GE's silencing of Olbermann and MSNBC's sleazy use of Richard Wolffe  —  (updated below)  —  The New York Times this morning has a remarkable story, and incredibly, the article's author, Brian Stelter, doesn't even acknowledge, let alone examine, what makes the story so significant.

Liberals will get single-payer vote on House floor  —  Seeking to dampen liberal anger about deals cut with centrists, Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) said House leaders have agreed to allow a floor vote on a government-run, single-payer system.

Obama's revealing body language (updated and expanded))  —  This picture truly is worth at least a thousand words.  —  I am stunned that the official White House Blog published this picture and that it is in the public domain.  The body language is most revealing.

BEN NELSON DOESN'T CARE FOR CRITICISM.... A couple of weeks ago, Sen. Ben Nelson (D) of Nebraska and a handful of centrist and center-right allies insisted that the Senate not vote on health care reform before the chamber's August recess.  Democracy for America and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee …

Pulling No Punches  —  The maverick on Obamanomics, Sarah Palin, and the media.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  John McCain is red in the face and hopping mad.  I'm sitting in his office in the Senate Russell Office Building, and he's just rushed in after delivering a speech on the Senate floor …

Life Expectancy Facts  —  Bicycles in Amsterdam, The Netherlands (my photo, available under creative commons license)  —  Via Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution commenter Adam comments: … The hypothesis that the health policy is not driving the difference is something we should seriously entertain.

Obama's Pledge to Tax Only the Rich Can't Pay for Everything, Analysts Say  —  WASHINGTON — Behind Democrats' struggle to pay the $1 trillion 10-year cost of President Obama's promise to overhaul the health care system is their collision with another of his well-known pledges …

Suspect in gay sailor's death commits suicide  —  (CNN) — A sailor accused of killing another sailor was found dead in his cell in a southern California military jail, officials said Friday.  —  Petty Officer Jonathan Campos was found dead in the brig at the Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in San Diego, a military statement said.

Proposed Counseling for Seniors in Health Plan Spurs New Battle  —  Provision for End-of-Life Counseling Is Described by Right as ‘Death Care’  —  A campaign on conservative talk radio, fueled by President Obama's calls to control exorbitant medical bills, has sparked fear among senior citizens …

$100 Million Payday Poses Problem for Pay Czar  —  In a few weeks, the Treasury Department's czar of executive pay will have to answer this $100 million question: Should Andrew J. Hall get his bonus?  —  Mr. Hall, the 58-year-old head of Phibro, a small commodities trading firm in Westport …

Alabama Area Reeling in Face of Fiscal Crisis  —  BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — It is hardly unusual these days for a government building to forgo a fresh paint job or regular lawn care to cut costs.  But last week, the director of the Jefferson County public nursing home was told that the county could no longer afford to bury indigent patients.

Congress and the CIA: Time to Let Go of the Past, Move Forward  —  Last month, at a meeting overseas of intelligence service chiefs, one of my counterparts from a major Western ally pulled me aside.  Why, he asked, is Washington so consumed with what the CIA did in the past …