New poll on the Virginia Gubernatorial race by SurveyUSA shows Terry McAuliffe with a handy lead over his two main rivals in the Democratic primary, though still with plenty of undecideds:

Democratic Primary (409 LV, MoE +/-4.9%)
McAuliffe 38
Moran 22
Deeds 22
Undecided 18

In potential general election match-ups, however, all three Democrats trail Republican Bob McDonnell:

McDonnell (R) 44
Deeds (D) 39

McDonnell (R) 46
McAuliffe (D) 39

McDonnell (R) 46
Moran (D) 34

So says a study by the Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism of the media's coverage of Obama's first 100 days:

As he marks his 100th day in office, President Barack Obama has enjoyed substantially more positive media coverage than either Bill Clinton or George Bush during their first months in the White House, according to a new study of press coverage.

Overall, roughly four out of ten stories, editorials and op ed columns about Obama have been clearly positive in tone, compared with 22% for Bush and 27% for Clinton in the same mix of seven national media outlets during the same first two months in office, according to a study by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism.

The study found positive stories about Obama have outweighed negative by two-to-one (42% vs. 20%) while 38% of stories have been neutral or mixed.

Richard Benedetto, retired White House correspondent for USA Today who now teaches journalism at American and Georgetown Universities, had a similar (though less scientific) take in Politico this morning:

With few exceptions, the mainstream news media have been dutifully pushing the Obama message, burnishing his carefully crafted image and offering few challenges when he makes questionable or misleading pronouncements, gestures or policy statements. In short, they seem mesmerized by the glamour of this new and different president. He is keeping them so busy with skillfully staged daily travel, speeches, meetings and photo ops that they hardly have time to ask tough questions or add context to their stories. Whatever Obama says, or doesn't say, is usually good enough for them.

No comment from the president on pirates taking hostage the captain of a U.S.-flagged ship? No problem.

Get a new dog? Three days of extensive coverage everywhere.

A round up of Specter related commentary from across the ideological spectrum, courtesy of RCP's David Russell:

Specter Had Disavowed Switch – Eric Zimmerman, The Hill

Specter's Second Party Switch – Mark Silva, The Swamp

Not All Democrats Supporting Specter -  Josh Kraushaar, Politico

Specter Playing for Both Teams - Ryan Sager, TrueSlant

What Does the Supermajority Mean? – Marc Ambinder, The Atlantic

Specter Opts to Survive – Dick Polman, Philly Inquirer

Toomey Shrinks the GOP – Alex Knepper, Race42008

Why Specter Had to Switch – Eric Kleefeld, TPM

The Democrat Most Deserving of a Primary Challenge – Chris Bowers, Open Left

Guess Toomey Has the GOP Primary Won – Jim Geraghty, Campaign Spot

Specter Switch: Great News, But Now a Dem Primary – David Sirota, Huffington Post

Arlen Specter, Democrat – Ben Domenech, New Ledger

When Specter Tipped His Hand – Noam Scheiber, The Plank

Specter's Switcheroos – Jonathan Tobin, Contentions

Wednesday marks 100 days. The first milestone of the presidency has garnered relentless media analysis. This writer is no exception, as I focused on the four major trends of President Obama's first 100 days. But enough already. There have been more words on the subject than even the most voracious reader wishes to digest. So lets break up the type with a bit of the visual. Below is a look at Barack Obama's first 100 days by the numbers.

Now to Obama's biggest supporters. (more...)

From The Fix:

Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter will switch his party affiliation from Republican to Democrat, according to sources informed on the decision.

Specter's decision would give Democrats a 60 seat filibuster proof majority in the Senate assuming Democrat Al Franken is eventually sworn in as the next Senator from Minnesota. (Former Sen. Norm Coleman is appealing Franken's victory in the state Supreme Court.)

Specter as a Democrat would also fundamentally alter the 2010 calculus in Pennsylvania as he was expected to face a difficult primary challenge next year from former Rep. Pat Toomey. The only announced Democrat in the race is former National Constitution Center head Joe Torsella although several other candidates are looking at the race.

I believe the only appropriate comments at this point are "wow" and "I guess we really will get to see if Pat Toomey is a more viable general election candidate than Snarlin' Arlen after all."

(more...)

How did your team do in the NFL Draft? RealClearSports employs the wisdom of the crowds to produce a master grade point average this morning.

Melik Kaylan writes a quirky ode to Christopher Hitchens:

What on earth are they thinking in Buckingham Palace that no one has yet offered Chris Hitchens a knighthood? How impoverished the intellectual life of our time would be without Hitch's inspiration and example. I hereby commence my own personal campaign--the road may be long, it may at times be arduous and embattled, etc.-- to ensure his elevation to the peerage. What heraldic appellation would suit? Baron Hitch of ... what? Chateau Mouton? Balvenie? All suggestions gratefully received.

I trust I don't need to over-advocate: We all know what I mean about Hitchens. Erudition, intellectual courage, bloody-minded wit, near-sacramental love of the grape. I remember a lovely young thing once saying that Chris Hitchens was the only sexy pundit in America. In France, she said, public intellectuals are allowed, indeed required, to be glamorous and cool. Not so in the Anglo-Saxon world which de-eroticizes the mind to make it publicly presentable. The only exception being Hitchens, she said, who flashes out his brilliance with just the right sexy leavening of arrogance.

“I like to think of them sitting on deckchairs and enjoying the music. It shuts them up. For a few seconds before I start to play, I experience what it is like to feel that wonderful word: normal.” - Piano prodigy Nick Van Bloss, explaining how the tics and convulsions he suffers from as a result of Tourette's syndrome disappear when he sits down to play. After the disease drove him into seclusion, Van Bloss returns tonight with his first public performance in 15 years.

The latest CBS News/NY Times survey (April 22-26, 973 Adults, 3.0% MoE) gives Obama high marks almost across the board, including a 68% job approval rating. There's lots more inside the poll, which we'll get to a bit later.

Set the Tivo for Tuesday, May 5 at 10:00 pm: PBS is airing what sounds like a fascinating documentary about Kamikaze pilots who survived the war.