memeorandum: If You Ever Wonder Whether We Really Need Public Financing … (Al Franken/The Huffington Post)

3:00 PM ET, June 4, 2007

Top Items:

Indictment Sought Against Rep. Jefferson — FBI Probes Allegations Lawmaker Took Bribes to Promote Business Ventures — Federal prosecutors are seeking an indictment today against Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-La.) in a longstanding FBI corruption probe centering on allegations that he took bribes …

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, Booman Tribune, Salon and Alternate Brain

CBS News:

Indictment Sought Against Rep. Jefferson — CBS News: Sources Say Corruption Charges To Be Brought Against Democratic Congressman — (CBS) Sources tell CBS News that authorities are seeking an indictment against Congressman William Jefferson, D-La., on more than a dozen counts involving public corruption.

Discussion: Captain's Quarters and The Jawa Report

Times-Picayune:

Jefferson indicted on 16 counts — WASHINGTON - A federal grand jury issued an indictment today against U.S. Rep. William Jefferson, accusing the New Orleans Democrat of 16 counts including racketeering, soliciting bribes, fraud, money-laundering and obstructing justice in connection with a web …

Discussion: The Strata-Sphere

Lara Jakes Jordan / Associated Press:
Jury indicts Jefferson in bribery probe

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report and Macsmind

Jennifer Parker / Political Radar:
Rep. Jefferson Indicted on Corruption Charges

Discussion: Pajamas Media and AMERICAblog

Scarecrow / Firedoglake:

Defining Democrats And Herself — Hillary Clinton changed the Democratic Presidential race last night in ways that will make her a more formidable candidate in the primaries while making the Democratic Party a stronger bet to improve their majorities in 2008.

Discussion: Eschaton and Norwegianity

New York Times:

The Democrats' Second 2008 Presidential Debate — The following is a transcript of the 2008 Democratic primary presidential debate hosted by CNN. The participants were Senator Joesph Biden, Senator Hillary Clinton, Senator Christopher Dodd, John Edwards, Mike Gravel, Rep. Dennis Kucinich …

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report, Booman Tribune, QandO, THE CUNNING REALIST, ImmigrationProf Blog, Washington Post and Liberal Values

CNN:

CNN LIVE EVENT/SPECIAL — New Hamposhire Democratic Presidential Candidates Debate — THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED. — SCOTT SPRADLING, WMUR: Senator Obama, you get the first question of the night. — It has been nearly six years since 9/11.

Discussion: TIME: Swampland, Dick Polman's American Debate, Lonewacko, Air America Radio and Sister Toldjah

Digby / Hullabaloo:

Debate — I think the question I enjoyed the most in the Democratic debate was the one where Wolf asked them all what they would do if they were tied to a bed naked with a ticking time bomb and a bunch of terrorists rushed into the room and started kibitzing among themselves about where to get the best Botox in Miami.

Discussion: MaxSpeak, TalkLeft, Shakesville, State of the Day and The Sideshow

Washington Post:
Democrats Focus on Iraq In Contentious Second Debate

Discussion: Boston Globe, New York Times, CNN, Washington Times, MSNBC, The Agonist, New York Post, TIME, Don Surber, Associated Press, DownWithTyranny! and The Caucus

Mike Allen / The Politico:

Politico Playbook: The 'A' word — Good Monday morning. As Iraq dominated last night's Democratic debate, expect CNN's Wolf Blitzer to burrow in hard on immigration when he gets the Republicans on his set on Tuesday night. Sen. John McCain make a preemptive strike this morning at a hotel in Coral Gables …

Discussion: Power Line, Washington Post, Captain's Quarters, National Review, Examining Presidential …, Hot Air, The Strata-Sphere, Macsmind and TIME

Christopher Cooper / Wall Street Journal:

Thompson's First Test: Raising Funds Fast — After a Late Start, — Campaign Targets — Web, Fence-Sitters — As a late entry into the crowded, expensive, presidential campaign, Fred Thompson's first big test of viability will be his ability to raise money quickly.

Discussion: Hot Air, Captain's Quarters, The American Mind and Blue Crab Boulevard

New York Times:
Romney Is Central Target of McCain Counterattack

Discussion: TIME: Swampland, DownWithTyranny!, MSNBC and AMERICAblog

The Palmetto Scoop:

Scarborough has an "Imus moment" — Presidential candidate Fred Thompson's second-and-current wife Jeri, who is considered by some to be a "trophy wife," was the topic of an interesting conversation on Friday's Morning Joe radio talk show, which aired live on MSNBC.

Discussion: The Radio Equalizer

Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:

Scarborough Attacks Fred's Wife — Joe Scarborough offers his keen insight and classy analysis into today's political scene in an interview this morning with Congressional Quarterly's Craig Crawford. During the Morning Joe program on MS-NBC, Scarborough suggested that Fred Thompson's wife is a whore (via the Palmetto Scoop):

Discussion: The Impolitic and The Newshoggers

Michelle Malkin:
Still dissing women at MSNBC

Discussion: Hot Air

Andrew O. Selsky / Associated Press:

Judge dismisses charges against detainee — GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba - A military judge on Monday dismissed terrorism-related charges against a prisoner charged with killing an American soldier in Afghanistan, in a stunning reversal for the Bush administration's attempts to try Guantanamo detainees in military court.

Discussion: TPMCafe blogs and Prairie Weather

Guardian:

Guantánamo Bay case thrown out — The US military's system of tribunals at Guantánamo Bay was thrown into chaos today after a military judge threw out all charges against a young Canadian detainee. — One senior military official said the ruling in the case of Omar Khadr could have a …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and The Newshoggers

National Review:

Breaking with Bush — I take from Mark Steyn and Jonah Goldberg's comments that conservatives have been tolerant of President Bush for a long time, given his embrace of big-government from the start. And they have. But I don't think the issue is that conservatives are generally surprised …

Discussion: The American Mind, Scared Monkeys and Balloon Juice

Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
The great right-wing fraud to repudiate George W. Bush

Discussion: Norwegianity and Comments From Left Field

Aman Ali / The Hill:

Gingrich hints again of White House run — Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) fueled further speculation Sunday about entering the Republican race for president by taking shots at the Bush administration. — "The government is not functioning," Gingrich said on Fox News.

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, DownWithTyranny!, Michael P.F. van der Galiën and Political Radar

Robert D. Novak / Washington Post:
Hatch Act Hatchet Job

Discussion: Firedoglake, The Carpetbagger Report, The Next Hurrah and Brian Beutler

The Blotter:

Iraqi Insurgents Claim to Have Killed Missing Soldiers — Brian Ross and Rhonda Schwartz Report: — An Iraqi insurgent group says it has killed two missing American soldiers who they said had been captured alive. — According to a full translation of a ten-minute video released …

Discussion: Think Progress, The Jawa Report, Jules Crittenden, Pajamas Media and Hot Air

Kevin Drum / Washington Monthly:

THE BITTER END....It's a common refrain among liberals that the best way to "support the troops" is to get them out of Iraq and bring them home. In the current issue of the Monthly, Spencer Ackerman says plainly that this is rubbish: … This is God's own truth.

Discussion: IMAO and Angry Bear

Al Franken / The Huffington Post:

If You Ever Wonder Whether We Really Need Public Financing of Elections in this Country — As a candidate for the U.S. Senate here in Minnesota, I've become painfully aware of the role money plays in politics. — For instance, according to my staff, I'm not supposed to write anything without mentioning …

Discussion: WorkingForChange and Minnesota Monitor

Gateway Pundit:

Remembering the Massacre at Tiananmen Square- 18 Yrs Ago Today — On June 4, 1989, hundreds of innocent civilians were shot dead by the Chinese army during a bloody military operation to crush a democratic uprising in Peking's (Beijing) Tiananmen Square. — Tanks rumbled through …

Discussion: BBC, The Impolitic, Maggie's Farm and QandO

Nora Ephron / The Huffington Post:

How to Foil a Terrorist Plot in Seven Simple Steps — 1. In order to foil a terrorist plot, you must first find a terrorist plot. This is not easy. — 2. Not just anyone can find and then foil a terrorist plot. You must have an incentive. The best incentive is to be an accused felon, looking at a long prison term.

Discussion: TigerHawk and Atlas Shrugs

Dan Newling / Daily Mail:

Smokers told to quit or surgery will be refused — Smokers are to be denied operations on the Health Service unless they give up cigarettes for at least four weeks beforehand. — Doctors will police the rule by ordering patients to take a blood test to prove they have not been smoking.

Discussion: Moonbattery and Pajamas Media

Lyle Denniston / SCOTUSblog:

Court protects trial judges on juror dismissal — The Supreme Court, dividing 5-4, ruled on Monday that federal courts must defer to trial courts in deciding whether to remove a juror from a death penalty trial because of the potential juror's views about capital punishment.

Discussion: Althouse and How Appealing