memeorandum: Clinton to return $850,000 raised by Hsu (Lara Jakes Jordan/Associated Press)

12:40 AM ET, September 11, 2007

Top Items:

Frank James / The Swamp:

Petraeus 'Betray Us' ad is group's 'shock and awe' — MoveOn.org was looking to get attention and so they have with their full-page New York Times ad in which they slam Gen. David Petraeus, rhyming his name with "betray us." It's the liberal group's version of shock and awe.

Think Progress:

REPORT: Petraeus Spent At Least 17 Days In August Flacking For Bush's Escalation — The Washington Post reported this weekend that the White House political office and Gen. David Petraeus' unit have been "hard-wired" together, working jointly to "map out ways of selling the surge."

Discussion: Hullabaloo and Empire Burlesque

CNN Political Ticker:

Thompson calls on Democrats to return MoveOn.org donations — COLUMBIA, South Carolina (CNN) - Former senator and Republican White House hopeful Fred Thompson called on Democratic presidential candidates Monday to refund all donations received from MoveOn.org after the liberal advocacy group ran …

Discussion: Blue Crab Boulevard, Say Anything, Wake up America and Riehl World View

CNN Political Ticker:

Kerry: MoveOn.org is 'over the top' — WASHINGTON (CNN) - Sen. John Kerry, D-Massachusetts, criticized MoveOn.org Monday for taking an ad out in The New York Times criticizing Gen. David Petraeus. The general is testifying before Congress today about the situation in Iraq.

Discussion: Blue Crab Boulevard and michellemalkin.com

Deacon / Power Line:
MOVEON.ORG HITS THE BOTTOM

Discussion: CNN, Captain's Quarters, National Review, Comments From Left Field, TPMCafe blogs, WILLisms.com, Weekly Standard, The Mahablog and HazZzMat

Michael Hirsh / Newsweek:
Newsweek: Rating Petraeus' report

Discussion: Hot Air

Jane Hamsher / Firedoglake:
No More Flack for Iraq

Discussion: TalkLeft, Eschaton, Beautiful Horizons, Salon, Open Left and DownWithTyranny!

Joe Gandelman / The Moderate Voice:
With Enemies Like This, General Petraeus Gets New Friends

Discussion: The Politico and The Hill

Michael Abramowitz / Washington Post:

Petraeus Leaves Large Questions Unanswered — The long-awaited testimony this afternoon of Gen. David H. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker, once seen as a potential turning point in war policy, seemed more like an exercise of kicking the can down the road.

Discussion: Prairie Weather and The Mahablog

Think Progress:

Petraeus Falsely Claims That Six Months Ago, 'No One Would Have Forecast' Anbar's Success — Today in his testimony to the House, Gen. David Petraeus cited the reduced violence in the Anbar province as evidence that President Bush's "surge" is working. He added that it would be "premature" …

Discussion: unbossed.com, Crooks and Liars, The Gavel, democracyarsenal.org, AMERICAblog, Shakespeare's Sister, Talking Points Memo, TPMmuckraker and Taylor Marsh

Austin Bay Blog:

Initial thoughts on Petraeus-Crocker testimony — After three hours of testimony — at times grueling testimony — I've some initial reactions. (As it is, I have to get ready to give a speech this evening.) — My first thought is MoveOn.org lost this political battle — the chumps went an …

Discussion: Guardian, Gateway Pundit, The Monkey Tennis Centre, michellemalkin.com, CNN, Instapundit.com and Wake up America

David Stout / New York Times:
Slow Progress Being Made in Iraq, Petraeus Tells Congress

Discussion: Think Progress, ABCNEWS, The Van Der Galiën Gazette, The Swamp, The Politico, The Moderate Voice, MoJoBlog, Pottersville, DownWithTyranny!, Washington Post, The Gavel, CNN Political Ticker, PoliBlog (TM) and Comments From Left Field

Washington Post:
Petraeus Says Objectives in Iraq Are Largely Being Met

Discussion: CFR.org, MoJoBlog, Outside The Beltway, RIGHTWINGSPARKLE, The Democratic Daily and PoliBlog (TM)

Lara Jakes Jordan / Associated Press:

Clinton to return $850,000 raised by Hsu — WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential campaign said Monday it will return $850,000 in donations raised by Democratic fundraiser Norman Hsu, who is under federal investigation for allegedly violating election laws.

Discussion: Suitably Flip, Hot Air, Stop The ACLU, JammieWearingFool, Blue Crab Boulevard, Wizbang, Macsmind, Sweetness & Light, Leibowitz's Canticle and Gateway Pundit

John Solomon / The Trail:
Clintons to Return $850,000 in Hsu Funds

Discussion: TalkLeft

Kevin Drum / Washington Monthly:

PETRAEUS'S DRAWDOWN....This slide from Gen. David Paraeus's testimony today is a work of art, isn't it? It looks like some kind of timeline for withdrawal, but all it actually says is that we'll withdraw five brigades by next July, something we already know is driven not by strategic considerations …

Discussion: New York Times, TPMmuckraker, The Newshoggers and alicublog

John Cole / Balloon Juice:
Look At All the Pretty Colors

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Thought Theater and TPMmuckraker

The Washington Post / The Trail:

Anti-Thompson Site Connects to Romney Camp — A top adviser to former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney appears to be behind today's launch of a new Web site attacking GOP presidential rival Fred Thompson. — The site, www.phoneyfred.org, paints an unflattering picture of Thompson …

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, Talking Points Memo, The Politico, The Caucus, DownWithTyranny!, race42008.com, eyeon08.com and The American Mind

Jim Davenport / Associated Press:

Thompson: Due process for bin Laden — GREENVILLE, S.C. - Republican presidential contender Fred Thompson said Monday that while Osama bin Laden needs to be caught and killed, the terrorist mastermind would get the due process of law. — In his first campaign trip to South Carolina …

Discussion: Hot Air, The Carpetbagger Report, Stop The ACLU, AMERICAblog, Daily Pundit and The Democratic Daily

Jonathan Martin / The Politico: Thompson wants 'due process' for Bin Laden

The Sun:

Plans to ban plasma TV's — THE Conservatives will propose banning plasma screens and other energy-guzzling electrical goods in a report to be unveiled next week. — The proposals target white goods like fridges and freezers, as well as TVs, personal computers and DVD players that use too much energy or operate on stand-by.

Discussion: Cato-at-liberty and Dean's World

Duff Wilson / New York Times:

Craig Asks Court to Let Him Withdraw His Plea of Guilty — Lawyers for Senator Larry E. Craig filed court papers yesterday asking that he be allowed to withdraw his guilty plea to disorderly conduct in a Minnesota airport sex sting. — In an affidavit, Mr. Craig said that he was …

Discussion: Needlenose

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:

THAT POLL OF IRAQIS — There's been a lot of attention to that poll that showed that the great majority of Iraqis (70%) believe that the surge has failed and that security conditions have deteriorated. But there's a lot more in that poll that's worth looking at. (Click here for the full results.)

Discussion: The Atlantic Online and Eschaton

The Atlantic Online:

Hope: The New Plan — Check out this briefing slide from General Petraeus' presentation: — Basically, the idea is that about nine months from now, we'll be back to the number of troops we had in Iraq about nine months ago. After that, more stuff is supposed to change . . . maybe …

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report and Open Left