Top Items:
James Fallows / The Atlantic Online:
Why Iraq Has No Army — The Bush administration doesn't take the problem seriously—and it never has — W hen Saddam Hussein fell, the Iraqi people gained freedom. What they didn't get was public order. Looting began immediately, and by the time it abated, signs of an insurgency had appeared.
Dana Blanton / Fox News:
12/01/05 FOX Poll: Bush Approval Rises; Public Split on Pre-War Intel — NEW YORK — President George W. Bush's approval rating recovered a few points in the week's FOX News poll, though slightly more Americans still disapprove than approve of his job performance.
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Adam Liptak / New York Times:
Leak Ruling Has Mystery, 8 Blank Pages — There are eight blank pages in the public version of a decision the federal appeals court in Washington issued in February. The decision ordered two reporters to be jailed unless they agreed to testify before a grand jury investigating the disclosure …
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Patrick D. Healy / New York Times:
Pataki and Pirro Discuss Ending Senate Race — Gov. George E. Pataki and Jeanine F. Pirro today discussed whether she should end her troubled campaign to unseat Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, with Ms. Pirro seeking his advice and the governor asking her to think hard about dropping the bid …
Media Matters for America:
Coulter to O'Reilly on Media Matters: "little Nazi block watcher[]" website that "want[s] to keep me off" of CNN — On the December 1 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor, host Bill O'Reilly invited right-wing pundit Ann Coulter on the show to discuss "far-left smear websites."
Saul Hudson / Reuters:
Rice to warn Europe to back off over detainees — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is expected to give allies in Europe a response next week to their pressure over Washington's treatment of terrorism suspects: back off. — For almost a month …
Associated Press:
Congress to look into 'deeply flawed' BCS system — HOUSTON — Calling the Bowl Championship Series "deeply flawed," the chairman of a congressional committee has called a hearing on the controversial system used to determine college football's national champion.
Alex Raksin / Los Angeles Times:
3 Species of Fruit Bat Found to Harbor Deadly Ebola Virus — Tests by scientists in Gabon and Congo detect traces of the pathogen. Human infection may have occurred through eating the animals. — Researchers working in Gabon and Congo have identified three species of fruit bat …
Discussion:
Majikthise
Los Angeles Times:
FBI Is Taking Another Look at Forged Prewar Intelligence — WASHINGTON — WASHINGTON — The FBI has reopened an inquiry into one of the most intriguing aspects of the pre-Iraq war intelligence fiasco: how the Bush administration came to rely on forged documents linking Iraq to nuclear weapons materials …
James Gordon Meek / NY Daily News:
Hil used to be strictly for the war — WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Clinton left one thing out this week when she tried to explain her views on Iraq - namely that she used to agree almost completely with President Bush, even after the war took a nosedive. — On Tuesday, Clinton wrote …
Discussion:
Loaded Mouth
Lawrence Messina / Associated Press:
FBI Plants Fake Candidate in W.Va. Race — CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Thomas Esposito's campaign for the Legislature seemed to be following the usual pattern. The longtime Democratic mayor issued press releases, raised money and bought newspaper ads. Signs bearing his name popped up in yards around rural Logan County.
Newdonkey / NewDonkey.com:
In Defense of The Moose — I rise today to a point of personal privilege: the opportunity to defend my friend and colleague, and fellow blogospheric furry mammal, The Bull Moose (a.k.a., Marshall Wittmann) from a double-barreled attempt over at DailyKos to barbecue his tough old hide.
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MSNBC:
Top al-Qaida officer reportedly killed — Group's operational leader Rabia killed by missile in Pakistan, officials say — By By Robert Windrem and Carol Grisanti — ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - The operational commander of al-Qaida, possibly the No. 3 official in the terrorist organization …
Ashley / Bilges:
Deadly Innocence — Jonathan Treadaway was very, very lucky. — I'm sure he didn't feel lucky on September 11, 1974 when first questioned by Phoenix police about the sodomy and suffocation of six-year-old Brett Jordan. Or on September 12 when he was arrested and charged with the murder.
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Caroline E. Mayer / Washington Post:
Lawyers Ready Suit Over Soda — Case Being Built Linking Obesity To Sale in Schools — The fight against sugary soft drinks is beginning to foam over. — A coalition of lawyers who have actively and successfully sued tobacco companies says it is close to filing a class-action lawsuit …
Mark Blumenthal / Mystery Pollster:
The RT Strategies Iraq Poll — Yesterday's front-page analysis of President Bush's Iraq speech earlier this week by the Washington Post's Peter Baker included a reference to some recent survey data: … In an item in last Sunday's "Politics" column, the Post's Chris Cillizza called the poll …
Discussion:
The Fix
