When Rhetoric Meets Reality  —  I was talking to Tim via AOL IM, and I decided it was probably worthwhile to bring this up for everyone.  One of the things that is so surprising (for me, at least) about the whole Graeme Frost episode is that rather than make their case against this program …

Bartlett Unleashed: On Flip-Flops, a "Dud" and the Guy With the Funny Name  —  Dan Bartlett, formerly one of the closest advisers to President Bush, has been offering a tough analysis of the GOP field.  (White House Photo Office).  —  One of President Bush's closest advisers …

Diet and Fat: A Severe Case of Mistaken Consensus  —  In 1988, the surgeon general, C. Everett Koop, proclaimed ice cream to a be public-health menace right up there with cigarettes.  Alluding to his office's famous 1964 report on the perils of smoking, Dr. Koop announced that the American diet …

Uh, About that "Leak" That Burned Our al Qaeda Intel  —  I know what the NY Sun and Washington Post are saying about a major source of intel being burned by a leak, but it just isn't so.  Rita Katz and the SITE Institute do a great job, but attributing the interception of this video to them is just false.

Matthews on Matthews  —  On today's "Morning Joe," Joe Scarborough asked Chris Matthews if Republican candidates would try to get a "cheap applause line" tonight by pointing to his recent controversial comments.  —  Said Matthews:  —  I've been thinking about that....It's not my stage tonight.

Motorcyclist hit by van carrying Michelle Obama  —  A minivan carrying the wife of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama was involved in a car accident this afternoon in northern Iowa where she was campaigning for her husband.  —  Neither Michelle Obama nor any members of the campaign staff …

Clinton Unveils Her Retirement Savings Plan  —  Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York unveiled the second biggest domestic policy idea of her Democratic presidential campaign today, proposing to spend $20 billion to $25 billion a year to create 401(k)-style retirement accounts for all Americans …

Court nixes suit claiming CIA torture  —  Justices throw out German's challenge to alleged abduction by U.S. agents  —  WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court on Tuesday terminated a lawsuit from a man who claims he was abducted and tortured by the CIA, effectively endorsing Bush administration arguments …

Fake News Event of the Day  —  CNN's programming is really pretty weird.  I generally don't catch any of the morning show, but between that and the Situation Room it seems that every day is dominated by some fake news event - a school lockdown, a missing child, a truck accident …

"Ward Churchill to teach unsanctioned course on CU campus"  —  Dangerous.  Anti-establishment.  Edgy: … If Churchill's special brand of anti-American, white guilt-fueled BDS is strong enough to get college students to attend extra classes — for which they'll receive no credit …

Dead Reverend's Rubber Fetish  —  Autopsy: Pastor found in wet suits after autoerotic mishap  —  An Alabama minister who died in June of "accidental mechanical asphyxia" was found hogtied and wearing two complete wet suits, including a face mask, diving gloves and slippers, rubberized underwear …

Phony 'Satirical' Anti-Muslim Posters Circulated at GWU  —  At George Washington University, another outrageous action by the Saudi-funded radical Islamic front group calling itself the Muslim Student Association, as they circulate flyers purporting to be from a conservative campus group …

Obama, Edwards, Richardson, Biden out of state primary  —  Four of the leading Democratic presidential nominees have removed their names from the Jan. 15 Michigan presidential primary.  —  U.S. Sen. Barack Obama and former Sen. John Edwards both earlier today filed paperwork …

Captives of the Supply Side  —  REMEMBER the Republican presidential debate a few months ago, when three candidates raised their hands to indicate they didn't believe in evolution?  Something just as laughable is likely to happen today, at the first Republican debate on the economy.

DoJ Vote Chief Argues Voter ID Laws Discriminate against Whites  —  When Justice Department lawyers and analysts found in 2005 that a Georgia law requiring voters to have photo ID would disproportionately discriminate against African-Americans, they were overruled by John Tanner …