memeorandum: The GOP's 20% Problem — How do candidates distance themselves … (Peggy Noonan/Opinion Journal)

10:10 PM ET, October 12, 2007

Top Items:

Jesse Walker / Reason:

How to Win a Nobel Peace Prize — Al Gore did it—you can too! — In the last decade, Al Gore has won the triple crown: an Oscar, a Nobel Peace Prize, and (this is disputed) Florida. Now, winning an Oscar is hard—you usually have to pretend to be handicapped, or speak …

Discussion: National Review Online, The Democratic Daily and The Lede

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:

On Gore — First, before any other yapping and commentary, a big congratulations to Al Gore. — There are several layers of irony and poetic justice wrapped into this honor. The first is that the greatest step for world peace would simply have been for Gore not to have had the presidency stolen from him in November 2000.

Discussion: The New Republic, New York Times, The Carpetbagger Report and The Opinion Mill

Matt / Think Progress:

Fox News: Gore's Never 'Actually Done Something For Peace;' Give Petraeus The Prize — Earlier today, after Al Gore was named a co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, Fox News kicked off the right-wing smear attacks on the former Vice President, comparing him to "Yasser Arafat and that crazy Jimmy Carter."

Discussion: Al's Journal, Hot Air, Daily Kos, Science Progress, Associated Press and Riehl World View

Iain Murray / The Corner:
Who Else Should Al Gore Share the Prize With?

Discussion: Think Progress, bustardblog, Sadly, No! and The Talent Show

CNN:
CNN.com readers sound off on Gore, Nobel

Discussion: The Corner, Angry Bear and AMERICAblog

Fox News:
With Nobel in Tow, Will Al Gore Run?

Discussion: The Huffington Post, CNN, Right Pundits and Heading Right

Michelle Malkin:
White House praises Gore for Nobel Peace Prize

Discussion: Telegraph, Crooks and Liars and Orcinus

EUX.TV, the Europe channel:
Czech president Vaclav Klaus: "surprised" at Nobel prize for Gore

Discussion: Publius Pundit, Power Line, The Politico, Global Voices Online, Faultline USA, VodkaPundit, IMAO, The Radio Equalizer, Boi From Troy, Captain's Quarters and Pajamas Media

David S. Cloud / New York Times:

Former Top General in Iraq Faults Bush Administration — In a sweeping indictment of the four-year effort in Iraq, the former top American commander called the Bush administration's handling of the war incompetent and warned that the United States was "living a nightmare with no end in sight."

Discussion: Think Progress, Daily Kos, PrairiePundit, INTEL DUMP, On Deadline, The Washington Note and Middle Earth Journal

Associated Press:

Ex-general: Iraq `nightmare' for US — ARLINGTON, Va. - The U.S. mission in Iraq is a "nightmare with no end in sight" because of political misjudgments after the fall of Saddam Hussein that continue today, a former chief of U.S.-led forces said Friday. — Retired Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez …

Discussion: Macsmind, Vox Popoli and THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS

Michelle Malkin:

Question for grown-ups: Who deserves government-subsidized health insurance? — Update 7:45pm Eastern. BitsBlog wonders: … Grown-up meanie Mark Steyn boils it down: "...a two-property three-car family does not demonstrate the need for entitlement expansion."

Discussion: Sadly, No!, BitsBlog, Think Progress, Liberty Street, The Mahablog, Clayton Cramer's BLOG, Wizbang, D-Day, Flopping Aces, Blue Crab Boulevard, Sister Toldjah, Booman Tribune, Wake up America, Don Surber, Riehl World View and WorkingForChange

Deacon / Power Line:

"MEANIES," "HYPOCRITES," AND THE INFANTILIZATION OF POLITICS — The infantilization of American politics is nearly complete. Exhibit A is the Democrats' use of a 12 year-old to give the party's radio address. Exhibt B is much of what E.J. Dionne writes. — These exhibits come together in Dionne's latest column.

Discussion: The Corner, If I Ran the Zoo, TBogg, The Carpetbagger Report and PoliPundit.com

The Corner:

A meanie writes — I'm out of the country so I've only just been alerted to the fact that in The Washington Post E J Dionne has called me a meanie and hypocrite. I'm certainly a meanie, but I don't quite get the hypocrite thing. I've been consistently opposed to swollen middle-class entitlements …

Discussion: Left in the West

Greg Sargent / Horses Mouth:

Associated Press Is Outdone In Accuracy By...Fox News! — Updated below. — It's a very sad day for a reputable news organization when it finds itself badly outdone on accuracy by Fox News, but that's exactly what happened to the Associated Press today. — The AP is running with a story right …

Discussion: CNN Political Ticker, The Caucus, The Politico and Taylor Marsh

Charles Krauthammer / Washington Post:
The Great Navigator — Bill Clinton's greatest domestic achievement …

Discussion: The Hill, Publius Pundit, democracyarsenal.org, Riehl World View, Horses Mouth, Lawyers, Guns and Money, Bark Bark Woof Woof and theGarance.com

Daniel Pipes Weblog:

Newsweek's Jaw-Dropping Erratum — The editor of Newsweek has added a remarkable erratum to the sidebar to a nasty article by Michael Hirsh about the Giuliani campaign, "Would You Buy a Used Hawk From This Man?" First, here is the sidebar: … The subsequent correction warrants a place in Guinness World Records.

Discussion: The Corner

Martin Kramer / Sandbox:
Our sorcery exposed! — The neocon conspiracy embedded …

Discussion: Solomonia

The Atlantic Online:

This Is Mean, Unfair, And Amusing — But people, as in voters, pick up on it:

Discussion: theGarance.com, The Democratic Daily and Hot Air

CNBC.com:

An Open Letter to the Ron Paul Faithful — Editor's Note: — Dear folks, — You guys are good. Real good. You are truly a force on World Wide Web and I tip my hat to you. — That's based on my first hand experience of your work regarding our CNBC Republican candidate debate.

Discussion: Comments from Left Field, The Van Der Galiën Gazette, Weasel Zippers and JammieWearingFool

Rep. Ron Paul / Washington Post:
The Candidates: Rep. Ron Paul

Discussion: MSNBC and Reason Magazine

Peggy Noonan / Opinion Journal:

The GOP's 20% Problem — How do candidates distance themselves from Bush without alienating his die-hards? — Fred Thompson gives "a very incoherent and not very concise stump speech," peaked months ago, and is the campaign's "biggest dud." Mitt Romney has "an authenticity problem"; he is "almost too mechanical about the issues."

Discussion: DownWithTyranny!, Conservative Belle, Booman Tribune, Middle Earth Journal and Sadly, No!

Greg B. Smith / NY Daily News:

Prosecutors expected to file charges against Bernard Kerik — Bernard Kerik's legal nightmare is about to get worse, with federal prosecutors expected to file charges against the former police commissioner that will likely include allegations of bribery, tax fraud and obstruction of justice, the Daily News has learned.

Discussion: The Politico, The Carpetbagger Report, MSNBC, TIME, Wonkette, MyDD, Chuck Adkins, The Atlantic Online, Conservative Belle, race42008.com, The Right's Field, TalkLeft, Taylor Marsh, Crooks and Liars, Think Progress and Cliff Schecter

CNN Political Ticker:

Source: Gore thinks Clinton unstoppable — WASHINGTON (CNN) — A source involved in Gore's past political runs told CNN that he definitely has the ambition to use the peace prize as a springboard to run for president. — But he will not run, because he won't take on the political machine assembled …

Discussion: Gallup Poll, Blue Crab Boulevard, New York Magazine, MSNBC, About.com Liberal Politics, Pajamas Media, New York Times and National Review

Richard Newcomb / NewsBusters.org:

USS Cole Anniversary Today: Media Silent — On this day in the year 2000, the guided missile destroyer USS Cole was attacked by Islamic terrorists associated with Osama bin Laden's al-Quaeda group. Today is the seventh anniversary of that attack. Seventeen American sailors were killed …