memeorandum: Unnecessary Scandal (Charles Krauthammer/Washington Post)

6:20 PM ET, March 23, 2007

Top Items:

House passes spending bill with Iraq deadline … WASHINGTON (CNN) — The House of Representatives on Friday voted 218-212 to approve a spending bill that includes a firm deadline — August 31, 2008 — for combat troops to leave Iraq. — President Bush, who already has said he would veto the bill …

Discussion: Democratic Underground, Liberal Values, QandO, The Moderate Voice, Macsmind, Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler, The Reaction and Left in the West

White House:

President Bush Discusses Iraq War Emergency Supplemental — THE PRESIDENT: Today I'm joined here at the White House by veterans, family members of people serving in combat, family members of those who have sacrificed. I am honored that they have joined me here today.

Discussion: alphabet city

Anne Flaherty / Associated Press:

House OKs Timetable for Troops in Iraq — WASHINGTON (AP) - A sharply divided House voted Friday to order President Bush to bring combat troops home from Iraq next year, a victory for Democrats in an epic war-powers struggle and Congress' boldest challenge yet to the administration's policy.

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, Facing South, Don Surber, Roger L. Simon, Clayton Cramer's BLOG, Wizbang and PoliPundit.com

MSNBC:

House approves 2008 deadline for war pullout — Bush calls it 'political theater' and vows to veto bill — WASHINGTON - A sharply divided House voted Friday to order President Bush to bring combat troops home from Iraq next year, but the president reiterated his vow to veto the bill …

Discussion: Oliver Willis and Hoffmania!

Anne Flaherty / Associated Press:

House Dems more confident on Iraq vote — WASHINGTON - House Democrats are increasingly confident they have the votes to pass legislation designed to force an end to the war in Iraq next year. — Several party members dropped their opposition to the bill following days of wrangling within a deeply divided caucus.

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report, Donklephant, Skeptical Brotha, Little Green Footballs and TIME: Swampland

Chris Good / The Hill:

Anti-war protesters arrested at Pelosi's office — Four members of the anti-war group Code Pink were arrested outside the office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) Thursday afternoon, following an announcement that they would seek to take over the office.

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, News Bloggers Blog, Moonbattery and Right Wing Champ

William Branigin / Washington Post:

House OKs Timetable for Troops in Iraq — $124B Emergency Bill Sets Binding Benchmarks for Progress in Iraq — The House of Representatives today passed a $124 billion emergency spending bill that sets binding benchmarks for progress in Iraq, establishes tough readiness standards …

Discussion: Booman Tribune, INTEL DUMP, Obsidian Wings, Reason Magazine and The Strata-Sphere

Washington Post:

Retreat and Butter — TODAY THE House of Representatives is due to vote on a bill that would grant $25 million to spinach farmers in California. The legislation would also appropriate $75 million for peanut storage in Georgia and $15 million to protect Louisiana rice fields from saltwater.

Discussion: Think Progress, Salon, Power Line, Captain's Quarters, Sadly, No! and First Draft

Greg Sargent / Horses Mouth:
Oh, man — this is really a great one. This morning …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars and Firedoglake

New York Times:
Democrats Shore Up Support for Iraq Votes

Discussion: The American Street, My Left Wing, The Jawa Report, JustOneMinute, ScrappleFace and Campaign for America's Future

New York Times:
House Narrowly Backs Iraq Timetable

Discussion: DownWithTyranny!, MSNBC and My Left Wing

Jennifer Loven / Associated Press:

White House Spokesman to Undergo Surgery — WASHINGTON (AP) - Presidential spokesman Tony Snow is undergoing surgery Monday to remove a growth in his lower abdomen, a procedure he said was being done "out of an aggressive sense of caution" because he had colon cancer two years ago.

Discussion: Captain's Quarters

Joe Conason / Salon:
Rove, proven liar

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Just a Bump in the Beltway and Norwegianity

White House:
Press Briefing by Tony Snow

Discussion: The Huffington Post, The Heretik, White House Watch, The RBC, The Caucus, On Deadline and First Draft

Robert Barr / Associated Press:

Iran nabs British sailors in Iraq waters — LONDON - Iranian naval vessels seized 15 British sailors who had boarded a ship suspected of smuggling cars in the Persian Gulf off the Iraqi coast on Friday, officials said. — The British government demanded "the immediate and safe return of our people and equipment."

Discussion: Guardian, The Jawa Report, New York Times, Counterterrorism Blog, The Strata-Sphere, GINA COBB, Scotsman, Gateway Pundit, NO QUARTER, Jules Crittenden, Atlas Shrugs, Blue Crab Boulevard and TigerHawk

MSNBC:

U.K. says 15 soldiers detained by Iranian navy — Ministry summons Iranian ambassador, seeks immediate return of troops — The HMS Cornwall on patrol in the North Arabian Gulf earlier this month. — NBC VIDEO — March 23: Fifteen British sailors have been detained by Iranian vessels.

Discussion: The Washington Note and NewsHog

Paul Kiel / TPMmuckraker:

Gonzales Aide to Senate Staff: Nothing to See Here — In the runup to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in January, Gonzales' chief of staff Kyle Sampson lied to committee staff in order to convince them that Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) …

Discussion: Grasping Reality …

Washington Post:
E-Mails Show Machinations to Replace Prosecutor

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, New York Times, The Swamp, Prairie Weather, The Carpetbagger Report, Facing South, Firedoglake, Donklephant, TPMmuckraker, USA Today and Oliver Willis

Pew Research Center:

Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2007 — Political Landscape More Favorable To Democrats — Summary of Findings — View the complete report in pdf format — Increased public support for the social safety net, signs of growing public concern about income inequality …

Discussion: MyDD, The Carpetbagger Report, Pollster, DownWithTyranny!, Middle Earth Journal and Just a Bump in the Beltway

Kevin Drum / Political Animal:
THE MYTH OF THE PERMANENT MAJORITY....The Pew survey I linked …

Discussion: Matthew Yglesias and All Spin Zone

Matthew Mosk / Washington Post:

FEC Democrats Say Bush Violated Limits — The three Democrats on the Federal Election Commission revealed yesterday that they strongly believe President Bush exceeded legal spending limits during the 2004 presidential contest and that his campaign owes the government $40 million.

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report and The Mahablog

Peter Beinart / Time:

Why the Dems Should Go for It — Since the Democrats won control of Congress last fall, they've been besieged with warnings against acting too aggressively on Iraq. Such "moves carry clear risks for a party that suffered politically for pushing to end an unpopular war in Vietnam," suggested the Washington Post in January.

Discussion: TalkLeft, The Huffington Post, The Corner and TAPPED

John W. Dean / FindLaw's Writ:

New Developments in the U.S. Attorney Controversy: — Why Bush Refuses to Allow Karl Rove and Harriet Miers to Testify Before Congress, and What Role New White House Counsel Fred Fielding May Play — At the outset of this column — which discusses Bush's new White House Counsel …

Discussion: Hullabaloo, Firedoglake and At-Largely