memeorandum: Operation Smear Benghazi Whistleblowers (Michelle Malkin/Townhall.com)

11:10 AM ET, May 8, 2013

Top Items:

Cameron Joseph / Ballot Box:

Sanford victory could spell trouble for House GOP leadership — Former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford (R) is heading back to Congress — and that may not be good news for House GOP leadership. — Sanford owes party leaders nothing, as they refused to spend money on his campaign …

Discussion: americanthinker.com, NationalJournal.com and Jammie Wearing Fools

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:

Behind Mark Sanford's turnaround — South Carolinians may not love former Gov. Mark Sanford. They may still have a bad taste in their mouths after his governorship. They may even wonder whether they can entirely trust him. — But in the end, they decided he was as good as they were going to get.

Discussion: Salon, National Review, Politicker, Althouse and Ballot Box

Catalina Camia / Associated Press:

Mark Sanford wins special election for Congress — The former governor and Democrat Elizabeth Colbert Busch squared off in a special election for Congress. — WASHINGTON — Disgraced ex-South Carolina governor Mark Sanford won his bid for redemption on Tuesday night …

Discussion: Right Turn, USA Today, Joe. My. God. and Lawyers, Guns & Money

CNN:
Sanford wins South Carolina House vote

Discussion: Power Line, Taylor Marsh, Jammie Wearing Fools and Mediaite

Sanford Leads / The Huffington Post:
COUNTY-BY-COUNTY … THE CANDIDATES — held this seat …

Discussion: Politico, The BRAD BLOG, Conservatives4Palin, No More Mister Nice Blog, ViralRead, Booman Tribune, Gawker, The Week and Daily Kos

Gina Smith / The State:
Mark Sanford: The new comeback kid

Discussion: American Prospect, The Maddow Blog and First Read

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
Mark Sanford defeats Elizabeth Colbert Busch

Discussion: Hot Air, Scared Monkeys, Ballot Box, Outside the Beltway, CNN and The Maddow Blog

Daily Mail:

Dick Cheney slams Obama administration's Benghazi performance as 'a failure of leadership ... I cannot understand why they weren't ready' — Former Vice President Dick Cheney criticized the Obama administration on Tuesday for its handling of the September 11, 2012 terror attack on the U.S. Consulate …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Paul Farhi / Washington Post:

Sharyl Attkisson of CBS News, a persistent voice of media skepticism on Benghazi — From the start, the Obama administration's account of what happened in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11 last year didn't quite square for Sharyl Attkisson. — So the veteran CBS News reporter dug in, and kept digging.

Discussion: Althouse and The Hugh Hewitt Show

Julian Pecquet / The Hill:
New Benghazi probe evidence puts spotlight back on Clinton

Discussion: Hot Air, Taylor Marsh, Washington Post, Rush Limbaugh and Politico

Michelle Malkin / Townhall.com:
Operation Smear Benghazi Whistleblowers

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, New York Times and National Review

Daniel Strauss / The Hill:
Graham: Benghazi shows ‘light footprint’ approach isn't working

Discussion: Politico

Frank Newport / Gallup:

Americans Give Guns, Immigration Reform Low Priority — Creating jobs and growing the economy get highest priority — PRINCETON, NJ — Americans put reforming immigration and reducing gun violence — the focus of much of the attention on Capitol Hill in recent weeks …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Hot Air, msnbc.com, Jammie Wearing Fools and Politico

Daniel Strauss / The Hill:
Poll: Voters want focus on economy over guns, immigration reform

Discussion: Weekly Standard and Outside the Beltway

cms.gov:

Medicare Provider Charge Data — As part of the Obama administration's work to make our health care system more affordable and accountable, data are being released that show significant variation across the country and within communities in what hospitals charge for common inpatient services.

Discussion: The Hill, ThinkProgress, The Huffington Post, New York Times, owenzidar and First Read

Sarah Kliff / Wonkblog:

One hospital charges $8,000 — another, $38,000 — Consumers on Wednesday will finally get some answers about one of modern life's most persistent mysteries: how much medical care actually costs. — For the first time, the federal government will release the prices that hospitals charge for the 100 most common inpatient procedures.

Discussion: Poynter and TechCrunch, more at Mediagazer »

delawareonline:

Gay marriage approved as Delaware lawmaker comes out — Delaware Gov. Markell signs gay marriage bill: Delaware became the 11th state to legalize same-sex marriage after a lengthy debate in the state Senate. A half-hour after the 12-9 Senate vote, Gov. Jack Markell signed the legislation …

Discussion: ThinkProgress

Erik Eckholm / New York Times:
Delaware, Continuing a Trend, Becomes the 11th State to Allow Same-Sex Unions

Discussion: Crooks and Liars, The Maddow Blog, Shakesville, The Week, susiemadrak.com, Liberal Values, The Reaction and Hot Dish Politics

Laurel Ramseyer / Firedoglake:
Delaware Becomes Eleventh State to Legalize Marriage Equality [Updated]

Discussion: Minnesotans United, The Dish, Advocate and Freedom to Marry Blog

Amanda Terkel / The Huffington Post:
Gay Adoption Bill Set To Be Reintroduced With Bipartisan Support

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Washington Blade, Towleroad News #gay and Joe. My. God.

USA Today:

Reports of sex abuse, beatings inside Cleveland house — THREE MISSING CLEVELAND WOMEN FREED — Three women who had been held captive for 10 years were found Monday in a Cleveland neighborhood, barely a mile from where they had been abducted. Amanda Berry was able to escape and alert authorities …

Discussion: ViralRead, Scared Monkeys, WEWS-TV, Fox News, Associated Press, Gawker, The Week, CNN, The Gateway Pundit, The Lonely Conservative, Daily Mail, The Jawa Report, dallasmorningviewsblog …, Shakesville, The Other McCain and Plain Dealer

Daily Mail:

EXCLUSIVE PICTURES INSIDE THE CLEVELAND KIDNAP HOUSE: Son of ‘abductor’ reveals how father padlocked doors to basement, attic and garage because 'we weren't allowed to go there' — Son Anthony, 31, revealed how his father would beat him and once nearly beat his mother to death as she recovered from brain surgery

Discussion: The Other McCain, Gawker, FOX8.com, Riehl World News, The Daily Caller, Fox News, Weasel Zippers and Plain Dealer

Niall Ferguson / Harvard News:

An Open Letter to the Harvard Community — Last week I said something stupid about John Maynard Keynes. Asked to comment on Keynes' famous observation “In the long run we are all dead,” I suggested that Keynes was perhaps indifferent to the long run because he had no children, and that he had no children because he was gay.

Discussion: Paul Krugman, The Monkey Cage, Brad DeLong, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Balloon Juice

First Read:

First Thoughts: Neck and neck in Va. — NBC/Marist poll shows it's neck and neck in Virginia... McAuliffe 43%, Cuccinelli 41% among registered voters... Cuccinelli 45%, McAuliffe 42% among likely voters... Good news for McAuliffe: It's early, he has room to grow, and the GOP's fav/unfav …

Discussion: msnbc.com, The Moderate Voice, Taegan Goddard's … and National Review

Charlie Savage / New York Times:

Obama May Back F.B.I. Plan to Wiretap Web Users — WASHINGTON — The Obama administration, resolving years of internal debate, is on the verge of backing a Federal Bureau of Investigation plan for a sweeping overhaul of surveillance laws that would make it easier to wiretap people …

Discussion: Firedoglake, msnbc.com, americanthinker.com, The Caucus and CANNONFIRE, more at Mediagazer »

Daily Mail:

Putin keeps John Kerry waiting for THREE HOURS during his visit to Russia for meetings over Syria as relationship between the U.S. and Russia remains frosty — Secretary of State's visit to Moscow comes as U.S. tries to gather international support for action against Assad regime in Syria

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, americanthinker.com and Betsy's Page

New York Times:
Russia and U.S. to Convene Peace Conference on Syria

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Philly.com and FP Passport

Ashley Killough / CNN:

Biden on Susan Rice: She speaks for the president — Washington (CNN) - Vice President Joe Biden praised U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice on the eve of congressional hearings over last year's deadly terror attack against a U.S. diplomatic compound in Libya …

Discussion: The Hill, Post Politics, Weasel Zippers, Politico and The Daily Caller

The Boston Globe:

Ex-Romney aide details campaign ‘miscalculations’ — WASHINGTON - One of Mitt Romney's former campaign aides is planning to release a new book next week that is being pitched as an insider's account that provides “an unblinking look at the tactical and strategic miscalculations” made by the former presidential candidate.

Kevin Glass / Townhall.com:

Report: Budget Deficit Shrinks Due To More Tax Revenue — The Congressional Budget Office released updated projections today to find that the federal budged deficit is smaller than at this point last year, and smaller than at any time since the 2008 financial crisis.