Top Items:
Dania Saadi / Bloomberg:
Iraq's Maliki Forms Cabinet, With Two Posts to Fill (Update1) — May 20 (Bloomberg) — Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Nuri al-Maliki announced his cabinet today after more than five months of negotiations during which he and his coalition partners failed to agree on an interior or defense minister.
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CNN:
Iraq's new unity government sworn in — Ambassador: Move could lead to U.S. troop downsizing — BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — Iraq's first permanent government since the fall of Saddam Hussein was approved by parliament and sworn in on Saturday, despite the failure to fill three ministry posts because of political disputes.
New York Times:
Misjudgments Marred U.S. Plans for Iraqi Police — As chaos swept Iraq after the American invasion in 2003, the Pentagon began its effort to rebuild the Iraqi police with a mere dozen advisers. Overmatched from the start, one was sent to train a 4,000-officer unit to guard power plants and other utilities.
New York Times:
Iraqis Form Government, With Crucial Posts Vacant — BAGHDAD, Iraq, May 20— Iraqi leaders on Saturday approved a full-term government here for the first time since the fall of Saddam Hussein more than three years ago, but one that appeared to lack the cohesion needed to quell the sectarian and guerrilla violence engulfing the country.
Mike Pechar / The Jawa Report v3.0 Beta:
New Government in Iraq — (Baghdad) After three years …
New Government in Iraq — (Baghdad) After three years …
Discussion:
protein wisdom
Jean Rohe / The Huffington Post:
Why I Spoke Up — When I was selected as a student speaker for the New School commencement about two months ago I had no idea that I'd end up on CNN and in Maureen Dowd's column in the New York Times, among other places, when it was all over. One day after the big event I'm still reeling …
Michelle Malkin:
DO YOU THINK THIS IS FUNNY? — Pat yourselves on the backs, you tolerant liberal bastards. — This is hardly — the first — time — liberals — have — made Asian whore ping-pong ball jokes about me. — But Wonkette has now mainstreamed it. And I'm sick of it.
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New York Post:
FOURTH REICH — IRAN LAW LABELS JEWS — May 20, 2006 — Concerned U.S. officials and Jewish groups yesterday demanded answers from Iran after a shocking report that Tehran's radical leaders passed a Nazi-style law requiring Jews and Christians to wear identifying badges.
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Hindrocket / Power Line:
COVERING IRAN — Yesterday, we linked to a shocking report …
COVERING IRAN — Yesterday, we linked to a shocking report …
Discussion:
Blogcritics.org, azerbic, Dinocrat, The Strata-Sphere, View from the Right, All Things Beautiful and Atlas Shrugs
Washington Post:
Religious Liberals Gain New Visibility — The religious left is back. — Long overshadowed by the Christian right, religious liberals across a wide swath of denominations are engaged today in their most intensive bout of political organizing and alliance-building since the civil rights …
Adam Nagourney / New York Times:
In House Races, More G.O.P. Seats Look Vulnerable — James Votruba, left, president of Northern Kentucky University, and President Bush appearing Friday with Representative Geoff Davis, a Republican of Kentucky, who once seemed headed for an easy victory. But he and others in the party now appear to be facing stronger challenges.
Jerome R. Corsi / Human Events:
North American Union to Replace USA? — President Bush is pursuing a globalist agenda to create a North American Union, effectively erasing our borders with both Mexico and Canada. This was the hidden agenda behind the Bush administration's true open borders policy.
Rachel Kramer Bussel / Village Voice:
USC's Topless Professor … Like countless women with digital cameras and a bit of moxie, Dr. Diana York Blaine has three topless photos of herself on photo site Flickr, along with 147 other, more pedestrian, shots. The first, taken at Burning Man, shows the 44-year-old jumping in the air topless …
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Andrew Winthrop Cunningham III / Cardinal Martini:
Blaine to Village Voice: CardMart is "un-American"!
Blaine to Village Voice: CardMart is "un-American"!
Discussion:
Environmental Republican
Denis Horgan / Colin McEnroe:
Big Love at the Expo Center — I've had some stranger nights covering politics, but not many. I have never seen a group of people as elated to lose 2-1 as the Ned Lamont supporters nor a winning side as lifeless and frozen-faced as the Lieberman crowd when Friday night's votes were counted.
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Fred Barnes / Weekly Standard:
How to Lose the House — PRESIDENT BUSH AND REPUBLICANS are staring political disaster in the face on immigration. The problem isn't that they might enact a bill allowing illegal immigrants living in America to earn their way to citizenship, inviting foreign workers to come here …
David Montero / Rocky Mountain News:
For soldiers, gratitude and praise from an Iraqi mayor — COLORADO SPRINGS - An Iraqi mayor stood before troops lined up on the lawn at Fort Carson on Friday morning and said only two words in English. — But those two words brought the crowd to its feet. — "Thank you."
Discussion:
Power Line
Juan Forero / New York Times:
Seeking United Latin America, Venezuela's Chávez Is a Divider — BOGOTÁ, Colombia, May 19 — As Venezuela's president, Hugo Chávez, insinuates himself deeper in the politics of his region, something of a backlash is building among his neighbors.
Tim Golden / New York Times:
U.S. Should Close Prison in Cuba, U.N. Panel Says — UNITED NATIONS, May 19 — An important United Nations panel roundly criticized the United States on Friday for its treatment of terrorism suspects, and called for shutting down the detention camp at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.