Friday Must-Reads: Showdown?

Everyone in Washington was talking yesterday about Obama and Cheney’s dueling foreign-policy speeches—and whether it was really a duel. There are varying narratives, some saying Obama’s hand was forced while others laugh off the notion that the two speakers were anywhere near equal. Cheney, though, remains popular with the GOP, though not quite everyone wants him on their campaign trail. To round out the speech coverage, Politico runs a fact check of both speeches. Though it’s very (very) early, Obama is polling well against some of the likely 2012 contenders, including Newt Gingrich. Still, in another measure—the price to buy into a raffle to meet the politician—Newt seems to be in higher demand. You can win a meet-and-greet with the president for as little as a $5 contribution to the DSCC, while to meet Newt you need to drop a hefty $50 to the NRCC. I mentioned some of the April committee fundraising numbers yesterday; the complete set is available here.