memeorandum: Romney's Popularity Stays Low, Obama's is Better, but with Challenges (Greg Holyk/ABCNEWS)

9:50 AM ET, August 8, 2012

Top Items:

Polls See Sharp Divide in 3 Swing States — For all of the Democratic attacks painting Mitt Romney as an out-of-touch elitist who will help the rich at the expense of the middle class, he is maintaining the traditional — and sizable — Republican advantage among a politically vital constituency …

Discussion: Washington Post, Washington Examiner, Taylor Marsh, Taegan Goddard's …, The Caucus, USA Today, New York Magazine, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog and Prairie Weather

Quinnipiac University:

Wisconsin, Virginia, Colorado White House Races Close, Quinnipiac University/New York Times/CBS News Swing State Poll Finds — Watch Video: Assistant Director Tim Malloy discusses poll results — Clip Information and Download: — FLV File -For Website (1920x1080/225MB) Original .MP4 File -For Broadcast (1920x1080/289MB)

Discussion: GOP 12, Business Insider, nation.foxnews.com and Hotline On Call

Virginia / CNN:

New state polls: Voters divided in race for White House — (CNN) - Need more proof that the race for the White House remains tight? — Then check out a new survey in three crucial swing states. — Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker — Check out the CNN Electoral Map …

Discussion: Mediaite, Politico, The 1600 Report, Reuters and This Just In

Maggie Haberman / Politico:

Bill Clinton slams Romney ‘misleading’ welfare ad — Bill Clinton, after steering clear of the flap over Mitt Romney using him in an ad in which he accused President Obama of trying to “gut” the 1996 welfare reform act, responds tonight with a statement rapping the Republican:

Discussion: CNN, Taylor Marsh, The Hill and Washington Examiner

Steve Benen / msnbc.com:

The scandal behind Romney's new attack ad — Mitt Romney's presidential campaign has presented the political world with an important test. I'm eager to see whether we pass or fail. — First, a little background. Some Republican governors this year asked the Obama administration …

Discussion: Washington Post, Feministing, ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*, The Democratic Daily, Crooks and Liars, Washington Monthly, The Moderate Voice, Liberal Values, ThinkProgress, The Maddow Blog, Balloon Juice, Little Green Footballs, Taking Note and Daily Kos

Reuters:

Paul Ryan veep prospects split GOP — As Mitt Romney's vice presidential selection nears and buzz about Rep. Paul Ryan's prospects builds, a split is emerging among Republicans about whether the choice of the House Budget chairman and architect of the party's controversial tax and spending plan …

Discussion: Washington Wire, ABCNEWS, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Daily Beast and The Other McCain

Mitt Romney for President of the United States …:
Memorandum

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Power Line, It's A Free Country ®, Washington Monthly, The Caucus, Business Insider and ourfuture.org/blogs_chrono/*

Sam Youngman / Reuters:
Romney opens attack on Obama over welfare law

Discussion: First Read, GOP 12, USA Today and The Huffington Post

The 1600 Report:

Ad linking Romney to death of the wife of a laid off steelworker not accurate — CNN White House Correspondent Brianna Keilar — A new attack ad by a Super PAC backing President Obama appears to blame Mitt Romney for a woman's death from cancer after his company, Bain Capital …

Discussion: BuzzFeed, RedState, Washington Post, Outside the Beltway, CBS News, Washington Free Beacon, Mediaite, Washington Examiner, Capital New York, Connecting.the.Dots, USA Today, Politico and CNN

Allahpundit / Hot Air:
CNN: Wife of steelworker in new Obama Super PAC ad still had job and health insurance after he lost his

Discussion: Patterico's Pontifications, Betsy's Page and Michelle Malkin

Tomer Ovadia / Politico:
Rove: Veep pick ‘as early as Friday’

Discussion: Hot Air

Jim Geraghty / National Review:
Wanted: A Running Mate Who Will Fight Back, With Passion!

Discussion: Hot Air and Washington Post

Brett LoGiurato / Business Insider:
The Most Vicious Ad Of The 2012 Campaign Blames Mitt Romney For The Death Of A Steel Worker's Wife

Discussion: Washington Post, Mediaite, Rush Limbaugh, Examiner and The Gateway Pundit

Alexander Burns / Politico:
Woman mentioned in Priorities ad died in '06

Philip Rucker / Washington Post:

Romney confuses ‘Sikh’ with ‘sheik’ — WEST DES MOINES, Iowa — Mitt Romney mistakenly confused the words “Sikh” and “sheik” at a fundraiser here Tuesday night when he offered his condolences to the victims of last weekend's shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette and New York Magazine

Conor Friedersdorf / The Atlantic Online:
Why the Reaction Is Different When the Terrorist Is White

Discussion: The Awl and Wired

Matthew Jaffe / ABCNEWS:
Alleged Wisconsin Gunman Wade Michael Page's Ex-Girlfriend Arrested

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette and New York Magazine

CNN:
Romney holds biggest fund-raiser in Iowa history

Discussion: New York Magazine

David Edwards / The Raw Story:
Fox News analyst: Sikh temple massacre ‘not domestic terrorism’

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, Mediaite, Bloomberg, Addicting Info and Booman Tribune

Dylan Byers / Politico:

The best Newsweek cover yet — Tina Brown's shock-and-awe approach to Newsweek covers is so familiar now it hardly warrants mention. But the strategy is predicated upon ginning up false controversy and feigned outrage to call attention to the struggling print edition …

Discussion: FAIR Blog, The Hinterland Gazette, Capital New York and Taylor Marsh, more at Mediagazer »

Raphael Brion / Eater National:

Food Media: Newsweek's Gratuitous Food Porn Cover Looks Familiar — This week's issue of Newsweek has a very suggestive cover (blowjobs, okay?) for the “101 Best Places to Eat in the World” feature piece. Dylan Byers over at Politico called it “the best Newsweek cover yet” (albeit sarcastically).

Discussion: ThinkProgress, BuzzFeed, Ed Driscoll and Vodkapundit, more at Mediagazer »

Greg Holyk / ABCNEWS:

Romney's Popularity Stays Low, Obama's is Better, but with Challenges — Mitt Romney is laboring under the lowest personal popularity ratings for a presumptive presidential nominee in midsummer election-year polls back to 1984. But Barack Obama has his own challenges in the latest ABC News …

Discussion: ABCNEWS, The Maddow Blog and Mother Jones

Washington Post:

Mitt Romney's poll numbers at standstill, Washington Post-ABC News poll finds — Although 40 percent of voters now say they hold a favorable opinion of the former Massachusetts governor — virtually unchanged from May — those holding negative views of him ticked higher in the new survey, from 45 percent to 49 percent.

Discussion: Hot Air and The Moderate Voice

Allan Turner / Houston Chronicle:

Texas executes man despite concerns over IQ — Marvin Wilson, the two-time armed robber who fatally beat and shot a Beaumont police informer he thought responsible for his arrest on a drug charge, was executed Tuesday at the state's Huntsville death house. — Wilson's case …

David Dayen / Firedoglake:
Scalia Denies Stay, Texas Executes Mentally Retarded Man

Discussion: American Prospect, Associated Press and Hullabaloo

Reuters:

Exclusive: Regulators irate at NY action against Standard Chartered — (Reuters) - The Treasury Department and Federal Reserve were blindsided and angered by New York's banking regulator's decision to launch an explosive attack on Standard Chartered Plc over $250 billion …

Discussion: The Big Picture, emptywheel, CNBC, FT Alphaville and naked capitalism

Chicago Tribune:

Jesse Jackson Jr. gets visit from parents at Mayo Clinic … WASHINGTON — The Rev. Jesse Jackson said Tuesday that he and his wife visited their son Jesse Jr. this week at the Mayo Clinic, where they offered “positive reinforcement” and did not discuss politics.

Discussion: Politico, Mediaite and Influence Alley

David Ng / Los Angeles Times:

Marvin Hamlisch dies at 68: Sudden, brief illness halted busy life — As recently as July 21, Marvin Hamlisch had conducted a Pasadena Pops concert with Michael Feinstein. As an emcee, he shared jokes, traded patter, was in his element. — Marvin Hamlisch' dies in Los Angeles after a brief illness, aged 68.

Discussion: L.A. NOW, Outside the Beltway and LewRockwell.com Blog

Economist:

The sports of yesteryear — The list of discontinued Olympic events throws up some archaic delights — WENLOCK, one of the cyclopean mascots of the London Olympics, takes his name from a town in Shropshire that is the inspiration for the modern games. It was after visiting Much Wenlock …

Discussion: Outside the Beltway and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Stephen Gray / PinkNews.co.uk:

Team gold for Britain's only openly gay Olympian Carl Hester — The only openly gay Olympian in Team GB has helped his equestrian team secure gold at the London Olympics. — Carl Hester rode Uthopia in the dressage's Grand Prix Special at Greenwich Park.

Discussion: Towleroad News #gay

Rosalind S. Helderman / Washington Post:

Republicans in Missouri pick Todd Akin to face Sen. Claire McCaskill in November — Republicans on Tuesday pinned their hopes of winning back a Senate seat in Missouri — and perhaps control of the chamber — on Todd Akin, picking the conservative congressman to take on endangered Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill in November.

Discussion: ThinkProgress and Associated Press

Noah Rothman / Mediaite:

Allen West Offended Everyone When He Ordered Chick-Fil-A For Entire Congressional Black Caucus — Rep. Allen West reportedly offended the entire Congressional Black Caucus when he delivered a selection of Chick-fil-A chicken and biscuits to the members' weekly meeting.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland