Top Items:
Dick Morris / The Hill:
Bush will have to pull out of Iraq, or face historical obliteration — Are they traitors or prophets, these Republicans who have jumped ship and called for Bush to begin pulling out of Iraq — Sens. George Voinovich (Ohio), Richard Lugar (Ind.), John Warner (Va.), and Pete Domenici (N.M.)?
RELATED:
Bob Geiger:
Republicans Kill Webb's Troop-Protection Amendment — We didn't need any further proof that Congressional Republicans really don't give a damn about the troops or their families but we just got it in the United States Senate anyway. — Just moments ago, Senate Republicans succeeded …
Jeff Zeleny / New York Times:
Time Limit on Iraq Troop Deployments Fails in Senate
Time Limit on Iraq Troop Deployments Fails in Senate
Discussion:
Whiskey Fire
White House:
President Bush Unveils Renovated Press Briefing Room — Fact Sheet: The 2007 Renovation of the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room — Life in the White House - The Press Briefing Room — THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. I like a good, short introduction. (Laughter.) — Q — (inaudible) —
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Dan Froomkin / Washington Post:
Mock the Press — At this morning's ribbon-cutting for the newly renovated White House Briefing Room, President Bush dropped in just long enough to rub reporters' noses in his cheerful refusal to take them seriously. — There would be no answering questions about the war …
Jesse Lee / The Gavel:
Miers' Attorney Says She Will Not Attend Hearing — Today, attorney George T. Manning, representing former White House Counsel Harriet Miers, rescinded his prior confirmation that Ms. Miers would attend the House Judiciary Committee's hearing on Thursday in response to a subpoena …
Discussion:
Balkinization, Think Progress, TPMmuckraker, The Carpetbagger Report, Balloon Juice, Shakesville and The Raw Story
RELATED:
Jim Rutenberg / New York Times:
Former Bush Aide Will Answer Some Questions — Sara Taylor, the former White House political director, has agreed to answer some questions as a "willing and cooperative private citizen," during testimony about the United States attorney firings last year when she appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee later today.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Firedoglake, Bark Bark Woof Woof, Taylor Marsh, TalkLeft, Daily Kos, If I Ran the Zoo, The Next Hurrah and Shakesville
Nicole Belle / Crooks and Liars:
Bush Orders Miers To Not Testify Before Congress
Bush Orders Miers To Not Testify Before Congress
Discussion:
The Agonist
Thomas Watkins / Associated Press:
Officer Advises Against Trial for Marine — SAN DIEGO (AP) - The government's case against a Marine accused of fatally shooting Iraqi civilians in the town of Haditha lacks sufficient evidence to go to a court-martial and should be dropped, a hearing officer determined.
Discussion:
The Corner, Power Line, Macsmind, The Jawa Report, Blue Crab Boulevard and Confederate Yankee
RELATED:
Stephen Biddle / Washington Post:
Iraq: Go Deep or Get Out — The president's shaky political consensus for the surge in Iraq is in danger of collapsing after the recent defections of prominent Senate Republicans such as Richard Lugar (Ind.), Pete Domenici (N.M.) and George Voinovich (Ohio).
RELATED:
Kelley Shannon / Associated Press:
Lady Bird Johnson dies at 94 — AUSTIN, Texas - Lady Bird Johnson, the former first lady who championed conservation and worked tenaciously for the political career of her husband, Lyndon B. Johnson, died Wednesday, a family spokeswoman said. She was 94. — Johnson, who suffered a stroke …
Kimberly Kagan / Opinion Journal:
Moving Forward in Iraq — The "surge" is working. Will Washington allow the current progress to continue? — In Washington perception is often mistaken for reality. And as Congress prepares for a fresh debate on Iraq, the perception many members have is that the new strategy has already failed.
RADAR:
MCCAIN UNRAVELED BY 'GAY SWEATERS'? — SWEAT THE TECHNIQUE McCain (Photos: Getty Images) — In the final days of his imploding candidacy, John McCain has taken a page out of Richard Nixon's play book, finding increasingly bizarre explanations for his political failures.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, The Fix, The Bilerico Project, David E's Fablog, Shakesville, Wonkette, Hot Air, WTF Is It Now?? and New York Times
David Brown / Times of London:
Briton marries bin Laden's son — A British woman has married a son of Osama bin Laden after a holiday romance and is to apply for a visa so that he can visit Britain, The Times has learnt. — Jane Felix-Browne, a 51-year-old grandmother and parish councillor from Cheshire …
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Centrist House Republicans establish Tuesday Group PAC — Centrist Republicans in the House, concerned about their dwindling ranks, have set up a new political action committee (PAC) to protect their seats and elect new lawmakers who share their ideology. — The new political fund …
Discussion:
DownWithTyranny!
Michael Yon:
Al-Qaeda on the Run: Feasting on the Moveable Beast — "No al Qaeda Zone": Hefty Buhriz Policeman smoking in public. — The last major mission I did while in Baqubah in early 2005 was into Buhriz. That mission had begun with our artillery firing some 155mm shots into a palm grove on the banks of the Diyala River.
US News:
Political Bulletin — Bush Beseeches GOP To Back "Surge" — Traveling in Ohio, President Bush yesterday firmly defended his Iraq policy, urging Congress not to take action until after progress reports scheduled for September. However, media reports this morning suggest Bush and his Administration are fighting a losing battle.
Discussion:
Think Progress, PoliBlog (TM), About Conservative Politics, Time, DownWithTyranny!, The Hill and Cliff Schecter
Harry Potter / CNN:
ANDERSON COOPER 360 DEGREES — Pizza-Bomber Suspects; Iraq: Reality Check; Tracking War Money; Ex-Surgeon General Censored; McCain Campaign Shakeup; Political Sex Scandals — THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED. — ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening, everyone.