Top Items:
New York Times:
Republicans Testing Ways to Blunt Leak Charges — WASHINGTON, Oct. 23 - With a decision expected this week on possible indictments in the C.I.A. leak case, allies of the White House suggested Sunday that they intended to pursue a strategy of attacking any criminal charges as a disagreement …
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Washington Post:
Inquiry as Exacting As Special Counsel Is — A Tough Investigation Is Also Praised as Nonpartisan — CHICAGO, Oct. 23 — Patrick J. Fitzgerald's final witness was behind bars, refusing to testify, and no one was budging. Hunting for room to maneuver, the special counsel talked with one side, then the other.
Discussion:
Eschaton, firedoglake, The Next Hurrah, Daily Kos, The Agonist, Needlenose, The Left Coaster and Crooks and Liars
Michelle Malkin:
SEN. HUTCHISON'S BLUNDER — The Left had a field day over Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's remarks on NBC's Meet the Press this morning in which she downplayed possible perjury and obstruction of justice indictments this week in the Rove/Plame/Miller/Libby/God-knows-who- else leak case.
John Fund / Opinion Journal:
What Went Wrong — Lessons the White House should learn from the Miers debacle. — President Bush has returned from a weekend in Camp David, where much of the discussion centered on the beleaguered nomination of Harriet Miers. While the president is determined to press forward, the prognosis he received was grim.
Jeffrey H. Birnbaum / Washington Post:
Letters Show Frist Notified Of Stocks in 'Blind' Trusts — Documents Contradict Comments on Holdings — Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) was given considerable information about his stake in his family's hospital company, according to records that are at odds with his past statements …
Bradley Graham / Washington Post:
Enemy Body Counts Revived — U.S. Is Citing Tolls to Show Success in Iraq — Eager to demonstrate success in Iraq, the U.S. military has abandoned its previous refusal to publicize enemy body counts and now cites such numbers periodically to show the impact of some counterinsurgency operations.
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David D. Kirkpatrick / New York Times:
Bush Choice Gets Criticisms Rare for Nominees to Court — WASHINGTON, Oct. 23 - On Oct. 22, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon nominated to the Supreme Court a corporate lawyer and former bar association president with no judicial experience. On Dec. 6, his choice, Lewis F. Powell Jr., was confirmed with fanfare by a vote of 89 to 1.
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Thomas M. DeFrank / NY Daily News:
Bushies feeling the boss' wrath — Prez's anger growing in hard times - pals — WASHINGTON - Facing the darkest days of his presidency, President Bush is frustrated, sometimes angry and even bitter, his associates say. — With a seemingly uncontrollable insurgency in Iraq …
Ian / The Political Teen:
Howard Dean: Bush Basher and Hypocrite (VIDEO) — DNC Chairman Howard Dean appeared on This Week to discuss the Harriet Miers nomation, Iraq, a recent speech, and the Plame "leak" scandal. — Notes: — Stephanopoulos shows two opinions on leaving Iraq: (1) Feingold says we should pull out by Dec. 2006.
Discussion:
Oblogatory Anecdotes
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Paul Farhi / Washington Post:
Well, Incluuuude Him: Martin Joins Twain Pantheon — There's so much of Steve Martin to love — actor, comedian, writer, banjo player — that it was hard to hit all the high spots when he received the eighth annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at the Kennedy Center last night.
Discussion:
Hit and Run
Time:
Searching for Saviors in Strange Places — Could Ahmad Chalabi end up running Iraq? — You remember Ahmad Chalabi. He was once the Bush Administration's favorite Iraqi exile. His group, the Iraqi National Congress, provided all sorts of wondrous reports about Saddam Hussein's weapons …
Gateway Pundit:
All Quiet from The Quagmire — Listen carefully! Do you hear that? — ** crickets chirping ** — This past week we heard no comforting words of "occupation" from Cindy Sheehan (although she is planning more civil disobedience and Thanksgiving turkey in Crawford, Texas!) …
Discussion:
The Peking Duck
Katharine Q. Seelye / New York Times:
Protecting the Presidential Seal. No Joke. — You might have thought that the White House had enough on its plate late last month, what with its search for a new Supreme Court nominee, the continuing war in Iraq and the C.I.A. leak investigation. But it found time to add another item to its agenda …
Lebanon.Profile / Lebanese Political Journal:
The Battle Over Syria - Don't Forget about Justice in Lebanon — Syria has launched an interesting ploy in response to the Mehlis Report. American blogger Joshua Landis is offering the Syrian regime assistance in promoting their rhetoric. — What maks their stance so offensive to me is that they entirely neglect Lebanon.
Billmon:
Fitzgerald's New Boss — Josh Marshall wonders what it might mean for the special prosecutor's investigation now that U.S. Attorney Paul McNulty has been nominated for the number-two job at the Justice Department. I suspect the short answer is: nothing good.
