Top Items:
Mary Ann Akers / The Sleuth:
Democrats Outraged Over Fox Recess Appointment — Senate Democrats are livid over what they view as President Bush's illegal maneuver to bypass the Senate confirmation process and appoint controversial nominee Sam Fox as ambassador to Belgium while Congress is away on recess.
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David Stout / New York Times:
Bush Defies Democrats With 3 Appointments — President Bush used Congress's Easter break today to defy Democratic lawmakers and appoint three officials who have already drawn heavy criticism on Capitol Hill. — The president used recess appointments to install Sam Fox …
Discussion:
DownWithTyranny!, PoliBlog (TM), the talking dog, Bark Bark Woof Woof, Democracy Project, CorrenteWire and TalkLeft
White House:
Personnel Announcement — President George W. Bush today announced his intention to nominate ten individuals, appoint twelve individuals, recess appoint four individuals and designate one individual to serve in his Administration. The President today also announced that he has appointed one individual to serve in his Administration.
Bob Geiger:
Bush To Recess-Appoint Swift-Boat Scumbag Fox
Bush To Recess-Appoint Swift-Boat Scumbag Fox
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, The Moderate Voice, NewsHog, Redstate, Comments From Left Field, The Reaction and The Agonist
Michael Roston / The Raw Story:
Bush recess appoints major Swift Boat Vets donor
Bush recess appoints major Swift Boat Vets donor
Discussion:
Prairie Weather
Hindrocket / Power Line:
WELL DONE, W — It' s a small point, but I was disappointed …
WELL DONE, W — It' s a small point, but I was disappointed …
Discussion:
Associated Press
Washington Post:
Pratfall in Damascus — Nancy Pelosi's foolish shuttle diplomacy — HOUSE SPEAKER Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) offered an excellent demonstration yesterday of why members of Congress should not attempt to supplant the secretary of state when traveling abroad.
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Dugald McConnell / CNN:
Carter backs Pelosi's trip, despite Bush's rebuke … WASHINGTON (CNN) — Former President Jimmy Carter expressed his support for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip to Syria, rejecting White House criticism of the visit. — "I was glad that she went," Carter said Wednesday.
Discussion:
Connecting.the.Dots
Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:
Pelosi's Pratfall — Nancy Pelosi's amateurish fumble …
Pelosi's Pratfall — Nancy Pelosi's amateurish fumble …
Discussion:
Macsmind
Haaretz:
PMO: Pelosi did not carry any message to Assad
PMO: Pelosi did not carry any message to Assad
Discussion:
Hot Air, Reuters, Talking Points Memo, Sister Toldjah, Riehl World View, Michael P.F. van der Galiën and Confederate Yankee
Herb Keinon / Jerusalem Post:
PMO denies peace message to Assad
PMO denies peace message to Assad
Discussion:
Captain's Quarters, Confederate Yankee, alphabet city, theneweditor.com and Ace of Spades HQ
en.rian.ru:
Belgium to impose tax on barbequing to fight global warming — The government of Belgium's French-speaking region of Wallonia, which has a population of about 4 million, has approved a tax on barbequing, local media reported. — Experts said that between 50 and 100 grams of CO2 …
RELATED:
Ali Akbar Dareini / Associated Press:
British navy crew leaves Iran for London — TEHRAN, Iran - Fifteen British sailors and marines held captive for nearly two weeks left Iran early Thursday aboard a commercial flight bound for London, ending a standoff a day after Iran's president announced their surprise release.
Discussion:
The Jawa Report
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Jake Tapper / ABCNEWS:
EXCLUSIVE: Obama Bests Clinton in Primary Fundraising — Newcomer Obama Raises More Primary Cash than Clinton — ABC News has learned that the $23.5 million Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., raised for his presidential campaign for use in the primaries is more than that raised by the Democratic frontrunner, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y.
Discussion:
Redstate, Dick Polman's American Debate, The RBC, AMERICAblog, State of the Day, PoliBlog (TM), MyDD and Hotline On Call
RELATED:
Telegraph:
They're free, but Britain has been humiliated — Relief at the freeing of the British sailors and Marines in Iran is tempered with dismay at the humiliation to which they and the country they serve have been subjected. — The 14 men and one woman are due to return to Britain today …
Associated Press:
Students peacefully protest Cheney's upcoming appearance at BYU — PROVO, Utah (AP) — More than 200 demonstrators held a quiet rally Wednesday at Brigham Young University to protest Vice President Dick Cheney's upcoming commencement speech, while his supporters staged a counter-protest.
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Washington Post:
Gonzales Prepares to Fight for His Job in Testimony — Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales has retreated from public view this week in an intensive effort to save his job, spending hours practicing testimony and phoning lawmakers for support in preparation for pivotal appearances in the Senate this month …
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Greg Mitchell / Editor and Publisher:
Two Soldiers Likely Killed by 'Friendly Fire' — Contrary to Press Reports — And One Was Not Fully Trained — WASHINGTON Two soldiers killed in Iraq in February may have died as a result of friendly fire, Army officials said Wednesday, not from enemy fire, as the press reported.
Michael Davis / Chattanooga Times Free Press:
Morphing a conspiracy? — 'Honor system does not work on the Web' — A Chattanooga Internet firm doctored a photo of White House aide Karl Rove to show him holding a folder with the company's logo, fueling speculation in the blogosphere that the president's top adviser …
RELATED:
Murray Waas / The Huffington Post:
Favoritism Towards Wolfowitz Girl Friend — Employees of the World Bank have been "expressing concern, dismay, and outrage" regarding favoritism shown by the bank and the Bush administration towards the one-time girl friend of World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz, according …
Francis Fukuyama / DO NOT WRITE HERE …:
The history at the end of history — Condoleezza Rice wants to bring democracy to the Middle East. Ms. Rice, an expert on what is now an obsolete subject, the Soviet Union, believes this can be done the way the United States brought democracy to Chile or Iran or Afghanistan - that is, by violently overthrowing governments.
Discussion:
NewsHog
Opinion Journal:
Iraq's Real 'Civil War' — Sunni tribes battle al Qaeda terrorists in the insurgency's stronghold. — ANBAR PROVINCE, Iraq—Last fall, President Bush, citing the violence in Baghdad, said that the U.S. strategy in Iraq was "slowly failing." At that time, though, more Americans were dying …