G. Gordon Liddy On Sotomayor: 'Let's Hope That The Key Conferences Aren't When She's Menstruating'  —  Yesterday on his radio show, conservative host G. Gordon Liddy continued the right wing's all-out assault on Judge Sonia Sotomayor.  First, just like Tom Tancredo, Liddy slammed Sotomayor's affiliation …

Did Erich ‘Mancow’ Muller Fake His Waterboarding for Publicity?  —  Yesterday we showed you video of Erich “Mancow” Muller, a Chicago-based right-wing shockjock, appearing as a guest on Keith Olbermann's show to discuss his being waterboarded.  He claimed it led to an ideological conversion!

Netanyahu: “What the hell do they want from me?”  —  Last night, shortly after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told journalists that the Obama administration “wants to see a stop to settlements — not some settlements, not outposts, not natural growth exceptions,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called a confidante.

EXCLUSIVE: Career lawyers overruled on voting case  —  Black Panthers had wielded weapons, blocked polls  —  Justice Department political appointees overruled career lawyers and ended a civil complaint accusing three members of the New Black Panther Party for Self-Defense of wielding …

The Empathy Issue  —  The American legal system is based on a useful falsehood.  It's based on the falsehood that this is a nation of laws, not men; that in rendering decisions, disembodied, objective judges are able to put aside emotion and unruly passion and issue opinions on the basis of pure reason.

More Preferential Treatment?  —  Stuart Taylor digs up another example from Sotomayor's Princeton days: … I went to Princeton but somehow I never got to teach my own class, or grade my own work.  One wonders how Sotomayor judged her work in that class, and whether the grade helped or hindered her efforts to graduate with honors.

HOT  —  Lady Gaga and Small Wars Journal.  Both hot.  But don't take my word for it.  Rolling Stone: … Yeah, well, anyone with a Y chromosome can see the chick with the Phyllis Diller fright wig and the bubble bikini is hot.  * Glad to see RS is getting hip to how hot Small Wars can be.

Inside Cover  —  Muslim Group Shuts Down Conservative Conference  —  The manager of a prominent Nashville hotel cancelled a contract with a conservative foundation to hold a conference this weekend on radical Islam, apparently after learning that the group would feature a keynote address …

The Big Inflation Scare  —  Suddenly it seems as if everyone is talking about inflation.  Stern opinion pieces warn that hyperinflation is just around the corner.  And markets may be heeding these warnings: Interest rates on long-term government bonds are up, with fear of future inflation …

Administration blocks helicopters for Israel due to civilian casualties in Gaza  —  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration has blocked Israel's request for advanced U.S.-origin attack helicopters.  —  Government sources said the administration has held up Israel's request for the AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopter.

Impartiality and Empathy  —  Michael Gerson unwittingly reveals the problem of the distinction between impartiality and empathy that Sotomayor's opponents are trying to maintain.  Gerson, like Charles Krauthammer, argues that the law should be applied as it is, impartially …

What DealerGate Says About the Conservative ‘Message’ Problem  —  Congratulations to Doug Ross and Joey Smith for aggressive research and reporting — the kind Matthew Yglesias says conservatives don't have the skills to do — on the scandal Michelle Malkin calls “DealerGate.”

Garrett Withdraws Nomination for Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy  —  Tax Prof Elizabeth Garrett (USC) has withdrawn as President Obama's nominee to be Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy.  From Bloomberg (Garrett Withdraws as Top Tax Official in Blow to Obama Agenda):

Gen. Petraeus: US violated Geneva Convention, the court of law could try terrorists: we made mistakes after 9/11: Close Gitmo  —  You can view this video right here by getting the latest version of Flash Player!  —  DOWNLOADS: (409)  —  PLAYS: (2515)  —  Gen. Petraeus joined FOX News …

Levin: Memos don't show what Cheney says they do  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, says former Vice President Dick Cheney's claims — that classified CIA memos show enhanced interrogation techniques like waterboarding worked — are wrong.

Bush: ‘The information we got saved lives’  —  BENTON HARBOR, Michigan (CNN) - Former President George W. Bush on Thursday repeated Dick Cheney's assertion that their enhanced interrogation program was legal and garnered valuable information that prevented future terrorist attacks.