memeorandum: Give States a Tool to Check Federal Power (Marianne Moran/Richmond Times-Dispatch)

8:10 PM ET, September 19, 2010

Top Items:

G.O.P. Insider Fuels Tea Party and Suspicion — WASHINGTON — In the days leading up to the Delaware primary, Sal Russo hosted a radio fund-raiser, organized a political rally and pressed the case with reporters that Christine O'Donnell was the Tea Party's choice for the United States Senate.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, FoxNews.com, The Mahablog, Politerati and Politics Daily

Elise Viebeck / The Hill:

Bloomberg: Tea Party is a ‘boomlet’ — In a wide-ranging interview published Saturday, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg characterized the recent increase in Tea-Party rancor as a temporary development in American politics. — “I think there boomlets come along when the public is dissatisfied,” he told the New York Times.

Discussion: iOwnTheWorld.com and NewsReal Blog

CNN:

Murkowski: I was victim of ‘smear’ campaign — (CNN) - Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski is defending her choice to mount a write-in campaign in the wake of her defeat to a Tea Party-backed candidate, telling CNN's Candy Crowley she was the victim of a “smear” campaign.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Raven Brooks:
About that Tea Party convention... canceled

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Crooks and Liars

Bridget Johnson / Ballot Box:
DeMint rips Murkowski as ‘big-tent hypocrite’

Discussion: CNN, GOP 12, Don Surber, protein wisdom, The Politico, The Hill and Hotline On Call

Michael Barbaro / New York Times:
Bloomberg Pushes Moderates in National Races

Discussion: Politics Daily, The Caucus, The Eye, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and FrumForum

Bruce Drake / Politics Daily:

Karl Rove Says Christine O'Donnell Needs to Explain Witchcraft ‘Dabbling’ to Voters … Karl Rove, political mastermind for former President Bush said Sunday that Christine O'Donnell, the Tea Party insurgent who won an upset victory in Delaware for the GOP Senate nomination, “can't simply ignore” …

Discussion: delawareonline, Liberty Pundits Blog and Riehl World View

Faiz Shakir / Think Progress:

O'Donnell On ‘Witchcraft’ Comment: 'How Many Of You Didn't Hang Out With Questionable Folks?' — Anti-masturbation activist, witchcraft-dabbler, and GOP senate candidate Christine O'Donnell dodged her Sunday show appearances in order to attend a partisan fundraising picnic in Delaware today.

Discussion: Associated Press and Wonkette

Roxana Tiron / The Hill:
Rove: Murkowski's write-in campaign is ‘sad and sorry’

Discussion: Raw Story and Left Coast Rebel

Michelle Malkin:
Bill Maher's witch hunt …

Discussion: The Daily Dish, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Huffington Post, FoxNews.com, Pam's House Blend, Think Progress, The Moderate Voice, Gothamist, Pundit & Pundette, The Mahablog, Doug Ross, Ruby Slippers, Don Surber, News Hounds and The Other McCain

The Hill:

Clinton says he was wrong on healthcare bill's popularity — Former president Bill Clinton, a champion of healthcare reform, admitted on Sunday that he made the wrong prediction about the popularity of President Obama's healthcare bill. — Initially, Clinton had predicted that the polls …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and Questions and Observations

Bridget Johnson / The Hill:

Bill Clinton: Tea Party is ‘general revolt against bigness’ — Former President Bill Clinton said Sunday that the Tea Party movement “reflects the feeling of a lot of Americans that they're getting the shaft,” but isn't clear what it stands for. — On CBS' “Face the Nation,” …

Discussion: Gateway Pundit

Carrie Budoff Brown / The Politico:

Colin Powell critical of President Obama — Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, a Republican who endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for president in 2008, said on Sunday the president needs to “shift” his approach with voters feeling overloaded by a series of new laws that expand the scope of government.

Associated Press:

Colin Powell: Illegal Immigrants Fix My House — Former Secretary of State Urges Republicans to Support Path to Legal Status for Undocumented Workers — (AP) Former Secretary of State Colin Powell says illegal immigrants do essential work in the U.S. and he has firsthand knowledge of that - because they fix his house.

Discussion: TalkLeft

Roxana Tiron / The Hill:
Powell holds off on next endorsement, says Obama should focus on ‘governing’

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

Media Decoder:

Newsweek's Howard Fineman to Join The Huffington Post — Howard Fineman, one of the more recognizable pundits on cable television and a correspondent for Newsweek for 30 years, is leaving the magazine to become a senior editor at The Huffington Post. — Mr. Fineman's move from print media …

Discussion: Mediaite, New York Magazine and Gawker, more at Mediagazer »

Craig Whitlock / Washington Post:

Members of U.S. platoon in Afghanistan accused of killing civilians for sport — AT JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, WASH. The U.S. soldiers hatched a plan as simple as it was savage: to randomly target and kill an Afghan civilian, and to get away with it. — For weeks, according to Army charging documents …

Discussion: Politics Daily, Taylor Marsh, Political Byline, The Reality-Based Community, Prairie Weather, msnbc.com, Corrente and FrumForum

Marianne Moran / Richmond Times-Dispatch:

Give States a Tool to Check Federal Power — Richmond, Va. — George Mason and James Madison were two Virginians who, while initially differing on the wisdom of adding a Bill of Rights to the Constitution, ended up working together to craft the first 10 amendments.

Discussion: Dean's World