memeorandum: Trump criticizes cost of U.N. headquarters renovation (Paul D. Colford/Kansas City Star)

U.S. Envoy Khalilzad to Leave Iraq, Officials Say (Update1) — Dec. 4 (Bloomberg) — Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, plans to leave his post and will be replaced by Ryan Crocker, the current ambassador to Pakistan, according to two officials familiar with the matter.

Discussion: Suitably Flip, Hot Air and The Political Pit Bull

Captain Ed / Captain's Quarters:
Has Bush Surrendered On Presidential Prerogative?

Discussion: Outside The Beltway, Wake up America, Right Wing Nut House and Mensa Barbie Welcomes You

Paul D. Colford / Kansas City Star:
Trump criticizes cost of U.N. headquarters renovation

Discussion: Fausta's blog

Warren Hoge / New York Times:
At the U.N., a Mixed View of Bolton's Tenure

Discussion: A Blog For All

Ian Williams / The Nation:
John Bolton's Greatest Hits

Discussion: Hullabaloo and protein wisdom

Seth Borenstein / Associated Press:

NASA Says It Will Set Up Polar Moon Camp — NASA announced Monday it will establish an international base camp on one of the moon's poles, permanently staffing it by 2024, four years after astronauts return to the moon. — It is a sweeping departure from the Apollo moon missions of the 1960s …

Discussion: The Volokh Conspiracy and Daily Pundit

Marc Kaufman / Washington Post:

NASA Plans Lunar Outpost — Permanent Base at Moon's South Pole Envisioned by 2024 — NASA unveiled plans yesterday to set up a small and ultimately self-sustaining settlement of astronauts at the south pole of the moon sometime around 2020 — the first step in an ambitious plan to resume manned exploration of the solar system.

Discussion: Blue Crab Boulevard and Swords Crossed

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:

Bush Meets With Rival of Iraqi Leader — President Bush met today with one of the most powerful Shiite leaders in Iraq — a political rival of Prime Minister Nouri Kamal al-Maliki — and urged him to "reject the extremists that are trying to stop the advance of this young democracy."

Discussion: LiberalOasis, toohotfortnr, Matthew Yglesias and War and Piece

Deb Riechmann / Associated Press:
Bush says Iraq progress too slow

Discussion: The Belmont Club

Justin Webb / BBC:

UN envoy a victim of Bush weakness — President Bush's UN ambassador is resigning his post because he cannot get Senate backing to stay in the job. — If Mr Bush's Republican Party had kept control of the Senate in last month's elections, they might have been able to get John Bolton confirmed.

Discussion: NewsBusters.org

Steve Clemons / The Washington Note:
Taking Stock: John Bolton's Resignation

Discussion: IPS Inter Press Service, The BRAD BLOG, TAPPED and The Reaction

NewsMax.com:

Saddam May Escape Hangman's Noose — Saddam Hussein waited until the last minute before filing an appeal to his death sentence, and frequently delayed his trial with verbal tirades. — It all makes sense considering a little-reported Iraqi law, which bars the execution of anyone age 70 and above.

Discussion: The Dread Pundit Bluto

Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Rumors: Al-Sadr dead, Abu Deraa dead, Saddam dead spared?

Discussion: siteinstitute.org, The Jawa Report and Riehl World View

Patrick Healy / New York Times:

Obama Meets Party Donors in New York — Senator Barack Obama treaded onto Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's home turf last night to meet with prominent Democratic donors and feel out those who might prefer the sound of President Obama to President Clinton (as in Hillary, not Bill).

Discussion: The News Blog and Riehl World View

George Russell / Fox News:

NORTH KOREA SUSPECTED OF COLLECTING MILLIONS IN REINSURANCE FRAUD — NEW YORK — The cash-strapped regime of North Korea, which has a worldwide reputation for its criminal dealings in weapons sales, drugs and near-perfect counterfeit U.S. $100 bills, may have found a new illicit source …

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, Blue Crab Boulevard and PrairiePundit

Josh Gerstein / New York Sun:

Islamic Group Demands U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council Appointee Be Ousted — An Islamic group is demanding that a conservative talk show host and columnist, Dennis Prager, be ousted from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council because of his statement that a Muslim just elected to Congress …

Discussion: Captain's Quarters and Power Line

Telegraph:

Growing tension with Russia over spy death — The Government moved yesterday to head off criticism that it was giving in to pressure from Moscow over the apparent murder of Alexander Litvinenko. — Tension between the two countries seemed certain to escalate as up to nine Scotland Yard detectives prepared …

Discussion: Firedoglake, Associated Press and The Spy Who Billed Me

jules crittenden:

A Dream of Mature Nations — A number of Canadians took offense recently to a Boston Herald column in which I slammed Canada and Europe in general for failing to hold up its end in this war for democracy, freedom and security. Specificially, I slammed them for being smug democracies …

Discussion: Riehl World View and Hyscience

MSNBC:

Is the FBI doing its best to combat terrorism? — Highest-ranking Arab-American agent says no, sues for discrimination — WASHINGTON - Bassem Youssef is the FBI's highest-ranking Arab-American agent. He's fluent in Arabic, ran the FBI's offices in Saudi Arabia and is a terrorism expert.

Discussion: On Deadline and Macsmind

Taylor Marsh on Politics Now:

Locked Out in Las Vegas — updated below— I want you to meet Chris Moore. Universal Health Services has locked out SEIU nurses at Desert Spring and Valley Hospitals in Las Vegas. He is one of those nurses. I began reporting on this story this morning. — Today I had a chat with Chris on my radio show.

Discussion: MyDD, Firedoglake and Sirotablog

Blue Texan / Instaputz:

Putz on Iraq: a timeline. — Since Putz has so generously offered to hold a symposium on what to do about the Great Victory in Iraq disaster, we thought this brief timeline would be useful for the participants. — 9/11/01 — Suggests attacks on WTC give Bush license to nuke Baghdad. — 6/4/02

William Mulgrew / theeveningbulletin.com:

McCain Talks Possible Presidential Bid, More In Philadelphia Visit — Philadelphia - U.S. Sen. John McCain would very much like to be the next president of the United States, but will reach a final decision with his "reluctant" family after Christmas, he said on Saturday in an interview …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Matthew Yglesias and Daily Pundit

Matt Sanchez / New York Post:

DIVERSITY DOUBLE-TALKIVY'S 'INCLUSION' EXCLUDES MILITARY — DiD you hear the one about the Marines that Columbia University invited to campus for Fleet Week? — Not any time in the last few decades, you didn't. — But you might have heard the one about the Marine who was told …

Discussion: BLACKFIVE