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Jeff Zeleny / The Caucus:
Obama Might ‘Refine’ Iraq Timeline — Barack Obama in Fargo, N.D. (Photo: Jae C. Hong/Associated Press) — FARGO, N.D. - Senator Barack Obama said Thursday the United States cannot sustain a long-term military presence in Iraq, but added that he would be open to “refine my policies” …
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Mike Allen / The Politico:
Obama to ‘refine’ Iraq plan — Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) on Thursday backed off his firm promise to withdraw combat forces from Iraq immediately and instead said he could “refine” his plan after his trip to Baghdad later this month. — Earlier, a top Obama adviser had said that the senator is not “wedded” to a specific timeline.
New York Times:
Obama Strives to Retain Some Flexibility on His Iraq Policy — Senator Barack Obama said Thursday that he might “refine” his plans for a phased withdrawal from Iraq after meeting with military commanders there later this summer. But later, he hastily held a second news conference …
Jonathan Weisman / Washington Post:
Obama May Consider Slowing Iraq Withdrawal — Candidate Says He Remains Committed to Ending War — Sen. Barack Obama raised the possibility of slowing a promised gradual, 16-month withdrawal from Iraq if he is elected president, saying that Thursday he will consult with military commanders …
Joe Rospars / my.barackobama.com:
Response from Barack on FISA and Discussion with Policy Staff — Barack is on the road today, but he wrote a response that he asked be posted on the blog. You'll find it below. — In addition, for the next 30 minutes or so, three members of our policy staff will be in the comments on this post to respond to any questions you have.
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Sarah Wheaton / The Caucus:
Obama Responds to FISA Protest on His Web Site
Obama Responds to FISA Protest on His Web Site
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Jim Kuhnhenn / Associated Press:
Obama: Mental distress can't justify late abortion — WASHINGTON - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama says “mental distress” should not qualify as a justification for late-term abortions, a key distinction not embraced by many supporters of abortion rights.
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Jeralyn / TalkLeft:
Obama: Mental Distress Can't Justify Late Term Abortion — Here's Obama reaching out to the evangelical right. The Associated Press reports: … Obama made no such distinction last year: … NARAL leaders ought to feel like idiots. [More...] … A leading anti-choice group …
Telegraph:
Muslims in Britain should be able to live under Sharia, says top judge — Muslims in Britain should be able to live according to Sharia, the country's most senior judge has said. — Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, the Lord Chief Justice, strongly backed Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury …
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Steve Doughty / Daily Mail:
Sharia law SHOULD be used in Britain, says UK's top judge — The most senior judge in England tonight gave his blessing to the use of sharia law to resolve disputes among Muslims. — Lord Chief Justice Lord Phillips said that Islamic legal principles could be employed to deal with family …
Glenn Beck / CNN:
Commentary: Your gas money for a flat screen? — NEW YORK (CNN) — 1.733. — This number should put our skyrocketing gas prices into perspective. To explain: In January 2007, gas prices were at a measly $2.17 a gallon. Since then they've skyrocketed to more than $4.
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Douglas J. Feith / Wall Street Journal:
Why We Went to War in Iraq — A lot of poor commentary has framed the Iraq war as a conflict of “choice” rather than of “necessity.” In fact, President George W. Bush chose to remove Saddam Hussein from power because he concluded that doing so was necessary.
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Adam Smith / St. Petersburg Times:
Florida Gov. Crist says he's getting married — ST. PETERSBURG — Florida's most powerful bachelor is getting hitched. — Gov. Charlie Crist, single for nearly three decades, on Thursday morning became engaged to his girlfriend of nine months, Carole Rome. — “She's special in every way.
Senator John McCain / Yahoo! News:
Putting The Country First — Two of our greatest statesmen, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, took their last breaths on July 4, 1826, exactly 50 years after they presented America with our Declaration of Independence. They had been fellow revolutionaries, the closest of comrades, who went on to become bitter political rivals.
Swopa / Firedoglake:
Let's See, If Bush Is Serving Nixon's Third and Fourth Terms, Then John McCain... (See the rest from Tom Tomorrow.) — Earlier today, Matt Yglesias mused about how Richard Nixon's illegal acts caused him to be forced out of office, while any suggestion of such accountability …
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Hullabaloo
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Miguel Helft / New York Times:
Google Told to Turn Over User Data of YouTube — SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge has ordered Google to turn over to Viacom its records of which users watched which videos on YouTube, the Web's largest video site by far. — The order raised concerns among YouTube users and privacy advocates …
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The Reaction, Boing Boing, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Viking Pundit, The Volokh Conspiracy, The Impolitic and BBC