Top Items:
Richard Cohen / Washington Post:
Loose Lips Sink . . . Biden's Leadership Is Lost in All His Talk — The only thing standing between Joe Biden and the presidency is his mouth. That, though, is no small matter. It is a Himalayan barrier, a Sahara of a handicap, a summer's day in Death Valley, a winter's night at the pole …
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New York Times:
Democrats Take Aggressive Tack; Alito Is Unfazed — WASHINGTON, Jan. 11 - Democrats tried with increasing frustration on Wednesday to elicit more specific views from Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. about abortion and other topics and sought to build a case against his nomination to the Supreme Court …
Sam Alito / TalkLeft:
Sparks Fly at Alito Hearing — We were waiting for some fireworks at Judge Sam Alito's confirmation hearing. Tuesday was definitely dullsville. We wanted sparks to fly. We wanted to hear — Bell's going to ring — Hear the alarms — Better tell the fire chief — To quit playing cards
New York Times:
Judge Alito, in His Own Words — Some commentators are complaining that Judge Samuel Alito Jr.'s confirmation hearings have not been exciting, but they must not have been paying attention. We learned that Judge Alito had once declared that Judge Robert Bork - whose Supreme Court nomination …
Dale Russakoff / Washington Post:
Alito Disavows Controversial Group — As a Princeton alumnus and professional basketball player, Bill Bradley in 1973 renounced his membership in Concerned Alumni of Princeton, calling it a "right wing" organization that opposed the admission of women and minorities to the school.
Ronald A. Cass / realclearpolitics.com:
Judge Alito's Confirmation Battle, The Unitary Executive, and Other News from the Front — After several days at the hearings on Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito, it's painfully clear that the Senate hasn't made strides in either civility or understanding of legal issues since the John Roberts hearings a few months ago.
Discussion:
Althouse
Dean Barnett / dbsoxblog.blogspot.com:TEARS TO YOUR EYES — Joe Biden chortles while Alito's wife weeps
James Wolcott:THE CRYING GAME
Discussion:
MyDD, Balloon Juice, The Political Teen, Suburban Guerrilla, Running Scared, The Corner on National … and The Sideshow
New York Times:
Local Insurgents Tell of Clashes With Al Qaeda's Forces in Iraq — BAGHDAD, Iraq, Jan. 11 - The story told by the two Iraqi guerrillas cut to the heart of the war that Iraqi and American officials now believe is raging inside the Iraqi insurgency. — In October, the two insurgents said in interviews …
Josh White / Washington Post:
General Asserts Right On Self-Incrimination In Iraq Abuse Cases — Maj. Gen. Geoffrey D. Miller, a central figure in the U.S. detainee-abuse scandal, this week invoked his right not to incriminate himself in court-martial proceedings against two soldiers accused of using dogs to intimidate captives …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, The Heretik, Opinio Juris, TAPPED, War and Piece, The Stakeholder, The Washington Monthly and Middle Earth Journal
Glen Johnson / Associated Press:
AP Newsbreak: GOP group to give up $500,000 in Abramoff-related donations donations — BOSTON —Days after calling on his party to exhibit higher ethical standards, Gov. Mitt Romney said the Republican Governors Association would donate to charity $500,000 in contributions it received …
Michael Fumento / American Spectator:
The James Wolcott Treatment — Every once in awhile, in the spirit of "know thy enemy," you have to brace yourself and take a peek inside the fetid mind of an influential defeat-nik. "Enter, if you will," as Rod Serling might have said, "the head of one James Wolcott."
Hindrocket / Power Line:
MEANWHILE, THERE'S A WAR ON — We noted here the mysteriously under-covered story of the three would-be terrorists who were arrested in Italy after vowing to launch an attack on America that would dwarf September 11. A reader sent us a link to this article, which has more:
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, The Huffington Post, White House, Sadly, No!, The Carpetbagger Report, First Draft and World O'Crap
CNN:
Hajj stampede kills hundreds — MINA, Saudi Arabia (CNN) — At least 345 people have been killed in a stampede during a symbolic stoning ritual at the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, according to the country's health ministry. — Health Minister Hamad al-Maneh told Saudi TV …
Rick Lyman / New York Times:
Texas Redistricting Is One More Hurdle for DeLay — HOUSTON, Jan. 11 - Representative Tom DeLay is in the toughest re-election campaign of his 11-term House career, a battle that might be decided not only by his legal problems, but also by the Congressional redistricting plan he spearheaded in 2003.
Thomas B. Edsall / Washington Post:
Lobbyists' Emergence Reflects Shift in Capital Culture — Corporate lobbyists Mark Valente III and Troup Coronado don't have to hang out in the hallways of Capitol Hill, waiting to buttonhole Rep. John M. Shimkus (R-Ill.). Both men have more convenient ways of reaching the lawmaker.
