The Note's Must-Reads for Tuesday, May 01, 2012

The Note's Must-Reads are a round-up of today's political headlines and stories from ABC News and the top U.S. newspapers. Posted Monday through Friday right here at www.abcnews.com

Compiled by ABC News' Jayce Henderson, Amanda VanAllen and Ben Waldron

PRESIDENT OBAMA ABC News' Jake Tapper: "President Obama Suggests the Public Look at Romney's Previous Statements on Going After OBL" Without mentioning his opponent by name, President Obama took clear political aim at Mitt Romney on Monday, continuing a line of attack from his campaign that Romney would not have given the go-ahead to the mission that ended in the death of Osama Bin Laden. Asked about Romney's comments from earlier this morning belittling how difficult the decision to go after bin Laden may have been, the president said "As far as my personal role and what other folks would do, I'd just recommend that everybody take a look at people's previous statements in terms of whether they thought it was appropriate to go into Pakistan and take out bin Laden. LINK

USA Today's David Jackson: " Obama challenges Romney on bin Laden raid" President Obama said today his team is not celebrating Osama bin Laden's death, and he questioned whether Republican opponent Mitt Romney would have ordered the kind of raid that killed the architect of 9/11. Asked about Romney's comment that anyone would have authorized that mission - "even Jimmy Carter" - Obama told reporters to "take a look at people's previous statements;" in 2007, Romney criticized Obama for saying he would go into Pakistan to hunt down terrorists. LINK

Politico's Alexander Burns: " Source: Obama Ads Feature Swiss Bank Account."  The Obama campaign is going up with a fresh round of ads tomorrow in Ohio, Iowa and Virginia - three states where the president has been spending time in recent weeks. But the plot thickens: one media-tracking source tells me the title of the new commercial is "Swiss Bank Account.". LINK

The LA Times' Michael A. Memoli, Christi Parsons and Seema Mehta: " Bin Laden raid emerges as campaign issue" In a first term marked by clear partisan  divisions, President Obama's decision to order a high-risk special forces operation targeting Osama bin Laden stands out as an unquestioned nonpartisan success. But the one-year anniversary of the Al Qaeda mastermind's death has become a flash point in early skirmishing between Obama and Mitt Romney, his likely Republican opponent in the fall election. LINK

The Washington Post's Dan Eggen: " Obama campaign puts Bo on the trail" President Obama has unleashed a particularly unusual fundraiser for his 2012 campaign. One Internet ad starts with a two-toned blue background, like dozens of other pro-Obama spots. Then the furry star pops into the frame, tongue out and ready to frolic. "Join Pet Lovers for Obama," the ad implores. LINK

The Washington Times' Susan Crabtree: " Obama insists he's not trumpeting bin Laden's death for votes" Under fire for playing politics with Osama bin Laden's killing, President Obama defended himself Monday and repeated questions in a campaign ad about whether Mitt Romney would have ordered the raid that killed the 9/11 mastermind. LINK

Bloomberg's Mike Dorning: " Obama Fails to Stem Middle-Class Slide He Blamed on Bush" Barack Obama campaigned four years ago assailing President George W. Bush for wage losses suffered by the middle class. More than three years into Obama's own presidency, those declines have only deepened. LINK

MITT ROMNEY The Wall Street Journal's Janet Hook: " Insiders Backing Portman for VP" Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio is the un-Palin of the Republican Party.  He has a résumé bristling with government experience. He is from a crucial swing state. And he is a disciplined public speaker. LINK The Hill's Justin Sink: " Osama hit was easy call" Mitt Romney is trying to flip the script on President Obama and use the anniversary of Osama bin Laden's death to his own political advantage. Romney on Monday dismissed the supposed courageousness of Obama's decision to send a team of Navy SEALs to Pakistan to kill bin Laden, calling it an easy decision that "even Jimmy Carter" would have made.  LINK

The New York Times' Michael Luo and Julie Creswell: " Ties to Romney '08 Helped Fuel an Equity Firm" About a month after Mitt Romney ended his bid for the Republican presidential nomination in February 2008, his eldest son, Tagg, and Spencer Zwick, the campaign's top fund-raiser, met with a beef company executive who had been a major campaign donor over dinner at the posh Torrey Pines resort in San Diego. LINK

ABC NEWS VIDEOS "Obama Takes Aims at Romney Over Bin Laden Comments" LINK

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