memeorandum: This Congress could be least productive since 1947 (Susan Davis/USA Today)

4:40 PM ET, August 15, 2012

Top Items:

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:

Boehner holds call to calm House GOP — Jolted by concerns over the wave of Medicare-themed Democratic attacks sparked by Paul Ryan's vice presidential nomination, House Speaker John Boehner held a Tuesday evening conference call aimed at soothing jittery Republican members, POLITICO has learned.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, Riehl World View and The Hinterland Gazette

Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:

Romney Sees No Immediate Bounce From Ryan V.P. Pick — Support at 46% before naming Ryan, 47% after — PRINCETON, NJ — Mitt Romney's standing in the presidential election campaign has not changed materially in the immediate days after his announcement of Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan as his vice-presidential running mate.

Discussion: Ballot Box, GOP 12, Business Insider, Outside the Beltway, CNN, USA Today, The Daily Beast, americanthinker.com, The Hinterland Gazette, The Buzz Florida Politics Feed, Washington Examiner and Hit & Run

Paul Bedard / Washington Examiner:

A Romney first: over 40% of youth vote back him … More Photos — Popular in Politics — For the first time since he began running for president, Republican Mitt Romney has the support of over 40 percent of America's youth vote, a troubling sign for President Obama who built his 2008 victory …

Discussion: Politico, AEIdeas, The Gateway Pundit, Wake up America and Hot Air

Maureen Dowd / New York Times:

When Cruelty Is Cute — I'd been wondering how long it would take Republicans to realize that Paul Ryan is their guy. — He's the cutest package that cruelty ever came in. He has a winning air of sad cheerfulness. He's affable, clean-cut and really cut, with the Irish altar-boy widow's peak …

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, americanthinker.com and Prairie Weather

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
The next frontier in the case against Paul Ryan

Discussion: Applesauce, The New Republic, Daily Kos and Balloon Juice

Ross Douthat / Campaign Stops:
Why Moderates Should Like Paul Ryan

Discussion: PoliticusUSA, Booman Tribune and TBogg

Waymon Hudson / The Huffington Post:
Paul Ryan: Poster Boy of Today's Extreme GOP

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and ThinkProgress

Katherine Boyle / Washington Post:
Ryan and Romney: A contrast in sartorial styles

Discussion: Balloon Juice

Andrew Malcolm / Investor's Business Daily:
See for yourself why Romney picked Paul Ryan

Discussion: Hot Air

Danny Shea / The Huffington Post:
Bill Maher Talks Paul Ryan, Sarah Palin & Medical Marijuana On HuffPost Live (VIDEO)

Discussion: NewsBusters.org blogs, Mediaite, Hit & Run, The Raw Story and SQUATLO RANT

Fox News:

FBI probing shooting of guard at Family Research Council HQ — A security guard at the Family Research Council headquarters in Washington, D.C., was shot in the arm by a gunman who sources said expressed disagreement with the conservative group's policy positions.

Discussion: Truth Wins Out, CNN, protein wisdom, ThinkProgress, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The PJ Tatler, The Jawa Report, The Gateway Pundit, The Spectacle Blog, Weasel Zippers, Towleroad News #gay, Outside the Beltway, Cold Fury, American Spectator, Taylor Marsh and Good As You

Washington Post:

Security guard shot at Family Research Council in downtown D.C. — A security guard at the Family Research Council was shot and wounded Wednesday morning after a scuffle in the lobby of the group's headquarters in downtown Washington, authorities said. — D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier …

Discussion: National Review, Weasel Zippers, NewsBusters.org, Weekly Standard, New York Magazine, The Daily Caller, Little Green Footballs and NOM Blog

WJLA-TV:

Family Research Council shooting leaves security guard wounded — A suspect in the shooting of a security guard at the headquarters of a downtown D.C. conservative Christian lobbying firm criticized the group's anti-gay stance before opening fire, a source tells ABC7.

Discussion: Christianity Today, Towleroad News #gay, Balloon Juice, Business Insider, Mediaite, Joe. My. God., The Lonely Conservative, Box Turtle Bulletin, The Daily Caller, The Other McCain, The Right Scoop and The PJ Tatler

Erick Erickson / Twitchy:
Crosshairs: Left calls Family Research Council ‘hate group,’ reacts to shooting; Shooter yelled about FRC's ‘values’

Discussion: National Review, Wonkette and The PJ Tatler

Mackenzie Weinger / Politico:
Guard shot at Family Research Council

Discussion: FRC Blog, Towleroad News #gay and Wake up America

Devlin Barrett / Wall Street Journal:
Guard Shot at Family Research Council Headquarters

Discussion: Atlas Shrugs

Steven Ertelt / LifeNews.com:
Security Guard Shot at Pro-Life Group's DC Headquarters

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, Hot Air and NOM Blog

Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:

Biden: 'Folks, Where's it Written We Cannot Lead the World in the 20th Century in Making Automobiles?' — In a speech today in Virginia, Vice President Joe Biden seemed to forget we're in the 21st century: — 'Folks, where's it written we cannot lead the world in the 20th century in making automobiles?," said Biden.

Discussion: Michelle Malkin, The Gateway Pundit, The Lonely Conservative, neo-neocon, The PJ Tatler, Washington Free Beacon, The Right Scoop and Instapundit

Emily Goodin / The Hill:
Romney slams Obama in tough new speech

Dan Balz / Washington Post:
A most poisonous campaign — No one expected Campaign 2012 to be positive or uplifting.

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, The Fix, Washington Wire and Prairie Weather

CNN:
Former Obama campaign co-chair to stump for Romney

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, Riehl World View, GOP 12, Veracity Stew and Politico

BuzzFeed:
Why The Presidential Campaign Got So Mean Tuesday

Discussion: Politico, Taylor Marsh, Washington Post and The Hinterland Gazette

Associated Press:

Judge won't halt Pa. voter identification law — HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania judge on Wednesday refused to stop a tough new voter identification law from going into effect, which Democrats say will suppress votes among President Barack Obama's supporters.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Slate, Firedoglake, CNN, theGrio, JOSHUAPUNDIT, The Maddow Blog, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and p m carpenter's commentary

Amy Worden / Philly.com:
Judge rejects bid to block Pa. voter ID law

Discussion: Election Law Blog, The Caucus, Ballot Box, Gothamist and The Hinterland Gazette

Brooke Nevils / Rock Center with Brian Williams:

Ann Romney talks family, finances in exclusive interview: 'There's nothing we're hiding' — LLANGYNWD, Wales - About two hundred miles away from the Greenwich, England, arena where her purebred horse Rafalca competed in the London Olympics, Ann Romney stroked the nose of Magic, a Welsh pony.

Discussion: Politico, The Fix, The Hill, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Associated Press, US Politics, The Maddow Blog, Daily Kos, The Raw Story, The Hinterland Gazette and Prairie Weather

Mark Hosenball / Reuters:

Special ops group attacks Obama over bin Laden bragging, leaks — (Reuters) - A group of former U.S. intelligence and Special Forces operatives is set to launch a media campaign, including TV ads, that scolds President Barack Obama for taking credit for the killing of Osama bin Laden and argues …

Discussion: Guardian, Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, ThinkProgress, Ballot Box, ABCNEWS, New York Magazine, The Hinterland Gazette, The Daily Dish, americanthinker.com, Weasel Zippers, Althouse and The Agonist

Suffolk University:

Unlikely/Unregistered Voter Poll with USA TODAY — Political opinion polls usually confine themselves to seeking out registered, likely voters. But what about the millions of adult U.S. citizens who are eligible to vote and choose not to? — The Suffolk University Political Research Center …

Discussion: The Fix, National Review, Firedoglake and Washington Examiner

Paul Bedard / Washington Examiner:
Poll: Media in Obama's pocket

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and NewsBusters.org

Lynn Beisner / Guardian:

I wish my mother had aborted me | Lynn Beisner — This is no 'I wish I'd never been born' howl of angst. I love my mother, and having an abortion would have given her a better life — If there is one thing that anti-choice activists do that makes me see red, it is when they parade …

Discussion: LifeNews.com, normblog and Shakesville

Katie Glueck / Politico:

Rudy Giuliani on Joe Biden: 'He isn't bright' — One explanation for Vice President Joe Biden's gaffe-prone reputation? He just isn't very bright, said former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani. — The former GOP presidential hopeful had harsh words for Biden in the wake of a statement …

Discussion: Infowars, The Moderate Voice, Shot in the Dark, Hot Air and PoliticusUSA

First Read:
First Thoughts: Getting nasty

Discussion: The New Republic, ABCNEWS, americanthinker.com and White House Dossier

Paul Walsh / Minneapolis Star Tribune:

Fiery protester outside General Mills dies days later on family errand — A Twin Cities man who staged a fiery protest outside General Mills headquarters in Golden Valley last week died several days later while running an errand, his family's minister said Wednesday.

Discussion: Mediaite, The Raw Story and Joe. My. God.

Charles Johnson / The Daily Caller:

In Harvard essay, young Michelle Obama argued for race-based faculty hiring — During her third and final year at Harvard Law School, first lady Michelle Obama — then named Michelle Robinson — penned an article for the newsletter of Harvard's Black Law Students Association (BLSA) …

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Weasel Zippers and Althouse