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1.) MSNBCrazy — Republican Gov. Scott Walker pulled off a huge victory in Wisconsin Tuesday night, becoming the first governor in American history to survive a recall election (of course, he was only the third to face one). Conventional wisdom suggests that this was a terrible night for Democrats and an excellent one for the GOP. But for some MSNBC pundits, the message of the night was clear: President Obama won a tremendous victory. TheDC’s Jeff Poor reports:
“’Tonight, the really big winner in the Wisconsin recall election is President Obama,’ MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell said at the top of his Tuesday program after parent network NBC called the race for Gov. Scott Walker over Democrat Tom Barrett … ‘John Heilemann, I said at the top of the show that President Obama big winner tonight because in the exit polls we saw today that, they were asked, ‘Who would you for president today?’ O’Donnell explained. ‘Fifty-three percent in Wisconsin, 53 percent say President Obama. Only 42 percent say Mitt Romney. That is — if not the recall outcome — that outcome for President Obama has to be very encouraging.’”
For other MSNBC commentators, however, the Democrats’ loss in Wisconsin was painful. MSNBC host Ed Shultz opened his show by declaring: “This is not going to be an easy night for this broadcaster.” In fairness, every night is difficult for Ed because every night involves reading, and reading — along with writing, thinking and speaking — is not Ed’s strong suit. He is, however, an excellent drooler.
2.) Happy National Safe Digging Month — TheDC’s Caroline May reports that Congress continues to do what it does best — spend money on the most trivial things:
“The U.S. Senate has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on printing costs associated with passing simple resolutions declaring observances such as ‘National Chess Day,’ ‘National Safe Digging Month’ and the ‘Year of Water.’… During this 112th Congress alone, the Senate has passed or agreed to 318 simple resolutions and introduced over 100 more.”
But the more you think about it, isn’t a few hundred thousands dollars a small price to pay to forever commemorate “Collector Car Appreciation Day,” “National Investors Month,” and “The Year of the Family Caregiver?”
3.) You don’t know jack — A new book by former Mitt Romney colleague Ed Conard argues that everything you’ve learned about economics is wrong. In a video interview with TheDC’s Jamie Weinstein (ME!), Conard provides some advice on what should be done to get the economy going:
“In his book, Conard puts forth an alternative view of what caused the recent financial meltdown and makes the case that ‘the 1 percent’ and Wall Street aren’t the villains some have made them out to be. He also lays out what he believes should be done to get us out of our current morass and prevent a future financial crisis. ‘Don’t diminish the incentives for risk-taking,’ he told TheDC.”
4.) Double agent man — Charles Krauthammer thinks Bill Clinton is a Benedict Arnold in President Obama’s re-election army. TheDC’s Jeff Poor reports:
“On Fox News Channel’s ‘Special Report’ on Tuesday, syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer called former President Bill Clinton a ‘double agent,’ saying that Clinton is not doing President Barack Obama any favors … ‘Well, I think he really is now a bull in a china shop,’ Krauthammer said. ‘And there’s a lot of crockery being destroyed. It’s very clear. When he said the thing about ‘the sterling business record,’ that was extremely undermining because, of course, it contradicted the whole roll-out strategy of the Obama campaign, which was to portray Romney as vulture capitalist.'”
5.) Poll of the Day: Economy, federal budget deficit top issues — CNN/ORC poll asks Americans what issue is the most important issue facing the country: 52% said the economy, 18% said the federal budget deficit, 14% said health care, 5% said terrorism, 4% said illegal immigration, 3% said Afghanistan, 1% said policies toward gays and lesbians.
6.) Tweet of Yesterday — Jim Antle: To decriminalize weed but ban the munchies is sadistic. #bloomberg
VIDEO: The Vice Guide to Karachi. So good it hurts. WATCH. IT. NOW.