Top Items:
Bob Woodward / Washington Post:
Ford Disagreed With Bush About Invading Iraq — Former president Gerald R. Ford said in an embargoed interview in July 2004 that the Iraq war was not justified. "I don't think I would have gone to war," he said a little more than a year after President Bush had launched the invasion advocated …
Jeffrey Gettleman / New York Times:
Islamist Forces in Somalia Are in Retreat — Ethiopian-backed forces continued to beat back Islamist fighters in Somalia today, advancing to within 15 miles of Mogadishu, Somalia's capital, as diplomatic pressure increased for the Ethiopians to pull out. — The African Union …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, Matthew Yglesias, jules crittenden and PrairiePundit
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allAfrica.com:
Somalia: We Will Attack Mogadishu Tomorrow From Balad And Afgoye, Says Mohammed Dheere — Aweys Osman Yusuf — Mogadishu — Mohammed Dheere, former chairman of Jawhar, accompanied by Somali and Ethiopian forces have regained the Middle Shabelle main town of Jawhar.
See-Dubya / Hot Air:
Somali Islamists Still Getting Butts Kicked (update)
Somali Islamists Still Getting Butts Kicked (update)
Discussion:
Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler
Nedra Pickler / Associated Press:
John Edwards joins presidential race — WASHINGTON - Former Democratic vice presidential nominee John Edwards jumped into the presidential race Wednesday a day earlier than he'd planned, prodded by an Internet glitch to launch a candidacy focused on health care, taxes and other domestic issues.
Discussion:
TAPPED, TalkLeft, The Democratic Daily, New York Times, skippy the bush kangaroo and Blue Crab Boulevard
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MSNBC:
John Edwards joins presidential race — Senator who ran in 2004 bidding for Democratic nomination, campaign says — Former Democratic vice presidential nominee John Edwards volunteers in New Orleans on Wednesday, a day before his scheduled presidential run announcement. — Slide show
Discussion:
Centerfield
Associated Press:
Edwards' Web site jumps gun on presidential run … WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Democratic vice-presidential nominee John Edwards is running for president for a second time, his campaign said Wednesday. — The former North Carolina senator plans to formally announce his candidacy Thursday …
Discussion:
Democrats.com
Dennis Conrad / Associated Press:
Reid to miss Ford funeral — WASHINGTON - Incoming Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will miss the state funeral for former President Gerald Ford at the Capitol Rotunda on Saturday night, opting instead to lead a delegation to South America with an expected stop at the Machu Picchu Inca ruins.
Discussion:
Wizbang
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Associated Press:
Saddam Hussein's Baath party threatens to retaliate if their leader is executed — AMMAN, Jordan: Saddam Hussein's Baath Party threatened Wednesday to retaliate if the ousted Iraqi leader is executed, warning in an Internet posting it would target U.S. interests anywhere.
Discussion:
Sister Toldjah
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Matthew Yglesias:
The Pardon — Because you're all dying to hear what I have to say about Gerald Ford's pardon of Richard Nixon: — Here's the thing. Promoting "healing" and a sense of "moving on" was, in fact, arguably more important than seeing Richard Nixon spend years in a jail cell.
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Jay Tea / Wizbang:
THE SERENDIPITOUS PRESIDENT — With the passing of Gerald R. Ford, I find myself reflecting on his presidency — and realizing that I don't really remember too much about it. I was only nine when he left office; he's always been a historic figure rather than an actual memory.
Discussion:
Wake up America, Redstate, Blogs of War, The Strata-Sphere, Liberal Values and shotinthedark.info
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Justin Rood / TPMmuckraker:
At The Corner, Iraq News That Isn't — Reader SB points us to an entry today at The Corner, a blog belonging to National Review magazine, entitled "FROM IRAQ: A MARINE'S NOTES." — Among other things, the unnamed Marine tells the National Review that:
Hassan Abdel Zahra / Agence France Presse:
Tension after US soldier shoots Sadr supporter — NAJAF, Iraq (AFP) - Tension was mounting in the Iraqi city of Najaf after an American soldier killed a senior ally of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr during a raid on his house. — Sadr supporters and local police told AFP Wednesday …
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Jim Henley / Unqualified Offerings:
I'm Up Your Stairz. I'm Killing Your Manz Who Wasn't There.
I'm Up Your Stairz. I'm Killing Your Manz Who Wasn't There.
Discussion:
The American Street
Max / MaxSpeak:
WHO LET THE (BLUE) DOGS OUT? — The answer of course is the electorate, God bless them. The November results empowered the avatars of fiscal constipation, as James Carville used to say before his own passageways became impassable. — Combine the following political ingredients …
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Steve Benen / Political Animal:
TAKING THE HIGH ROAD.... In a Republican-led Congress …
TAKING THE HIGH ROAD.... In a Republican-led Congress …
Discussion:
Daily Kos
Associated Press:
Specter visits Syria, says it wants peace talks with Israel — DAMASCUS, Syria — Syria's president wants to resume peace negotiations with Israel, U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter said yesterday after meeting with Bashar Assad. — "Assad stated an interest in negotiating with Israel to try to bring …
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John Amato / Crooks and Liars:
Huff Post blogger on THIS WEEK and George Will is a complete Ass — On "This Week,' with George Stephanopoulos, HuffPo's new political editor, Melinda Henneberger, joined ABC National Security Correspondent Jonathan Karl and columnist George Will to discuss the politics of the surge and the very despicable Virgil Goode.
Discussion:
Firedoglake
Washington Post:
The Right Type of 'Surge' — Any Troop Increase Must Be Large and Lasting — Reports on the Bush administration's efforts to craft a new strategy in Iraq often use the term "surge" but rarely define it. Estimates of the number of troops to be added in Baghdad range from fewer than 10,000 to more than 30,000.
New York Times:
A Fellow Mammal Leaves the Planet — Robert L. Pitman has spent 30 years studying the world's whales, dolphins and other aquatic mammals. He returned to San Deigo, Calif., last week after a fruitless six-week expedition in which teams of five observers on two vessels scoured the Yangtze River …
Editor and Publisher:
White House to Joe Biden: Hold Your Horses on Rejecting Iraq Troop Surge — NEW YORK At today's press gaggle in Crawford, Texas, Scott Stanzel, pinch-hitting for White House Press Secretary Tony Snow, described the president's reaction to the death of Gerald R. Ford and his upcoming meetings to discuss his next moves in Iraq.