Statement on Campaign Bloggers  —  The tone and the sentiment of some of Amanda Marcotte's and Melissa McEwan's posts personally offended me.  It's not how I talk to people, and it's not how I expect the people who work for me to talk to people.  Everyone is entitled to their opinion …

GOP makes much ado about the size of Pelosi's plane  —  The House speaker has had the use of a government jet since the Sept. 11 attacks  —  (02-08) 04:00 PST Washington — The way Speaker Nancy Pelosi will travel home to San Francisco and on official business is the latest tempest to hit the House of Representatives.

Libby Live: Tim Russert, Three  —  Good morning, my friends, and welcome back to the cross-examination that never ends ... we're due to see more of NBC's Tim Russert being raked over the coals by Scooter Libby's attorney, Ted Wells.  Yesterday afternoon's grilling raised several questions that Jane Hamsher …

Al Qaeda in Iraq Crumbling: al Masri on the run  —  Coalition forces in Iraq have delivered a series of stunning blows to al Qaeda in Iraq in the last 48 hours.  —  A key aide to Abu Ayyub al-Masri, the man who replaced Abu Musab al Zarqawi as the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq, has been south of Baghdad.

Sign Up  —  The Edwards campaign is standing by their bloggers as they came under assault by the rightwing noise machine and good for them.  —  But this is going to be the pattern unless the news media recognises that they have a substantial number of readers who will not tolerate a reprise …

Mitt changes tax-cut tune  —  After refusing to endorse President Bush's tax cuts when he was governor, Mitt Romney has now made them a central part of his presidential campaign, stirring accusations that he is changing his position to appeal to GOP primary voters.

The Pentagon's not-so-little secret  —  As the president and Republicans continue to hype the surge — and stifle debate about it — Bush's own war planners are preparing for failure in Iraq.  —  Composite photo of George W. Bush and soldiers from the 1st Infantry at Fort Riley, Kan. …

Gore: Nations Must Take Lead in Warming  —  MADRID, Spain (AP) — Emerging economies such as China are justified in holding back on fighting greenhouse gas emissions until richer polluters like the United States do more to solve the problem, former Vice President Al Gore said Wednesday.

Bush Wants Funding Jump for Anti-Drug Ads Rated as Useless  —  President Bush has proposed a significant jump in funding for an anti-drug advertising campaign that government-funded research shows is at best useless and at worst has increased drug use among some teens.

Jonah Goldberg Day!  —  Two years ago today, Jonah Goldberg threw down the following challenge to Juan Cole: … Since Goldberg enjoys throwing a little smear-job in with his punditry, he also offered this: … Got it.  So we have a prediction, along with the insinuation that Professor Cole …