Right-Wing Neocons Rooting For Ahmadinejad Win  —  American neoconservatives have often used the presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to bolster their case for aggressive action against Iran.  So the assumption might be that they would be rooting for Iranians to take care of the problem themselves …

Obama defends DOMA in federal court.  Says banning gay marriage is good for the federal budget.  Invokes incest and marrying children.  —  UPDATE: Obama spokesman caught lying to Politico.  —  Joe and I have been trying since last night to get a copy of the government's brief just filed in this case.

What's behind Obama's sudden attempt to fire the AmeriCorps inspector general?  —  Some strange and potentially suspicious events tonight concerning the Obama White House and the AmeriCorps program.  I've been told that on Wednesday night the AmeriCorps inspector general, Gerald Walpin …

The Big Hate  —  Back in April, there was a huge fuss over an internal report by the Department of Homeland Security warning that current conditions resemble those in the early 1990s — a time marked by an upsurge of right-wing extremism that culminated in the Oklahoma City bombing.

Palin to Lauer: “You're Extremely Naive If You Believe Letterman's Explanation”  —  Sarah Palin Nails It!  —  Sarah Palin tells Today host Matt Lauer that he is “extremely naive” if he believed David Letterman's explanation of the joke he made about Palin's daughter:

The Ice Age Cometh  —  Despairing Republican friends have been asking me what I think we should do to rebuild the GOP and begin our certain and inevitable comeback.  My answer disappoints them: “Build an ark.”  —  I say this because I've made a career out of counting votes …

What Judith Warner Left Out  —  Reading Judith Warner's column this morning on the recent upsurge in hate crimes, I was struck by what she left out.  Two weeks ago, a Muslim extremist shot two soldiers, killing one, outside a recruiting station in Arkansas.

Insta-Hack Watch  —  He's up to his partisan shenanigans again.  He must know that the huge deficits projected in the future have virtually nothing to do with Obama's proposals on healthcare or energy.  They are a function of inherited entitlement spending, the legacy of two open-ended wars …

Former President GHW Bush stands up for Sotomayor  —  (CNN)-Former President George H.W. Bush stood up for his former judicial nominee Sonia Sotomayor Friday, telling CNN Anchor Robin Meade that GOP critics who called President Obama's Supreme Court pick a racist were off-base, and unfair.

Barack Obama Surveys the World  —  “And the Spirit of God hovered upon the face of the waters”  —  When President Obama returned from his first European trip, I observed that while over there he had been “acting the philosopher-king who hovers above the fray mediating” between America and the world.

BLAMING THE MESSENGER.... Fox News' Shep Smith offered viewers some thoughts this week they probably weren't accustomed to hearing.  He noted on the air, for example, that the DHS report on violent radicals are was prescient, and he criticized enraged Fox news viewers who email the network with over-the-top vitriol.

Decline and Fall  —  Face time with the president is political gold in Washington, so Donald Rumsfeld moved quickly after taking charge at the Pentagon to secure weekly private meetings with President George W. Bush.  Now, nearly six years and many meetings later, the defense secretary arrived …

Ray LaHood: A ‘Transformational’ Time for the U.S. Transit System  —  Four months into his new position as secretary of transportation, Ray LaHood has a great deal on his plate.  As well as overseeing 55,000 employees and a $70 billion budget, he's in charge of $48 billion in stimulus funds directed …

We Need a New National Anthem  —  In the Age of Karaoke, more people (including me) like to join in the singing when they strike up the national anthem at public occasions.  No one can stop you, no matter how embarrassed she might be by your obvious lack of talent.

House Health-Care Bill to Include $600 Billion in Tax Increases  —  Health-care overhaul legislation being drafted by House Democrats will include $600 billion in tax increases and $400 billion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel said.

Blaming the Guy Who Came Before Doesn't Work Long  —  WASHINGTON — As President Obama struggles to turn around the moribund economy and confront multiple international issues, he wastes few opportunities to remind the country that the problems are not of his making.

Obama Gives Up on Resettling Cleared Guantanamo Detainees in U.S., Officials Say  —  Administration Gives Up on Bringing Cleared Inmates to U.S., Officials Say  —  The Obama administration has all but abandoned plans to allow Guantanamo Bay detainees who have been cleared for release to live …

The Economics of the HDMI Cable Ripoff  —  I just bought a blu-ray player.  (Actually my 10 and 7-year old bought it as a birthday gift for my wife; alas, neither they nor she were fooled for long, but I digress.)  To get the best performance you need an HDMI cable which must be purchased separately …

Hundreds protest Obama's visit  —  GREEN BAY - Organizers said about 1,000 people lined the east side of Packerland Drive Thursday morning to protest President Obama's stop in Green Bay.  Stretching four blocks long, the protest parked itself along the motorcade route between Austin Straubel Airport and Green Bay Southwest High School.

Can James Jones Survive a Second Round of Attacks and “Longer Knives”?  —  I am here in London where I'm participating in an interesting forum sponsored by the Princeton Project on National Security and the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) Transatlantic Program, I've received not just one email …

The Recession Is Great  —  Low prices.  Nice people.  What's not to like?  —  This week I refinanced my mortgage at a new, better rate, lowering my monthly expenses with a stroke of the pen.  Even as I was doing the paperwork, I had to dodge calls trying to offer me similar and even better rates.