memeorandum: Poll: Akin, McCaskill locked in statistical dead heat (KMOV-TV)

12:50 PM ET, October 27, 2012

Top Items:

Romney, Obama could split popular and electoral college vote, polls suggest — Most polls at this moment suggest GOP nominee Mitt Romney is in the lead nationally, but surveys in the nine or so swing states are registering a narrow advantage for President Obama.

Mario Trujillo / The Hill:

Obama, Clinton backed reforms to Electoral College after Bush v. Gore — President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are among the politicians whose past criticisms of the Electoral College system would draw new scrutiny if there is a split verdict in this year's presidential election.

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and ABCNEWS

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:

Oct. 25: The State of the States — Thursday was a busy day for the polls, with some bright spots for each candidate. But it made clear that Barack Obama maintains a narrow lead in the polling averages in states that would get him to 270 electoral votes. Mr. Obama also remains roughly tied …

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, Prairie Weather, AMERICAblog, Business Insider and The Other McCain

Kyle Clark / KUSA-TV:

9NEWS questions President Obama on Libya attack — KUSA - President Barack Obama would not directly address questions from 9NEWS on whether Americans under attack in Libya were denied requests for assistance during the September 11th terror attack. — President Obama discussed the situation …

Discussion: Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Taylor Marsh, The Gateway Pundit, ABCNEWS, The Spectacle Blog, The PJ Tatler and American Power

Jennifer Epstein / Politico:
Obama: Election ‘has nothing to do’ with Libya deaths

Discussion: Sister Toldjah, Scared Monkeys, The Greenroom, americanthinker.com, Pirate's Cove, Israpundit, Doug Ross and Newsy

KMOV-TV:

Poll: Akin, McCaskill locked in statistical dead heat — ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) — A new poll shows the Missouri Senate race is too close to predict a winner. — The News 4, St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star poll shows Senator Claire McCaskill with a 2 percent lead over Congressman Todd Akin …

Discussion: Ballot Box and The Daily Caller

William Kristol / Weekly Standard:

Petraeus Throws Obama Under the Bus — Breaking news on Benghazi: the CIA spokesman, presumably at the direction of CIA director David Petraeus, has put out this statement: “No one at any level in the CIA told anybody not to help those in need; claims to the contrary are simply inaccurate. ”

Discussion: National Review, The PJ Tatler, Conservatives4Palin, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, Jammie Wearing Fools, The Gateway Pundit, protein wisdom, Sister Toldjah and Maggie's Farm

Paul Krugman:

Fortune Favors the Brave — For a few days there the Romney campaign was boasting a lot about having Big Mo — and the press corps actually fell for it, briefly. At this point, however, the reality seems to be sinking in: if Romney has Big Mo, it looks like this:

Discussion: The New Republic

Thomas Fitzgerald / Philly.com:

Poll: Obama still ahead in Pa., but Romney up — President Obama holds a six-point lead over Mitt Romney in a new Inquirer Pennsylvania Poll with just over nine full days of campaigning left for the Republican nominee to make a play for the state. — Obama was the choice of 49 percent of likely voters …

Discussion: Hotline On Call

Alyssa Rosenberg / ThinkProgress:

Lena Dunham, Lesley Gore, And The Importance Of Voting On November 6 — Whatever you think of Lena Dunham, or the actual efficacy of the playful voter turnout ad she cut for President Obama in which she compares voting for the first time to losing your virginity—which, if you're a civics nerd …

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, BuzzFeed and Politico

Paul Steinhauser / CNN:

Romney visits Florida as early voting gets underway — Pensacola, Florida (CNN) - As Republican nominee Mitt Romney campaigns across the Sunshine State Saturday, eight days of early voting also gets underway. — Early voting is starting a week later than it did four years ago.

Discussion: Politico

Mark Steyn / Orange County Register:

Benghazi bungle requires act of urgent political hygiene — “We're going to have that person arrested and prosecuted that did the video,” said Hillary Clinton. No, not the person who made the video saying that voting for Barack Obama is like losing your virginity to a really cool guy.

Discussion: Power Line and Weekly Standard

Associated Press:

AP poll: Majority harbor prejudice against blacks — Associated Press/Pablo Martinez Monsivais - FILE - In this Oct. 25, 2012 file photo, President Barack Obama speaks to supporters at a campaign event at Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport, in Cleveland Ohio. ...more

Discussion: The Agonist and Althouse

Sara Marie Brenner / Human Events:

IS VOTER FRAUD BEING COMMITTED IN OHIO? — RESIZE: — COLUMBUS, Ohio — In Ohio, a person can register to vote up to 30 days before the election, with absentee voting starting 35 days before the election. The 5 day overlap is referred to as the “golden week” — the days during which someone …

Discussion: Power Line

Kevin Drum / Mother Jones:

Obama's Ground Game Advantage May Not Be As Big As It Looks — The chart below has been making the rounds over the past couple of days. It shows how many field offices each campaign has in the top ten swing states, and it's pretty stunning. Obama has twice as many offices as Romney in Virginia.

Discussion: Booman Tribune, Wonkblog and Prairie Weather

Mike Blasky / Las Vegas Review-Journal:

Sen. Reid taken to UMC for minor rib injuries following car accident … U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., 72, was taken to the emergency room at University Medical Center in Las Vegas Friday afternoon following a traffic accident. — Nevada Highway Patrol said his caravan …

Discussion: Influence Alley

Molly Waldron / Local News:
Senator Harry Reid hospitalized after crash in Las Vegas

Discussion: The Raw Story, Mediaite and AMERICAblog

Las Vegas Sun News:
'He's OK'; Reid's motorcade involved in five-vehicle accident

Discussion: Nevada - FOX5 Vegas, The Caucus, Sun-Times Politics and The Hill

Politico:
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid doing fine after car accident

Discussion: CNN, Weasel Zippers and Towleroad News #gay

Tom Kludt / Talking Points Memo:

Live Polls Show Obama With Bigger Leads In Ohio (CHART) — How tight is the presidential race in Ohio? It depends who's polling. — Surveys of the Buckeye State have been all over the board in recent weeks as the election draws near. While most show President Obama with the lead …

Paul Steinhauser / CNN: CNN Poll: Obama 50%-Romney 46% in Ohio