Top Items:
Dan Balz / Washington Post:
A Failure of Leadership in a Flawed Political Culture — The collapse of comprehensive immigration revision in the Senate last night represents a political defeat for President Bush, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), the bill's most prominent sponsors.
Discussion:
Stubborn Facts, The Caucus, The Politico, Washington Times, Hot Air, Betsy's Page, Blue Crab Boulevard and Steve Sailer
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New York Times:
Immigrant Bill, Short 15 Votes, Stalls in Senate — The sweeping immigration overhaul endorsed by President Bush crumbled in the Senate on Thursday night, leaving the future of one of the administration's chief domestic priorities in serious doubt. — After a day of tension and fruitless maneuvering …
John Hawkins / Right Wing News:
The Inside Story Of How The Senate Immigration Bill Died — A GOP Aide, who's one of my sources in the Senate, gave me the rundown on what happened to the Senate bill today. — After the 2nd cloture vote failure at noon on Thursday, Harry Reid could not get unanimous consent to call …
Discussion:
Townhall.com, Shakesville, The Young Turks, The Moderate Voice, Michael P.F. van der Galiën, Sister Toldjah and IMAO
Charles Krauthammer / Washington Post:
Two Years of Humble Pie — In Britain, Canada and other civilized places, national elections are often called, run and concluded within six weeks. In America, election campaigns go on forever. It used to be one year, now it's two. No one planned this, but like other evolutionary artifacts …
New York Times:
It's Subpoena Time — For months, senators have listened to a parade of well-coached Justice Department witnesses claiming to know nothing about how nine prosecutors were chosen for firing. This week, it was the turn of Bradley Schlozman, a former federal attorney in Missouri, to be uninformative and not credible.
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Jill Gardiner / New York Sun:
Peace Corps Is Edwards Terror Plan — Senator Edwards is outlining a new national security strategy that hinges on the creation of a 10,000-person civilian peace corps to stem the tide of terrorism in weak and unstable countries. — Mr. Edwards's plan, which he presented in Manhattan yesterday …
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Fouad Ajami / Opinion Journal:
Fallen Soldier — Mr. President, do not leave this man behind. — Mr. President, some weeks ago, I wrote a letter of appeal, a character reference, to Judge Reggie B. Walton, urging leniency for I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Scooter, I said, has seen the undoing of his world, but he comes before a …
Kevin Sullivan / Washington Post:
Saudi Reportedly Got $2 Billion for British Arms Deal — Prince Bandar bin Sultan, a member of Saudi Arabia's royal family and the kingdom's former ambassador to the United States, pocketed about $2 billion in secret payments as part of an $80 billion arms deal between Britain and Saudi Arabia …
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Muckraked:
Turning the Page: The Real Che? — He's the ultimate symbol of radical chic but was Che Guevara really a homophobic, racist square who personally ordered the jailing and executions of innocent men, women and children? — That's according to Humberto Fontova, the author of …
Discussion:
Hot Air
Leila Fadel / Real Cities:
Al-Sadr radio interview decries U.S. presence in Iraq — BAGHDAD, Iraq - In a rare appearance on state-operated Iraqi television, radical anti-American Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Thursday called the U.S.-backed government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki "neglectful" …
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Keith Bradsher / New York Times:
Rise in China's Pork Prices Signals End to Cheap Output — Few things are as essential to the Chinese as their pigs. — From pork spare ribs and mu shu pork to char siu bao — barbecued pork buns — pork is a staple of the Chinese diet. So in this Year of the Pig, an acute shortage …
Matthew Mosk / Washington Post:
Defections to Fred Thompson Pose a Major Threat to McCain — John Dowd represented Sen. John McCain in his darkest hour, the "Keating Five" scandal. He supported McCain the first time he ran for president in 2000 and signed up to be a major fundraiser for him in this year's presidential race.
Shailagh Murray / Washington Post:
Careful Strategy Is Used to Derail Immigration Bill — Two weeks ago, when the immigration bill landed on the Senate floor, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) voted against an amendment that targeted one of its key provisions: a guest-worker program that President Bush and many U.S. companies have sought for years.
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Light shines on authors of earmarks — Members of the House Armed Services Committee have requested millions of dollars in federal earmarks for companies that have contributed thousands of dollars to their reelection funds, according to a review of funding requests made publicly available for the first time.
Discussion:
Captain's Quarters
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
[TS] Op-Ed Columnist: Lies, Sighs and Politics — If early campaign reporting is any guide, the bad media habits that helped install the worst president ever in the White House haven't changed a bit.
Discussion:
The Carpetbagger Report, Brian Beutler, Prairie Weather, Brilliant at Breakfast, Obsidian Wings and TalkLeft
Jim Davenport / Associated Press:
Campaigns mean jobs for college grads — COLUMBIA, S.C. - Job prospects for college graduates are looking up thanks to the 2008 presidential candidates. — Eighteen contenders — and counting — translate into plenty of hiring by the campaigns of promising but untested newcomers, especially in states with early nominating contests.