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April 10, 2012 | | PHONY How can Democrats take on Mitt Romney as a candidate when everyone from rabid conservatives to uncommitted independents believes he’s a moderate disguising himself as a right-winger? Michael Tomasky on Mitt the magician. DEADLINE The Syrian government said on Tuesday that it has begun to remove troops as the United Nations’ deadline for a ceasefire draws closer—but activists said 12 people had been killed by government forces early Tuesday. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said that the government had already withdrawn forces and Army units, although even Russia—one of Syria’s few allies left—said Bashar al-Assad’s government could have implemented the ceasefire better. The ceasefire, brokered by U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan, is seen as the last hope to avoid an all-out civil war. Frontrunner President Obama’s lead among women isn’t going away easily. A new ABC News/Washington Post poll now has Obama 19 points ahead of Romney among women, though he’s 8 points behind with men. Obama also leads Romney on a slew of personal issues: voters find him more likable and friendly by a 2–1 margin, and “more inspiring” by almost the same margin. His Achilles’ heel is, as always, the economy. Nearly half of all Americans say his handling of the economy is a major reason to oppose his reelection. Overall, Obama leads Romney 51 to 44 percent. DEADLY At least 15 people were killed by early-morning suicide bombings in Afghanistan, officials say. Eight civilians and three policemen were killed by a blast at a local government office in Herat, while another four policemen were killed by three suicide bombers at a police compound in southern Helmand province. In the Helmand attack, two of the bombers had explosives strapped to their chests; the third was killed by police. While Helmand is frequently targeted by insurgents, Herat has been relatively quiet, although it did see an uptick in violence during protests in February after U.S. troops inadvertently burned the Quran. INSTAGRAM By buying up tiny Instagram for a whopping $1 billion, Facebook acquires a dominant player in mobile apps—and neutralizes a potential rival, writes Dan Lyons. | | 
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