Our roundup of news and blog links. Links do not necessarily reflect the opinions of TMV or its many writers. (Bloggers are welcome to send links for future editions).
DECODING SCOTUS: Andrew Sullivan on how the Supreme Court ruling on health care may not be what people immediately think it is at first glance.
IS THE BLAME ELSEWHERE? A suspended Politico reporter points the finger at Breitbart.com for part of his problems. But as I noted here, isn’t the blame also elsehwere (like, possibly with the reporter?). Sometimes blame is in two places (duh).
IS FAST AND FURIOUS LIKE WATERGATE? Or is it not (like in at least six ways)?
COVERING YOUR BASES (and your political a–): Obama prepares three speeches and will one with The Big Supreme Court Ruling comes down.
IF SCOTUS SCUTTLES THE INDIVIDUAL MANDATE WHAT NEXT? A move for single payer in several states.
A HIGH CONCEPT VISUAL DURING ERIC HOLDER CONTEMPT VOTE: Get ready to see the Black Caucus walk out.
DON’T EXPECT DEMOCRATIC UNITY ON THIS: At least three Dems will join Republicans to vote against Holder (some think this is due to NRA looming and making a list and checking it twice…gonna find out who’s naughty and nice…and the present to those who vote their way will be re-election support).
THE OBAMA ROMNEY RACE: Some state polls continue to show a very close race.
THIS JUST IN FROM NEWS CORP! The company has approved a split (I thought it split from real, detached journalism many years ago or is Fox News really an extension of Disney’s Fantasyland?)
JIMMY CARTER ISSUES SEARING CRITICISM OF AMERICA BUT NOBODY SEEMS TO LISTEN and some wonder why. I think there is a simple answer. Carter has come across as a gadfly in recent years, who in his own way is as predictable as a show on Fox News or MSNBC. Rightfully or wrongfully, he simply does not have much credibility with many Americans, who do admire his desire to build houses for the poor. End of story and real explanation. Historians will not view him years for now as “another Truman,” unappreciated in his time but as an example of someone whose time in office did not live up to the hopes raised in his election campaign. Barack Obama is poised to be “another Truman” or “another Carter” — or will in the end he create the category of “another Obama” (good or bad implications yet to be determined)?
TWO THIRDS OF AMERICANS THINK BARACK OBAMA WOULD BE BETTER SUITED TO HANDLE AN ALIEN INVASION THAN MITT ROMNEY: A poll finds that if aliens said “take me to your leader,” 2/3s of Americans would point to Barack Obama. I suspect that if aliens said “take me to your leader” to Republicans, many of them would take them to Rush Limbaugh.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.