memeorandum: Queen Elizabeth's Windsor Castle faces first labor dispute: union (Estelle Shirbon/Reuters)

5:15 PM ET, March 31, 2015

Top Items:

Gov. Pence, fix ‘religious freedom’ law now — We are at a critical moment in Indiana's history. — And much is at stake. — Our image. Our reputation as a state that embraces people of diverse backgrounds and makes them feel welcome. And our efforts over many years to retool our economy …

Jill Lawrence / US News:

A Glimpse Into the GOP's Backward Bubble — Defending Indiana's anti-gay, ‘religious freedom’ law makes Gov. Mike Pence the face of GOP insularity. — If there's one takeaway from Indiana Gov. Mike Pence's “religious freedom restoration” debacle, it's that Republicans ignore today's cultural environment at their peril.

Discussion: GLAAD, Mashable, Advocate, Bloomberg Business and The Reaction

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:

“Smoking Doesn't Kill” And Other Great Old Op-Eds From Mike Pence — The Indiana governor who is at the center of the debate surrounding the recently signed Religious Freedom Restoration Act in his state wrote some interesting op-eds 15 years ago. — “Time for a quick reality check.

Brian Beutler / The New Republic:

The Real Consequences of Indiana's “Religious Freedom” Law — It's not about boutique wedding shops. What if Hobby Lobby refused to allow gay customers? — When Arizona's then-Governor Jan Brewer vetoed legislation last February to protect religious individuals and business owners …

Discussion: Washington Post, US News, Eschaton, National Review, Chicago Business and Talking Points Memo

Tracy Walsh / Talking Points Memo:
Malloy Piles On Pence: ‘When You See A Bigot, You Have To Call Them On It’

Discussion: Balloon Juice

New York Times:
Defying Criticism, Arkansas Legislature Passes Bill on Religious Freedom

Discussion: CNBC, National Review, WALV-TV, Towleroad News #gay, Hit & Run, Fox News, Outside the Beltway and Bloomberg Business

New York Times:
In Indiana, Using Religion as a Cover for Bigotry

Discussion: Christian Science Monitor, The Huffington Post, Advocate, Wall Street Journal, CNN, Josh Blackman's Blog, Mashable, Washington Post, Senator Chuck Schumer, The New Republic, National Review, The Big Picture, US News, The Daily Beast, The PJ Tatler, NPR and Daily Kos

Mike Pence / Wall Street Journal:
Ensuring Religious Freedom in Indiana

Julian Bond / Advocate:
Op-ed: ‘Religious Discrimination’ Laws Have Nothing to Do With Religion

Discussion: Human Rights Campaign Blog and Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times

Jessica Winter / Slate:

The Problem Isn't That Trevor Noah Is Offensive. The Problem Is That He's a Giant Dope. — Not since John McCain selected Sarah Palin as his running mate have the vetting capacities of a powerful political force been cast into such doubt. When Trevor Noah was announced Monday as the next host …

Discussion: Washington Post, The Huffington Post, Hollywood Reporter, Salon, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Daily Banter, New York Times and Unfogged

David Weigel / Bloomberg Business:

Trevor Noah, From Progressive Icon to Villain in 24 Hours — Why people turned on Trevor Noah so quickly. — The media hot take, the quick response to unfamiliar news, generally ages like milk left out in the August sun. Sonia Saraiya's reaction to Trevor Noah, the new host of The Daily Show, has not even aged that well.

Discussion: Power Line, Vox, WOOD-TV, Hot Air, The Verge, Mediaite and Patterico's Pontifications

Dave Itzkoff / New York Times:
Comedy Central Stands Behind Trevor Noah, New ‘Daily Show’ Host, Amid Scrutiny

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, Christian Science Monitor, The Daily Caller, Obsidian Wings, The Week and The Huffington Post, more at Mediagazer »

Sonia Saraiya / Salon:
Trevor Noah in our crazy birther age: Right-wing rage at “The Daily Show” is about to get very, very ugly

Discussion: Hit & Run, Washington Free Beacon, Vox, UPTOWN Magazine, The Huffington Post, ThinkProgress, Poynter, The Daily Caller, Boing Boing, New York Times and The Atlantic Online

Jaimie Etkin / BuzzFeed:
People Are Mad About Trevor Noah's Old Tweets About Women And Jews

Discussion: The Huffington Post

Ben Domenech / The Federalist:

The End of Tolerance And Enforced Morality — Are you having a fun Culture War 4.0? It's certainly been a crazy ride for Indiana state representatives, who appear to be caving to pressure to “clarify” RFRA language after being assaulted for being anti-gay.

Wall Street Journal:
The New Intolerance — Indiana isn't targeting gays.

Discussion: New York Magazine, The Week, New York Times, CNN, Weekly Standard, Hot Air, Washington Post and National Journal

David Brooks / New York Times:
Religious Liberty and Equality

Discussion: The Federalist, The American Conservative, RedState and Balloon Juice

Chris Cillizza / Washington Post:

Harry Reid's appalling defense of his attack on Mitt Romney's tax record — One of the more outlandish moments of the 2012 campaign came when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid went to the floor of the world's greatest deliberative body and accused GOP nominee Mitt Romney of not paying any taxes at all for the past 10 years.

Discussion: Power Line, Outside the Beltway, protein wisdom, American Spectator and Ed Driscoll

Washington Free Beacon:
Harry Reid Justifies Lying About Romney's Taxes from Senate Floor: 'He Didn't Win, Did He?'

Discussion: Hot Air and Weekly Standard

Ted Barrett / CNN:
Harry Reid is not looking back

Discussion: Politico

BuzzFeed:

Rand Paul Said He Doesn't Believe In The Concept Of Gay Rights — Sen. Rand Paul said he doesn't buy into the concept of gay rights because they are defined by a gay person's lifestyle. — “I don't think I've ever used the word gay rights, because I don't really believe in rights based on your behavior …

Discussion: Out Magazine, Daily Kos, Hit & Run, Booman Tribune, No More Mister Nice Blog and PinkNews

Page Six:

Weinstein accused of molesting model — Harvey Weinstein leaves his home in New York City on Tuesday. The Hollywood exec faces accusations he groped Italian model Ambra Battilana (right). — A stunning 22-year-old model with ties to former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi told police …

Discussion: Daily Mail and The Daily Caller

Neil Eggleston / White House.gov Blog:

Upholding the Principle of Fairness in Our Criminal Justice System Through Clemency — Building on his commitment to address instances of unfairness in sentencing, President Obama granted 22 commutations today to individuals serving time in federal prison. Had they been sentenced under current laws …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Magazine, Common Dreams and Horizons

Reuters:

Nigeria's Buhari wins historic election landslide — (Reuters) - Three decades after seizing power in a military coup, Muhammadu Buhari became the first Nigerian to oust a president through the ballot box, putting him in charge of Africa's biggest economy and one of its most turbulent democracies.

Discussion: Hit & Run, US News, Associated Press and The Week

BBC:
Nigeria election: Muhammadu Buhari set for victory

Discussion: New York Times, Pamela Geller, Atlas Shrugs, Center for Security Policy, Al Jazeera English, NPR, The Week and Shakesville

David Dayen / Salon:

Barney Frank drops a bombshell: How a shocking anecdote explains the financial crisis — Barney Frank has a new autobiography out. He's long been one of the nation's most quotable politicians. And Washington lives in perpetual longing for intra-party conflict.

Discussion: Bloomberg View

Jack Gillum / Associated Press:

Clinton also used iPad for email; mixed personal, work chats — 1 photo — WASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton emailed her staff on an iPad as well as a BlackBerry while secretary of state, despite her explanation she exclusively used a personal email address on a homebrew server …

Discussion: The PJ Tatler, BizPac Review, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Politico, American Spectator, Power Line, The Daily Caller, Liberal Values, VodkaPundit, Hot Air, Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg Business

Jura Koncius / Washington Post:

Stuff it: Millennials nix their parents' treasures — A seismic shift of stuff is underway in homes all over America. — Members of the generation that once embraced sex, drugs and rock-and-roll are trying to offload their place settings for 12, family photo albums and leather sectionals.

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Wall Street Journal

Jennifer Chowdhury / NBC News:

Indiana Woman Gets 20 Years for Feticide — Patel is the first woman to be sentenced under Indiana's feticide laws but she isn't the first woman to be charged. In 2011, Bei Bei Shuai, a Chinese American-woman, was held in prison for a year before feticide charges against her were dropped as part of a plea deal.

Discussion: KFOR-TV and The Daily Banter

Gotham Magazine:

Kevin Spacey on ‘House of Cards,’ Staying in Shape & Saving the Planet — With House of Cards, Kevin Spacey helped change the way we watch TV. Now he wants to change the way we look at the planet. — Kevin Spacey takes 10 seconds to dispense with the pleasantries and get down to business.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Hill, Patterico's Pontifications, Washington Post and Mediaite

Peter Sullivan / The Hill:

Top Republican dismisses Facebook praise for ObamaCare — A top Republican in the House says praise on her Facebook page for ObamaCare is mainly for parts of the law that have bipartisan support. — Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers's (R-Wash.) Facebook page has received enormous attention …

Discussion: Spokesman.com and Daily Kos

Dylan Byers / Politico:

Laura Ingraham to launch news site — Laura Ingraham, the conservative radio host and Fox News contributor, is planning to launch a new conservative news and opinion website, sources with knowledge of her plans told the On Media blog on Tuesday. — One source said that Neil Munro …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, more at Mediagazer »

Danielle Douglas-Gabriel / Washington Post:

A revolt is growing as more people refuse to pay back student loans — Remember those 15 people who refused to repay their federal student loans? Their “debt strike” has picked up 85 more disgruntled borrowers willing to jeopardize their financial future to pressure the government into forgiving their student loans.

Discussion: Common Dreams and Instapundit