27% of Republicans Would Vote for Pro-Life Third Party Instead of Giuliani  —  If Rudy Giuliani wins the Republican nomination and a third party campaign is backed by Christian conservative leaders, 27% of Republican voters say they'd vote for the third party option rather than Giuliani.

War Criminal  —  After reading the full investigative piece in the NYT today on how this administration decided on breaking America's historic ban on torture and then pursued a long, corrupting policy of ensuring that the interpretation of the law was politicized to keep torture alive, it is hard to disagree with Marty Lederman:

A liberal's lament: The NRA might be right after all  —  This term, the Supreme Court may finally take up the Voldemort Amendment, the part of the Bill of Rights that shall not be named by liberals.  For more than 200 years, progressives and polite people have avoided acknowledging that following …

COULTER COMES OUT AGAINST WOMEN VOTING.  —  Most of the time I ignore aging would-be pin-up Ann Coulter, but this week she came out with a whopper that could be as much of a gift to the Democratic Party as MoveOn.org's advertisement on Gen. Petraeus was for the G.O.P. More of a gift, even.

Judge rejects Craig's bid to withdraw guilty plea  —  (CNN) — A Minnesota judge has denied Sen. Larry Craig's request to withdraw his guilty plea to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge stemming from his arrest in a sex sting at an airport men's room.  —  Hennepin County District Judge …

The New L-Word: Neocon  —  A few years back, at the height of the jingoistic post-9/11 wave, the dirtiest word in the American political lexicon was "liberal."  Everyone from President Bush to Ann Coulter was using it to denote wimplike, Volvo-driving softies too spineless for dangerous times and too given to speaking French.

Republicans Grow Skeptical On Free Trade  —  WASHINGTON — By a nearly two-to-one margin, Republican voters believe free trade is bad for the U.S. economy, a shift in opinion that mirrors Democratic views and suggests trade deals could face high hurdles under a new president.

Questionable Contracts  —  In April last year, Housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson traveled to Dallas to deliver a speech to a group of minority real estate executives.  The event should have been pretty routine stuff.  But Jackson — and these are his words — shot off his mouth by describing …

Leo W. Gerard and Cecil Roberts, Jr.: We Endorse John Edwards  —  John Edwards' decision last week to participate in public campaign financing set off a qualm-storm in the media about his ranking among the Democratic candidates but, for us, it strongly reaffirmed our confidence in him.

Selective Justice in Alabama?  —  On may 8, 2002, Clayton Lamar (Lanny) Young Jr., a lobbyist and landfill developer described by acquaintances as a hard-drinking "good ole boy," was in an expansive mood.  In the downtown offices of the U.S. Attorney in Montgomery, Ala., Young settled into his chair …

This Is Your Elephant on Drugs  —  The new official logo of the 2008 Gop convention.  I'm not kidding.

The Democratic Economist  —  CHICAGO — In his curriculum vitae, Austan Goolsbee lists as his "other interests" — other than teaching at the University of Chicago — two activities: triathlons and improv comedy.  Evidently he is a masochist with a sense of humor, so he is suited to participate …