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Michelle Malkin:
Back from Baghdad — My HotAir.com colleague Bryan Preston and I are back from Iraq. Thanks to Allah and Ian for holding down the fort at HA and thanks much to guest-bloggers Mary Katharine Ham, See-Dubya, and the Big Lizards for filling in here during my absence. Be sure to bookmark their blogs.
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Bryan / Hot Air:
Assessing Iraq — Michelle and I spent four days patrolling the environs around Forward Operating Base Justice in north and west Baghdad last week. FOB Justice is near one functional neighborhood, Khadimiyah, one mostly recovered neighborhood, Al Salam, one dysfunctional neighborhood …
Hot Air:
Blowback — Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from our readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
USA Today:
The big question about Barack Obama — CHICAGO — Two years in the U.S. Senate. Seven years in the Illinois Senate. One loss in a primary election for the U.S. House of Representatives. One stirring keynote address at a Democratic National Convention. Two best-selling books.
Discussion:
The Fix, The Democratic Daily, CNN Political Ticker, The Caucus, TPMCafe blogs and Washington Post
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Rasmussen Reports:
Clinton, Obama in Virtual Tie Among Democrats — Illinois Senator Barack Obama (D) formally announced his plans to run for President and instantly finds himself near the top of the heap. A Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of 401 Likely Democratic Primary Voters finds that 22% favor …
New York Times:
Anti-Buildup Measure to Have Bipartisan Stamp — Senator Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, an outspoken Republican critic of the administration's Iraq policy, will join two leading Democrats in introducing a resolution opposing President Bush's buildup of troops in Iraq, putting a bipartisan stamp …
Discussion:
Think Progress, DownWithTyranny!, The Left Coaster, AMERICAblog, SOTUblog, The Moderate Voice and The Corner
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Juan / Informed Comment:125 Killed, Hundreds Wounded by Bombings, Assassinations
Discussion:
FP Passport
Washington Post:
An Apology to Detainees' Attorneys — During a radio interview last week, I brought up the topic of pro bono work and habeas corpus representation of detainees in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Regrettably, my comments left the impression that I question the integrity of those engaged in the zealous defense of detainees in Guantanamo.
Discussion:
Lean Left, Discourse.net, Public Defender Stuff, Is That Legal?, Abovethelaw.com, Concurring Opinions, Kiko's House and PrawfsBlawg
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Josh White / Washington Post:
U.S. Official Apologizes for Guantanamo Remarks — A Pentagon official who criticized large U.S. law firms for representing terrorism suspects at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, has apologized for his comments, saying that his discussion on a local radio program does not reflect his "core beliefs."
Discussion:
TPMCafe blogs
David Johnston / New York Times:
Justice Dept. Names New Prosecutors, Forcing Some Out — The Justice Department is removing several United States attorneys from their jobs, among them Carol C. Lam, the top federal prosecutor in San Diego, who led the corruption prosecution of former Representative Randy Cunningham.
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Sam Youngman / The Hill:
Frist looking at governor run in 2010 — Former Majority Leader Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) is seriously considering a gubernatorial run in Tennessee in 2010, possibly setting up a White House bid further down the road. — Sources in Washington and Tennessee say Frist, who will turn 55 next month …
CNN:
Afghan civilians stop terror attack at U.S. base … KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) — Two civilians thwarted an attempted terrorist attack Tuesday when a vehicle loaded with explosives attempted to crash through the front gate of a U.S. base in the Afghan capital, according to the U.S. military.
Discussion:
BLACKFIVE
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Scott Shane / New York Times:
As Trial Begins, Cheney's Ex-Aide Is Still a Puzzle — Paradox seems to define I. Lewis Libby Jr., who remains a bit mysterious even to close colleagues. He is the White House policy enforcer who also wrote a literary novel; a buttoned-down Washington lawyer who likes knocking back tequila shots …
John Solo / Washington Post:
Lawmakers' Lobbying Spouses Avoid Hill Reforms — When Sen. Byron L. Dorgan (D-N.D.) rose to the Senate floor last summer and passionately argued for keeping the federal estate tax, he left one person with an interest in retaining the tax unmentioned. — The multibillion-dollar life-insurance industry …
Carolyn Lochhead / San Francisco Chronicle:
CONFLICT IN IRAQ — Iraq refugee crisis exploding — 40% of middle class believed to have fled crumbling nation — (01-16) 04:00 PST Washington — Iraq is in the throes of the largest refugee crisis in the Middle East since the Palestinian exodus from Israel in 1948 …
Donald Stoker / Foreign Policy:
Insurgencies Rarely Win - And Iraq Won't Be Any Different (Maybe) — Vietnam taught many Americans the wrong lesson: that determined guerrilla fighters are invincible. But history shows that insurgents rarely win, and Iraq should be no different. Now that it finally has a winning strategy …
Discussion:
Political Animal, QandO, TAPPED, Matthew Yglesias, Lawyers, Guns and Money and Outside The Beltway
Paul Kiel / TPMmuckraker:
Did Specter Give WH Power to Replace Prosecutors? — In order to replace several U.S. Attorneys with handpicked successors, the Bush Administration has relied on a tiny, obscure provision tucked into last year's USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act. — How did it get there?
KC Johnson / Durham-in-Wonderland:
The (Rump) Group of 88 Strikes Again — Two hundred ninety-five days after issuing their statement, the Group of 88 has re-emerged, in a defiant statement posted yesterday. — Operating under the moniker Concerned (of Being Sued) Duke Faculty, the 88 is now 87.
Mitch / shotinthedark.info:
So Pick Your Side — The other day, when talking about the Dems' plan to try to reinstate the "Fairness Doctrine", I noted that there really are only two sides to this debate; you support free speech, or you believe that federal bureaucrats should control it; the exact words were "authoritarian thug".
Liang Youchang / Xinhua News Agency:
Iran shoots down U.S. spy drone amid growing military pressure — TEHRAN, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) — Iranian troops have shot down a U.S. pilotless spy plane recently, an Iranian lawmaker announced on Tuesday as the Islamic Republic was facing increasing military pressure from its arch rival — the United States.
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