President Open to Benchmarks in Iraq Measure  —  Hours before the House approved a plan on Thursday to finance the Iraq war only through midsummer, President Bush offered his first public concession to try to resolve the impasse on war spending, acknowledging rising pressure from his own party and the public.

Bush and Democrats in Accord on Trade Deals  —  The Bush administration reached agreement on Thursday with the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, and other Democrats to attach environmental and worker protections in several pending trade accords, clearing the way for early passage of some pacts and improving prospects for others.

As Gas Prices Rise Again, Democrats Blame Big Oil  —  A week after U.S. gasoline prices hit a near-record $3.05 a gallon, Democrats in Congress are promoting legislation taking aim at the big oil companies, although industry experts say that the efforts aren't likely to have any effect.

A beautiful mosaic of anti-blogger hatred  —  Various prominent personages share their visceral contempt for blogs:  —  John Yoo at an April 18 Civil Liberties debate (via blogger Roger Ailes): … As Ailes says: "Yoo wishes they never existed because, unlike illegally-detained prisoners …

Gun Shy  —  Sipping soda from a straw and leaning on his elbows at Perkins, Troy Scheffler seems harmless enough.  The 31-year-old Hamline University grad student resembles a post-Pulp Fiction John Travolta—slightly overstuffed, with graying sideburns and a small, tense smile.

How the CIA Failed America  —  George Tenet sets the stage in his memoir by recalling a conversation he claims to have had with me on Sept. 12, 2001: "As I walked beneath the awning that leads to the West Wing[, I] saw Richard Perle exiting the building just as I was about to enter. …

Lawmaker: Fort Dix hero may need immunity  —  The New Jersey store clerk whose tip led to the arrest of six terror suspects needs legislative protection from being sued as a "John Doe" or whistleblower, lawmakers said yesterday.  —  "The events in Fort Dix are just another reminder of the need …

The Religion Test  —  John F. Kennedy's election in 1960 was supposed to have laid the "religious question" to rest, yet it arises again with a fury.  What does the Constitution mean when it says there should be no religion test for office?  It plainly means that a candidate can't be barred …

Poll: Congress' Approval Same As Bush  —  WASHINGTON (AP) - People think the Democratic-led Congress is doing just as dreary a job as President Bush, following four months of bitter political standoffs that have seen little progress on Iraq and a host of domestic issues.

Delicate Flowers  —  I was at a big old get together yesterday evening featuring some people from the blogosphere, some old media types, folks with old media origins who now do some new media work, folks with new media origins who now work for MSM outlets, and even some people who aren't journalists …

John Edwards' big ideas costly  —  WASHINGTON - Presidential candidate John Edwards is offering more policy proposals than any other candidate in the primary and his ideas are winning loud applause from Democratic audiences.  —  The question is whether other voters will cheer when they see the price tag …

CBS fires Gen. Batiste over VoteVets ad.  —  Iraq veteran Gen. John Batiste "has been asked to leave his position as a consultant to CBS News" over a new VoteVets ad criticizing the Iraq war.  He was interviewed tonight by MSNBC's Keith Olbermann.  Watch it:  —  Digg It!  —  The URI to TrackBack this entry is:

Canadian Drugs, Eh?  —  Washington fights over an unwanted program.  —  Listen to Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe discuss importing drugs from Canada, and you'll hear endless happy talk about "more competitive prices," "substantial savings" and how "crucial" reimportation is to "the American consumer."

Dearborn lets cop quit without a drug charge in marijuana brownie case  —  Dearborn police declined to pursue criminal charges against an officer last year, even after the cop admitted to taking marijuana from criminal suspects and, with his wife, cooking it up in brownies.

In Praise of Budweiser (contains extended footnotes)  —  I tend to regard myself as Crooked Timber's online myrmidon of a number of rather unpopular views; among other things, as regular readers will have seen, I believe that the incitement to religious hatred legislation was a good idea …

Michelle Obama's Career Timeout  —  For Now, Weight Shifts in Work-Family Tug of War  —  CHICAGO — For the first time in her adult life, Michelle Obama is about to be unemployed.  —  She never aspired to be a stay-at-home wife or mother.  For years she wrestled with the issues …