Top Items:
Kevin Drum / Washington Monthly:
WHAT THE TAPES WOULD HAVE SHOWN....Yesterday we learned that in 2005, despite earlier warnings from Congress, the White House, and the Justice Department, the CIA destroyed two videotaped interrogations of al-Qaeda operatives who had been captured shortly after 9/11. Why?
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Andrew Sullivan / The Atlantic Online:
Krauthammer On Fox — It's refreshing, actually. I just listened to Charles say that the torture of terror suspects in 2002 was justified because the United States was flying blind and had no knowledge of what al Qaeda was planning. He won't say "torture", of course, although the law is clear that it is torture.
Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters:
Tape Destruction Decision Compartmentalized — The decision to destroy the tapes of interrogations that included waterboarding two al-Qaeda terrorists came from the director of the clandestine services of the CIA and in opposition to requests from both Congress and the White House.
Mark Mazzetti / New York Times:
C.I.A. Was Urged to Keep Interrogation Videotapes
C.I.A. Was Urged to Keep Interrogation Videotapes
Discussion:
Think Progress, The Jawa Report, Discourse.net, Commentary, Emptywheel, Talking Points Memo, Hot Air, Shakespeare's Sister, Washington Post, Prairie Weather, The Sundries Shack, Chuck Adkins, The Swamp, Macsmind, PrairiePundit, At-Largely, Gateway Pundit, ABCNEWS, The Gavel, Jules Crittenden, The Heretik and RADAMISTO
Andrew DeMillo / Associated Press:
Huckabee wanted to isolate AIDS patients — LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Mike Huckabee once advocated isolating AIDS patients from the general public, opposed increased federal funding in the search for a cure and said homosexuality could "pose a dangerous public health risk."
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Jonathan Adler / The Corner:
Huck for AIDS Quarantine in 1992 — The AP is running a story about a candidate survey completed by Mike Huckabee in 1992, when he was ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Dale Bumpers. According to the story, Huckabee wrote the following in response to a question about AIDS policy:
Mike Allen / The Politico:
Huckabee called homosexuality 'sinful' — Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, surging in Iowa polls in the Republican presidential race, wrote on a questionnaire while running for U.S. Senate in 1992 that homosexuality is "aberrant" and "sinful." — "I feel homosexuality is an aberrant …
Dan / Riehl World View:
Carter Appointee Plays The Ultimate In Race Cards On Obama — Update: Bill joins Hillary in Iowa today as the campaign changes its focus to women. How fitting is that? heh! — Perhaps you remember former Atlanta Mayor and Carter Ambassador Andrew Young, he's taken to the stump for Hillary.
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Jennifer Jacobs / Des Moines Register:
Chelsea Clinton to join her mom, grandma in Iowa today
Chelsea Clinton to join her mom, grandma in Iowa today
Discussion:
The Caucus
Agence France Presse:
Iran drops dollar from oil deals: report — TEHRAN (AFP) — Major crude producer Iran has completely stopped carrying out its oil transactions in dollars, Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari said on Saturday, labelling the greenback an "unreliable" currency.
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Robin Stringer / Bloomberg:
Iran Stops Using Dollar for Oil Transactions, ISNA Says
Iran Stops Using Dollar for Oil Transactions, ISNA Says
Discussion:
Emptywheel
Deborah Howell / Washington Post:
Refuting, or Feeding, the Rumor Mill? — Stories about rumors are tricky and easily misconstrued. A Nov. 29 story and headline that explored Barack Obama's "connections to the Muslim world" and rumors that he is Muslim were met with a swift Internet reaction that left some staffers stunned at its ferocity.
Michael Goldfarb / Weekly Standard:
Another Surge Convert — In today's Washington Post, Pete Hegseth, executive director of Vets for Freedom, has coauthored an op-ed with...wait for it...Major General John Batiste. — Batiste, you will remember, is the formerly "antiwar" general who spoke out against Donald Rumsfeld …
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Brad Friedman / The BRAD BLOG:
ANN COULTER, VOTER FRAUD FELON, GETS AWAY WITH IT — Two Years After Initial Slam-Dunk Allegations First Documented, Reported, Florida Election Commission Decides Two Year Statute of Limitations on Case Has Run Out — Another Republican Vote Fraudster Skates in the Sunshine State...
Discussion:
The Reaction
Washington Post:
Hill Close To Deal on War Funds — Plan Includes Boost In Domestic Spending — House Democratic leaders could complete work as soon as Monday on a half-trillion-dollar spending package that will include billions of dollars for the war effort in Iraq without the timelines for the withdrawal …
Mark Leibovich / New York Times:
Clinton Talks of Scars While Keeping Her Guard Up — In July 2000, Hillary Clinton stood on a stage at the University of Arkansas and struggled to keep her composure. Her voice was unusually soft that day, her words seemingly unfiltered. — "Diane, you were the awesomest," Mrs. Clinton said …
Mark Steyn / Orange County Register:
Let's have a free market for housing and religion — Last week the Bush administration decided to "freeze" for five years the interest rates of certain types of mortgages. You've probably caught the tail end of news stories about "subprime" home loans, lots of foreclosures, etc.
Mark Silva / The Swamp:
White House: Will veto 'budget-busting' bill — The year may be ending with a budget-bang, as Congress gears up to approve a long-awaited spending bill that President Bush has long promised to veto in the form that it is taking. — The White House is calling it one big budget-buster.
Discussion:
The Politico