memeorandum: Obamacare Has Its Problems, But It's Basically On Track (Kevin Drum/Mother Jones)

7:40 PM ET, April 18, 2013

Top Items:

Teen: I Am Not the Boston Marathon Bomber — The teenage boy authorities once investigated as possibly being connected to the Boston Marathon bombing told ABC News today he was shocked to see his face pop up on television and all over social media. — Salah Barhoun, 17 …

Discussion: Daily Kos, FP Passport, Business Insider, ABCNEWS, Outside the Beltway, Pat Dollard, BuzzFeed, The PJ Tatler, Mediaite and The Week, more at Mediagazer »

New York Post:

Authorities circulate photos of two men spotted carrying bags near site of Boston bombings — Investigators probing the deadly Boston Marathon bombings are circulating photos of two men spotted chatting near the packed finish line, The Post has learned. — In the photos being distributed …

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, Mediaite, Infowars, ABCNEWS, Poynter, Riehl World News, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Israel Matzav, The Gateway Pundit, Business Insider, New York Times, Michelle Malkin, Doug Ross, Blazing Cat Fur, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, Los Angeles Times and Capital New York

MyFoxBoston:

FBI releases images of two marathon bombing suspects — The FBI released images and surveillance video of two suspects in the Boston Marathon bombings. — In a press conference Thursday, FBI officials said the public will play a critical role in identifying the men accused of committing the bombings.

Discussion: Power Line, The Gateway Pundit, Pat Dollard, Weasel Zippers and The Right Scoop

Barry Petchesky / Deadspin:

The Boston Bombing Witch Hunt Bags Another Innocent Kid — On Monday, the New York Post doggedly stuck to its claim that 12 were killed in the Boston Marathon bombings. On Tuesday, CNN (among others) reported that a suspect had been arrested, before walking that all the way back.

Discussion: Salon, The Week, Infowars, No More Mister Nice Blog, Poynter, Gawker, The Hinterland Gazette, Joe. My. God., CBS DC, Business Insider, The Dish, Charles Apple, Capital New York and Shakesville

FBI:

Resources — If you have visual images, video, and/or details regarding the explosions along the Boston Marathon route and elsewhere, submit them on https://bostonmarathontips.fbi.gov/. No piece of information or detail is too small. — You can also call 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324), prompt #3, with information.

Boston Globe:

Authorities have clear video images of two suspects in Boston Marathon bombings, official says — Authorities have clear video images of two separate suspects in the Boston Marathon bombings carrying black bags at each explosion site and are planning to release the images today in an appeal …

Discussion: Yahoo! News, The Hill, U.S. News, USA Today, CBS DC, Riehl World News, Telegraph, Taylor Marsh, msnbc.com, CBS Boston, Pat Dollard and The Boston Marathon

Josh Margolin / New York Post:

Two men probed in Boston Marathon bombings cleared by investigators — Investigators have now cleared the two men whose pictures were circulated last night in an email among law enforcement officials, sources told The Post today. — Authorities determined neither had any information or role …

Discussion: Politico and Poynter

Max Read / Gawker:

The Post's ‘Person of Interest’ Is a Local High-School Track Runner — “BAG MEN,” the New York Post's front cover brays this morning, underneath a photo of two Boston Marathon spectators. “Feds seek these two pictured at Boston Marathon.” After its embarrassing performance on Monday …

Discussion: Guardian, The League of Ordinary …, Business Insider, NPR, JustOneMinute, Capital New York, The Week, The Raw Story, Jihad Watch, Atlas Shrugs and Deadspin, more at Mediagazer »

Jake Tapper / The Lead with Jake Tapper:
Confusion over Saudis in Boston following marathon attack

Discussion: Salon, The PJ Tatler, Hullabaloo and Atlas Shrugs

Daniel D'Addario / Salon:
Post editor on “Bag Men” cover: “We did not identify them as suspects”

Discussion: Gawker, Infowars, Mediaite, Guardian, Pat Dollard, Poynter and Capital New York, more at Mediagazer »

Todd Eastham / Reuters:

George Soros, enigmatic financier, liberal philanthropist dies at XX — (Reuters) - George Soros, who died XXX at age XXX, was a predatory and hugely successful financier and investor, who argued paradoxically for years against the same sort of free-wheeling capitalism that made him billions.

Discussion: Weekly Standard, Quartz, Mediaite, Weasel Zippers, The Dish, Outside the Beltway, Business Insider, Ed Driscoll and FP Passport

Evan McMorris-Santoro / BuzzFeed:

Biden Pledges More Executive Action On Guns “Later This Week” — On conference call with stakeholders, Biden says Obama will carry the gun control fight forward on his own. Updated: The White House says it is only implementing some of the executive actions Obama announced in January.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Weekly Standard, Infowars, Mediaite, Hot Air, Weasel Zippers, Pat Dollard, Moonbattery and Hit & Run

Tarini Parti / Politico:
Harry Reid: ‘Pause and freeze’ on gun control

Discussion: CNN and The Plum Line

Politico:
Gang of Eight aims to stop conservative attacks

Discussion: NationalJournal.com, CNN, TIME, The Plum Line, The Maddow Blog and The Daily Caller

Ed Kilgore / Washington Monthly:
Next Up: The Gauntlet Facing Immigration Reform

Discussion: Mother Jones and Politico

Aviva Shen / ThinkProgress:

Morning Joe Host Shames Senators Who Killed Gun Reform: 'We're The 90 Percent And We're Going To Win' — The morning after the U.S. Senate failed to pass a bipartisan compromise to expand background checks to gun shows and online sales, MSNBC's ‘Morning Joe’ host Joe Scarborough raged against the lawmakers who blocked the bill.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Crooks and Liars and Rumproast

ThinkProgress: The Senators Who Supported Background Checks Represent Nearly Two-Thirds Of Americans

Jonathan Cohn / New Republic:
The Angriest Obama We've Ever Seen

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Wonkblog, Washington Post, The Week, The Monkey Cage, New York Times, The Other McCain, The Plum Line, Ballot Box and ThinkProgress

Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:
Gun Violence Victims Detained, Put Through Background Check For Yelling ‘Shame On You’ At Senators

Discussion: The Impolitic

Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Dem senator: Gun bill ‘virtually meaningless’ without background checks

Discussion: CNN and Politico

Senator Max Baucus / Mike Pompeo:

Pompeo writes to Senator Baucus about Obamacare “Train Wreck” — “No one in the country bears more responsibility for the complexity of this law than you.” — 107 Cannon House Office Building — Washington, DC 20515 — 511 Hart Senate Office Building — Washington, DC 20510

Discussion: The Hill, Michelle Malkin, Hit & Run and Great Falls Tribune

Kevin Drum / Mother Jones:
Obamacare Has Its Problems, But It's Basically On Track

Discussion: Hit & Run, The PJ Tatler, The Hill, Via Meadia and Eschaton

The Huffington Post:
Regal Entertainment Group's Obamacare Policy Leads To Facebook Backlash (PHOTOS)

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, ThinkProgress and Deadline.com

Jason Howerton / TheBlaze.com:

EXCLUSIVE: SAUDI NATIONAL ONCE CONSIDERED ‘PERSON OF INTEREST’ MAY BE DEPORTED ON ‘SECURITY’ GROUNDS — AND HOW IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE FRAMED — Editor's note: Please see the Editors' UPDATES we will be placing in order of most-recent below. TheBlaze's Jonathon M. Seidl contributed to this report.

Discussion: BuzzFeed, Walid Shoebat, Pat Dollard, Infowars, Atlas Shrugs, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Caller, protein wisdom, Right Wing Watch and Jihad Watch

Ian Swanson / The Hill:
Saudi student hurt in Boston bombing not a suspect, not being deported

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, BREITBART.COM and The Daily Caller

Evan Hurst / Truth Wins Out:

Former ‘Ex-Gay’ Superstar John Paulk Finally Renounces His ‘Ex-Gay’ Past — Paulk Must Now Begin The Hard Work Of Atoning For The Damage He Has Done To LGBT People, And Anne Paulk And The Religious Right Must Stop Peddling The Lie Of The Paulks' “Fairy-Tale ‘Ex-Gay’ Marriage” Immediately, Says Truth Wins Out

Discussion: Joe. My. God. and Good As You

PQ Monthly:
Is John Paulk ready to renounce his ex-gay gospel?

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, Advocate and Queerty

Scott Wong / Politico:

Roger Wicker had hired ‘Elvis’ facing threat charges — Sen. Roger Wicker said he had once hired and met the Elvis impersonator who was charged Thursday with sending poison-laced letters to President Barack Obama and the senator. — Wicker, a Mississippi Republican, told reporters the suspect …

Discussion: Ed Driscoll, Hot Air and The Greenroom

Daniel Strauss / The Hill:
Ricin suspect charged, faces up to 15 years

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland and CNN

David Edwards / The Raw Story:

Oklahoma lawmaker: ‘I apologize to the Jews’ for ‘Jew me down’ slur — An Oklahoma lawmaker who was advocating that the state drop a 70-year-old law protecting small businesses from large retails stores apologized on Wednesday after he used the slur “Jew me down” during a debate on the state House floor.

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Michael McNutt / Daily Oklahoman:
Oklahoma lawmaker apologizes for ethnic slur

Discussion: Mediaite and The Maddow Blog

KWTX-TV:

EMS Director Says 60 To 70 Dead In West Explosion — West EMS Director Dr. George Smith says as many as 60 or 70 people died and hundreds were injured Wednesday night in a fertilizer plant explosion in West. — A rescuer earlier said he knew of five deaths.

Jim White / emptywheel:
John Galt Kills Texans in Massive Fertilizer Plant Explosion

Discussion: ThinkProgress, New York Times, CANNONFIRE and CBS Dallas

Chicago Tribune:

Sinkhole swallows 3 cars on Southeast Side: ‘I am lucky’ — A sinkhole on the Southeast Side of Chicago swallowed three cars this morning, one of which was caught on tape. (WGN-TV) — Staff report — One person was hospitalized after a sinkhole swallowed three cars in the South Deering neighborhood …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, BuzzFeed, U.S. News, Riehl World News, The Hinterland Gazette and AMERICAblog

Rebecca Schoenkopf / Wonkette:

‘Instapundit’ Tells Whats-Her-Name, That Lady Who Got Shot In The Face, To Stop ‘Bullying’ People — Of the many, many, many fine citizens who have sorely tested our hippie nonviolent ways this week, we may have finally found a winner. See that tweet up there?

Discussion: The Raw Story, Riehl World News, Pharyngula, No More Mister Nice Blog and INSTAPUTZ