Noam Scheiber on Reporters and Huckabee  —  You may not have heard of Mike Huckabee, but he is running for president of the United States of America.  Huckabee served as the Governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007.  He's a social conservative that served as chairman of the National Governors' Association …

Tough talk drives Clinton effort  —  National security stance seen adding to image of strength  —  General George W. Casey Jr. (left), then-commander of multinational forces in Iraq, talked with Senator Hillary Clinton, who was part of a congressional delegation visiting Iraq in January.

OBJECTIVITY....Mark Kleiman comments on the convention of objectivity in the reporting of straight news: … In theory, everyone agrees with this.  The problem is, I haven't yet come across a single person who's proposed a workable solution.  Who gets to decide whether an issue is still debatable?

Italy probe unearths huge Iraq arms deal  —  PERUGIA, Italy - In a hidden corner of Rome's busy Fiumicino Airport, police dug quietly through a traveler's checked baggage, looking for smuggled drugs.  What they found instead was a catalog of weapons, a clue to something bigger.

Hidden Earmarks A Hallmark Of The 110th  —  When Democrats campaigned in the 2006 midterm elections, they promised to reform the pork-barrel practices of previous Congresses once they took control.  They have certainly changed the process, but not in the manner they promised.

The LAT had an interesting item today, speculating about whether presidential candidate Fred Thompson will follow Senate candidate Thompson's style, and campaign in his favorite prop. … As the piece explained, Thompson hopped in an old red pickup and won voters over with his folksy charm, accentuated by the prop.

Merv Griffin Dies at Age 82  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) - Merv Griffin, the entertainer turned impresario who parlayed his "Jeopardy" and "Wheel of Fortune" game shows into a multimillion- dollar empire, has died.  He was 82.  —  Griffin died of prostate cancer, according to a statement …

The truth behind the Pollack-O'Hanlon trip to Iraq  —  Last Wednesday, I interviewed Michael O'Hanlon of the Brookings Institution regarding the trip he recently took to Iraq and the highly publicized Op-Ed in the New York Times about his trip, co-written with his Brookings colleague, Ken Pollack.

Memo shows mine already had roof problems in March  —  Operators at the Crandall Canyon mine experienced serious structural problems in the mine in March and entirely abandoned work in an area about 900 feet from where six miners remained trapped Saturday.  —  A memo obtained …

Annoyed by Ames ... and a Lot of Other Stuff [Stephen]  —  As I watch the coverage of the Iowa straw poll, I can't help once again feeling incredibly annoyed with the political process.  —  I live in California.  Our population is over 37 million, representing 12% of the total US population.

Wars within wars in Iraq  —  Forget Washington's simplistic view.  The conflict is really a mosaic of different groups fighting for a variety of goals.  —  Despite what you may have heard, there is no "war" in Iraq.  Rather, there are many wars raging through the Shiite, Kurdish and Sunni territories.

US doles out millions for street cameras  —  Local efforts raise privacy alarms  —  WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security is funneling millions of dollars to local governments nationwide for purchasing high-tech video camera networks, accelerating the rise of a "surveillance society" …

Video: Footage of terrorist killed in Old City released  —  A copy of CCTV footage from the scene of Friday's shooting in Jerusalem's Old City shows the Israeli Arab assailant snatching the pistol of an Israeli security guard and shooting him repeatedly at close range.  —  Double click below to watch video

Fred, Fred, Fred: Thompson's Challenge Has a Name  —  In the swampy soup of hopefuls for the 2008 presidential election, there is a man with a funny name.  (No, not that one.)  —  We're thinking of the one named Fred (Thompson).  —  Say it out loud.  Do it.  Fred.  Fred.  In the South, Fray-ud.

INTERVIEW-Economic policy mistakes hurt Iraq-US official  —  Source: Reuters  —  Years of economic policy mistakes after the fall of Saddam Hussein left unemployed young Iraqis easy targets for recruitment by al Qaeda and other insurgents, a U.S. Defense Department official said on Sunday.

FISA CONFUSION REVISITED....A quick note to make clear what (I think) my main source of confusion about the new FISA law has been.  —  Originally, FISA allowed warrantless wiretapping of any communication between two foreigners.  It also allowed warrantless surveillance of "foreign powers" …

SHARIA NOW!  —  Earlier today, 70,000 to 80,000 Indonesians rallied at a stadium in Jakarta in support of a new caliphate that would institute Sharia law world-wide: … The demonstration was peaceful.  This photo shows some of the participants:

MTP: Markos Discusses the Emergence of the Netroots Movement  —  DailyKos Founder Markos Moulitsas Zuniga explains to guest host David Gregory on Meet The Press why the netroots movement signals the end of "business as usual" politicking for the Democratic party.