The Note's Must-Reads for Friday, September 28, 2012

Compiled by ABC News Digital News Associates and Desk Assistants Jayce Henderson, Amanda VanAllen, Carrie Halperin and Ben Waldron.

VIRGINIA ABC News' Gregory Krieg, Sunlen Miller and Devin Dwyer: Dueling 'Patriots' Obama and Romney Clash in Virginia "Patriotism" was the word of the day on the presidential campaign trail, as President Obama and Mitt Romney - both in Virginia today - sought to tie their economic plans to broader ideas about America's place in the global milieu. Romney seized on scheduled cuts to defense spending and a downward revision of the country's economic growth, warning that the combination posed a "long-term threat to our military capability and to our national security." LINK The New York Times' Helene Cooper and Ashley Parker: " In Virginia, Nominees Reach Out to Military" In case anyone is wondering, Virginia is up for grabs this election. So, with 39 days to go, President Obama and Mitt Romney dueled in the commonwealth on Thursday, both trying to lock up support from voters with ties to the military. LINK

The Washington Post's Amy Gardner and Philip Rucker: " President Obama, Mitt Romney court veterans in Virginia" Mitt Romney was in Virginia on Thursday to do what he has been trying to do a lot lately: reach voters in places where he had hoped to be faring better by now. On this day, his targets were military veterans and active-duty service members, a once-reliably Republican group that recent polls show to be closely split between the two candidates. LINK

PRESIDENT OBAMA The Boston Globe's Christopher Rowland: " Obama's Stance on Natural Gas Carries Risks" President Obama's plan to boost domestic drilling for natural gas carries the promise of new jobs and provides a convenient pivot away from his lurching bid to transform America's energy economy with wind and solar power. Yet in pockets of the nation, including the communities around Colorado's pristine mountains, such a shift carries a political price. LINK]

Bloomberg's Jim Snyder and Danielle Ivory : " Obama Cabinet Flunks Disclosure Test With 19 in 20 Ignoring Law" On his first full day in office, President Barack Obama ordered federal officials to "usher in a new era of open government" and "act promptly" to make information public. As Obama nears the end of his term, his administration hasn't met those goals, failing to follow the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act, according to an analysis of open-government requests filed by Bloomberg News. LINK

JOE BIDEN The Los Angeles Times' Michael A. Memoli: " Biden to say Romney plan would tax Social Security benefits" The Obama campaign is dispatching Vice President Joe Biden to Florida to deliver a new attack on the Republican ticket over entitlements: He'll allege that Mitt Romney's economic plan could force senior citizens to pay more in taxes on their Social Security benefits. Biden begins a two-day trip through Florida on Friday with stops in Boca Raton and Tamarac, where a campaign official says he will "highlight the clearest choice Floridians have faced in a generation" in November. LINK

CAMPAIGN FUNDING The Washington Times' Luke Rosiak: " Soros commits $1.5 million to super PACs" Liberal hedge fund manager George Soros is pledging $1.5 million in new funding for Democratic super PACs, the New York Times reported Thursday, continuing a reversal of tide that has seen lagging super PAC backing President Obama on the upswing as the Mitt Romney super PAC's finances have eroded. LINK

The Hills' Cameron Joseph: " Soros donates $1M to pro-Obama super-PAC" Liberal billionaire George Soros has donated $1 million to Priorities USA, the super-PAC backing President Obama's reelection, two sources with knowledge of the donation confirmed to The Hill. The donation comes as a shift for Soros, who'd donated to other pro-Democratic super-PACs earlier this year and has long bankrolled a number of liberal grassroots organizations - but had yet to give any money directly toward supporting Obama this cycle. LINK

USA Today's Catalina Camia: " Billionaire donates $1M to Obama super PAC" Billionaire financier George Soros has given $1 million to the primary super PAC helping President Obama. The funding is a boost to Priorities USA Action in the final weeks of the campaign. LINK

MEDICARE Politico's Maggie Haberman: " Medicare, Obama edition" Jonathan Martin, on the home page tonight, takes note of the daylight between President Obama's past statements on reforming Medicare and his and his campaign's criticisms of the GOP ticket over the Paul Ryan proposals for changing the social welfare program. There's what appears in Bob Woodward's book, but there's more: In 2009, right before he was sworn in, the president-elect told The Washington Post he wanted to make "hard decisions" on entitlements. LINK

MITT ROMNEY The Wall Street Journal's Neil King Jr: " Swing States a Tough Sell for Romney" Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama are running neck and neck in the battleground states of North Carolina and Nevada, new polling shows, while Mr. Romney faces an uphill battle to win New Hampshire, a state he picked to launch his campaign and that has long served as a second home. The new Wall Street Journal/NBC News/Marist Poll surveys of likely voters in the three states underscored the mounting challenges the Republican nominee faces as he tries to chart a path to victory just over a month before Election Day. LINK

ABC NEWS VIDEOS " Obama, Romney Aim for Early Voters Before First Debate" LINK

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