Top Items:
John F. Burns / New York Times:
U.S. and Iraqis Are Wrangling Over War Plans — Just days after President Bush unveiled a new war plan calling for more than 20,000 additional American troops in Iraq, the heart of the effort — a major push to secure the capital — faces some of its fiercest resistance from the very people …
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Joshua Partlow / Washington Post:
Saddam Hussein's Co-Defendants Hanged — Half Brother and Chief Judge Condemned With Deposed Iraqi Leader — The Iraqi government executed two of Saddam Hussein's associates early Monday morning for their participation in crimes against humanity, according to an Iraqi official.
Fareed Zakaria / Newsweek:
Lt. Col. Steven Duke says the Mahdi Army is 'sitting on the 50-yard line, eating popcorn, watching us do their work for them.' — Everyone seems quite certain that George W. Bush's new plan for Iraq is bound to fail. But I'm not so sure. At a military level, the strategy could well produce some successes.
Borzou Daragahi / Los Angeles Times:
Bush's plan to add troops fueling Iraq insurgency, Sunni scholar says
Bush's plan to add troops fueling Iraq insurgency, Sunni scholar says
New York Times:
Politicizing Prosecutors — The Bush administration has appointed an extreme political partisan as the new United States attorney for Arkansas. Normally, the Senate would have vetted him, and quite possibly blocked his appointment. But the White House took advantage of a little-noticed provision …
Discussion:
Brilliant at Breakfast
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New York Times:
Two Hussein Allies Are Hanged, Iraqi Official Says — Saddam Hussein's half-brother and the head of his revolutionary court were executed before dawn today, according to the Iraqi government. — The executions come just two weeks after Mr. Hussein's hanging caused considerable criticism around …
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New York Times:
Democrats Split on How to Oppose Troop Increase — The White House sought Sunday to head off building pressure in Congress to cut off or limit financing for sending more troops to Iraq. — But even as President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney made it clear that they would proceed …
Discussion:
DownWithTyranny!
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Youssef Ibrahim / New York Sun:
Will Saudis Ban the Letter 'X'? — The letter "X" soon may be banned in Saudi Arabia because it resembles the mother of all banned religious symbols in the oil kingdom: the cross. — The new development came with the issuing of another mind-bending fatwa, or religious edict …
Noam Cohen / New York Times:
Bloggers Take on Talk Radio Hosts — A San Francisco talk radio station pre-empted three hours of programming on Friday in response to a campaign by bloggers who have recorded extreme comments by several hosts and passed on digital copies to advertisers. — The lead blogger …
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Mark Mazzetti / New York Times:
Cheney Defends Efforts to Obtain Financial Records — Vice President Dick Cheney yesterday defended efforts by the Pentagon and the Central Intelligence Agency to obtain financial records of Americans suspected of terrorism or espionage, calling the practice a "perfectly legitimate activity" …
Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:
Bill O'Reilly And NBC, Shouting to Make Themselves Seen? — A war of words between Bill O'Reilly and NBC has erupted into a shouting match that is overheated, mean-spirited and incredibly entertaining. — "NBC News has gone sharply to the left," the Fox News star said on his radio show in early January.
The Big Trunk / Power Line:
THE PROPHETIC VOICE — When Martin Luther King, Jr. brought his nonviolent campaign against segregation to Bull Connor's Birmingham, he laid siege to the bastion of Jim Crow. In Birmingham between 1957 and 1962, black churches and homes had been subjected to horrific bombings.
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Ronald A. Cass / Real Clear Politics:
Sandy Berger: What Did He Take and Why Did He Take It? — Some things cry out for explanation. Like finding $90,000 in marked bills in a Congressman's freezer. Or finding out that a blue-chip lawyer who held one of the most important jobs in the nation was willing to risk his career …
Discussion:
Power Line
Agence France Presse:
Economists upgrade US outlook after surprisingly strong data — Economists are hastily upgrading their forecasts for the US economy after a series of surprisingly strong reports suggesting the so-called "soft landing" may be over and growth is accelerating.
Michael A. Fletcher / Washington Post:
Bush: 'We're Going Forward' — More Troops Called The Only Iraq Option — Faced with substantial opposition both in Congress and among the American public to their Iraq plans, President Bush and Vice President Cheney vowed yesterday to forge ahead with the deployment of more than 21,000 additional troops.
Griff Witte / Washington Post:
New Law Could Subject Civilians to Military Trial — Provision Aimed at Contractors, but Some Fear It Will Sweep Up Other Workers — Private contractors and other civilians serving with U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan could be subject for the first time to military courts-martial under …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice