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 …

US may reduce forces in Iraq by spring  —  WASHINGTON - The U.S. may be able to reduce combat forces in Iraq by next spring if Iraq's own security forces continue to grow and improve, a senior American commander said Friday.  He denied reports the U.S. is arming Sunni insurgent groups to help in the fight against al-Qaida.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Democrats Propose New Tax Rate on Investment Funds  —  Top House Democrats today introduced wide-ranging legislation that would more than double the tax rate that private equity firms, venture capital funds and many hedge funds pay on their gains.  —  The proposed legislation would cause …

Army Officer Says Gitmo Panels Flawed  —  AP Photo NYOL984  —  SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) - An Army officer with a key role in the U.S. military hearings at Guantanamo Bay says they relied on vague and incomplete intelligence and were pressured to declare detainees ``enemy combatants,'' often without any specific evidence.

BEFORE IT WAS FARCE!  Today, the Post plays the fool about Gore.  Long ago, they were bent on destruction:  —  PIMP V. SLIME: In the past two days, the New York Times has run a remarkable pair of candidate stories.  One of these news reports beats the bushes, looking for ways to suggest that John Edwards has been misbehaving.

GOP's Barrasso Picked as Wyoming's New Senator  —  Wyoming Republican John Barrasso will be joining the U.S. Senate as the interim successor to the late Republican Craig Thomas.  —  Barrasso, a 54 year old state senator and orthopedic surgeon, was appointed to the position Friday by Democratic …

Ed Schultz on Right Wing Talk Radio...Takes a swipe at Hannity...  Ed Schultz was on Tucker yesterday to talk about CAP's right wing hold on talk radio.  Ever since Imus they have been freaking on this subject.  Ed correctly tells guest host Michael Smerconish that it's not about the ratings …

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 …

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 …

Fox News Visits Red House VA...Again  —  Further Update: More Fox News video here, this one with Shepard Smith.  —  Update: The video of the Sheikh Gilani feature with Catherine Herridge's interview can be found here.  [Wazpi has a much quicker wav file streaming video link in the commments — Dymphna]

Bill O'Reilly Rips Newspapers at Columnists' Confab  —  PHILADELPHIA Bill O'Reilly said newspapers have a dismal future and also criticized a writer in the audience during a speech Friday at the National Society of Newspaper Columnists (NSNC) conference.  —  "Newspapers are dying …