memeorandum: New election laws show partisan wrangling for votes - by both parties (Alexandra Jaffe/Ballot Box)

8:25 PM ET, August 19, 2012

Top Items:

Evan McMorris-Santoro / Talking Points Memo:

Republican Senate Nominee: Victims Of ‘Legitimate Rape’ Don't Get Pregnant — This post has been updated. — Rep. Todd Akin, the Republican nominee for Senate in Missouri who is running against Sen. Claire McCaskill, justified his opposition to abortion rights even in case of rape …

Charles Jaco / FOX2now.com:

The Jaco Report: August 19, 2012 — (KTVI)-The race for the United States Senate in Missouri is one of the most closely watched in the nation. Republican hopes for regaining control of the Senate heavily depend on republican Congressman Todd Akin defeating incumbent Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill.

Discussion: ABCNEWS, Talking Points Memo, Mother Jones, 2012 Decoded, Newsy, Crooks and Liars, Sky Dancing, Hotline On Call, Business Insider and TBogg

Evan McMorris-Santoro / Talking Points Memo:

Akin On ‘Legitimate Rape’ Comment: ‘I Misspoke’ — Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) said late Sunday that he “misspoke” when he claimed that women who are victims of “legitimate rape” have biological defenses that fend off a pregnancy and therefore do not need legal abortion rights.

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, ThinkProgress, The Page, The Political Carnival and First Read

Evan McMorris-Santoro / Talking Points Memo:

Akin Outburst Will Put Pressure On Romney-Ryan — Missouri Republican Senate nominee Todd Akin's claim that women who are victims of “legitimate rape” have biological defenses to prevent pregnancy — and therefore don't need the legal right to have an abortion — is already shaking up the Senate race in the Show Me State.

Discussion: Balloon Juice

David Cohen / Politico:

Todd Akin: ‘Legitimate rape’ victims rarely get pregnant — Todd Akin, Missouri's Republican Senate candidate, sparked controversy with a claim, made in a TV interview posted Sunday, that victims of “legitimate rape” very rarely get pregnant because their bodies prevent them from doing so.

Aaron Blake / The Fix:

Todd Akin, GOP Senate candidate: ‘Legitimate rape’ rarely causes pregnancy — Updated at 5:04 p.m. with Akin's response. — Rep. Todd Akin, the newly-christened GOP Senate nominee in Missouri, said in an interview airing Sunday that “legitimate rape” rarely causes pregnancy.

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, Midwest Democracy and Jammie Wearing Fools

Niall Ferguson / The Daily Beast:

Niall Ferguson: Hit the Road, Barack — The president has broken his promises, and Romney-Ryan's path to prosperity is our only hope. — I was a good loser four years ago. “In the grand scheme of history,” I wrote the day after Barack Obama's election as president, “four decades is not an especially long time.

Discussion: Paul Krugman, American Power, The Moderate Voice, Business Insider, NewsBusters.org blogs, The Hinterland Gazette, Lawyers, Guns & Money, iOwnTheWorld.com and The Daily Beast

Darrel Rowland / The Columbus Dispatch:

Voting in Ohio | Fight over poll hours isn't just political — One of Deidre Reese's most precious childhood memories is going to the polls with her family. — “It was a hard-fought-for right,” she says. “There was a time that we certainly could not do that.”

Discussion: The Raw Story, Plunderbund, Hullabaloo and ThinkProgress

Aviva Shen / ThinkProgress:

Ohio GOP Election Board Member: Our Voting Process Shouldn't Accommodate Black Voters — Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted's recent decision to prohibit early voting on nights and weekends in all districts has many concerned about the effect on voter turnout in the state, particularly among low-income and minority communities.

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Dayton, Ohio …

BuzzFeed: Ohio Republican Stands By Jab At Black Turnout “Machine”

Kerry Picket / Washington Times:

Obama camp - We are intentionally limiting crowd size at rallies — The presumptive GOP presidential and vice presidential nominees Mitt Romney and Rep. Paul Ryan are attracting thousands of supporters to their campaign rallies since Mr. Romney named Mr. Ryan to the bottom of the ticket.

Discussion: Doug Ross, Power Line, RedState, Wake up America, The Other McCain, Jammie Wearing Fools, Deep Fried Manatees, The Lonely Conservative and Weasel Zippers

Meghashyam Mali / The Hill:
Gibbs: Biden remark no more racial than Boehner saying ‘unshackle Wall Street’

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, CNN, Little Green Footballs, The Hinterland Gazette and Boston Globe

Emily Schultheis / Politico:
Giuliani questions whether Biden has the ‘balance’ to be president

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette and New York Magazine

Carlo Muñoz / The Hill:
Biden not a ‘liability’ despite recent gaffe, says Obama campaign

Discussion: Wake up America

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

Paul Ryan Supported Economic Stimulus Under Bush: ‘You Have To Spend A Little To Grow A Little’ — GOP vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan spent much of the last week trying to explain why he signed multiple letters seeking $20 million in stimulus funds for an energy company in his district.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Mediaite and The Impolitic

Sal Gentile / Up with Chris Hayes:
VIDEO: Paul Ryan defended stimulus in 2002, when George W. Bush wanted it

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Hullabaloo, The Raw Story, Business Insider and Balloon Juice

Daniel Halper / Weekly Standard:

Dem. Senator: Obama Led SEALs Mission to Kill Bin Laden — Yesterday, when introducing President Obama at a campaign event in New Hampshire, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat, said that the president “led the mission that brought Osama bin Laden to justice”:

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Doug Ross and The Right Scoop

Alex Tabarrok / Marginal Revolution:

Racism by Political Party … Here is data asking whites the question Do you Favor Laws Against Interracial Marriage (this is from 2002, the latest year available for this question). — Favor Laws Against Interracial Marriage — Democrat — Ind — Repub — Other — TOTAL — YES

Discussion: The Monkey Cage and National Review

New York Times:

Truth and Lies About Medicare — Republican attacks on President Obama's plans for Medicare are growing more heated and inaccurate by the day. Both Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan made statements last week implying that the Affordable Care Act would eviscerate Medicare when in fact the law should shore up the program's finances.

Discussion: Balloon Juice, Prairie Weather and Connecting.the.Dots

Meghashyam Mali / The Hill:
Gibbs: Ryan should ‘thank’ Obama for strengthening Medicare

Discussion: The Lonely Conservative, Politico, Taylor Marsh and Jammie Wearing Fools

Aviva Shen / ThinkProgress:
Romney Adviser Says GOP Would Extend Medicare's Solvency By Raising The Eligibility Age

Discussion: Brad DeLong

CNN:

Obama team defends People, ET interviews — (CNN) - Interviews with People magazine and Entertainment Tonight are just as important as sit-downs with national news media, President Barack Obama's deputy campaign manager Stephanie Cutter said Sunday. — “Not more important, but equally important …

Discussion: Outside the Beltway and Politico