memeorandum: Senate Republicans: Whistle blower's appearance forced delay of Labor nominee's hearing (Vicki Needham/The Hill)

3:10 PM ET, April 24, 2013

Top Items:

Chris Cassidy / Boston Herald:

Tamerlan Tsarnaev got Mass. welfare benefits — By: — Marathon bombings mastermind Tamerlan Tsarnaev was living on taxpayer-funded state welfare benefits even as he was delving deep into the world of radical anti-American Islamism, the Herald has learned.

Mark Hosenball / Reuters:

Boston bomb suspect's name was on classified government watch lists — (Reuters) - The name of one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was listed on the U.S. government's highly classified central database of people it views as potential terrorists.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, BuzzFeed, Taylor Marsh, American Prospect, Business Insider, Hot Air, Wake up America, The Hinterland Gazette and Jihad Watch

Jim Hoft / The Gateway Pundit:

WHOA!... Zubeidat Tsarnaeva Tells CNN: “I Don't Care if My Youngest Son Is Killed. I Don't Care If I Am Killed. I Will Say Allahu Akbar!" (Video) — Whoa! — Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, the mother of Boston Marathon bombers Tamerlan and Tzhokhar Tsarnaevso, made these shocking statements on CNN tonight:

Discussion: The Jawa Report, International Business Times, The Right Scoop, Riehl World News and Jihad Watch

The Boston Globe:

Russia contacted US government ‘multiple’ times — WASHINGTON — Russian authorities alerted the US government not once but “multiple” times over their concerns about Tamerlan Tsarnaev — including a second time nearly a year after he was first interviewed by FBI agents in Boston …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and Weasel Zippers

Adrienne Mong / U.S. News:
Boston bomb suspect's aunt: Mosque won't bury Tamerlan Tsarnaev

Discussion: Washington Post, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and Mediaite

U.S. News:
NYPD chief: Marathon suspect says brothers were headed for New York to party

Discussion: New York Post and Politico

The Boston Globe:
Russia alerted US repeatedly about suspect, senators say

Discussion: The Jawa Report, Hot Air, Los Angeles Times and The Daily Beast

Numbers / Pew Research Center for the People …:

Mixed Reactions to Senate Gun Vote — Democrats More Disappointed than Angry — OVERVIEW — The key Senate vote that halted gun control legislation last week is drawing a mixed reaction from the American public: 47% express negative feelings about the vote while 39% have a positive reaction …

Discussion: Hit & Run, The Moderate Voice, Booman Tribune, Outside the Beltway, Weasel Zippers, Mediaite, Washington Post, Business Insider, ABCNEWS and CNN

Chris Cillizza / The Fix:

Why the American public isn't mad as hell about the failure of the gun bill (in numbers) — Not so much, according to a new Washington Post-Pew Research Center poll. Yes, a plurality (47 percent) describe themselves as either “angry” or “disappointed” about the failure of the gun legislation …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Wake up America, Hot Air, National Review, CNN, WHAS-TV, BuzzFeed, The PJ Tatler and Politico, more at Mediagazer »

Dana Blanton / Fox News:
Fox News poll: During a manhunt, 69 percent of voters want a gun

Discussion: Taking Note, Hot Air, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and neo-neocon

FBI:

New York Man Charged with Internet Extortion and Cyber Stalking … A 21-year-old Great Neck, New York man was charged in a criminal complaint in the Eastern District of Michigan with Internet extortion and cyber stalking, announced United States Attorney Barbara L. McQuade.

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, BuzzFeed, Wonkette, Gawker, The Other McCain, The Raw Story and Twitchy

NY Daily News:

Former Romney campaign intern busted in nude-pics blackmail scheme — Adam Savader, who also interned for Newt Gingrich and Paul Ryan, is charged with illegally obtaining nude photos of 15 women and threatening to make them public unless they sent more. He is currently being held pending his bail hearing.

Discussion: Reuters and The Week

Alex Pappas / The Daily Caller:
Young Republican who worked for Ryan, Gingrich arrested over alleged nude photo scheme

Discussion: Riehl World News

Brad Stone / Businessweek:

Here Comes Amazon's Kindle TV Set-Top Box — Amazon (AMZN) is making e-readers and tablets and will likely soon introduce a smartphone. As it works to build all types of connected devices, that leaves a natural next step: a television set-top box. The e-commerce giant is planning …

Discussion: The Verge, TechCrunch, Mashable and AllThingsD, more at Mediagazer »

Kevin Robillard / Politico:

Obama's tattoo threat — President Barack Obama revealed he and first lady Michelle Obama have a master plan to prevent their two daughters from getting tattoos. — “What we've said to the girls is that 'If you guys ever decide to get a tattoo, then Mommy and me will get the exact same tattoo …

Discussion: CNN

Lydia Saad / Gallup:

Pelosi Best Known, Least Liked of Congressional Leaders — Americans view top four leaders in House and Senate negatively, on balance — PRINCETON, NJ — The top Republican and Democratic leaders in the U.S. House and Senate are a generally unpopular foursome, with Democratic House Minority …

Discussion: Right Turn, The Daily Caller, Wake up America, Post Politics, CBS DC, Politico and CNN

Daniel Strauss / The Hill:
Poll finds Pelosi best known, but least liked congressional leader

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Outside the Beltway and National Republican …

Jake Sherman / Politico:

GOP may pull contentious Obamacare bill — House Republican leadership is considering canceling a vote this week on the “Helping Sick Americans Now Act,” a bill touted by Majority Leader Eric Cantor as a critical way to improve President Barack Obama's health care law, according to multiple sources.

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Daily Kos

Sahil Kapur / Talking Points Memo:
House GOP Seeks To Trap Dems On Preexisting Conditions

Discussion: ThinkProgress and FreedomWorks blogs

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

Ayotte faces backlash over gun vote — Gun show background checks are pretty universally popular in New Hampshire...and Kelly Ayotte is facing some serious backlash from voters in the state for voting against them last week. — Ayotte now has a negative approval rating with 44% of voters giving her good marks and 46% disapproving.

Discussion: Taegan Goddard's … and Mediaite

Maggie Haberman / Politico:
Gabby Giffords group hits Mitch McConnell, Kelly Ayotte on guns

Discussion: Daily Kos and WHAS-TV

Hunter Walker / Talking Points Memo:

Meet The New Man At The Center Of The Ricin Case — As the case against Paul Kevin Curtis for allegedly mailing ricin was unraveling Tuesday afternoon, FBI agents were already searching the house of another man in connection with the ongoing investigation. — Their focus has shifted …

Discussion: Hit & Run, Tupelo Daily Journal, Gawker, Crooks and Liars, Associated Press and Little Green Footballs

CNN:
Vindication in ricin case

Discussion: Guardian and The Week

Ned Resnikoff / msnbc.com:

Hundreds of service workers strike in Chicago — Hundreds of fast food and retail workers went on strike in Chicago Wednesday morning in a labor action consciously modeled on New York City's fast food workers campaign and the nationwide Walmart strike which occurred last Thanksgiving.

Discussion: Daily Kos, Gawker and The Raw Story

Josh Eidelson / Salon:
Fast food walkout planned in Chicago

Discussion: The Nation, Colorlines and ThinkProgress

John Hudson / FP Passport:

Ron Paul fans furious over Rand Paul's drone flip-flop — Ron Paul's vibrant fan base is in open rebellion today over Rand Paul's perceived reversal on domestic drone strikes. The Kentucky senator, whose famous 13-hour Senate floor filibuster did much to strengthen his ties …

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Patterico's Pontifications, RealClearPolitics Video Log, Hit & Run, The Maddow Blog, Zandar Versus The Stupid, The Daily Caller, Hot Air, CNN and Politico

Rand Paul:
Sen. Paul Statement on Domestic Drone Use

Discussion: American Spectator, Politico and Hot Air

Jonathan Martin / Politico:

Bush on Cheney: 'It's been cordial' — Former President George W. Bush is in the midst of a media blitz to promote the Thursday opening of his presidential library and has generally projected a jaunty, at-peace air as he takes questions about his tumultuous eight years in the White House.

Discussion: First Read, The Maddow Blog and msnbc.com

Maggie Haberman / Politico:

Hillary Clinton hits the speaking circuit — Hillary Clinton's next chapter — the paid speaking circuit — begins today. — The former first lady, senator and secretary of state has overnight become one of the most in-demand speakers in the world — as a a reported $200,000-a-pop fee attests …

Discussion: CNN and Taylor Marsh

Erica Ritz / TheBlaze.com:

‘ARMED AND DANGEROUS’: BECK'S LATEST REVELATIONS ON SAUDI NATIONAL ONCE A ‘PERSON OF INTEREST’ IN BOSTON BOMBINGS — Editor's note — We'll be discussing this story and all the day's news during our live BlazeCast at 1pm ET...including your questions, comments & live chat:

Discussion: Mediaite, Atlas Shrugs, The Gateway Pundit, Right Wing Watch and The Right Scoop

Donovan Slack / Politico:

44 calls 43 ‘gracious,’ ‘patriotic’ — President Obama says that while he had some deep disagreements with George W. Bush about policy, the former president was gracious, patriotic and very nice. — “Well, I've always thought that President Bush was gracious, he was patriotic.

New York Times:

Budget Cuts, Minus the Inconvenience — On Monday, after the sequester cuts forced the Federal Aviation Administration to begin furloughs for air traffic controllers, delays began to build up at airports around the country. Travelers had to wait, but nothing delayed Republicans from scurrying away from all responsibility.