Top Items:
MSNBC:
Hayden: Spying has become political football — CIA nominee complains of constant scrutiny of intelligence gatherers — WASHINGTON - CIA nominee Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden complained Thursday that intelligence-gathering has become "football in American political discourse."
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Laurie Kellman / Associated Press:
Feingold, Specter Clash Over Gay Marriage — WASHINGTON - A Senate committee approved a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage Thursday, after a shouting match that ended when one Democrat strode out and the Republican chairman bid him "good riddance." — "I don't need to be lectured by you.
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Bryan / Hot Air:
Breaking: Ahmadinejad to send a Letter to the Pope — As nearly every single character in the Star Wars universe says, "I have a bad feeling about this." … He also invited Bush to become a Muslim. And you would be wise to interpret the word "invite" to have a whiff of the mob inviting you to dinner at the end of a pier.
Discussion:
All Things Beautiful, protein wisdom, Ninth State, Blue Crab Boulevard and E L Frederick
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Reuters:
Iran president to send letter to Pope - paper — TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is writing a letter to Pope Benedict, following an unprecedented letter to U.S. President George W. Bush earlier this month, a newspaper said on Thursday.
Mary Katharine Ham / Hugh Hewitt:
Whaaat???: Illegal Immigration Edition — Seriously, if you could see me now, I'm very Yosemite Sam. Very stampy and tantrumy and incoherent. — Just a few minutes ago, on the floor of the United States Senate, senators debated an amendment to the McCain immigration bill.
Discussion:
Hot Air, Riehl World View, BizzyBlog.com, Ankle Biting Pundits › News, E L Frederick, JunkYardBlog and Blue Crab Boulevard
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Jason DeParle / New York Times:
G.O.P. Conservatives Topple Veteran State Lawmakers in Pennsylvania — WASHINGTON, May 17 — A revolt among Pennsylvania conservatives gained national attention on Wednesday after challengers toppled at least 12 state lawmakers they deemed insufficiently committed to small government and fiscal restraint.
Discussion:
Captain's Quarters, Tapscott's Copy Desk, The Claremont Institute, Andrew Olmsted dot com and Demagogue
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Peggy Noonan / Opinion Journal:
Out of Touch — What the president's immigration speech and "The DaVinci Code" have in common. — What was missing in the president's approach the other night was the expression, or suggestion, of context. The context was a crisis that had gone unanswered as it has built …
New York Times:
U.S. Focused on Obtaining Long-Distance Phone Data, Company Officials Indicate — Government efforts to obtain data from the nation's largest phone companies for a national security database appear to have focused on long-distance carriers, not local ones, statements by company officials indicate.
Discussion:
OrinKerr.com, JustOneMinute, Concurring Opinions, The Democratic Daily Blog, Amygdala and Unfogged
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George F. Will / Washington Post:
Who Isn't A 'Values Voter'? — An aggressively annoying new phrase in America's political lexicon is "values voters." It is used proudly by social conservatives, and carelessly by the media to denote such conservatives. — This phrase diminishes our understanding of politics.
Hotline On Call:
Have A Heart — This has to be just about the nastiest piece of direct mail we've ever seen. — A candidate for State Assembly in the central valley region of CA, Bill Conrad (R) is apparently running on the platform that his opponent won't survive his term because he had a heart transplant.
Frederic J. Frommer / Associated Press:
Sensenbrenner: Bush Turned Back on Bill — WASHINGTON - Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, who has pushed a tough border security bill through the House, accused President Bush on Wednesday of abandoning the legislation after asking for many of its provisions. — "He basically turned his back on provisions …
The Raw Story:
International poll shows world is turning against Americans, not just President Bush — In increasing numbers, people around the globe resent American power and wealth and reject specific actions like the occupation of Iraq and the campaign against democratically elected Palestinian leaders …
ShrinkWrapped:
Demographics & Narcissism … How did we journey, in the space of 6 short years, from JFK's famous speech to the Jefferson Airplane's drug-induced, summer of love, response? And what does this have to do with the Demographic changes we are seeing in our culture?
Renae Merle / Washington Post:
Processing of Security-Clearance Requests Resumes — The Pentagon yesterday partially lifted a suspension of its security-clearance program that had put thousands of government contractors' employees in limbo. — The Defense Security Service suspended the program three weeks ago …
The Aardvark / Abu Aardvark:
Egypt: where's the media? — Protests continue to roil Egypt, with tense standoffs between security forces and protestors, and 200-300 protestors (mostly Muslim Brothers) arrested. The bad news: repression was fierce. Ayman Nour's sentence to five years in jail was reaffirmed …
Eric Lipton / New York Times:
Seeking to Control Borders, Bush Turns to Big Military Contractors — WASHINGTON, May 17 — The quick fix may involve sending in the National Guard. But to really patch up the broken border, President Bush is preparing to turn to a familiar administration partner: the nation's giant military contractors.
Ken Silverstein / Harper's:
"Fairy Tales" — The (lack of) intelligence underpinning Bush's Iraq policy — During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Saddam Hussein's Information Minister became the butt of a million jokes for predicting that American soldiers were being routed, even as U.S. troops were quickly closing in on Baghdad.
Thomas E. Ricks / Washington Post:
Troop Cuts Uncertain, Rumsfeld Testifies — Pentagon Chief Hopeful About 2006 Reduction in Iraq but 'Can't Promise It' — Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said he cannot guarantee that there will be substantial withdrawals of U.S. troops from Iraq this year, and warned instead …
Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Nutroots video: Kos makes TV political ad debut — **Watch the video remix. Geraghty calls it "perhaps the most surreal campaign ad I've ever seen." Me, I've seen this movie before; the line "the call's coming from inside the house" figures prominently.
Discussion:
protein wisdom, democracy guy, Blue Crab Boulevard, TAPPED, Iowa Voice, TKS on National Review Online and RIGHTWINGSPARKLE
John Conyers Jr / Washington Post:
No Rush to Impeachment — As Republicans have become increasingly nervous about whether they will be able to maintain control of the House in the midterm elections, they have resorted to the straw-man strategy of identifying a parade of horrors to come if Democrats gain the majority.
Discussion:
Right Wing News, Sister Toldjah, Gateway Pundit, Hullabaloo, The Washington Monthly, Carol Platt Liebau, The RCP Blog, The Carpetbagger Report, TAPPED, Blue Crab Boulevard, The Political Pit Bull, Ankle Biting Pundits › News, PunditGuy, GOP Bloggers, California Conservative, Brainster's Blog, Ace of Spades HQ, THE BRAD BLOG, On Deadline and Decision '08
New York Times:
And if It's a Boy, Will It Be Lleh? — Chances are you don't have any friends named Nevaeh. Chances are today's toddlers will. — In 1999, there were only eight newborn American girls named Nevaeh. Last year, it was the 70th-most-popular name for baby girls, ahead of Sara, Vanessa and Amanda.