Top Items:
Carl Hulse / New York Times:
Democrats Drop Troop Pullout Dates From Iraq Bill — Congressional Democrats relented today on their insistence that a war spending measure sought by President Bush also set a date for withdrawing troops from Iraq. The decision to back down, described by senior lawmakers and aides …
Discussion:
TIME: Swampland, Associated Press, Firedoglake, Pam's House Blend, Donklephant, the talking dog, On Deadline and Salon
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CNN:
Deadline pulled from war funding bill … WASHINGTON (CNN) — Speaker Nancy Pelosi will present a plan to House Democrats for a war funding bill that won't include a timeline for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq but will feature benchmarks with consequences, according to Democratic leadership aides.
Discussion:
Daily Kos, New York Times, Election Central, Firedoglake, Gay Patriot, Oliver Willis, TalkLeft and Crooks and Liars
Laura Litvan / Bloomberg:
Lieberman, Sticking With Democrats for Now, Warns Them on Iraq — Senator Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, says his disagreement with the Democrats over the Iraq war won't prevent him from working with his former party. For now. — ``I hope the moment doesn't come that I feel …
Senator Russ Feingold / Daily Kos:A Collapse for Democrats — I wanted to link to a couple …
Discussion:
Baltimore Sun, Crooks and Liars, Taylor Marsh, DownWithTyranny!, Riehl World View, Don Surber and TalkLeft
The Blotter:
Bush Authorizes New Covert Action Against Iran — Brian Ross and Richard Esposito Report: — The CIA has received secret presidential approval to mount a covert "black" operation to destabilize the Iranian government, current and former officials in the intelligence community tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com.
Discussion:
Confederate Yankee, The Moderate Voice, The Strata-Sphere, Wizbang, Jules Crittenden, The Agonist and CorrenteWire
RELATED:
Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:Well, This Takes All The Fun Out Of It — ABC News has revealed …
Discussion:
The Newshoggers
ABCNEWS:
Bomb Plot Thwarted at Falwell's Funeral — Student Arrested With Homemade Bombs, Three Other Suspects Sought — Even in death, the Rev. Jerry Falwell rouses the most volatile of emotions. — A small group of protesters gathered near the funeral services to criticize the man …
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Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:
Pre-Emptive Stupidity At Falwell Funeral — Police arrested a 19-year-old student of Liberty University for bringing homemade gasoline bombs to the funeral of Jerry Falwell. The student, Mark Ewell, claimed that he wanted to disrupt any anti-Falwell protests at the funeral, presumably including those threatened by Fred Phelps:
Pew Research Center:
Muslim Americans: Middle Class and Mostly Mainstream — War on Terror Concerns — The first-ever, nationwide, random sample survey of Muslim Americans finds them to be largely assimilated, happy with their lives, and moderate with respect to many of the issues that have divided Muslims and Westerners around the world.
RELATED:
Alan Fram / Associated Press:
Some US Muslims say suicide attacks OK — WASHINGTON - One in four younger U.S. Muslims said in a poll that suicide bombings to defend their religion are acceptable at least in some circumstances, though most Muslim Americans overwhelmingly reject the tactic and are critical of Islamic extremism and al-Qaida.
Stewart M. Powell / San Francisco Chronicle:
Bush could double force by Christmas — (05-22) 04:00 PDT Washington — The Bush administration is quietly on track to nearly double the number of combat troops in Iraq this year, an analysis of Pentagon deployment orders showed Monday. — The little-noticed second surge …
RELATED:
Stewart M. Powell / Seattle Post-Intelligencer:U.S. quietly, dramatically increasing Iraq troop levels
Discussion:
Firedoglake
Kevin Drum / Washington Monthly:A SECOND SURGE?....I don't even remember where I first saw this now …
Discussion:
Bring it On!
Faiz / Think Progress:
Snow Slams Gore's Book, Says It Should Be 'Reprinted' Because It Calls Out Bush's 'Deception' — In his new book The Assault on Reason, Al Gore wrote that Bush's efforts to connect Iraq to 9/11 were an example of the administration's willful "deception" of the public:
RELATED:
The Independent:
Robert Fisk: The road to Jerusalem (via Lebanon) — Inspired by al-Qa'ida, a hitherto little-known militant group is behind the outbreak of bloody violence which has left scores dead — They came into Lebanon last summer when the world was watching Israel smash this small nation in a vain attempt to destroy the Hizbollah.
RELATED:
Jean Hopfensperger / Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Attack on 'sex slavery' targets 8 brothels — Federal, state and local authorities said 18 of the 25 people charged with running a prostitution ring are illegal immigrants. — The women came mostly from Mexico and Central America. — When they arrived in Minnesota …
Discussion:
Captain's Quarters
RELATED:
Agence France Presse:
Gay flamingos pick up chick — LONDON (AFP) - A pair of gay flamingos have adopted an abandoned chick, becoming parents after being together for six years, a British conservation organisation said Monday. — Carlos and Fernando had been desperate to start a family, even chasing other flamingos …
Daniel Friedman / Federal Times:
GSA chief violated Hatch Act, OSC report finds — An Office of Special Counsel report has found that General Services Administration chief Lurita Doan violated the Hatch Act, which bars federal officials from partisan political activity while on the job, sources say.
Justin Rood Reports / The Blotter:
U.S. Government Gave Airtime to Terrorists, Official Admits — Justin Rood Reports: — Al Hurra television, the U.S. government's $63 million-a-year effort at public diplomacy broadcasting in the Middle East, is run by executives and officials who cannot speak Arabic, according to a senior official who oversees the program.
Discussion:
The Carpetbagger Report, Jesus' General, Obsidian Wings, Scared Monkeys and Crooks and Liars
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