memeorandum: FBI: 3 Friends Removed Backpack From Boston Suspect's Room (Associated Press)

6:10 PM ET, May 1, 2013

Top Items:

Three additional people arrested in Boston Marathon bombings — Three college students have been arrested by federal authorities in connection with the Boston Marathon bombings, a law enforcement official familar with the case said this morning. — The Boston police Web page said that three additional …

Daily Mail:

EXCLUSIVE: Saudi Arabia ‘warned the United States IN WRITING about Boston Bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev in 2012’ — Saudis developed intelligence separately from Russia, which also warned the U.S. about the accused Boston bomber — A letter to the Department of Homeland Security allegedly named Tsarnaev …

Jake Tapper / CNN:

Government source: Bells should have gone off for student in custody in Boston case — A U.S. government official tells CNN that the three students in law enforcement custody Wednesday are two students from Kazakhstan, Dias Kadyrbayev and Azamat Tazhayakov, and another student, U.S. citizen Robel Phillipos.

Discussion: Hot Air

Associated Press:

FBI: 3 Friends Removed Backpack From Boston Suspect's Room — BOSTON (AP) — Three college friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev removed a backpack containing fireworks emptied of gunpowder from his dorm room at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth three days after the attack …

Miketoole / CBS Boston:
3 Friends Of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Arrested In Boston Marathon Bombings Case

Discussion: The Boston Globe, The Gateway Pundit, The Week, Business Insider, CBS New York, The Verge and The Right Scoop

Julian Pecquet / The Hill:
White House denies Saudis sent warning about Boston suspect

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, The Gateway Pundit and Firedoglake

Sari Horwitz / Washington Post:
Three arrested for allegedly helping suspect after Boston bombings

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Jihad Watch, Alan Colmes' Liberaland and CNN

Matt Smith / CNN:
3 more detained in Boston attack

Discussion: Mother Jones, Fox News, “The Lid” and National Review

Patrick Howley / The Daily Caller:
New Boston suspects drove car with 'Terrorista #1′ license plate

Discussion: CNN, The Lonely Conservative and The PJ Tatler

Katherine Timpf / Campus Reform the #1 Source …:

Police say liberal student activist threatened herself with rape in Facebook hoax, framed conservatives — A well-known female liberal blogger and radio host at the University of Wyoming (UW) is being accused by police of fabricating a rape threat against herself to appear as if it came from a conservative.

Discussion: Rush Limbaugh, The Gateway Pundit and Riehl World News

Kyle Roerink / Casper Star-Tribune:
University of Wyoming police: Rape threat came from alleged target

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and Jammie Wearing Fools

Jake Sherman / Politico:

A House in chaos — Less than two weeks ago, House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy walked upstairs to Majority Leader Eric Cantor's Capitol office to discuss a sensitive issue: Why did Cantor schedule a vote before McCarthy had the chance to survey Republican support?

Discussion: American Prospect and The Maddow Blog

Jake Sherman / Politico:

A House in chaos — House leadership aides will tell you they're winning. They forced Senate Democrats to release a budget, and Cantor is holding out hope that their family-focused agenda will attract Democratic support or jam them politically. — But in a practical sense, the House is even more isolated than ever.

Discussion: Washington Monthly

Amanda Terkel / The Huffington Post:

Pat Toomey: Background Checks Died Because GOP Didn't Want To Help Obama — Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) revealed that some members of his party opposed expanding background checks for gun sales recently because they didn't want to “be seen helping the president.”

Discussion: PoliticusUSA, The Plum Line, The Maddow Blog, Addicting Info, Daily Kos, Booman Tribune and Outside the Beltway

Evan Brandt / Main Line Media News:
Toomey doubts second Senate gun-control vote any time soon

Discussion: New York Times, Taking Note and The Hill

Molly Powell / National Review:

Cruz 2016 — Freshman senator Ted Cruz is considering a presidential run, according to his friends and confidants. — Cruz won't talk about it publicly, and even privately he's cagey about revealing too much of his thought process or intentions. But his interest is undeniable.

Discussion: david-frum, Washington Wire, The Week, Outside the Beltway, Post Politics, First Read, Business Insider, Politico, The Plum Line, Power Line, Daily Kos, The Moderate Voice, Weasel Zippers, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, The Hinterland Gazette and Hot Air

Sahil Kapur / Talking Points Memo:

GOP Battles A Threat To Gun Rights That Even The NRA Says Doesn't Exist — Republican lawmakers are pushing legislation aimed at combating a threat to gun rights that even the National Rifle Association has described as pure fiction. — A bill introduced late last week by Sen. James Inhofe …

Discussion: Right Wing Watch, Hullabaloo, The Raw Story and msnbc.com

Ruby Cramer / BuzzFeed: Ad Wars Escalate In Montana Over Max Baucus's Gun Vote

Manu Raju / Politico:
Kelly Ayotte on defense over gun vote

Discussion: CNN, Washington Post, New York Times, NewsBusters, Capital New York, Right Wing News, Daily Kos, msnbc.com and ThinkProgress

ThinkProgress:

DIRTY TRICKS: Mysterious Conservative Group Sending Out Push Polls In South Carolina Special Election — HILTON HEAD, South Carolina — A mysterious conservative group has been placing highly-misleading phone calls to South Carolina voters, trying to dissuade them from voting for the Democrat …

Discussion: The Maddow Blog, Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, New York Magazine and Feministing

The Post and Courier:

Tim Scott says Mark Sanford “merits support” in 1st District race — U.S. Sen. Tim Scott backed Mark Sanford in the 1st District special election today, saying he “merits support.” — In a statement from his Washington office, Scott, R-S.C., said Sanford is the “stark choice.”

Discussion: Ballot Box, The Daily Caller, msnbc.com and Post Politics

David Brown / Washington Post:

Skeleton of teenage girl confirms cannibalism at Jamestown colony — The first chops, to the forehead, did not go through the bone and are perhaps evidence of hesitancy about the task. The next set, after the body was rolled over, were more effective. One cut split the skull all the way to the base.

Discussion: Gawker and The Daily Caller

Jane O'Brien / BBC:
‘Proof’ Jamestown settlers turned to cannibalism

Discussion: Guardian and Colorlines

Ken Klukowski / BREITBART.COM:

BREAKING: PENTAGON CONFIRMS MAY COURT MARTIAL SOLDIERS WHO SHARE CHRISTIAN FAITH — The Pentagon has released a statement confirming that soldiers could be prosecuted for promoting their faith: “Religious proselytization is not permitted within the Department of Defense …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Weasel Zippers, www.frcblog.com, Right Wing News, Conservatives4Palin and LewRockwell.com Blog

Maureen Dowd / New York Times:

Bottoms Up, Lame Duck — During the 2012 campaign, the president and his top advisers liked to make the argument that if he was re-elected, the “fever” would break. Washington would no longer be the graveyard of progress, the crypt of consensus. Once dystopian Republicans accepted …

Discussion: Althouse, Washington Post, The Maddow Blog, Esquire, First Read, The Hill, TIME, ABCNEWS, Booman Tribune, msnbc.com, Questions and Observations, The Week, TheBlaze.com, The PJ Tatler, Lawyers, Guns & Money and NationalJournal.com

Carrie Budoff Brown / Reuters:

Gay rights push threatens immigration deal — The most serious threat to bipartisan immigration reform doesn't involve border security or guest workers or even the path to citizenship. — It's about gay rights. — Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) …

Discussion: New York Times, Hot Air, NOM Blog, Capital New York, American Prospect, msnbc.com, Outside the Beltway, AMERICAblog, Towleroad News #gay, The Week, Washington Monthly, Hit & Run, BuzzFeed, The Fix, Daily Kos, Politico and Conservatives4Palin

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

Alabama Senate Passes Bill Nullifying ALL Federal Gun Laws — Earlier this week, the Alabama senate passed a bill that purports to nullify any action the federal government takes regarding firearms. The bill provides that “[a]ll federal acts, laws, orders, rules, or regulations regarding firearms …

Discussion: Alan Colmes' Liberaland

Phillip Rawls / Associated Press: Ala. Senate tells feds to back off on gun control

Matthew Yglesias / Slate:

It's a 401(k) World and It Basically Sucks — I like the metaphor in Tom Friedman's latest column, arguing that we now live in a 401(k) world. But I wish he'd spelled it out in greater detail, because the problem with living in a 401(k) world is that Planet 401(k) is a pretty sucky planet.

Discussion: Mother Jones and Hullabaloo

Food and Drug Administration:

FDA approves Plan B One-Step emergency contraceptive without a prescription for women 15 years of age and older — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced that it has approved an amended application submitted by Teva Women's Health, Inc. to market Plan B One-Step …

Discussion: Guardian, LifeNews.com, Feministing, The Huffington Post, Wonkblog, RH Reality Check, National Review, Mother Jones, The Heritage Foundation, Runnin' Scared, Outside the Beltway, Nature, Hit & Run, The Raw Story, The Daily Caller, BizPac Review and The Week

Scott Lemieux / American Prospect:
FDA's Plan B on Plan B Is Still Not Good Enough

Discussion: Firedoglake, Washington Post and She The People

Rebecca Leber / ThinkProgress:

Paul Ryan Uses Derogatory Term For Undocumented People To Argue For Immigration Reform — WISCONSIN — Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), the latest GOP champion of an immigration reform bill in the House of Representatives, used an offensive term for undocumented people while touring town halls …

Discussion: The Political Carnival

Jackie Bensen / nbcwashington.com:

Possible Human Trafficking Investigated at Saudi Diplomatic Compound in Virginia — McLean home owned by Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, real estate records say — Federal and local authorities responded to a report of human trafficking at this McLean compound overnight.

Discussion: BuzzFeed, Washington Free Beacon and Twitchy

Washington Post:

Muslim cabdriver alleges assault by passenger who cited Boston Marathon bombing — An Army reservist and Iraq veteran who works as a cabdriver says a passenger he picked up early Friday at a Northern Virginia country club accused him of being a terrorist because he is Muslim …

Discussion: DCist and Crooks and Liars