President Bush Discusses American Competitiveness Initiative During Press Conference  —  THE PRESIDENT: Good morning, thank you.  When I came into office in 2001, our nation was headed into a recession.  So we cut the taxes across the board.  And hardworking Americans have used this tax relief …

Blogger Finds Y2K Bug in NASA Climate Data  —  Years of bad data corrected; 1998 no longer the warmest year on record  —  My earlier column this week detailed the work of a volunteer team to assess problems with US temperature data used for climate modeling.

Progressives For Racist Smears?  (Update: Progressive Wises Up A Little Late)  —  Note: the site in question is now Not Safe for Work or family viewing.  See Update III. 5:15 — Now safe; see update IV.  —  It doesn't take long for provocateurs to crawl out of the woodwork to attack candidates, especially in stealth attacks.

Clinton Discussed Use of Nukes Last Year  —  NEW YORK — Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, who chastised rival Barack Obama for ruling out the use of nuclear weapons in the war on terror, did just that when asked about Iran a year ago.  —  "I would certainly take nuclear weapons off the table," she said in April 2006.

Marine's Charges Dropped in Iraq Deaths  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) - A general dropped all charges Thursday against a Marine who had been accused of killing three Iraqi brothers in response to a roadside bomb attack in Haditha in 2005.  —  "The evidence does not support a referral to a court-martial …

Pearl Jam censored by AT&T, calls for a neutral 'Net  —  A bit of heavy-handed censorship of a Pearl Jam concert by AT&T this weekend led the band to fire off an open letter to fans—a letter in which Pearl Jam railed against media and ISP consolidation and called for readers to support network neutrality.

When Hidden Experts Are Found  —  Exactly one week ago today on August 2nd, the editors of the magazine The New Republic posted A Statement on Scott Thomas Beauchamp, in which they claimed: … What is most interesting about the The New Republic's statement is that while they state they spoke to …

Present at the Creation  —  The only person the speechwriter Michael Gerson made look better than President Bush was Michael Gerson.  The shaping of a Washington reputation, as witnessed by a White House colleague  —  M ichael J. Gerson, my former speechwriting colleague in the Bush White House …

Okay, this is getting serious.  The media carnival about alleged war critics Michael O'Hanlon and Kenneth Pollack "suddenly" expressing optimism about the surge is now threatening to balloon into something much larger than those two, a meme much more grotesque and Frankenstein-like.  Call it a Franken-meme.

Administration Fights Dem Plan to Boost School Aid for Vets  —  Alexandra Bahou and Anna Schecter Report:  —  The Bush administration opposes a Democratic effort to restore full educational benefits for returning veterans, according to an official's comments last week.

In the Debate Over Iran, More Calls for a Tougher U.S. Stance  —  Fourteen months after Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice offered to talk to Iran, the failure of carrot-and-stick diplomacy to block Tehran's nuclear and regional ambitions is producing a new drumbeat for bolder action, including the possible use of force.

First lady, Jenna Bush to write children's book  —  First lady Laura Bush and daughter Jenna Bush are writing a children's book about a boy who doesn't like to read.  It is based on their experiences as teachers.  —  HarperCollins plans to announce today that it will publish the as-yet-untitled picture book next spring.

As Straw Poll Approaches, Romney Soars, Giuliani Drops And McCain Collapses  —  Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney appears to have taken a commanding lead in Iowa among registered Republican voters and Republican caucus goers, according to a new University of Iowa poll released today, Wednesday, Aug. 8.

Police Blotter  —  Some choose virginity, some have it thrust upon them — and unfortunately, some then turn it around and thrust it upon others at Young Republican events: … Above: Why do they all have this exact facial hair? … "Oh whew," Republicans are saying, "I thought it was another closeted-gay sex crime.