Top Items:
Alyssa Marino / ABC57 News:
RFRA: First Michiana business to publicly deny same-sex service — A small-town pizza shop is saying they agree with Governor Pence and the signing of the controversial Religious Freedom Restoration Act. — The O'Connor family, who owns Memories Pizza, says they have a right to believe in their religion and protect those ideals.
Discussion:
The Huffington Post, CBS Cleveland, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, Unicorn Booty, Washington Post, Politico, BarbWire.com, msnbc.com, The Daily Caller, Towleroad News #gay, The Moderate Voice, Raw Story, ThinkProgress, ABC News, Bloomberg Business, abc7news.com, Hot Air, Daily Kos, The Atlantic Online, Talking Points Memo, The Hinterland Gazette, Liberaland, National Review, CBS New York, Scripting News, PinkNews, New York Magazine and Balloon Juice
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Rich Juzwiak / Gawker:
Indiana Pizzeria Takes Brave Stand of Denying Gays Pizza for Weddings — Crystal O'Connor of Memories Pizza in Walkerton, Indiana, has her finger on the pulse of what gays want at their weddings: pizza. But thanks to her home state's new Religious Freedom Restoration Act …
Discussion:
Right Wing Watch, Hit & Run and The Daily Banter
Ed Kilgore / Washington Monthly:
Want Some Cheese With That Whine, Conservatives? — If you want a good example of what cultural conservatives are telling themselves about the backlash over Indiana's (and probably Arkansas' before the week is out) “religious liberty” law, there's none better than the pity party Timothy Carney held …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Hot Air, Booman Tribune and Alliance Defending …
Tracy Walsh / Talking Points Memo:
David Letterman: ‘This Is Not The Indiana I Remember As A Kid’ (VIDEO) — Comedian and native Hoosier David Letterman during his show Tuesday night tore into Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) for signing the state's divisive Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law.
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business, John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Mediaite
Michael Falcone / ABC News:
The Note: Obama's Latest Numbers
The Note: Obama's Latest Numbers
Discussion:
San Diego Gay and Lesbian, Associated Press and Booman Tribune
Indianapolis Star:
Exclusive: ‘Religious freedom’ proposal with limited LGBT protections taken to Pence
Exclusive: ‘Religious freedom’ proposal with limited LGBT protections taken to Pence
Discussion:
Politico, Towleroad News #gay, Weekly Standard and Fox 59
Michael Warren / Weekly Standard:
February Poll: Majority Support Religious Right to Refuse Gay-Wedding Services
February Poll: Majority Support Religious Right to Refuse Gay-Wedding Services
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business, Washington Post and National Review
Catherine Thompson / Talking Points Memo:
Indiana Pizzeria Vows To Never Deliver A Pizza To A Gay Wedding
Indiana Pizzeria Vows To Never Deliver A Pizza To A Gay Wedding
Discussion:
Politico, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, The Gateway Pundit, The Mahablog, ABC News, National Review and New York Times
Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
Indiana governor backs down, calls for fix to religious law
Indiana governor backs down, calls for fix to religious law
Discussion:
Firedoglake
Timothy P. Carney / Washington Examiner:
The Left wages total war; and then plays victim
The Left wages total war; and then plays victim
Discussion:
The Federalist, The Other McCain, alicublog, The Anchoress, Hot Air and New York Times
New York Times:
Arkansas Governor Asks Lawmakers to Recall Religious Freedom Bill — LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Facing a backlash from businesses and gay rights advocates, Gov. Asa Hutchinson of Arkansas on Wednesday called on state lawmakers to either recall or amend legislation billed as a religious freedom measure …
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Eric Bradner / CNN:
Arkansas governor sends religious freedom bill back to legislators — Washington (CNN)Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson says he does not plan to sign the religious freedom bill that sits on his desk right now, instead asking state lawmakers to make changes so the bill mirrors federal law.
Discussion:
CNNMoney, The Huffington Post, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Banter, New York Times, OnPolitics, CBS DC, Hit & Run, Unicorn Booty, Washington Blade, Common Dreams, Reuters, The Right Scoop, Vox, Washington Post, New York Magazine, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Gateway Pundit and Daily Signal
Chris Geidner / BuzzFeed:
Tech Leaders Call For States To Pass LGBT Protections, Ban Denial Of Services
Tech Leaders Call For States To Pass LGBT Protections, Ban Denial Of Services
Discussion:
The Verge and New York Times
Krishnadev Calamur / NPR:
Arkansas Governor Asks Lawmakers For Changes To ‘Religious Freedom’ Bill
Arkansas Governor Asks Lawmakers For Changes To ‘Religious Freedom’ Bill
Discussion:
USA Today, Business Insider, Washington Post, Politico, The Daily Banter, Talking Points Memo and National Review
Politico:
DOJ: No contempt charges for former IRS official Lois Lerner — The Justice Department will not seek criminal contempt charges against former IRS official Lois Lerner, the central figure in a scandal that erupted over whether the tax agency improperly targeted conservative political groups.
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway, Mediaite, Washington Post, The Right Scoop and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
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Darius Dixon / Politico:
House panel inquiring into former energy official's $1.7 million job
House panel inquiring into former energy official's $1.7 million job
Discussion:
The PJ Tatler
Matt Apuzzo / New York Times:
Senator Robert Menendez Indicted on Corruption Charges — WASHINGTON — Senator Robert Menendez was indicted on federal corruption charges on Wednesday, according to The Associated Press, setting the stage for a bitter court fight and putting his political future in doubt.
Discussion:
Political Wire
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H.A. Goodman / The Hill:
Why Americans should consider O'Malley for president — Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) is correct to point out that the presidency is not a crown to be passed “between two families,” as he stated in a recent “This Week” appearance on ABC. O'Malley is a rising star in the Democratic Party …
Discussion:
JustOneMinute and Washington Post
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Barack Obama / Medium:
A New Tool Against Cyber Threats — It's one of the great paradoxes of our Information Age—the very technologies that empower us to do great good can also be used by adversaries to inflict great harm. The same technologies that help keep our military strong are used by hackers in China …
Discussion:
VentureBeat, The Hill, The Verge, White House.gov Blog, The Daily Caller and Mashable
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Los Angeles Times:
Brown orders California's first mandatory water restrictions: 'It's a different world' — Gov. Jerry Brown, standing on a patch of brown grass in the Sierra Nevada that is usually covered with several feet of snow at this time of year, on Wednesday announced the first mandatory water restrictions in California history.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Boing Boing, The Week and Mediaite
Erick Erickson / RedState:
Two Years Later, You'll Still Be Made to Care — In the last twenty-four hours, much of the mainstream media has shown itself perfectly willing to serve as agents of Satan (or should I use Moloch to make you feel better?). Most of the news anchors, reporters, and opinion writers of the press …
Discussion:
Political Insider blog, BizPac Review, The Right Scoop, Booman Tribune and The American Conservative
Jason Horowitz / New York Times:
Scott Walker, Allergic to Dogs, May Run Against Political History — Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin and his wife, Tonette, had planned to spend a recent Friday night at the Nashua home of Jennifer Horn, the New Hampshire Republican chairwoman. — Then he heard about Al, the Horns' beloved Dalmatian-Catahoula Leopard mix.
Discussion:
Greenville News, BarbWire.com, OnPolitics, Hot Air, Fox News Insider, Althouse and New York Magazine
Pew Internet:
U.S. Smartphone Use in 2015 — Key Themes of This Report — 10% of Americans own a smartphone but do not have broadband at home, and 15% own a smartphone but say that they have a limited number of options for going online other than their cell phone. Those with relatively low income …
Discussion:
Politico, Political Wire, Pew Research Center, The Hill and NPR, more at Mediagazer »
Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
Cruz enters top tier of GOP hopefuls — PPP's newest Republican national poll finds that Ted Cruz has the big momentum following the official announcement of his candidacy last week. His support has increased from 5% to 16% in just over a month, enough to make him one of three candidates …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, No More Mister Nice Blog and Real Clear Politics
Wall Street Journal:
McDonald's to Raise Hourly Pay for 90,000 Workers — CEO says restaurant giant will pay at least $1 per hour more than minimum wage — McDonald's Corp. plans to raise pay by more than 10% and add benefits like paid vacation for workers at U.S. restaurants it operates …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, New York Times, Washington Post and Consumerist
Michele Bachmann / Facebook:
With his Iran deal, Barack Obama is for the 300 million souls of the United States what Andreas Lubitz was for the 150 souls on the German Wings flight - a deranged pilot flying his entire nation into the rocks. After the fact, among the smoldering remains of American cities, the shocked survivors will ask, why did he do it?
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Mashable, Business Insider, Mediaite and The Daily Caller