Top Items:
Murray Waas / nationaljournal.com:
Cheney 'Authorized' Libby to Leak Classified Information — Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby, testified to a federal grand jury that he had been "authorized" by Cheney and other White House "superiors" in the summer of 2003 to disclose classified information …
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firedoglake, The Next Hurrah, Shakespeare's Sister, TalkLeft, AMERICAblog, Wonkette, The Carpetbagger Report, Democrat Taylor Marsh …, Obsidian Wings, Stygius, Balloon Juice, King of Zembla, WTF Is It Now??, Middle Earth Journal, The Democratic Party, IntoxiNation-News …, skippy the bush kangaroo, Crooks and Liars, War and Piece and Prairie Weather
Associated Press:
Bush: Al Qaeda attack on West Coast thwarted — WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush said the U.S.-led global war on terror has "weakened and fractured" al Qaeda and allied groups, outlining as proof new details about the multinational cooperation that foiled purported terrorist plans to fly …
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Smash / The Military Outpost:
WEST COAST TERROR PLOT THWARTED — Since Septemeber 11th, the United States and our coalition partners have disrupted a number of serious al Qaeda terrorist plots, including plots to attack targets inside the United States. — Let me give you an example:
Opinion Journal:
Abolish FISA — A Congressional power grab, using judges as a cudgel. — Whatever happened to "impeachment"? Only two months ago, that was the word on leading Democratic lips as they assailed President Bush for "illegal" warrantless NSA wiretaps against al Qaeda suspects.
Jim VandeHei / Washington Post:
Bush Shifts on Muslim Protests — Violence Is Criticized, Not the Cartoons — The Bush administration yesterday condemned the violent response to European cartoons mocking Islam and accused Iran and Syria of exploiting the international controversy to incite unrest and protests in the Middle East.
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Carol D. Leonnig / Washington Post:Secret Court's Judges Were Warned About NSA Spy Data
Discussion:
firedoglake, TAPPED, Macsmind, Decision '08, Hugh Hewitt, PoliBlog, THE ASTUTE BLOGGER, TalkLeft, The Hotline's Blogometer, Democrat Taylor Marsh …, Brilliant at Breakfast, Defense Tech, Think Progress, Stygius, The Democratic Daily Blog, Amygdala, A MOCKINGBIRD'S MEDLEY, The Left Coaster, WTF Is It Now??, The Volokh Conspiracy, The American Street, Democratic Veteran, Just a Bump in the Beltway, AMERICAblog, The Washington Monthly and Charging RINO
Associated Press:
Reid Aided Ambramoff Clients, Records Show — Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid wrote at least four letters helpful to Indian tribes represented by Jack Abramoff, and the senator's staff regularly had contact with the disgraced lobbyist's team about legislation affecting other clients.
Jamal Saidi / MSNBC:
Bush, Rice told to 'shut up' over cartoon issue — Hezbollah leader speaks to huge protest after Bush urged calm — Hezbollah supporters chant "death to America, death to Israel" during a religious rally in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday that focused on the caricature controversy.
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Hassan M. Fattah / New York Times:At Mecca Meeting, Cartoon Outrage Crystallized
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ShrinkWrapped, Sigmund, Carl and Alfred, The Stranger, Ezra Klein, MEMRI, The Blogging of the President, Daimnation!, Althouse, PoliBlog and Tim Worstall
Reuters:
Anti-war mom Sheehan will not run for Senate — SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Cindy Sheehan, the anti-Iraq war activist whose son was killed in the conflict there, put an end to speculation on Thursday that she would launch a long-shot bid to become a U.S. senator from California.
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Joe Garofoli / San Francisco Chronicle:Sheehan won't run against Feinstein
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protein wisdom
Bill Theobald / gallatinnewsexaminer.com:
Hastert, Frist said to rig bill for drug firms — Frist denies protection was added in secret — WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and House Speaker Dennis Hastert engineered a backroom legislative maneuver to protect pharmaceutical companies from lawsuits, say witnesses to the pre-Christmas power play.
Jonah Goldberg / Los Angeles Times:
One sorry mess of a party — AND FOR ANOTHER week, the Democrats managed to hold themselves hostage to, well, themselves. — Item 1: Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, the wunderkind of the Democratic Party who, we've been told, not only transcends race, partisanship and personal ambition …
Discussion:
Cold Fury
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Associated Press:
Ex-FEMA chief: I may tell all about Katrina — Michael Brown asks White House if they want him to stay quiet — WASHINGTON (AP) — Former disaster agency chief Michael Brown is indicating he is ready to reveal his correspondence with President Bush and other officials during Hurricane Katrina unless …
Discussion:
IntoxiNation-News …, The Carpetbagger Report, The Heretik, Talking Points Memo and Shakespeare's Sister
Kevin Sites / Reuters:
EU mulls media code after cartoon protests — LONDON (Reuters) - The European Union may try to draw up a media code of conduct to avoid a repeat of the furor caused by the publication across Europe of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad, an EU commissioner said on Thursday.
benningtonbanner.com:
Freed and a Brattleboro Democrat sign up with Tarrant — BRATTLEBORO — A Brattleboro native is crossing party lines to lead Republican candidate Richard Tarrant's campaign for U.S. Senate. — Kate O'Connor, a Democrat from Brattleboro who headed former Gov. Howard Dean's presidential campaign in 2004 …
Scot Lehigh / Boston Globe:
Pondering a second act for Kerry — IS JOHN KERRY'S future behind him? — Put another way, is the 2008 presidential campaign that Kerry hopes to wage merely a political pipe dream given his 2004 loss, or could he actually be a serious candidate? — Kerry obviously thinks he's viable.
David S. Broder / Washington Post:
Bucking Bush on Spying — No member of the Senate is more conservative than Sam Brownback of Kansas — a loyal Republican, an ardent opponent of abortion and, not coincidentally, a presidential hopeful for 2008. — As a member of the Judiciary Committee, he has supported President Bush on every one of his court appointments.
Jeff Flake / New York Times:
Earmarked Men — BACK on the F-Bar Ranch, when I was too young to load the chute, de-horn, vaccinate, hold a hot iron or otherwise make myself useful as my father and older brothers branded calves, I would spend my time collecting "earmarks" — V-shaped pieces of a calf's left ear detached with two swift strokes of a pocketknife.
Peta Thornycroft / Telegraph:
Mugabe to ask whites back in land grab U-turn — President Robert Mugabe has begun to reverse his "insane" land grab and offer some white farmers the chance to lease back their holdings in Zimbabwe. — With the fastest shrinking economy in the world, Mr Mugabe has had to backtrack …
