memeorandum: Ebola crisis: Outbreak death toll rises to 4,447 says WHO (BBC)

12:30 PM ET, October 15, 2014

Top Items:

Texas Department of State Health Services Mobile:

Second Health Care Worker Tests Positive for Ebola — A second health care worker at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital who provided care for the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the United States has tested positive for the disease. — The health care worker reported a fever Tuesday and was immediately isolated at the hospital.

Discussion: Washington Post, Gawker, New York Times, ABC News, Hinterland Gazette, Mashable, The Verge, Scared Monkeys, Patterico's Pontifications, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Moderate Voice

Holly Yan / CNN:

2nd health care worker tests positive for Ebola at Dallas hospital — (CNN) — A second health care worker at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital who cared for Thomas Eric Duncan has tested positive for Ebola, health officials said Wednesday — casting further doubt on the hospital's ability to handle Ebola and protect employees.

Discussion: National Review, WREG-TV, Mediaite, Truth Revolt and FOX News Radio

Manny Fernandez / New York Times:

Ebola Test Is Positive in Second Texas Health Worker — DALLAS — Three days after a nurse who treated a Liberian man with Ebola contracted the virus, a second worker at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital has tested positive for the virus in preliminary tests, state and federal health officials said Wednesday morning.

Discussion: The Hill, Associated Press, ThinkProgress, JustOneMinute, New York Magazine, Shakesville, Outside the Beltway, Gawker, Mashable and Patterico's Pontifications

Associated Press:

OFFICIAL: 2ND WORKER IN ISOLATION WITH 90 MINUTES — DALLAS (AP) — A second health care worker at a Dallas hospital who provided care for the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the U.S. has tested positive for the disease, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Wednesday.

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit, Instapundit and Vox Popoli

Washington Post:
Keeping an even keel at home on Ebola

Discussion: New York Times, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, Washington Free Beacon and Rush Limbaugh

Josh Feldman / Mediaite:
Dallas Nurse Who Contracted Ebola Says She's ‘Doing Well’

Discussion: ABC News and FOX News Radio

Saeed Ahmed / CNN:
Ebola outbreak: Get up to speed with the latest developments

Discussion: Daily Signal

C.J. Chivers / New York Times:

The Secret U.S. Casualties of Iraq's Abandoned Chemical Weapons — A controlled detonation of recovered mustard shells near Taji, Iraq, on Aug. 17, 2008. — The soldiers at the blast crater sensed something was wrong. — It was August 2008 near Taji, Iraq.

Tom Maguire / JustOneMinute:
Now ISIS Has Chemical Weapons?

Discussion: RedState and New York Times

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:

The Polls Might Be Skewed Against Democrats — Or Republicans — This year's Senate election is close. Republicans have the clearer path to a majority, but it's a treacherous one. Republicans are favored in Iowa and Colorado, for example, but not by much.

Discussion: Washington Post, Booman Tribune, PJ Media and Rush Limbaugh

WXIA-TV:

Exclusive Poll: Nunn leads Senate race by 3% — ATLANTA — For the first time, Michelle Nunn leads the race for Georgia's Senate seat. In an exclusive 11Alive poll conducted by Survey USA, Democrat Michelle Nunn leads likely voters 48% to Republican David Perdue's 45%.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, PoliticusUSA, Washington Post, Daily Kos, Weekly Standard and Politico

Eric Bradner / CNN:

Gardner leads Udall in Colorado Senate race — Washington (CNN) — Republican Cory Gardner has opened up a four-point lead in a Colorado Senate race that's key in determining whether Democrats can hold onto their majority, a new CNN/ORC poll shows. — Gardner held a 50 percent to 46 percent edge …

Discussion: Weekly Standard and Fox News

Aaron Blake / Washington Post:

The Democratic Party just hit a 30-year low — The Democratic Party is held in worse regard than at any point in the past 30 years, according to a new poll. — The poll, from the Washington Post and ABC News, shows 39 percent of Americans now have a favorable impression of the blue team …

Discussion: Townhall.com, Hot Air, The Daily Caller and Washington Free Beacon

Gary Langer / ABC News:

Trouble Looms for Obama, Democrats with Election Day 2014 Approaching — Barack Obama and his political party are heading into the midterm elections in trouble. The president's 40 percent job approval rating in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll is the lowest of his career …

Discussion: Washington Post and Washington Free Beacon

Katherine Driessen / Houston Chronicle:

City subpoenas pastors' sermons in equal rights ordinance case … Houston's embattled equal rights ordinance took another legal turn this week when it surfaced that city attorneys, in an unusual step, subpoenaed sermons given by local pastors who oppose the law and are tied …

Discussion: National Review, The Daily Caller, American Thinker, Hot Air, Washington Post and RedState

Todd Starnes / Fox News:
City of Houston demands pastors turn over sermons

Discussion: Allen B. West, Truth Revolt, The Federalist and The Hugh Hewitt Show

adfmedia.org:
Houston, we have a problem — Angry over voter lawsuit …

Discussion: Hit & Run

Kyle Wagner / Deadspin:

The Future Of The Culture Wars Is Here, And It's Gamergate — Over the weekend, a game developer in Boston named Brianna Wu fled her home after an online stalker vowed to rape and kill her. She isn't the first woman who's been forced into hiding by aggrieved video game fans associated with Gamergate …

Discussion: Hot Air

Utah State Today:
Sarkeesian Event Canceled

Discussion: Guardian and Raw Story

Emma Roller / National Journal:

The Improbable Career of Cowboy Poetry Aficionado, Senate Candidate Larry Pressler — The eccentric Larry Pressler is out to prove himself once again. — Larry Pressler, the once-and-maybe-future senator from South Dakota, may be the single most interesting candidate of 2014.

Discussion: Hit & Run, National Review, Washington Post, Washington Monthly and Daily Kos

Scott Conroy / Real Clear Politics:
Santorum Gearing Up “as If I'm Running” in 2016

Discussion: Mediaite

Danny Vinik / The New Republic: This Independent Candidate Is Proof of How Far to the Right Republicans Have Swung

Harry Enten / FiveThirtyEight:
Senate Update: What A Republican Win On Election Night Would Look Like

Discussion: Washington Post, Hot Air, The Dish and New York Times

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

Supreme Court Allows Texas Abortion Clinics to Stay Open — WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday blocked a federal appeals court ruling that was forcing many abortion clinics in Texas to close. — The Supreme Court's order, which was five sentences long, will allow the clinics to remain open while appeals proceed.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, msnbc.com, ACS Blog, Shakesville, Austin American-Statesman, Feministing, Liberaland and New York Magazine

Lyle Denniston / SCOTUSblog:
Court blocks abortion limits in Texas

Discussion: Washington Post, Off the Kuff, Election Law Blog, Daily Kos, ThinkProgress and RT

Irin Carmon / msnbc.com:
Supreme Court saves Texas abortion access, for now

Discussion: Politico

Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:

A Pump War? — Is it just my imagination or is there a global oil war underway pitting the United States and Saudi Arabia on one side against Russia and Iran on the other? One can't say for sure whether the American-Saudi oil alliance is deliberate or a coincidence of interests, but …

Discussion: JustOneMinute