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Mary Clare Jalonick / philly.com:
Bush Pick for No. 3 at Justice Withdraws — WASHINGTON - President Bush's pick to be the No. 3 official in the Justice Department asked to have his nomination withdrawn Friday, four days before he was to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee. — Bill Mercer sent a letter …
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Left in the West
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Dan Eggen / Washington Post:
Third-in-Command at Justice Dept. Resigns — Mercer to Leave Washington Job but Keep U.S. Attorney's Position in Montana — The Justice Department's third-in-command announced his resignation yesterday, becoming the sixth aide to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales to leave amid …
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TalkLeft
Zzaki / Political Punch:
Talk talk talk — Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okl, claims he overheard Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, and Barbara Boxer, D-Calf, chatting about how out of control talk radio had become. — "They said we've got to do something about this," Inhofe told a talk radio host.
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JustOneMinute, Crooks and Liars, Captain's Quarters, Preemptive Karma, Taylor Marsh, Fox News and The Atlantic Online
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Jeff G. / protein wisdom:
"Legislative Fix" needed to stifle market-driven free speech? — From ABC's Jake Tapper: … — which, to "liberals," can only mean one thing: the rightwing noise machine has managed to brainwash the unsophisticated proles, and only by acts of compassionate legislation and forced re-education …
Discussion:
Sister Toldjah, Hot Air, Taylor Marsh, The Newshoggers, The American Mind and JammieWearingFool
John F. Burns / New York Times:
Top Targets Fled Before U.S. Push, Commander Says — The operational commander of troops battling to drive fighters with Al Qaeda from Baquba said Friday that 80 percent of the top Qaeda leaders in the city fled before the American-led offensive began earlier this week.
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Bill Roggio / The Fourth Rail:
One week of Operation Phantom Thunder
One week of Operation Phantom Thunder
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Multi-National Force
Carpetbagger / The Carpetbagger Report:
White House refuses to say if VP is in executive branch — Reporters finally pushed the White House today on the Vice President's belief that his office is some kind of fourth branch of government — not executive, not legislative, not accountable to anyone. WH spokesperson Dana Perino's responses were almost comical.
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Nico / Think Progress:
White House On Cheney Ignoring Executive Order: 'It's A Little Bit Of A Non-Issue' — During a heated press briefing today, White House spokesperson Dana Perino tried desperately to downplay yesterday's report showing that Vice President Cheney has exempted his office from a presidential …
Roger Ebert / Chicago Sun Times:
A Mighty Heart — "A Mighty Heart" begins with shots of the teeming streets of Karachi, Pakistan, a city with a population that seems jammed in, shoulder to shoulder. Terrorists will emerge from this sea of humanity, kidnap the American journalist Daniel Pearl and disappear.
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Tom Elia / theneweditor.com:
Speaking of 'Pitiful' — Though I disagree with his political views, I like movie critic Roger Ebert, and respect his abilities as a movie reviewer. — However, this excerpt from a review of A Mighty Heart, a movie about the kidnapping of murdered Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl …
Dorothy Rabinowitz / Opinion Journal:
A Tale of Two Prosecutors — Mike Nifong is punished, but Patrick Fitzgerald isn't. — This week the Duke-Nifong drama oozed to its finale, with a payout to the victims, a confidentiality agreement, the usual salutes to the healing process, and plans on the part of the principals to begin putting the case behind them.
Discussion:
Connecting.the.Dots
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Greg Sargent / Election Central:
Edwards Campaign: Times Refused To Talk To Beneficiaries Of His Anti-Poverty Programs — The Edwards campaign is pushing back hard against today's enormous front-page New York Times piece alleging that there was something untoward about the fact that the antipoverty programs set up by John Edwards provided a …
Discussion:
TalkLeft, Obsidian Wings, National Review, D-Day, New York Times, Captain's Quarters, The Caucus, Daily Kos, Brian Beutler, Fact-esque and skippy the bush kangaroo
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Josh Kraushaar / The Politico:
Barrasso appointed to Wyoming seat — Gov. Dave Freudenthal (D-Wyo.) appointed Republican state senator John Barrasso this morning to fill the vacated Senate seat held by the late Sen. Craig Thomas (R-Wyo.). The appointment is effective today, and has been forwarded to the Secretary of the U.S. Senate.
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CNN Political Ticker
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David Stout / New York Times:
Bush Advisers Weigh Closing Guantánamo Prison Sooner — President Bush's top advisers have reopened an internal debate over how quickly to close the American detention unit for suspected terrorists at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, according to administration officials familiar with the deliberations.
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WSMV-TV:
WSMV-TV: Thompson Announcement Set For Nashville — Headquarters To Be Based At Fall School building — Reported By Dennis Ferrier — NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Channel 4 News Nationwide Exclusive — Fred Thompson is set to announce that Nashville will be the home of his national campaign headquarters, WSMV is reporting.
McQ / QandO:
NANCY PELOSI IS ALL FOR INCREASING VETERAN'S FUNDING, IF THE VETS ARE CANADIAN (UPDATED) — ***UPDATE: It's been pulled from the Pelosi website. Details below. Really, this again points out how very little the Democrats know about our military. This is simply basic stuff …
Aaron Blake / The Hill:
Graham's approval plunges on immigration — Sen. Lindsey Graham's (R-S.C.) approval rating is taking a pounding in his home state as a result of his strong support for a bipartisan immigration reform bill, a new poll showed Friday. — Graham's approval rating has sunk to 31 percent …
Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar / Los Angeles Times:
'Sicko' leaves top Democrats ill at ease — Leading candidates are sidestepping direct comment on filmmaker Michael Moore's proposals for universal healthcare. — WASHINGTON — With the release of Michael Moore's "Sicko," a movie once again is adding sizzle to an issue that's a high priority …
Themofo / RADAR:
LAYOFFS AT ABC NEWS — Now we know why ABC News lost out in the bidding for that Paris Hilton interview. In order to save cash—er, rather, "maintain and enhance the reputation of ABC News for its unparalleled reporting"—news division head David Westin just announced a wave of lay-offs expected to eliminate a total of 35 jobs.