memeorandum: Refereeing the Reinhart-Rogoff Debate (Bloomberg)

5:00 PM ET, April 29, 2013

Top Items:

“I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay,” says Jason Collins. — I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay. — I didn't set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I'm happy to start the conversation.

Annie-Rose Strasser / ThinkProgress:

ESPN Sportscaster Immediately Trashes First Out NBA Player: Jason Collins Is Not ‘A Christian’ — An ESPN sportscaster went on the air on Monday to publicly gay-bash Jason Collins, the NBA player who came out Monday morning in an emotional op-ed, the first active male player of a major American sport to come out.

Discussion: The Hinterland Gazette, Right Wing Watch and Good As You

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

More backlash against Senators on gun vote — New PPP polls in Alaska, Arizona, Nevada, and Ohio find serious backlash against the 5 Senators who voted against background checks in those states. Each of them has seen their approval numbers decline, and voters say they're less likely …

Discussion: AMERICAblog, Mediaite, Taylor Marsh, The Maddow Blog, Daily Kos, Booman Tribune, The Hill and The Daily Caller

Frank Newport / Gallup:

Americans Wanted Gun Background Checks to Pass Senate — Support varies from 85% among Democrats to 45% among Republicans — PRINCETON, NJ — Sixty-five percent of Americans say the U.S. Senate should have passed the measure that would have expanded background checks for gun purchases …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Firedoglake, The Hill, CNN and The Political Carnival

Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:
After Her Poll Numbers Plummet, NRA Runs Ads Thanking Senator For Killing Background Checks Bill

Discussion: Mediaite and Daily Kos

Washington Post:

Antiabortion group releases videos of clinic workers discussing live births — An antiabortion group that mounted a six-month undercover investigation has released videos this week that raise questions about what might happen to a baby as a result of an unsuccessful abortion.

Discussion: NewsBusters, Twitchy, National Review, Bangor Daily News, The Raw Story, LifeNews.com, The Daily Caller, TheBlaze.com and Ricochet Conversations Feed

Ed Kilgore / Washington Monthly:

More Phony Outrage — Well, the transition among antichoicers from drawing attention to the illegal horrors of Dr. Gosnell's clinic in Philadelphia to a challenge to legal abortions generally is moving along at a pretty good pace, viz. this New York Post column by Kyle Smith: … Well, I don't know.

Discussion: Mother Jones, National Review and Patterico's Pontifications

Vivian Yee / New York Times:
Group Shows Covert Video of a Bronx Abortion Clinic

Discussion: Fox News, National Review, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Gateway Pundit

Melinda Henneberger / She The People:
Are there more abortion doctors like Kermit Gosnell? Do we want to know?

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Washington Post, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and New York Post

Justin Sink / The Hill:

O'Connor worries Supreme Court was wrong to rule in Bush v. Gore — Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor said in an interview published this weekend that she is no longer certain that the Supreme Court should have taken Bush v. Gore, the controversial case that ended …

Discussion: Politico, Taylor Marsh, CNN, msnbc.com, Associated Press and Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

After Casting Key Fifth Vote For Bush, Justice O'Connor Now Regrets Bush v. Gore — Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the conservative retired justice who provided the fifth vote to install George W. Bush as president, is now having second thoughts about that decision:

Discussion: The Week, Brad DeLong, Mediaite, Lawyers, Guns & Money and The Maddow Blog

Fredric U. Dicker / New York Post:

If Hillary is running for prez, I'm out — Cuomo quietly ‘concedes’ 2016 race — Gov. Cuomo has quietly told associates that he is resigned to the fact that he can't run for president in 2016 if Hillary Rodham Clinton enters the race, as is widely expected, sources told The Post.

Discussion: Firedoglake, The Run 2016, Ballot Box, Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, Joe. My. God., The Reaction, Politicker, First Read, The Week, Capital New York and Taylor Marsh

Jonathan Weisman / The Caucus:

Cruz Breaks With Senate Tradition While Criticizing Colleagues — In his short time at the Capitol, Senator Ted Cruz, a freshman Republican from Texas, has shown little regard for long-standing rules of decorum. But on Friday, he publicly discussed the closed-door dealings …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars and Right Wing Watch

Kevin Cirilli / Politico:
Ted Cruz slams Senate GOP ‘squishes’

Discussion: The Hill

Kevin Robillard / Politico:

Ron Paul slams Boston ‘occupation’ — Former Rep. Ron Paul said the police response to the Boston Marathon bombings was scarier than the bombing itself, which killed three and wounded more than 250. — “The Boston bombing provided the opportunity for the government to turn …

Discussion: AL.com and Balloon Juice

Ron Paul / LewRockwell.com:
Liberty Was Also Attacked in Boston

Discussion: Mediaite and Hit & Run

Andrew Kirell / Mediaite:

‘You Son Of A B*tch’: Furious Boston Man Confronts ‘A**hole’ Alex Jones Reporter Over ‘False Flag’ Allegations — An InfoWars.com reporter found himself the subject of verbal scorn last week when he appeared in Boston with press badge and camera in tow. An irate Boston resident confronted …

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, Addicting Info, The Raw Story and Weasel Zippers

Pete Kasperowicz / The Hill:

Dem resolution warns climate change could push women to ‘transactional sex’ — Several House Democrats are calling on Congress to recognize that climate change is hurting women more than men, and could even drive poor women to “transactional sex” for survival.

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Sister Toldjah, Mediaite, The Greenroom, Watts Up With That? and National Review

Kate Kelland / Reuters:

Austerity is hurting our health, say researchers — (Reuters) - Austerity is having a devastating effect on health in Europe and North America, driving suicide, depression and infectious diseases and reducing access to medicines and care, researchers said on Monday.

Discussion: The Impolitic and The Political Carnival

Travis Waldron / ThinkProgress:
How Austerity Is Literally Killing People

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:

House Republicans Eyeing New Hostage Opportunity — If you don't submit, I will destroy your puny world with this HAMMER OF THOR. — The House Republicans are contemplating a new budget-hostage strategy, the the Washington Post reports in a story that is both highly useful and inadvertently Onion-esque.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Maddow Blog and Prairie Weather

Christian Caryl / The New York Review of Books:

‘Misha’ Speaks: An Interview with the Alleged Boston Bomber's ‘Svengali’ — As the investigation of the Boston Marathon bombings continues, one of the more clouded aspects is the tale of “Misha,” a mysterious US-based Islamist who has been accused by members of the Tsarnaev family …

William Bigelow / BREITBART.COM:
REPORT: FBI IDENTIFIES ‘MISHA,’ MAN ALLEGEDLY BEHIND TSARNAEV RADICALIZATION

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Jihad Watch and The Gateway Pundit

Kevin Liptak / CNN:

Charlotte mayor nominated for transportation secretary — Washington (CNN) - President Barack Obama tapped the mayor of Charlotte, North Carolina on Monday to head his Department of Transportation. — If confirmed by the Senate, Foxx would replace Ray LaHood, who said in January he wouldn't serve a second term.

Discussion: Politico

Jonathan Martin / Politico:
Black pols stymied in Obama era

Discussion: ABCNEWS, New York Times, CNN, First Read, msnbc.com and FiveThirtyEight

Justin Sink / The Hill:

Obama keeps the jokes coming in first post-dinner speech — President Obama, fresh off his performance Saturday night at the White House Correspondents Dinner, peppered his remarks Monday at the National Academy of Sciences with multiple jokes. Obama noted that the academy was founded during the Civil War …

Discussion: Politico

Washington Post:
After string of setbacks, more charm may be the last, best option for Obama

Discussion: American Prospect, Wonkblog, Right Wing News and Daily Kos

Niels Lesniewski / Roll Call:

Biden Needles Graham: ‘I Will Rip Your Skin Off’ #SCsen — Graham is up for re-election in 2014. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call) — Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. offered Sen. Lindsey Graham his support for re-election — including a pledge to “rip your skin off for you” if it helps the South Carolina Republican's 2014 prospects.

Discussion: Mediaite and Weasel Zippers