memeorandum: Rice: I am not coming to Middle East with a plan (Haaretz)

1:30 PM ET, January 13, 2007

Top Items:

Expert Admits "Big Error" In Duke Case — (CBS) The forensic expert hired by the prosecutor in the Duke rape case says he made a "big error" in judgment by not stating in his report that the only DNA he found on the accuser was from several men who were not on the Duke lacrosse team.

Discussion: Fox News, The Volokh Conspiracy, Scared Monkeys, PoliBlog (TM), Ace of Spades HQ, Durham-in-Wonderland and A Blog For All

New York Times:

Prosecutor Asks to Exit Duke Case — The district attorney in the Duke lacrosse sexual assault case asked the state attorney general on Friday to take over the troubled prosecution, saying he faced a conflict of interest because of ethics charges filed against him by the state bar, officials involved in the case said.

Discussion: Althouse

Raleigh News & Observer:

Nifong asks to be removed from case — THE LATEST: Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong has asked to be removed from the Duke University lacrosse case. — Nifong made the request in a letter delivered to the office of N.C. Attorney General Roy Cooper. — The attorney general's office could take over the case.

Discussion: Durham-in-Wonderland, Outside The Beltway, ABCNEWS and LieStoppers

Duff Wilson / New York Times:
Duke Accuser Contradicts Herself

Discussion: The Volokh Conspiracy and JustOneMinute

Neil A. Lewis / New York Times:

Official Attacks Top Law Firms Over Detainees — The senior Pentagon official in charge of military detainees suspected of terrorism said in an interview this week that he was dismayed that lawyers at many of the nation's top firms were representing prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba …

Discussion: Obsidian Wings, Prairie Weather, Abovethelaw.com, Talking Points Memo, The Belgravia Dispatch, the talking dog and Law Blog

New York Times:

Round Up the Usual Lawyers — No one who has followed President Bush's policies on detainees should be surprised when a member of his team scorns American notions of justice. But even by that low standard, the administration's new attack on lawyers who dare to give those prisoners …

Discussion: The Huffington Post, TalkLeft and Washington Post

New York Times:

Bush Authorized Iranians' Arrest in Iraq, Rice Says — A recent series of American raids against Iranians in Iraq was authorized under an order that President Bush decided to issue several months ago to undertake a broad military offensive against Iranian operatives in the country, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Friday.

Discussion: PoliBlog (TM), Prairie Weather, Larisa Alexandrovna's …, BAGnewsNotes, FullosseousFlap's Dental Blog, The Reaction, AMERICAblog, Bark Bark Woof Woof, jules crittenden, The Agonist, Unfogged, Washington Post and New York Post

Haaretz:
Rice: I am not coming to Middle East with a plan

Discussion: The Corner, The Belgravia Dispatch and Jerusalem Post

Washington Post:
Gates Ties Iraq Push to Drawdown

Discussion: Political Animal and The Agonist

Jonathan Karl / ABCNEWS:

EXCLUSIVE: Hillary Clinton Calls Situation in Iraq 'Heartbreaking' — Senator Spoke Out Against the President's Policy in Iraq — In an exclusive interview with ABC News in Baghdad, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., called the situation in Iraq "heartbreaking" and said she doubts Congress …

Discussion: Balloon Juice and The Swamp

BBC:

Last Somali Islamist base 'falls' — Somali government troops backed by Ethiopian soldiers have captured the last stronghold of the Union of Islamic Courts, the defence minister says. — Col Barre Aden Shire said the town of Ras Kamboni, in south-eastern Somalia, fell after several days of fighting.

Discussion: ThreatsWatch

Captain Ed / Captain's Quarters: Final Islamist Collapse In Somalia (Updated)

Robert B. Reich / American Prospect:

Bad-Faith Negotiation — What's missing from the Democrats' new bill on bargaining prescription drug prices. — House Democrats are pushing a bill to require Medicare to negotiate drug prices. So far, so good. But in what appears to be a bow to the political clout of Big Pharma …

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias

Greg Mankiw / Greg Mankiw's Blog:
Dingell vs CBO

Discussion: Angry Bear and Redstate

Glenn Greenwald / Unclaimed Territory:

Rod Dreher: "Hadn't the hippies tried to tell my generation this"? — (updated below) — Rod Dreher is as conservative as it gets — a contributor to National Review and the Corner, a current columnist for The Dallas Morning News, a self-described "practicing Christian and political conservative."

Discussion: The Mahablog and Matthew Yglesias

Curt / Flopping Aces:

The Latest & Greatest On Jamil Hussein — I decided to step away a bit, but not completely, on the Jamil Hussein story and get back to the crux of the story. The whole thing has become convoluted and twisted to the point where people are not sure which way is up so I figured a little history …

Discussion: Democracy Project, Michelle Malkin, Ace of Spades HQ, The Jawa Report and Confederate Yankee

Opinion Journal:

The Berger Files — The case of the purloined archives gets stranger all the time. — The more we learn about Sandy Berger's brilliant career as a document thief, the clearer it becomes that there is plenty we still don't know and may never learn. On Tuesday, the House Government Reform …

Discussion: Blue Crab Boulevard

Los Angeles Times:

Iraqi leader goes own way to fill top post — He picks an unknown to lead forces in Baghdad, which raises questions about his motives. — BAGHDAD — Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has filled the top military job in Baghdad with a virtually unknown officer chosen over the objections …

Discussion: Informed Comment

Dan / Riehl World View:

Controversial Dem Manufactured White House Quotes — Updated at Bottom! — A newly-elected Democrat Congressman who first drew heat for insulting First Lady Laura Bush is now battling with the White House over allegedly insulting confrontations with Karl Rove, Vice President Dick Cheney, and President and Mrs. Bush.

Discussion: Lakeshore Laments and Kung Fu Quip

WKMG-TV:

African Lion Kisses, Hugs Woman Who Saved It — People Shocked To See Affection Between Pair — People in Cali, Colombia, are shocked to see the bond between a large African lion and a woman who saved it from abuse, involving long, affectionate kisses and hugs between the pair.

Discussion: CANNONFIRE, Kesher Talk, NewsBusters.org and Tennessee Guerilla Women

New York Times:

Passing Exchange Becomes Political Flashpoint — A passing exchange during a Senate hearing on Thursday turned into a political flashpoint overnight as Senator Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accused one another of insensitivity in comments about motherhood and the war in Iraq.

Discussion: Feministing, The Carpetbagger Report, Althouse and Norwegianity