What Limbaugh Said  —  The folks on the Left are beside themselves today—thinking that by dint of a truncated quote, they will succeed in shutting down Rush Limbaugh and taking him off the air.  Before lining up next to the folks from Crooks and Liars, FireDogLake, Media Matters, ThinkProgress …

Reports: Military junta cuts Internet access in Burma; Sniper reportedly killed Japanese journalist Kenji Nagai; Update: Videos added; Update: Worldwide condemnation  —  Update 1:30pm Eastern.  White House blasts Burmese government for Internet shut-off: … Update 11:30am Eastern.  Worldwide condemnation:

Hired Gun Fetish  —  Sometimes it seems that the only way to make sense of the Bush administration is to imagine that it's a vast experiment concocted by mad political scientists who want to see what happens if a nation systematically ignores everything we've learned over the past few centuries …

US Congressman owned home with another man, took DC tax deduction while voting in NC  —  Congressman Patrick T. McHenry (R-NC), right, purchased a residence in Washington, DC's Capital Hill neighborhood with another man, PageOneQ has learned.  While he owned the home, McHenry …

$600K aimed at Clinton  —  Sensing that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) will win the Democratic presidential nomination, Republican Party operatives are stepping up their political attacks on the former first lady but are wary of going too far with their criticisms because she is a woman.

Audio: Limbaugh Calls Iraq Vet "Staff Puke," Claims He Volunteered For War "To Pad [His] Resume"  —  Audio has surfaced of Rush Limbaugh viciously attacking another Iraq war veteran who was critical of President Bush's war policy.  —  Paul Hackett served in the 1st Marine Division in Ramadi and Fallujah during 2004 and 2005.

Congresswoman Pressed MSNBC For Retraction On Soldier Killed In Iraq  —  Staff for Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), who could not name the last soldier from her district killed in Iraq during an appearance on MSNBC, acknowledged they sought a retraction from the network after the incident occurred.

Hear, Hear  —  Americans should not fear talking—and listening—to those whose views we loathe.  —  You don't want to judge Christ by Christians, someone once said.  He is perfect, they are not.  —  In a similar way you don't want to judge capitalism by capitalists …

Leading GOP Candidates Skip Debate on Black Issues  —  4 Contenders Attend Fundraisers Instead  —  Fred D. Thompson was at a fundraiser in Franklin, Tenn. Mitt Romney was gathering checks in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. Rudolph W. Giuliani was in California raking in some last-minute cash just north of Napa.

GOP electoral initiative dealt major blows  —  Two key consultants for an effort to change California's winner-take-all system quit over money and disclosure woes.  —  SACRAMENTO — A proposed California initiative campaign that could have helped Republicans hold on to the White House in 2008 …

Larry Craig's bathroom stall!  Haggard's meth hotel!  See all the sites of GOP shame.  Fun for kids! … Kids!  Families!  War-wary countrymen!  Adorable schoolchildren!  Hungry to see the real America?  Love the idea of a crazy road trip across our fine 'n' scandalous land …

Six inconvenient truths about the U.S. and slavery  —  Those who want to discredit the United States and to deny our role as history's most powerful and pre-eminent force for freedom, goodness and human dignity invariably focus on America's bloody past as a slave-holding nation.

U.S. to Allow Key Detainees to Request Lawyers  —  14 Terrorism Suspects Given Legal Forms at Guantanamo  —  Fourteen "high-value" terrorism suspects who were transferred to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, from secret CIA prisons last year have been formally offered the right to request lawyers …

With Legacy in Mind, Bush Reassesses His Agenda  —  As he addresses a conference on climate change this morning, President Bush will face not only a crowd of skeptics but the press of time.  For nearly seven years, he invested little personal energy in the challenge of global warming.