Top Items:
New York Times:
G.O.P. Senators and Bush Reach Wiretap Accord — WASHINGTON, March 7 — Moving to tamp down Democratic calls for an investigation of the administration's domestic eavesdropping program, Republicans on the Senate Intelligence Committee said Tuesday that they had reached agreement with the White House …
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Glenn Greenwald / Unclaimed Territory:
Post-mortem on the Intelligence Committee vote — (updated below) — The Senate Intelligence Committee yesterday rejected Sen. Rockefeller's motion to hold hearings to investigate the President's warrantless eavesdropping program by an 8-7, strict party line vote.
Discussion:
The Democratic Party, Thoughts from Kansas, State of the Day, Bring it On!, rubber hose and firedoglake
Walter Pincus / Washington Post:
Senate Panel Blocks Eavesdropping Probe — The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence voted along party lines yesterday to reject a Democratic proposal to investigate the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program and instead approved establishing, with White House approval, a seven-member panel to oversee the effort.
Houston Chronicle:
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 22 — He prevails over three in spite of legal troubles — Still facing legal battles, U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay won a pivotal political fight Tuesday by defeating three challengers in the Republican primary for his Houston-area seat. — Opponent Tom Campbell …
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Sylvia Moreno / Washington Post:
DeLay Wins Tex. GOP Primary — Former House Majority Leader Easily Beats Three Challengers — AUSTIN, March 7 — Rep. Tom DeLay, facing an unusual four-way Republican primary, won the party's nomination Tuesday, calling his victory a rejection by voters of "the politics of personal destruction."
Discussion:
The Sundries Shack, Outside The Beltway, Thoughts of an Average Woman and A Blog For All
George Jahn / Associated Press:
Iran Threatens U.S. With 'Harm and Pain' — VIENNA, Austria (AP) — Iran threatened the United States with "harm and pain" Wednesday for its role in hauling Tehran before the U.N. Security Council over its nuclear program. America's ambassador to the United Nations said Iran's comments reflected the menace it poses.
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Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
At Conservative Forum on Bush, Everybody's a Critic — If the ancient political wisdom is correct that a charge unanswered is a charge agreed to, the Bush White House pleaded guilty yesterday at the Cato Institute to some extraordinary allegations. — "We did ask a few members …
Thomas B. Edsall / Washington Post:
Democrats' Data Mining Stirs an Intraparty Battle — With Private Effort on Voter Information, Ickes and Soros Challenge Dean and DNC — A group of well-connected Democrats led by a former top aide to Bill Clinton is raising millions of dollars to start a private firm that plans …
Discussion:
Captain's Quarters, PunditGuy, The Agonist, Oliver Willis, GOP Bloggers, Betsy's Page, Booman Tribune, The American Mind and ScrappleFace
Jonathan Weisman / Washington Post:
House Agrees To Vote On Ports — Efforts by the White House to hold off legislation challenging a Dubai-owned company's acquisition of operations at six major U.S. ports collapsed yesterday when House Republican leaders agreed to allow a vote next week that could kill the deal.
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Bill Brubaker / Washington Post:
Rumsfeld Says Media Exaggerating Iraqi Civilian Deaths — Defense Secretary Suggests Misreporting Swaying Public Opinion — Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld today presented an upbeat report of the conflict in Iraq and said he agrees with the commander of the U.S.-led coalition …
Discussion:
CNN, DefenseLINK, The Heretik, The Huffington Post, Rising Hegemon, Needlenose, The Left Coaster, NewsBusters.org, Waveflux, AMERICAblog, Bark Bark Woof Woof and Daily Kos
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William Saletan / Slate:
Take the Fifth — South Dakota's invitation to snuff your embryo. — Monday morning, Gov. Mike Rounds signed into law a ban on nearly all abortions in South Dakota. He called it a "direct challenge" to Roe v. Wade. But the ban also poses a direct challenge to the pro-life movement …
Discussion:
Crescat Sententia, The American Scene, Bark Bark Woof Woof, ACSBlog, Asymmetrical Information and SCOTUSblog
Charles Babington / Washington Post:
Congress Votes to Renew Patriot Act, With Changes — Congress voted yesterday to renew a four-year-old anti-terrorism law that makes it easier for federal agents to secretly obtain Americans' records and communications, even as some lawmakers warned that voters are growing increasingly concerned …
Discussion:
Democratic Veteran
New York Times:
Elite Troops Get Expanded Role on Intelligence — WASHINGTON, March 7 — The military is placing small teams of Special Operations troops in a growing number of American embassies to gather intelligence on terrorists in unstable parts of the world and to prepare for potential missions to disrupt, capture or kill them.
Associated Press:
New animal resembles furry lobster — PARIS, France (AP) — Divers have discovered a new crustacean in the South Pacific that resembles a lobster and is covered with what looks like silky, blond fur, French researchers said Tuesday. — Scientists said the animal, which they named Kiwa hirsuta …
Discussion:
Running Scared
Zachary A. Goldfarb / Washington Post:
Delivering the Conservative Line on 'Monologues' — Monique Stuart was a teenager when Eve Ensler's "The Vagina Monologues" first appeared off-off-Broadway a decade ago. — But by the time the 24-year-old saw the play in her senior year of college, she'd already made up her mind that it wasn't worth much.
Nick Schulz / Slate:
The Crappiest Invention of All Time — Why the auto-flushing toilet must die. — After a stint of telecommuting, I recently returned to working in a large downtown building. My office shares a men's room with everyone who works on our level. The bathroom sports three stalls …