memeorandum: APNewsBreak: EU Is Poised to Restrict Passport-Free Travel (Associated Press)

11:25 AM ET, February 12, 2016

Top Items:

'You didn't hear this from me, but. . .': Why South Carolina primary politics are so dirty. — COLUMBIA, S.C. — Here's a story, the gist of which will sound familiar to anyone living in South Carolina: Natalie Barrett, a 53-year-old schoolteacher from Westminster, got a robo-call earlier this month and ended up furious.

Discussion: ABC News

Matea Gold / Washington Post:

Super PAC makes big play to lift Hillary Clinton in primary states — The main super PAC supporting Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton is making its first significant foray into the 2016 primary, launching a radio campaign in South Carolina and spearheading a $4.5 million effort …

Discussion: NBC News, CNN, Political Wire and Politico

Steven Shepard / Politico:

Insiders: Hard road ahead for Trump — He finished a close second in Iowa, romped to a blowout victory in New Hampshire and leads the polls in South Carolina. — But the Republican members of The POLITICO Caucus - a panel of activists, strategists and operatives in the four early states …

Eliza Collins / Politico:

Trump calls Cruz a liar — Donald Trump has a new line of attack against Ted Cruz — he's a liar. — Over the past 24 hours, Trump has tweeted five times in some variation that the Texas senator is not truthful. — It all started Thursday morning with a tweet from the billionaire that Cruz was making negative robo-polls.

Discussion: RedState, Washington Post, Hot Air, The Gateway Pundit and The Week

Burgess Everett / Politico:
Cruz denies Trump accusation over ‘push polls’

Discussion: RedState, Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, Mediaite, New York Times, Political Wire, RT, The Right Scoop and Washington Post

Associated Press:
Debate Takeaways: Clinton, Sanders Appeal to SC, Nevada

Discussion: Politico, ABC News and abc11.com

Associated Press:
Kasich Works to Assure South Carolina of Conservative Record

Discussion: Politico, ABC News and abc11.com

The Intercept:
Hillary Clinton's Congressional Black Caucus PAC Endorsement Approved By Board Awash in Lobbyists

Discussion: VTDigger, The Daily Caller, Democracy Now, FiveThirtyEight, Talking Points Memo, addictinginfo.org, Congressional Black Caucus PAC, New York Times, Mediaite, Taylor Marsh, Vox and CNN

Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
John Lewis questions Sanders on civil rights involvement

Discussion: Hot Air

Gabriel Debenedetti / Politico:

Clinton to Sanders at debate: Get real — MILWAUKEE — A low-key debate turned fiery at the very end on Thursday night as Hillary Clinton unleashed a series of points to try and paint Bernie Sanders as opposed to President Barack Obama — a tack that Sanders forcefully rebutted.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, The Hinterland Gazette, New York Times, Yahoo Politics, The Hill and FOX News Radio

Wall Street Journal:

Hillary Clinton's Wall Street Talks Were Highly Paid, Friendly — Democratic presidential candidate has been criticized by rival Bernie Sanders for her ties to financial sector — In the two years between resigning as secretary of state and launching her presidential campaign …

Discussion: Bloomberg Business, Politico, Business Insider and Washington Free Beacon

Andrea Gonzales / ABC News:

Democratic Presidential Debate: 5 Moments That Mattered — In the final Democratic debate before the Nevada caucuses, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders faced off at a pivotal moment in the race for the Democratic nomination. — After a sweeping loss in the New Hampshire primary earlier this week …

Discussion: Washington Post, Politico, The Atlantic and FOX5 San Diego

New York Times:
Transcript of the Democratic Presidential Debate in Milwaukee

Discussion: Investor's Business Daily, Hot Air and Bracing Views

John Podhoretz / New York Post:
Apparently we should get on a boat and leave America ASAP

Discussion: Power Line and The Daily Caller

New York Times:
In Democratic Debate, Hillary Clinton Paints Bernie Sanders's Plans as Unrealistic

Discussion: Washington Post, Outside the Beltway, The Moderate Voice, AOL and Hit & Run

Katie Reilly / TIME:
Here's How the Democratic Debate Moderators Will Make History

Discussion: Hit & Run

Bradford Richardson / The Hill:
Sanders's Secret Service code name revealed

Discussion: Yahoo Politics, Mediaite, RT and The Week

Sahil Kapur / Bloomberg Business:
Bernie Sanders' Political Revolution Is Off to a Slow Start

Discussion: CNN, BuzzFeed, U.S. News and Guardian

Matt Rourke / Los Angeles Times:
Sanders would expand government by 40%, Clinton charges in debate

Discussion: Politico and Political Wire

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:

Cruz Campaign Removes Ad Featuring Softcore Porn Star — Amy Lindsay has appeared in films such as Erotic Confessions, Carnal Wishes, Secrets of a Chambermaid, and Insatiable Desires. “Had the campaign known of her full filmography, we obviously would not have let her appear in the ad,” a Cruz campaign spokesman told BuzzFeed News.

Discussion: Fox News, Washington Post, The Slot, Althouse, New York Times, Mock Paper Scissors, AOL, Daily Kos, Trail Blazers Blog, addictinginfo.org, Mediaite, Talking Points Memo, The Week, Political Wire and Politico

The Daily Caller:
Ted Cruz's Latest Ad Featured A Porn Star

Discussion: Yahoo Politics, RedState, Hot Air, Mediaite, Raw Story and Political Wire

Rebecca Savransky / The Hill:

Trump mocks Jeb Bush for bringing brother on campaign trail — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is mocking rival Jeb Bush for bringing his brother, former President George W. Bush, to help campaign. — “Don't fall asleep when I mention the name,” Trump said …

Discussion: ABC News, Scared Monkeys and Truth Revolt

Rebecca Savransky / The Hill:

Reid praises Trump for being ‘authentic’ — Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Thursday praised Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump for speaking his mind and being “authentic.” — “You may not agree with his authenticity, but he's authentic. People like that.

CNN:
First on CNN: Harry Reid says contested Democratic convention possible

Discussion: Hot Air and Politico

Louis Sahagun / Los Angeles Times:

Obama creates 3 new national monuments to protect 1.8 million acres of California desert — President Obama designated three new national monuments in the California desert Thursday, expanding federal protection to 1.8 million acres of landscapes that have retained their natural beauty despite decades …

Discussion: KTLA and The Week

Juliet Eilperin / Washington Post: Obama to designate new national monuments in the California desert

WBNS-TV:

Suspect Killed After Attacking Multiple People With Machete In Columbus Restaurant — Tylar Bacome — Police have shot and killed a suspect after he attacked multiple people at a restaurant in northeast Columbus with a machete. — The incident happened at the Nazareth Restaurant on N. Hamilton Road.

Discussion: Pamela Geller, The Gateway Pundit, Associated Press, Allen B. West, Jihad Watch, WCMH-TV and fox8.com

Jon Favreau / The Daily Beast:

Obama's Writer Pens Trump Victory Speech — Jon Favreau gives you a glimpse of what the Republican frontrunner will likely sound like should he win the nomination. — It's come to this: I've written a Donald Trump speech. — It's not something I necessarily enjoyed doing …

Discussion: Politico

Reid Wilson / Morning Consult:

Poll: Wins Push Trump, Sanders to New Heights — After winning New Hampshire's presidential primaries by wide margins, New York real estate magnate Donald Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders are soaring to new heights among their respective party's voters, a new Morning Consult poll finds …

Discussion: Political Wire, The Week and Balloon Juice

Greg Keller / Associated Press:

QUESTIONS GROW OVER BANKS AS PROFIT WARNINGS PILE UP — PARIS (AP) — Questions are growing over the financial health of banks, particularly in Europe and the U.S., as they face a toxic mix of low economic growth, bad loans and squeezed earnings. — France's Societe Generale became Thursday …

Clive Crook / BloombergView.com:
The New Frontier of Negative Interest Rates

Discussion: Bloomberg Business

Naomi Jagoda / The Hill:

Tempers flare at IRS hearing — A heated argument erupted Thursday at a hearing on the IRS, with Democrats and Republicans trading charges about the work of the Oversight Committee. — Two Democrats on the panel accused their GOP colleagues of repeatedly holding hearings on the IRS for political reasons.