Dylan Ratigan is off today. Matt Miller (@mattmillernow) will anchor from Burbank, CA.
The Big Story: Romney in Illinois! We’ll talk to Tom Fitzgerald, politics reporter at the Philadelphia Inquirer and Alexander Burns, national political reporter for Politico. As you know by now, Romney won Illinois last night by 12 points, taking home (well, not literally) 41 delegates. With Newt Gingrich running out of cash quickly, he’s complaining about Mitt Romney’s fundraising advantage. Who is he kidding? Doesn’t the GOP need a candidate who can go toe-to-toe with the ultimate fundraiser, Barack Obama? Some more stories that we’re reading today: Small group of donors and their funding of Super PACs. “Swift Boat” ad backer gives $3 million to pro-Romney PAC. Romney’s Illinois victory speech – could this be his stump speech if it turns out to be Romney vs. Obama? Politico’s “5 Takeaways from Illinois.”
The Wednesday Megapanel: On set today are Imogen Lloyd Webber (@illoydwebber) + Jonathan Capehart (@capehartj) + Rob Cox (@rob1cox). First up, we’ll talk about “War on Trial” with the latest from the story on Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, and some new comments from his attorney. Does this latest incident have enough traction to up-end American policy on this decade-long war?
The Specialist: We’re in age of disruption: technology in the 21st century allows more and more people to have access to information. That poses a threat to established business models, but also creates new opportunities to find solutions to our problems. We’ll talk to Vijay Vaitheeswaran (@NeedSpeedGreed), author of the new book Need, Speed and Greed: How the New Rules of Innovation Can Transform Businesses, Propel Nations to Greatness, and Tame the World’s Most Wicked Problems.
Where Diversity Succeeds: Billed as an inspiring look at five thriving, diverse communities across the world, authors Karl Meyer and Shareen Blair Brysac offer a blueprint for multicultural tolerance and acceptance in their new book, Pax Ethnica: Where and How Diversity Succeeds. Travels take the authors to the port city of Marseille, France, home to Europe’s largest Muslim community; Queens, New York, where 2.3 million people speak 138 languages; and Flensburg, Germany, the epicenter of the “Schleswig-Holstein Question” that fueled conflict for over a century but is now peaceful. What do all these places have in common? How do people overcome diversity and make it work for them?
To wrap things up, Krystal Ball (@krystalball1) will handle today’s Daily Rant.