990 Reed Krakoff silk shirt for a media appearance. The item of clothing set off a media firestorm, with the Romneys widely accused of being …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Doug Ross and The Lonely Conservative

BuzzFeed:

Twitter Launches Political Index: The Twitter Pulse Of The Election — The Twitter Political Index could be one of the most powerful social media tools of the election. — Right now, if you want to know how the country feels about Barack Obama or Mitt Romney, you have to rely …

Discussion: Washington Post, Twitter Blog, USA Today, Wired, VentureBeat, AEIdeas, Mediaite, The New Republic and The Daily Caller, more at Mediagazer »

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System:

For immediate release — Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in June suggests that economic activity decelerated somewhat over the first half of this year. Growth in employment has been slow in recent months, and the unemployment rate remains elevated.

Discussion: Firedoglake, Real Time Economics, Free exchange, Telegraph, Guardian, ThinkProgress, Washington Post, New York Times, BBC and Lean Forward

Rush Limbaugh:

How Many Things Last 24 Years? — RUSH: Cookie also went back to our audio sound bite archive, and I have the cue sheet here, and she has a sound bite from my grandfather back in the early nineties, and from my old speech teacher in High School, Irene Wright.

Discussion: DailyRushbo.com

Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:

Obama Cites ‘Independent, Non-Partisan Study’ Written by Former Staffer, Close Ally — President Obama cited an “independent, non-partisan study” in Mansfield, Ohio earlier today: — “And you do not have to take my word for it,” said Obama. “Just today, an independent …

Discussion: Washington Post, The Right Scoop, The Caucus, Washington Examiner, Romney Response and Washington Free Beacon

Ken Belson / New York Times:

Badminton Players Disqualified for Throwing Matches — LONDON — Badminton officials took the extraordinary step of tossing out four pairs of women — two from South Korea and one each from China and Indonesia — for deliberately trying to lose their preliminary matches Tuesday night …

Discussion: Mediaite, Deadspin, PUNDITGUY, The Reality-Based Community and Outside the Beltway