memeorandum: Burqa-clad Taliban leader caught as NATO attacks (Reuters)

1:20 PM ET, March 7, 2007

Top Items:

The Libby Verdict — The serious consequences of a pointless Washington scandal — THE CONVICTION of I. Lewis Libby on charges of perjury, making false statements and obstruction of justice was grounded in strong evidence and what appeared to be careful deliberation by a jury.

Discussion: MSNBC, Political Animal, Firedoglake, Booman Tribune, Think Progress, Daily Kos, The Sideshow, Matthew Yglesias, PunditGuy, Decision '08, Rising Hegemon, Attytood, Dependable Renegade, State of the Day and MaxSpeak

Al Kamen / Washington Post:

Guess Libby's Pardon Date, Win a T-Shirt — The verdict is in! Now it's time for the In the Loop Pardon Scooter Contest! Yes, simply pick the date that President Bush will pardon Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who, according to federal sentencing guidelines …

Discussion: DownWithTyranny!, TIME: Swampland, f a t c a t politics and Wonkette

Opinion Journal:

The Libby Travesty — Mr. Bush owes the former aide a pardon, and an apology. — The word "guilty" had barely crossed the airwaves yesterday in the perjury case of Scooter Libby before critics were calling it proof that President Bush "lied us into war" and demanding that Dick Cheney be strung up next.

Discussion: New York Times, Firedoglake, The Hill, Boston Globe, Washington Post, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, The Raw Story, CBS News, Betsy's Page, The Absurd Report, Joe's Dartblog, Crooks and Liars, Cold Fury, Althouse, Ezra Klein, Think Progress, Brendan Nyhan and PSoTD

American Thinker:

I Call for Justice — In this week's episode of Rome (a superb HBO series which increasingly reminds me of the Nation's Capital), Servilia, whose son was killed in a power grab, knelt before the door of manipulative Attia, mother of Octavian and lover of Marc Anthony, the two men responsible, calling out in a haunting cry,

Discussion: Flopping Aces, Right Wing Nut House, Macsmind and The American Street

Howard Kurtz / Washington Post:
A Case of Bad Ink: Portrait of Media Is Not So Flattering

Discussion: New York Sun, The Huffington Post, JustOneMinute, Villainous Company and The Next Hurrah

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:
A Judgment on Cheney Is Still to Come

Peter Baker / Washington Post:
For an Opaque White House, A Reflection of New Scrutiny

Discussion: New York Times, Prairie Weather, Matthew Yglesias and Michael P.F. van der Galiën

Neil A. Lewis / New York Times:
Libby Guilty of Lying in C.I.A. Leak Case

Discussion: Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Seeing the Forest, FP Passport and The Vanity Press

New York Post:
FREE SCOOTER LIBBY

Discussion: Think Progress, The Carpetbagger Report, The Right Angle and Cliff Schecter

Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:
Pardon Me? — Speaking of pardons, Al Kamen of the Washington Post …

Discussion: FishBowlDC

Josh White / Washington Post:
Dole, Shalala to Lead Troop-Care Panel

Discussion: The Caucus, CNN Political Ticker and Going to the Mat

Guardian:
Lies about crimes — Leader — Even most Americans probably gave …

Discussion: NewsHog

Tom Maguire / JustOneMinute:
Media Matters Counterspin

Discussion: protein wisdom, Redstate, Overtaken, PostWatch and Gay Patriot

Alberto R. Gonzales / USA Today:

They lost my confidence — Attorneys' dismissals were related to performance, not to politics. — As any employer or manager knows, the handling of personnel matters — especially the termination of employees — is one of the most challenging tasks in any business.

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report, The American Street, The Left Coaster and The Heretik

David Johnston / New York Times:
Prosecutors Describe Contacts From Higher Up

Discussion: abqtrib.com and On Deadline

Susan Crabtree / The Hill:
Senior aide implicated

Discussion: TPMmuckraker and Citizens Blogging …

Real Cities:
Ousted U.S. attorneys describe lawmakers' intrusions

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report

Abraham Rabinovich / The Australian:

Iranian general 'seeking asylum in US' — A RETIRED Iranian general who went missing in Turkey last month has defected and sought asylum in the US, according to a well-connected Arabic newspaper published in London. — The newspaper, al-Shark al-Awsat, cited "high-profile" …

Discussion: Outside The Beltway

Pajamas Media:

PANIC IN TEHRAN — The disappearance and possible defection of former Iranian deputy defense minister Ali Reza Asgari has the Iranian government deeply worried — and for good reason. — Meir Javedanfar, an expert on Iran and co-author of an upcoming book on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, reports.

Associated Press:

Evangelical leader says Giuliani's divorce a problem … NASHVILLE, Tennessee (AP) — A Southern Baptist leader said Tuesday that evangelical voters might tolerate a divorced presidential candidate, but they have deep doubts about GOP hopeful Rudy Giuliani, who has been married three times.

Discussion: Daily Kos, Eschaton and AMERICAblog

Ralph Z. Hallow / Washington Times:
McCain seeks independents' primary votes

Discussion: The Caucus

Reuters:

Wired Iraqi man triggers scare at L.A. airport — LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - An Iraqi national wearing wires and concealing a magnet inside his rectum triggered a security scare at Los Angeles International Airport on Tuesday but officials said he posed no apparent threat.

Discussion: Hog On Ice, Flopping Aces, Lean Left, The Belmont Club, Blue Crab Boulevard, On Deadline, Danger Room, Jules Crittenden, Boing Boing and QandO

Dave Astor / Editor and Publisher:

Two More Newspapers Drop Ann Coulter's Column — NEW YORK At least two more daily newspapers — The Oakland Press of Michigan and The Mountain Press of Sevierville, Tenn. — have dropped Ann Coulter's column. A daily in Pennsylvania had dropped the column two days ago.

Discussion: Horses Mouth

HTML Mencken / Sadly, No!:
WingNet Refuses To Exorcise The Coultergeist

Discussion: Unqualified Offerings

Reuters:

Burqa-clad Taliban leader caught as NATO attacks — KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan soldiers have captured a Taliban leader who tried to flee a security operation in the south dressed in a burqa, NATO said on Wednesday. — Tuesday's capture in Kandahar province came as NATO launched a major offensive …

Discussion: QandO and The Jawa Report

New York Times:

Obama, in '05 Investing, Took Same Path as Donors — Less than two months after ascending to the United States Senate, Barack Obama bought more than $50,000 worth of stock in two speculative companies whose major investors included some of his biggest political donors.

Discussion: Drudge Report, The Corner, The Carpetbagger Report, TIME, Riehl World View, Hot Air, CNN Political Ticker, First Read, The Moderate Voice, TAPPED, Hotline On Call, On Deadline, Secular Blasphemy, Oliver Willis and Roger L. Simon

Associated Press:

Boston woman sues for child-rearing costs after failed abortion — BOSTON —A Boston woman who gave birth after a failed abortion has filed a lawsuit against two doctors and Planned Parenthood seeking the costs of raising her child. — The complaint was filed by Jennifer Raper, 45 …

Discussion: Redstate, The Corner and Stop The ACLU

Omaha World-Herald:

Hagel acts like he's already running — WASHINGTON - For a guy who hasn't announced a presidential bid, Sen. Chuck Hagel's schedule next week looks a lot like that of a candidate. — He's slated to appear with nine declared presidential hopefuls - including John McCain, Rudolph Giuliani …

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias and Eschaton