Top Items:
Haaretz:
Ehud Olmert taking over prime ministerial powers — Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a "significant" stroke with "massive bleeding" in his brain late Wednesday night, according to a Hadassah University Hospital official, and Sharon's authority has been transferred to Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
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Steve Weizman / Associated Press:
Israel's Sharon Suffers Massive Stroke — JERUSALEM - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a massive stroke Wednesday and was on a respirator after falling ill at his ranch. Doctors operated to drain excess blood from his brain. — Powers were transferred to his deputy, Vice Premier Ehud Olmert.
Steven Erlanger / New York Times:
Israeli Leader Suffers Serious Stroke — JERUSALEM, Thursday, Jan. 5 - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a serious stroke Wednesday night after being taken to the hospital from his ranch in the Negev desert, and he underwent brain surgery early today to stop cerebral bleeding, a hospital official said.
Herb Keinon / Jerusalem Post:PM suffers serious stroke, cerebral hemorrhaging
Discussion:
the talking dog
Howard Fineman / MSNBC:
Winners and losers in the Abramoff scandal — The GOP could suffer, opening the way for a third-party movement — WASHINGTON - — Howard Fineman — Forget the black hat. Everybody here is obsessed with Jack Abramoff's gangster-like attire as he came out of the federal courthouse.
Discussion:
The Washington Note, The Moderate Voice, The Mahablog, Democrat Taylor Marsh …, Hullabaloo and Brendan Nyhan
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Pete Yost / Associated Press:
Top Republicans Give Up Abramoff Donations — WASHINGTON - President Bush, former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and his successor Roy Blunt Wednesday joined the growing list of officials shedding political donations from Jack Abramoff, the once powerful lobbyist who has agreed to testify …
New York Times:Lobbyist Pleads Guilty in Fla.; 2nd Plea in 2 Days
Discussion:
Democrat Taylor Marsh …
Andrea Mitchell / MSNBC:
Reporter defends release of NSA spy program — James Risen says his sources are 'patriots,' CIA calls them 'unreliable' … Andrea Mitchell — New York Times reporter James Risen first broke the story two weeks ago that the National Security Agency began spying on domestic communications soon after 9/11.
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Patricia Wilson / Reuters:
Cheney strongly backs eavesdropping operation — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Vice President Dick Cheney on Wednesday strongly defended a secret domestic eavesdropping operation and said that had it been in place before the September 11 attacks the Pentagon might have been spared.
Carol D. Leonnig / Washington Post:
Surveillance Court Is Seeking Answers — The members of a secret federal court that oversees government surveillance in espionage and terrorism cases are scheduled to receive a classified briefing Monday from top Justice Department and intelligence officials about a controversial warrantless …
Discussion:
AMERICAN FUTURE
Katherine Shrader / Associated Press:White House Told NSA Briefings Broke Law
Discussion:
IntoxiNation-News …
Greg Mitchell / Editor and Publisher:
Media Reports Miracle Mine Rescue — Then Carries the Tragic Truth — NEW YORK In one of the most disturbing and disgraceful media performances of this type in recent years, television and newspapers carried the tragically wrong news late Tuesday and early Wednesday that 12 of 13 trapped coal miners …
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John Cole / Balloon Juice:The Mining Tragedy
Discussion:
The Anchoress, This isn't writing …, Tim Blair, Thespis Journal, sisu, Washington Post, Daimnation!, Pajamas Media, CNN, Classical Values and The American Street
Maha / The Mahablog:Dark as a Dungeon — I come from a long line of stone cutters …
Discussion:
Washington Post, livejournal.com, The Huffington Post, Bradford Plumer, Cafe Hayek and Hullabaloo
Crooks and Liars:
Letterman to O'Reilly: "60% of what you say is crap" — Letterman to O'Reilly: "60% of what you say is crap" — Bill joined David last night on the Late Show and found that Letterman wasn't buying his phony war on Christmas deal. David also wasn't happy about his attacking Cindy Sheehan …
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John / AMERICAblog:
What it means to John Kerry, Wesley Clark, and Bill Clinton if Bush wiretapped CNN's Christiane Amanpour — As reported below, NBC's Andrea Mitchell - based on some information she clearly hasn't yet made public - is asking if Bush specifically wiretapped CNN's Christiane Amanpour.
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Doug Bandow / Los Angeles Times:
The lesson Jack Abramoff taught me — I'VE LONG BEEN involved in the public eye, but only as a largely unassuming policy nerd. A couple of weeks ago, however, I found myself spotlighted as a player in l'affaire Jack Abramoff — Abramoff is the lobbyist who pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion.
Noor Khan / Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
Taliban is blamed for beheading teacher — KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Taliban militants beheaded a teacher in a central Afghan town while his wife and eight children watched, officials said Wednesday, describing the latest in a string of attacks targeting educators at schools where girls study.
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Tom Maguire / JustOneMinute:
Are You A Good Leak, Or A Bad Leak? — The NY Times editors, with emotional support from Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, explain good leaks and bad leaks to the rest of us: … "Clear the fog"? Why do I suspect the opposite outcome is more likely? (And how does my involvement affect the odds...)
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John / AMERICAblog:
What was that about Abramoff giving money to Democrats? — Here is the list of who Abramoff gave money to, per Michael Petrelis' research: … That's 229 donations and not a DIME to Democrats. — The list of donations is long, but it makes a great visual, so I'm posting it anyway.
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Ernesto Londoo / Washington Post:
Mooning Deemed 'Disgusting' but No Crime in Md. — Acquitting a Germantown man who exposed his buttocks during an argument with a neighbor, a Montgomery County Circuit Court judge ruled yesterday that mooning, while distasteful, is not illegal in Maryland. — "If exposure of half …
White House:
Personnel Announcement — President George W. Bush today recess appointed the following individuals: — Floyd Hall, of New Jersey, to be a Member of the AMTRAK Reform Board. — Enrique J. Sosa, of Florida, to be a Member of the AMTRAK Reform Board. — Nadine Hogan, of Florida …
Lyle Denniston / SCOTUSblog:
Court approves Padilla transfer — The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to permit the transfer of terrorism suspect Jose Padilla from military custody to civilian custody, but took no action on Padilla's appeal challenging his capture and detention as an enemy combatant.
Discussion:
Concurring Opinions
Desmond Lachman / American Enterprise Institute:
Don't Overestimate the Dragon's Power — Among the more enduring features of the global economic landscape over the past 15 years has been America's remarkable productivity performance. While Japan has been mired in its post-bubble deflation and an inflexible Europe has virtually stagnated …
