Bush Plan for Iraq Requests More Troops and More Jobs  —  President Bush's new Iraq strategy calls for a rapid influx of forces that could add as many as 20,000 American combat troops to Baghdad, supplemented with a jobs program costing as much as $1 billion intended to employ Iraqis …

HALF THE STORY: Don Surber notes, quoting a correspondent: … Well, that's half the numbers.  Filling in the other half (which, to Surber's credit, is linked from his post), we see that Bush is at 45% job approval and 54% disapproval, while Pelosi is at 43% favorable and 39% unfavorable.

Army asks dead to sign up for another hitch … WASHINGTON (AP) — The Army said Friday it would apologize to the families of about 275 officers killed or wounded in action who were mistakenly sent letters urging them to return to active duty.  —  The letters were sent a few days after Christmas …

House Tightens Disclosure Rules for Pet Projects  —  The House voted on Friday to pull the shadowy tradition of Congressional earmarking into the daylight, requiring lawmakers to attach their names to the pet items they slip into spending or tax bills and certify that they have no financial interest in the provisions.

Mr. Ford Gets the Last Laugh  —  IN recent days, I've been bombarded by requests to comment on my relationship with President Gerald Ford.  Until now, I've tried to say nothing — any remarks from me during the Ford family's private time of grief would have been inappropriate.

Death in Haditha  —  Eyewitness Accounts in Report Indicate Marines Gunned Down Unarmed Iraqis in the Aftermath of a Roadside Bombing in 2005  —  U.S. Marines gunned down five unarmed Iraqis who stumbled onto the scene of a 2005 roadside bombing in Haditha, Iraq, according to eyewitness accounts …

A Winnable War  —  The argument against the orthodox history of Vietnam.  —  Triumph Forsaken  —  The Vietnam War, 1954-1965  —  by Mark Moyar  —  Cambridge, 542 pp., $32  —  In the late summer of 1963, President John Kennedy dispatched two observers to South Vietnam.

E&P Survey Finds That, At Critical Point, Editorials Offer Little Commentary on Troop Escalation in Iraq  —  NEW YORK As a critical turning point in America's role in the nearly four-year-old Iraq war nears, the editorial pages of the largest U.S. newspapers have been surprisingly - even …

AP's Carrol Is Wrong On Jamil Hussein  —  As Charles at lgf points out, AP's Executive Editor Kathleen Carroll now says she is concerned for the well being of Jamil Hussein and places the blame for that on bloggers; however, that is not what the record actually reflects.

A Heckuva Claim  —  PRESIDENT BUSH wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed Wednesday that "it is also a fact that our tax cuts have fueled robust economic growth and record revenues."  The claim about fueling record revenue is flat wrong, and it is shocking that the president should persist in making such errors.

EYEING IRAN  —  WHY W'S TAPPING ADMIRAL TO HEAD CENTRAL COMMAND  —  WORD that Adm. William Fallon will move laterally from our Pacific Command to take charge of Central Command - responsible for the Middle East - while two ground wars rage in the region baffled the media.

Late Nite FDL: Spocko vs. The Rat  —  Evenin', fellow firedogs!  Tonight I'm going to attempt to get us all up to speed about a situation that I suspect we're going to be hearing a lot about in the near future.  This story was brought to my attention by ¡El Gato Negro!.  —  Where to begin?