04/20/06 FOX Poll: Gloomy Economic Views; Bush Approval at New Low  —  NEW YORK — More Americans disapprove than approve of how George W. Bush, Donald Rumsfeld and Congress are doing their jobs, while a majority approves of Condoleezza Rice.  President Bush's approval hits a record low …

Woman arrested for speaking freely right after Bush call for "freedom...to speak freely" — and CNN calls it "a blemish" on Hu visit  —  Usually watching CNN with one eye as we blog from our undisclosed location doesn't give us much new fodder, except for the occasional "stuck landing gear" crisis.

Grand Jury Hears Evidence Against Rove  —  Just as the news broke Wednesday about Scott McClellan resigning as White House press secretary and Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove shedding some of his policy duties, Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald met with the grand jury hearing evidence …

Al-Jafari to Give Up Nomination for Iraqi Prime Minister  —  BAGHDAD, April 20 — Iraq's prime minister will give up his nomination for a new term as head of the country's new government, a senior member of his Shiite party announced, only a few hours before a long-delayed parliament meeting scheduled …

On Anonymity in Blogland  —  Some years ago, the New Yorker ran an amusing cartoon about one of the supposed virtues of the Internet, its anonymity.  It showed two dogs in front a computer.  One was saying to the other (I am working from memory), "On the Internet, no one knows you're a dog."

Shake-Up  —  THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA may have trouble resisting the temptation to declare that Karl Rove has been demoted, but the truth is quite the contrary.  By giving up his role as deputy White House chief of staff, Rove has been freed to do what he does best: shape big issues and develop strategies to win elections.

'NYT' Sunday Preview: Madeleine Albright Can Leg-Press 400 Pounds  —  NEW YORK In an interview in the The New York Times Magazine that will appear this coming Sunday, Madeleine Albright reveals, among other things, that even at 68, she works out three times a week "and I can leg-press up to 400 pounds."

Harry Reid: No Good Military Options in Iran  —  Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has joined the long list of national security officials, Iran experts, and others who argue that no good military options exist in Iran.  (Read the full list HERE.) … The right wing is already on the attack.

TALKING TO IRAN....What should we do about Iran?  I have a suggestion, but first I need to relate a story that's gotten suprisingly little attention from the press.  Perhaps they're too bored to pick up on it.  —  It started on May 6, 2003, shortly after George Bush declared "Mission Accomplished" in Iraq.

Introducing the Purple Party  —  Depressed about the Democrats?  Revolted by the Republicans?  You're not alone.  Here in New York (with its Republican mayor and Democratic voters), a third way is being plotted.  Follow the purple-brick road.  —  B  —  efore I was old enough to vote …

Public Disillusionment with Congress at Record Levels  —  Anti-Incumbent Sentiment Echoes 1994  —  Summary of Findings  —  The American public is angry with Congress, and this is bad news for the Republican Party.  The belief that this Congress has accomplished less than its predecessors …

The railroad to nowhere  —  You've got to hand it to some Republican appropriators.  Despite swirling political winds that threaten to blow the GOP majority right out of town, they keep on keeping on.  —  Never mind the fact that the pungent stench from the Abramoff scandal still permeates the corridors of K Street and Capitol Hill.

This Is My Last Entry  —  Why I shut down my blog.  —  One morning last month, I woke early, finished a book I'd been reading, and shut down my blog.  I had kept the blog for nearly five years, using it as a repository for personal anecdotes, travelogues, and the occasional flight of fiction …