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–Michael Steele’s woes atop the RNC are being compounded, not helped, by a handful of high-profile resignations, including chief of staff Ken McKay. Rather than looking like he’s getting his house in order, the departures inevitably lead to a series of stories citing the recent risque spending flap that, despite no evidence of his involvement, further damage the chairman’s image.
–He’s trying to sooth rankled donors and fundraisers, but media attention won’t help. His best bet for rescuing what’s left of his tenure is to keep his head down and work/hope for the best in November.
–Newt Gingrich offers a qualified defense of Steele, warning Republicans against losing sight of the midterms.
–Good timing for the launch of Dave Weigel’s new blog at the Washington Post.
–President Obama is announcing changes to U.S. nuclear strategy, in many ways the first major post-Cold War shift. Conditions for use have been narrowed and tied to treaty status, and reaction time has been extended. Marc Ambinder explains. Both the treaty clause and renouncement of any new nuclear weapon development fit into Obama’s larger nonproliferation push, a favored cause since his Senate days.
–Our colleague Mark Thompson tells the story behind a video obtained by WikiLeaks showing an American helicopter firing on two Reuters reporters, among others, in 2007.
–The AP confirms the film’s authenticity.
–Our colleague Michael Grunwald explains why there’s a long, rocky path ahead for financial regulatory reform.
–Congress isn’t done investigating the last crisis.
–Former eBay CEO Meg Whitman has gifted her campaign another serious chunk of cash. There are still two months to go before California’s gubernatorial primary, and she’s now in for a total of $59 million, fueling a relentless statewide ad blitz. To give some perspective, Mitt Romney self-funded $45 million of his ’08 presidential run, and Ross Perot dropped $65 million on his 1992 White House bid.
–And Greg Sargent gets his hands on a NRCC health care flip-flop ad hitting no-to-yes Suzanne Kosmas in Florida. It employs that age-old political trick of tying the opponent to gross-looking feet (!?).
What did I miss?