memeorandum: US State Dept. blasts CNN report on Christopher Stevens' diary (Associated Press)

1:40 PM ET, September 23, 2012

Top Items:

Elizabeth Flock / US News:

Mitt Romney Calls U.S.A. a ‘Foreign Country’ in His Tax Returns — Maybe Mitt Romney thinks he lives in Switzerland? — When the former Massachusetts governor released his official 2011 tax return Friday, he (or whoever actually filled out the form) appeared to have mistakenly referred to the United States as a foreign country.

Discussion: Outside the Beltway and The New Civil Rights Movement

John Podhoretz / New York Post: Romney the giver — The big news from tax returns

Kevin Bogardus / The Hill:
Graham: Election about economy, not Romney's tax returns

Discussion: CNN

Associated Press:

US State Dept. blasts CNN report on Christopher Stevens' diary — April 11, 2011: U.S. envoy Chris Stevens, center, speaks to Council member for Misrata Dr. Suleiman Fortia, right, at the Tibesty Hotel where an African Union delegation was meeting with opposition leaders in Benghazi, Libya.AP

Discussion: protein wisdom and Althouse

Mike Allen / Politico:

State Department: CNN ‘indefensible’ on late ambassador Christopher Stevens's diary — The State Department - in a harsh, detailed statement - is accusing CNN of an “indefensible” invasion of the privacy of Christopher Stevens, the late U.S. ambassador to Libya, after finding his seven-page journal in the consulate where he was killed.

Discussion: Towleroad News #gay, New York Magazine and Mediaite

Wall Street Journal:

Family Protests CNN's Use of Slain Envoy's Journal — CNN obtained a personal journal that belonged to the slain American ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, and broadcast reports based on its contents against the wishes of the Stevens family, according to relatives and State Department officials …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, The PJ Tatler, Mediaite, Outside the Beltway, Deadline.com, Taylor Marsh, The Lonely Conservative, Twitchy and CNN, more at Mediagazer »

Daily Mail:
Scroll down to watch video from Wednesday' show

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, NewsBusters.org and The Huffington Post

Carlo Munoz / The Hill:

GOP pushes Romney to break from White House's Afghan strategy — Some Republican defense hawks are urging Mitt Romney to separate himself from President Obama on Afghanistan and back an extended presence for U.S. troops in the country. — The advice comes as the White House hits …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, CNN, New York Times, americanthinker.com, The Agonist and Prairie Weather

Elizabeth Drew / New York Review of Books:

Voting Wrongs — Voters make their choices at voting booths set up on the stage of the auditorium at East High School, in Cleveland, Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2004. — The Republicans' plan is that if they can't buy the 2012 election they will steal it. — The plan, long in the making …

Discussion: Corrente and Connecting.the.Dots

James Fallows / The Atlantic Online: ‘The Worst Thing That Has Happened to Our Democratic Election System’

Igor Volsky / ThinkProgress:

Paul Ryan Tells Florida Seniors That Obamacare Includes Death Panels — Paul Ryan likened a mechanism to control health care spending to “death panels,” during a town hall at the University of Central Florida in Orlando on Saturday. — After listening to Ryan repeatedly call for the repeal …

Discussion: Bluestem Prairie and The Mahablog

Amie Parnes / Ballot Box:

RNC chair: ‘Not the best week’ for Romney — Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus acknowledged Sunday that it was “probably not the best week” for the Romney campaign. — “It wasn't the best said moment in the campaign and probably not the best week in the campaign,” …

Discussion: CNN and Politico

New York Times:

Egypt's New Leader Spells Out Terms for U.S.-Arab Ties — CAIRO — On the eve of his first trip to the United States as Egypt's new Islamist president, Mohamed Morsi said the United States needed to fundamentally change its approach to the Arab world, showing greater respect for its values …

Discussion: protein wisdom, BBC, The PJ Tatler, The Times of Israel, Booman Tribune, Israel Matzav, Wake up America and American Power

James Glanz / New York Times:

The Cloud Factories: Data Centers Waste Vast Amounts of Energy, Belying Industry Image — SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Jeff Rothschild's machines at Facebook had a problem he knew he had to solve immediately. They were about to melt. — The company had been packing a 40-by-60-foot rental space …

Discussion: Cafe Hayek and Gizmodo

Nicholas D. Kristof / New York Times:

Exploiting the Prophet — “PISS CHRIST,” a famous photograph partly financed by taxpayers, depicted a crucifix immersed in what the artist said was his own urine. But conservative Christians did not riot on the Washington Mall. — “The Book of Mormon,” a huge hit on Broadway, mocks the church's beliefs as hocus-pocus.

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and Gothamist

Matt K. Lewis / The Daily Caller:

As NBC News reports, if you count early voting and absentee voting, close to half the nation can vote starting today. — This is a problem for several reasons. — 1. It doesn't work. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin demonstrated that early voting can actually depress turnout.

Discussion: americanthinker.com and Hot Air