memeorandum: Obama Campaign Borrows $15M from Bank of America (Washington Free Beacon)

12:40 PM ET, October 20, 2012

Top Items:

Issa's Benghazi document dump exposes several Libyans working with the U.S. — House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) compromised the identities of several Libyans working with the U.S. government and placed their lives in danger when he released reams of State Department …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, emptywheel, Balloon Juice, Booman Tribune, msnbc.com, The Mahablog, Daily Kos, The Political Carnival and The Impolitic

David Ignatius / Washington Post:

CIA documents supported Susan Rice's description of Benghazi attacks — The Romney campaign may have misfired with its suggestion that statements by President Obama and U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice about the Benghazi attack last month weren't supported by intelligence, according to documents provided …

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, AMERICAblog and Talking Points Memo

James Rosen / Fox News:
Documents show Stevens worried about Libya security threats, Al Qaeda before consulate attack

Discussion: Examiner, Jammie Wearing Fools, Hot Air, The Right Scoop, The Daily Caller, Wall Street Journal, The PJ Tatler, The Lonely Conservative, Daily Mail and American Power

Michael Barbaro / New York Times:

Romney as a Manager: Unhurried and Socratic — BOSTON — As governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney could not resist burrowing into the bureaucratic weeds: He once took the statewide math and reading test for 10th graders, then startled his education commissioner by calling to say, “I like No. 14” and rattling off the answer.

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and JustOneMinute

Salt Lake Tribune:

Too many Mitts — Obama has earned another term — Nowhere has Mitt Romney's pursuit of the presidency been more warmly welcomed or closely followed than here in Utah. The Republican nominee's political and religious pedigrees, his adeptly bipartisan governorship of a Democratic state …

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, New York Times, The Moderate Voice, his vorpal sword, CNN, Balloon Juice, Gretawire, Booman Tribune, Mother Jones, Middle Earth Journal, JIMROMENESKO.COM, Washington Monthly, The Impolitic, The Agonist, The Political Carnival, Politico and The Mahablog

Tampa Bay Times:
Obama has earned second term

Discussion: CNN, The Political Carnival, The Caucus, Connecting.the.Dots and The Hill

Hugh Hewitt / Townhall.com:

President Obama's Closing Act: An Epic Collapse — The ongoing collapse of President Obama's campaign may lead to some extraordinary stunts during Monday's last debate, but no matter what he tries, it is very unlikely that the president can reverse the enormous momentum behind Mitt Romney's campaign.

Discussion: American Power

Allison Brennan / CNN:

Early voting opens in seven states, D.C. — (CNN) - Hours ahead of the presidential debate on Monday, millions of voters across the country will have the chance to cast their ballots when early voting opens in Arkansas, Colorado, Texas, Wisconsin, Alaska and the District of Columbia.

Discussion: The Political Carnival

Michael P. McDonald / The Huffington Post:

Early Voting Spinning … Elections 2012 , North Carolina , Florida , Party Registration , Voter Mobilization , Early Voting , Iowa , Ohio , Pollster Analysis , Politics News — Now with over 3 million people voting across the country, the campaigns are spinning the early vote. Here are my takeaways so far:

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, National Review and CNN

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:
Oct. 18: Obama Gains in Forecast on Resiliency in Swing State Polls

Discussion: The Maddow Blog, The New Republic, NewsBusters.org blogs, Business Insider and msnbc.com

Washington Free Beacon:

Obama Campaign Borrows $15M from Bank of America — Obama For America took out a $15 million loan from Bank of America last month, according to the campaign's October monthly FEC report. The loan was incurred on September 4 and is due November 14, eight days after the election.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Doug Ross, Battleground Watch, Politico, Conservatives4Palin and Jammie Wearing Fools

Benny Johnson / TheBlaze.com:

JOE BIDEN INTERRUPTS FLORIDA WOMAN'S BREAST CANCER STORY WITH ON-STAGE SQUATTING CHARADES — At a campaign event Friday afternoon in Florida, Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Bill Nelson took the stage to a cheering crowd. They were being introduced by a Florida resident named Barbra …

Discussion: Riehl World News

Brian Bakst / Associated Press:

Lauding Obama, Clinton Cites ‘Impatient’ Americans — Former President Bill Clinton said Friday that President Barack Obama is facing a tough re-election race because “impatient” Americans haven't fully recognized an economy on the mend. — Campaigning for Obama in Green Bay, Wis. …

Discussion: iOwnTheWorld.com, Conservative Hideout 2.0 and CNN

Kasie Hunt / Associated Press:

Romney Says Obama Playing ‘Silly Word Games’ — Republican Mitt Romney is accusing President Barack Obama of engaging in “petty attacks and silly word games” just 18 days before the election. — Romney on Friday rallied a raucous crowd in Daytona Beach, Fla., saying Obama was running a small campaign.

Discussion: CNN, Politico and Pirate's Cove

John Gizzi / Human Events:

LEE IACOCCA ENDORSES ROMNEY FOR PRESIDENT — RESIZE: — After a lifetime of voting for and supporting Democrats — and even declining appointment to the U.S. Senate from a Democratic governor — Lee Iacocca Thursday endorsed Republican Mitt Romney for president.

Discussion: Scared Monkeys

Wall Street Journal:

Impact of States' Voter Laws Can Be Difficult to Identify — Voters in more than two dozen states next month will be asked to provide some form of identification before casting a ballot. How many Americans who would otherwise vote will be turned away or won't turn up at all remains a hotly contested number.

Discussion: Hot Air

Stephanie Saul / New York Times:

Man Aiding G.O.P. Voter Registration Drive Is Charged — A Republican Party effort to register voters in advance of next month's presidential election became the focal point of new controversy Friday when the authorities in Virginia charged a voter registration supervisor …

Tu Stultus Es / The Onion:

The Onion Endorses John Edwards For President — Choosing who should be entrusted to lead our nation's government is not a responsibility that should be taken lightly, and never has that maxim been truer than in this current election cycle. Our economy is stagnant, our culture is dangerously stratified …

Discussion: Politico and Taegan Goddard's …

Gregory Wallace / CNN:

Sparring over economy in weekly addresses — (CNN) - President Barack Obama touted a recovering housing sector while Rep. Jeff Flake of Arizona argued that the administration has not handled the economy well during their weekly addresses Saturday. — “Now, we're not where we need to be yet,” Obama said.

Discussion: Politico