memeorandum: Amid distractions, sharp focus on economy could boost GOP (Byron York/Washington Examiner)

9:05 AM ET, March 1, 2014

Top Items:

Palin on Ukraine: I told you so — (CNN) - Sarah Palin may be having a bragging rights moment. — In 2008, when she was the GOP vice presidential nominee, Palin questioned in a speech whether then-Sen. Barack Obama would have the foreign policy credentials to handle a scenario …

Discussion: Associated Press, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Other McCain, Politico and Mediaite

Edward-Isaac Dovere / Politico:

Close — President Barack Obama on Friday issued a blunt and direct warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin: stay out of Ukraine. — If not, he said, there will be consequences — though he didn't say what those might be. — “We are now deeply concerned by reports of military movements taken …

Discussion: CANNONFIRE and Daily Kos

Tony Lee / BREITBART.COM:

PALIN MOCKED IN 2008 FOR WARNING PUTIN MAY INVADE UKRAINE IF OBAMA ELECTED — During the 2008 presidential campaign, Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin warned that if Senator Barack Obama were elected president, his “indecision” and “moral equivalence” may encourage Russia's Vladimir Putin to invade Ukraine.

Discussion: Vox Popoli

John Hinderaker / Power Line:

Russia Invades Ukraine, Obama Declares Happy Hour — Russian troops are on the move in Crimea. Ukraine's Acting Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov said that Russia is trying to seize the territory: … According to one report, the invading Russian troops are from the crack 76th Chernihov (Pskov) Storm Troops Division.

Discussion: Los Angeles Times and Zero Hedge

Justin Sink / The Hill:

Heckler: Obama wants ‘nuclear war with Russia’ — President Obama was interrupted during a speech to the Democratic National Committee (DNC) Friday by a protester who accused him having a plan for a “nuclear war with Russia.” — The president's remarks came less than an hour …

Discussion: Liberaland

Associated Press:

OBAMA COULD PULL RUSSIA TRIP AMID UKRAINE TUMULT — WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. officials said Friday that President Barack Obama may scrap plans to attend an international summit in Russia this summer and could also halt discussions on deepening trade ties with Moscow, raising specific possible consequences …

Discussion: THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, AMERICAN DIGEST and The Gateway Pundit

Josh Rogin / The Daily Beast:

Exclusive: Russian ‘Blackwater’ Takes Over Ukraine Airport — The troops who have taken over two airports in Crimea are not Russian military, but they could be security contractors working for the Russian military, and they are there to stay. — Private security contractors working …

Discussion: Gizmodo, New Jersey Online, Guardian, Hot Air, Yahoo! News, Israpundit, Ed Driscoll, Gawker and The Dish

Michael Martinez / CNN:
Political tension grows in Ukraine's Crimea region

Discussion: kyivpost.com, Post Politics, Independent Journal Review, Hot Air, Mediaite, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Daily Caller, Mashable, National Review and Taylor Marsh

Jay Newton-Small / TIME:
Senator John McCain: “We Are All Ukrainians”

Discussion: Radio Free Europe/Radio …, Talking Points Memo, Balloon Juice and New York Times

Alan Yuhas / Guardian:
Obama: violation of Ukraine ‘would be deeply destabilizing’ - live updates

Discussion: The White House, Mashable, AEIdeas, White House.gov Blog and The Agonist

David Nather / Politico:

How the Clinton White House bungled health care reform — Bill and Hillary Clinton understood individual members of Congress just fine. They just didn't get Congress. — That's the picture that emerges from the documents released by the Clinton presidential library Friday on their efforts to pass health care reform in the 1990s.

Discussion: Business Insider

Hillary Clinton / CNN:
What we found in the Clinton documents

Discussion: Independent Journal Review, Politico, ABC News and The Lonely Conservative

William J Clinton Presidential Library:
Formerly Withheld Documents

Discussion: Japan Times latest, Washington Post, Politico, Yahoo! News, Guardian, Post Politics, Business Insider, Fox News, Daily Kos, Firedoglake and Associated Press

Alex Pappas / The Daily Caller:
Whispers persist that Hillary won't run: Health may be worse than disclosed

Discussion: Rush Limbaugh, CNN, Politico, PoliticusUSA and Instapundit

Max Brantley / ArkansasTimes:

Rep. Josh Miller, recipient of significant government assistance, opposes Medicaid expansion in Arkansas — The enlistment of roughly half the Republican legislative delegation in implementation of Obamacare's Medicaid expansion is remarkable. Republicans tend to fall by faith in opposition …

Discussion: The Raw Story, Daily Kos, Washington Monthly and Americans Against the …

Dylan Scott / Talking Points Memo:
Paralyzed GOP Lawmaker On Medicaid Opposes Medicaid Expansion

Discussion: ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES, Balloon Juice, Firedoglake and The Week

Alec Torres / National Review:

Krauthammer's Take: Obama Tells the World We Aren't Going to Do Anything About Invasion of Ukraine — As reports are coming in that Russia has placed 2,000 troops in Crimea, within the borders of Ukraine, President Obama said that “the United States will stand with the international community …

Discussion: NewsBusters and Independent Journal Review

Nikita Stewart / New York Times:

De Blasio Picks More Liberal Activists Than Managers for City Posts — In Bill de Blasio's City Hall, it seems more and more, there is only a left wing. — The mayor, who advanced in politics by grass-roots organizing, has built a team filled with former activists …

Discussion: Right Wing News

Dan Gainor / Fox News:

Tea Party birthday — movement survives 5 years of outlandish, offensive media attacks — “Terrorists!” “Racists!” “Mass murderers!” For five years, the Tea Party has been the American media's favorite target. The crime? Pushing back against ObamaCare, the $787 billion stimulus and Big Government.

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and NewsBusters

John Stanton / BuzzFeed: Rudderless Tea Party Searches For Meaning Five Years On

Matt Higgins / CBS DC:
Cruz: ‘I Am Absolutely Convinced We Are Going To Repeal Every Single Word Of Obamacare’

Discussion: Daily Kos, Liberal Values and Liberaland

Nicole Flatow / ThinkProgress:

Homeowner Who Shot Unarmed Elderly Man With Alzheimer's Wandering His Property Won't Be Charged — The Walker County, Ga., District Attorney said Friday he will not press charges against the homeowner who shot and killed an elderly man wandering on his property. 72-year-old Ronald Westbrook …

Discussion: The Raw Story

Mario Trujillo / The Hill:

Hidden camera footage surfaces of Supreme Court debate — Hidden camera footage of what appeared to be Supreme Court proceedings from earlier this week surfaced on Thursday, offering one the of the first public recordings of the High Court's proceedings. — A video posted on YouTube …

Discussion: New York Times, NewsBusters, Althouse and Bangor Daily News

Paul Mirengoff / Power Line:
Election law experts join in the denuniciation of IRS's attempt to curb free speech

Discussion: Beltway Insiders, Center for Competitive … and The Heritage Foundation

Jonah Goldberg / National Review:

Celebrate Gay Marriage—or Else — Future historians will likely be flummoxed by the moment we're living in. In what amounts to less than a blink of an eye in the history of Western civilization, homosexuality has gone from a diagnosed mental disorder to something to be celebrated — or else.

Discussion: Hot Air

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

Amid distractions, sharp focus on economy could boost GOP — CONGRESS BARACK OBAMA REPUBLICAN PARTY 2014 ELECTIONS CAMPAIGNS ECONOMY MAGAZINE — Most Americans think the economy is still bad and that President Obama is doing a poor job handling it. — With unemployment at 6.6 percent …

Discussion: Hot Air and Joe. My. God.