Top Items:
David D. Kirkpatrick / New York Times:
Former Key Aide Testifies Today on Gonzales's Statements — D. Kyle Sampson, point man for the removal of eight United States attorneys, has spent almost seven years at the right hand of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales. — And over time, friends and former colleagues say …
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New York Times:
Gonzales Draws Strong Criticism of Prosecutors — Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales endured blunt criticism Tuesday from federal prosecutors who questioned the firings of eight United States attorneys, complained that the dismissals had undermined morale and expressed broader grievances …
Discussion:
The Carpetbagger Report, First Read, Angry Bear, All Spin Zone, Political Animal, Norwegianity, Pandagon and Washington Post
New York Times:
E-Mail Shows Rove's Role in Fate of Prosecutors — Almost every Wednesday afternoon, advisers to President Bush gather to strategize about putting his stamp on the federal courts and the United States attorneys' offices. — The group meets in the Roosevelt Room and includes aides …
Discussion:
Real Cities, TPMmuckraker, The Mahablog, Macsmind, The Huffington Post, Prairie Weather and Cliff Schecter
Rick Klein / Boston Globe:
Kennedy: Justice firings are keyed to '08 vote
Kennedy: Justice firings are keyed to '08 vote
Discussion:
NewsBusters.org
Christy Hardin Smith / Firedoglake:
Kyle Sampson Testimony, Part II
Kyle Sampson Testimony, Part II
Discussion:
politburo diktat 2.0
Robin Toner / New York Times:
Democrats Are Building on Unity Over Iraq Pullout — No one has seemed more surprised by the Democrats' success in pushing an exit strategy for Iraq than the Democrats. — Their aggressiveness and unity on a major foreign-policy challenge to the president is a striking change for a party that has …
Discussion:
DownWithTyranny!, Ezra Klein, TalkLeft, The Corner, BAGnewsNotes, Matthew Yglesias, MyDD, Prairie Weather and Sister Toldjah
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Michael D. Shear / Washington Post:
A 'Law & Order' Presidential Candidate? — "Law & Order" star and former U.S. senator Fred Dalton Thompson is considering a bid for the White House that would test whether Hollywood can once again launch a Republican to the world's premier political stage. — His interest, confirmed …
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Michael D. Shear / Washington Post:
Thompson Run Could Trigger 'Equal Time' Rule — If Fred Thompson, the one-time Tennessee senator better known to most Americans as district attorney Arthur Branch on "Law & Order," runs for president, some of his fans may be in for a letdown. Television stations are expected to drop reruns …
Nico / Think Progress:
Video: Rove raps at correspondents dinner. — At tonight's Radio and Television Correspondents Dinner, Karl Rove said he likes to "tear the tops off of small animals" in his spare time, then rapped about it as "MC Rove." Watch it: — At the same event, President Bush said of the U.S. Attorney scandal …
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Washington Post:
The Myth Of Voter Fraud — As Congress probes the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, attention is centering on who knew what, and when. It's just as important to focus on "why," such as the reason given for the firing of at least one of the U.S. attorneys, John McKay of Washington state …
Bob Cusack / The Hill:
Democrats say McCain nearly abandoned GOP — Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) was close to leaving the Republican Party in 2001, weeks before then-Sen. Jim Jeffords (Vt.) famously announced his decision to become an Independent, according to former Democratic lawmakers who say they were involved in the discussions.
TBogg:
Witness the death of vlogging — Speechless. I'm just... speechless. — I would give credit to the person who tipped me off to this but he doesn't want his name used. I'm guessing he doesn't want Ann to cut off his alimony payments.
Washington Post:
Md. Senate Advances Bill To Dodge Electoral College — Maryland is poised to become the first state to agree to bypass the electoral college and effectively elect U.S. presidents by national popular vote under legislation moving briskly toward the desk of Gov. Martin O'Malley (D).
BBC:
US 'no longer technology king' — The US has lost its position as the world's primary engine of technology innovation, according to a report by the World Economic Forum. — The US is now ranked seventh in the body's league table measuring the impact of technology on the development of nations.
Hindrocket / Power Line:
MCCAIN STANDS IN THE GAP — Let's put aside for a moment McCain/Feingold and the right's other grievances against John McCain. When it comes to the war on terror, is he the Lincoln of our time? McCain has now launched a petition drive, under the name Surrender Is Not an Option. McCain says:
Austin Bay / TCS Daily:
Iran's Latest Hostage Gamble — The sailors call them "RHIBs" — rigid hull inflatable boats. Add powerful outboard motors, and the agile, shallow-draft RHIB becomes an ideal watercraft for scooting around the Tigris and Euphrates estuary or for slipping among suspicious dhows in Iraqi coastal waters.
Discussion:
Outside The Beltway
Katherine Kersten / Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Moderate American Muslim gives a challenging response to the six imams — Dr. Zuhdi Jasser of Phoenix was deeply troubled after 9/11. A Muslim, he saw his faith threatened by extremists seeking to hijack it for political ends. "Islam is a spiritual path," he says.
Richard Pérez-Peña / New York Times:
As Forbes Endorses Giuliani, Giuliani Endorses a Flat Tax — Rudolph W. Giuliani accepted the endorsement of Steve Forbes yesterday and embraced Mr. Forbes's signature issue, saying he liked the idea of a flat tax — something Mr. Giuliani denounced when Mr. Forbes was running for president.