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Josh Marshall / TPM Muckraker:
McClellan Bobs and Weaves, But Certainly Doesn't Leak — This morning's White House gaggle, started at 10 AM ... QUESTION: Did the President authorize the leak of intelligence information? — Scott McClellan: Terry, there is an ongoing legal proceeding, and our policy has been that we're …
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New York Post:
DUBYA CAN'T LEAK — IT'S amazing how the common topics and subjects of discussion three years ago should vanish so quickly from memory. — Yesterday, breathless news reports suggested that President Bush had directed the "leak" of classified information in July 2003.
Daniela Deane / Washington Post:
McClellan: President Can Declassify Information at Any Time — President Bush's chief spokesman said today the president has the right to declassify sensitive information whenever he chooses and that when he does, it is effective immediately. — In an often testy exchange with the White House media …
New York Times:
Immigration Deal Falls Short in Senate — WASHINGTON, April 7 — A carefully constructed compromise on immigration reform apparently fell apart in the Senate today after Democrats fended off conservative Republican efforts to amend the agreement and an effort to cut off debate failed by a lopsided vote.
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David Espo / Associated Press:
Immigration Overhaul Obstacle May Be Fatal — WASHINGTON - Landmark legislation offering eventual citizenship to millions of illegal immigrants suffered a potentially fatal blow Friday in the Senate, the latest in a series of election-year setbacks for President Bush and the Republicans who control Congress.
Kris W. Kobach / New York Post:
HIDDEN BOMBS — HOW do you slip legislative poison past a U.S. senator? Bury it on page 302 of a bill. — The Senate's Democratic and Republican leaders yesterday announced a compromise on an immigration bill - with some details still to be worked out.
CNN:
More than 70 killed in Baghdad mosque attack — Shrine has ties to Shiite political party; imam is in parliament — BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — Three suicide bombers on Friday struck a Baghdad mosque affiliated with a major Shiite political party, killing at least 74 people, according to the Iraqi Health Ministry.
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Jeannine Aversa / Associated Press:
Employers Boost March Payrolls by 211,000 — Employers, in a springtime hiring burst, boosted payrolls by a sizable 211,000 in March and pushed the nation's unemployment rate down to 4.7 percent. — The latest snapshot, released by the Labor Department on Friday, suggested …
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William Sherman / NY Daily News:
The billionaire, the Post and the $220G shakedown — Page Six writer wanted $$$ to stop inaccurate coverage — A New York Post Page Six staffer solicited $220,000 from a high-profile billionaire in return for a year's "protection" against inaccurate and unflattering items about him in the gossip page, the Daily News has learned.
Eric Lichtblau / New York Times:
Gonzales Suggests Legal Basis for Domestic Eavesdropping — WASHINGTON, April 6 — Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales suggested on Thursday for the first time that the president might have the legal authority to order wiretapping without a warrant on communications between Americans that occur exclusively within the United States.
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Ron Brynaert / rawstory.com:
Washington Post searching for bloggers from the right and left — This time around the Washington Post plans to hire two bloggers for its Web site. — The paper's ombudsman, Deborah Howell, has informed RAW STORY that Jim Brady, executive editor of washingtonpost.com, is looking for a liberal blogger …
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Amy Sullivan / Washington Monthly:
Not as Lame as You Think — Democrats learn the art of opposition. — The first week of March should have been a bright spot for Democrats in an otherwise bleak five years. With the president's approval numbers reaching Nixon-esque lows, and Democrats outpolling Republicans by 15 points …
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Charles Krauthammer:
First a Wall — Then Amnesty — Every sensible immigration policy has two objectives: (1) to regain control of our borders so that it is we who decide who enters and (2) to find a way to normalize and legalize the situation of the 11 million illegals among us. — Start with the second.
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Digby / Hullabaloo:
The Essence — Scotty is having a fit trying to make a distinction between the president leaking classified information and the NSA whistleblowers leaking classified information by saying that the first leak was in the public interest and the second harmed national security.
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Reihan Salam / Real Clear Politics:
Health Care Plan Gives Romney Boost in GOP Field — Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney's chances in the presidential sweepstakes have just gone from "decent" to "excellent." By successfully brokering legislation that promises to "solve" the health care problem in Massachusetts …
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Blue Crab Boulevard
E. J. Dionne Jr / Washington Post:
Run-Down Republicans — Imagine that: Tom DeLay speaking truth to power. — "We don't have an agreed agenda," DeLay told a group of sympathetic reporters this week. "Breaking up our leadership has taken its toll." — Self-serving? Absolutely. DeLay is saying the Republicans …