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Archive Edition for   Monday, June 14, 2004Go to Current Page
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Quoted in this edition:

American Enterprise Institute
  Veronique De Rugy
Amygdala
  Gary Farber
www.AndrewSullivan.com
  Andrew Sullivan
Angry Bear
  Kash
The Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler
  Emperor Darth Misha I
ARMAVIRUMQUE
  Roger Kimball
Associated Press
  Anne Gearan
  Robert H. Reid
  Nadia Abou El-Magd
  Ali Akbar Dareini
The Australian
Balkinization
  Jack Balkin
BBC
The Belgravia Dispatch
  Gregory Djerejian
Betsy's Page
  Betsy Newmark
Billmon
  Billmon
BLACKFIVE
  Blackfive
Brad DeLong's Semi-Daily Journal
  Brad DeLong
Captain's Quarters
  Captain Ed
Change for America
  Adam Mordecai
  Joe Drymala
Chicago Sun Times
  Mark Steyn
Chrenkoff
  Arthur Chrenkoff
Citizen Smash
  Smash
CJR Campaign Desk Home
  S.Q.S.
  Liz Cox Barrett
Cold Fury
  Mike Hendrix
The Corner
  Tim Graham
  Jonah Goldberg
  Andrew Stuttaford
Crooked Timber
  Ted Barlow
  Chris Bertram
Daily Kos
  DHinMI
Daimnation!
  Damian Penny
danieldrezner.com
  Daniel Drezner
Discourse.net
  Michael Froomkin
DonkeyRising
  Ruy Teixeira
Drudge Report
EconoPundit
  Steve Antler
EdDriscoll.com
  Edward Driscoll
Editor and Publisher
  Greg Mitchell
Electablog
  David Allan Pell
Eschaton
  Atrios
etc.
  Noam Scheiber
Fox News
  Kelley Beaucar Vlahos
Guardian
  Hugh Muir
Hit & Run
  Mike Alissi
HobbsOnline
  Bill Hobbs
HughHewitt.com
  Hugh Hewitt
Hullabaloo
  Digby
Instapundit.com
  Glenn Reynolds
INTEL DUMP
  Phillip Carter
Ipse Dixit
  C. D. Harris
IRAQ NOW
  Jason Van Steenwyk
Israel news and commentary from IsraPundit
  Fred Lapides
  David Gerstman
JustOneMinute
  Tom Maguire
Kim du Toit
  Kim du Toit
Lean Left
  Tgirsch
  Kevin Raybould
The Left Coaster
  Steve Soto
  Mary InLosGatos
The Liquid List
  Oliver @LiquidList
  Tarek @LiquidList
  Shawn @LiquidList
  Aaron @LiquidList
Little Green Footballs
  Charles Johnson
Los Angeles Times
  James Rainey
  Ronald Brownstein
Marginal Revolution
  Tyler Cowen
Mark A. R. Kleiman
  Mark Kleiman
Mathew Gross
  Mathew Gross
Matthew Yglesias
  Matt Yglesias
Media Notes Extra
  Howard Kurtz
Michael J. Totten
  Michael Totten
MSNBC
  Fareed Zakaria
MyDD
  Chris Bowers
National Review
New York Times
  David M. Halbfinger
  William Safire
  Monica Davey
  Andrea Elliott
  David D. Kirkpatrick
  Jodi Wilgoren
  Erik Eckholm
  Thomas L. Friedman
  John Tierney
  Saritha Rai
  Jonathan Mahler
  Jeffrey Gettleman
  Greg Myre
Newsday
  Ron Fournier
No More Mister Nice Blog
  Steve M.
Observer
Obsidian Wings
  Edward _
Oh, That Liberal Media
  Patterico
Oliver Willis
  Oliver Willis
One Hand Clapping
  Donald Sensing
Outside the Beltway
  James Joyner
pandagon.net
  Jesse Taylor
  Ezra Klein
Pejmanesque
  Pejman Yousefzadeh
PoliBlog
  Steven Taylor
The Poor Man
  The Poor Man
PRESTOPUNDIT
  Greg Ransom
Priorities & Frivolities
  Robert Garcia Tagorda
ProfessorBainbridge.com
  Steve Bainbridge
protein wisdom
  Jeff Goldstein
QandO
  McQ
  Dale Franks
  Jon Henke
Rantingprofs
  Cori Dauber
Reuters
  James Vicini
The Right Coast
  Tom Smith
the road to surfdom
  Tim Dunlop
Roger L. Simon
  Roger L. Simon
Secular Blasphemy
  Jan Haugland
Shot In The Dark
  Mitch Berg
Slate
  Jack Shafer
Southern Appeal
  Michael DeBow
  Steve Dillard
  Nathan Hallford
Sydney Morning Herald
  Peter Hartcher
t a c i t u s
  Harley
  Thorley Winston
  Bird Dog
Taegan Goddard's Political Wire
  Taegan Goddard
TalkLeft
  Jeralyn Merritt
TAPPED
  Nick Confessore
  Matthew Yglesias
»«TBogg»«
  Tbogg
Telegraph
  Daniel Hannan
  Julian Coman
Tim Blair
  Tim Blair
Time
Unqualified Offerings
  Jim Henley
UPI
  Gareth Harding
US News
  Edward T. Pound
USA Today
  Gregg Zoroya
VodkaPundit
  Will Collier
  Stephen Green
The Volokh Conspiracy
  Eugene Volokh
  Tyler Cowen
The Washington Monthly
  Kevin Drum
Washington Post
  Jim VandeHei
  Dana Priest
  Edward Cody
  Sebastian Mallaby
  James V. Grimaldi
  Peter Slevin
  Walter Pincus
Washington Times
  Bill Sammon
Winds of Change.NET
  Guest Author



Supreme Court Preserves 'God' in Pledge
  By / AP   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court preserved the phrase "one nation, under God," in the Pledge of Allegiance, ruling Monday that a California atheist could not challenge the patriotic oath but sidestepping the broader question of separation of church and state.
Steve Bainbridge: Hence, perhaps I should be relieved that in the Pledge case the court was merely AWOL (they declined to rule on grounds that the atheist father lacked standing).
Tgirsch: Supreme Court Wusses Out in Pledge Case — Rather than setting any kind of precedent, the Supreme Court opted to reject...
Ezra Klein: Cleared That Right Up — The Cowardly Court has ruled: [snipped quote] So rather than wade into the divisive and tough...
C. D. Harris: Status Quo Ante — In an 8-0 opinion issued today (Scalia recused himself), the Supreme Court has overturned the Ninth...
Edward Driscoll: GOD LIVES: At least for now, in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Jeralyn Merritt: 'Under God' To Stay in Pledge — The Supreme Court has ruled that for now, the words "one nation under God" will remain in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Also: Greg Ransom, Tarek @LiquidList, Captain Ed, Phillip Carter

Doubts Linger as Kerry Advances
  By / WaPo   —   Permalink 
John F. Kerry has shattered fundraising records, unified an oft-warring party and pushed past President Bush in some national polls. Yet many Democratic voters, officials and even members of Kerry's staff express an ambivalence — or angst — about their presidential candidate that belies this strong public standing.
Ruy Teixeira: Kerry and Iraq — A front-page article in The Washington Post today detailed Democrats' concerns that: [Kerry] has not...
Tarek @LiquidList: But this line in today's "daily naysayer" about Kerry from the Post caught my eye: "These Democrats say the enthusiasm...
Liz Cox Barrett: We turn next to Mathew Gross, another blogger featured in the aforementioned Time article—not as one "to watch," but...
David Allan Pell: Just Say Something Other Than No — John Podesta voiced the concern of many in the Democratic Party when it comes to...
Pejman Yousefzadeh: John Kerry has a major problem in going into the fall elections: People don't know what policy stances matter to him.
Steve Soto: As Race Returns To Normal, Kerry Focuses on Message — The Post's Jim VandeHei puts forward a story today that I think accurately reflects the challenges facing the Kerry campaign.
Also: Noam Scheiber, S.Q.S., Steven Taylor, Aaron @LiquidList, Hugh Hewitt, Taegan Goddard, Robert Garcia Tagorda, Mathew Gross

Washington Whispers
  US News   —   Permalink 
Is it Gephardt?
Labor leaders believe union friend Rep. Dick Gephardt has the inside track to be Sen. John Kerry 's vice president. We hear that AFL-CIO execs say it's a done deal.
Tom Maguire: Gephardt For VP? That is the Washington Whisper. Our plausibility rating? High.
Captain Ed: He Could Do Worse US News and World Report have a cryptic, two-sentence, anonymously sourced report that John Kerry has...
Ezra Klein: But let's be honest, some no-name Iowan isn't taking the slot, it's going to be one of Labor's guys, or so they think.
Steven Taylor: The latest is from US News' Washington Whispers [snipped quote] While harldy a charisma-infusion, I have long thought Gephardt a better choice thatn Edwards.
Steve Soto: The AFL-CIO goes farther and says that it will be Gephardt and not Edwards who gets the nod.
Chris Bowers: The AFL-CIO believes that Gephardt is not only on the short list, but that he has already nailed down the VP spot.
Also: Taegan Goddard

Doctor Proposes Not Treating Some Lawyers
  AP   —   Permalink 
CHICAGO June 14, 2004 — A doctor's proposal asking the American Medical Association to endorse refusing care to attorneys involved in medical malpractice cases drew an angry response from colleagues Sunday at the annual meeting of the nation's largest physicians group.
Thorley Winston: There was an (apparently symblic since the author of the resolution withdrew it) attempt to get the AMA to endorse such...
Edward _: First Thing We Do, Let's Not Treat All the Lawyers — I know the costs of malpractice insurance are driving doctors to...
Blackfive: Doctors and Lawyers (Cats and Dogs) This just made me LOL: Doctor Proposes Not Treating Some Lawyers By TARA BURGHART...
Steve M.: If you read only the first couple of paragraphs of this story, it seems like nothing to concern yourself about: A...
James Joyner: Kill All the Lawyers — ABC News — Doctor Proposes Not Treating Some Lawyers [snipped quote] One presumes this was done tongue-in-cheek.
Mike Alissi: Giving Lawyers the Treatment — News from the AMA convention: [snipped quote] More on this.

Justice Dept. Memo Says Torture 'May Be Justified'
  By / WaPo   —   Permalink 
Today washingtonpost.com is posting a copy of the Aug. 1, 2002, memorandum "Re: Standards of Conduct for Interrogation under 18 U.S.C. 2340-2340A," from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel for Alberto R. Gonzales, counsel to President Bush.
Gregory Djerejian: In two PDF attachments, here and here, the WaPo has made public the memo. A few general points.
Oliver @LiquidList: Where is the huffing and puffing about Ashcroft's stonewalling on the torture memo?
Brad DeLong: It seems very clear to me that Jay Bybee should not be a judge, on the 9th Circuit or anyplace: "Discourse.net: OLC's...
James Joyner: Torturing the Law — WaPo has published, in PDF format, the entire August 2002 memorandum by the Office of Legal Council...
The Poor Man: The Memo — The Washington Post has posted the complete Aug. 1, 2002 memo in which the Justice Department instructed the...
Gary Farber: Don't confuse your torture memos; here is an account of the latest, this time official, legally in force, memo.
Also: Jack Balkin, Aaron @LiquidList, Katherine R, Michael Froomkin, Jeralyn Merritt, Andrew Sullivan

Transcript From Portrait Unveiling Ceremony
  WaPo   —   Permalink 
President Bush Delivers Remarks at the Unveiling of Former President Clinton's Official Portrait at the White House, June 14, 2004.
Speakers: President George W. Bush, former president Bill Clinton, former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and first lady Laura Bush
Taegan Goddard: Quote of the Day — "You know, Most the people I've known in this business, Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and...
Atrios: Clintons, Today — Transcript from portrait unveiling. I'll give Bush his due on this one - he appeared to try his best to be a class act for once.
Harley: I Know We're All Supposed To Loathe Each Other, But... The Prez did a nice job at the portrait unveiling ceremony today.

A Low-Key Iowa Governor Receives the V.P. Treatment
  By / LAT   —   Permalink 
SAN FRANCISCO — Here's the thing about a vice presidential nomination. You're not supposed to look like you're pursuing it. It's considered best to lie low and let the job come to you.
S.Q.S.: And he is...Dick Gephardt. Uh, wait. Tom Vilsack. Er, John Edwards. Tip to campaign press: We can wait until Kerry tells us who he has chosen.
Ezra Klein: VP Round-Up — Wondering who this Tom Vilsack cat is? The LA Times has got you covered.
Taegan Goddard: Vilsack On Kerry Short List — Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) is getting the V.P. treatment, according to a Los Angeles Times profile.
Betsy Newmark: Gov. Tom Vilsack is the newest guy getting the "possible Veep candidate for Kerry" treatment.
Chris Bowers: Here is an article claiming he is on the super-short list. The VP buzz entirely surrounds only these three candidates.

Supreme Court Dismisses Pledge Case on Technicality
  AP   —   Permalink 
The Supreme Court preserved the phrase "one nation, under God," in the Pledge of Allegiance, ruling Monday that a California atheist could not challenge the patriotic oath but sidestepping the broader question of separation of church and state.
Steve Dillard: Supreme Court Dismisses Pledge Case on Technicality: Supremes: "Thank God we don't have to address the merits of a case...
James Joyner: Update: Interestingly, WaPo gets the headline right: Supreme Court Dismisses Pledge Case on Technicality (they use the same AP wire text).
Joe Drymala: Supremes Weasel Out of a Ruling — The Supreme Court this morning wormed its way out of a ruling on the Pledge of...
Bird Dog: Supreme Court Settles Nothing on the Pledge Case — From the Washington Post: [snipped quote] My prediction: While it's...
Jack Balkin: The Washington Post has the story. The text of the opinion is available here. This is exactly what I hoped the Court would do.

From the Senate, a Chorus Rises in Support of Edwards
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON, June 13 - Democratic senators and Senate candidates are pressing John Kerry to name one of their own, John Edwards of North Carolina, as his running mate, in part because they believe Mr. Edwards would help Democrats in five tossup races in the South and give the party a fighting chance to recapture control of the Senate.
S.Q.S.: Uh, wait. Tom Vilsack. Er, John Edwards. Tip to campaign press: We can wait until Kerry tells us who he has chosen.
Chris Bowers: Supposedly, Edwards is the favorite of Democrats in the Senate as well. Additionally, Edwards is actively campaigning for the spot.
Taegan Goddard: The New York Times notes Democratic senators "are pressing" Kerry to name Edwards as his running mate, "hoping it would help Democrats win races in the South."
Ezra Klein: If they're right, Southern Senators are going to be some unhappy campers, wondering why their chosen one wasn't good enough.
Shawn @LiquidList: Today, the New York Times reports that : From the Senate, a Chorus Rises in Support of Edwards.

Crowds Celebrate 13 Deaths in Iraq Blast
  By / AP   —   Permalink 
BAGHDAD, Iraq - A car bomb shattered a convoy of Westerners in Baghdad Monday, killing at least 13 people, including three General Electric workers and two bodyguards. Crowds rejoiced over the attack, dancing around a charred body and shouting "Down with the USA!"
Cori Dauber: "Crowds Celebrate 13 Deaths in Iraq Blast," reads the headline.
Blackfive: Crowds Celebrate 13 Deaths in Iraq Blast By ROBERT H. REID, Associated Press Writer BAGHDAD, Iraq - A car bomb...
Glenn Reynolds: IRAQIS RESCUE AMBUSHED CONVOY: Via BlackFive.

Tear Down This U.N. Stonewall
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
The secretary general of the U.N. tapped me on the shoulder at a recent luncheon and said, "May I have a word with you?"
Because several columns of mine zapped the U.N. for its cover-up of the costliest financial rip-off in history — even calling it "Kofigate" — I braced myself for an icy rebuke.
Oliver @LiquidList: This morning I read his well-written dissection of the UN's oil-for-food scandal, and the cover-up that he sees occurring before his very eyes.
Tim Blair: PALESTINIAN HOUSING BOOM — William Safire on the UN's oil-for-everything-but-food scandal: "Two BNP Paribas sources...
James Joyner: U.N. Stonewalling — William Safire's latest column, "Tear Down This U.N. Stonewall," is worth reading.
Roger L. Simon: Mr. Annan, Tear Down that Wall — Not in Berlin... On 41st Street... William Safire is advancing the UNSCUM Oil-for-Food...
Cori Dauber: The UN talks a great game, but they haven't coughed up enough money to get their in-house investigators going.
Glenn Reynolds: I'm shocked. UPDATE: William Safire writes "Tear down this U.N. stonewall!" "Let's advance this story.
Also: Stephen Green

CBS RADIO HEAD ORDERS 'MUST CARRY' TO STATIONS FOR CLINTON BOOK SPECIAL
  Drudge Report   —   Permalink 
Move over Rush Limbaugh!
Bill Clinton is set to hit the talkradio waves with a live special promoting his new book — one that CBS has ordered a "must carry" directive for all of its news affiliates, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.
Steve M.: Well, I guess Viacom's sinister plot to sell Viacom books worked so well that now Viacom is hatching a sinister plot to...
James Joyner: Update: Now that Drudge actually has a link with a story, the controversy is more obvious: [snipped quote] From the...
Edward Driscoll: DEJA MOO: The feeling that you've heard the same bull once before. Maybe Mrs. Reynolds is more right than she knows.

Purported Letter: Iraq Holy War in Danger
  By / AP   —   Permalink 
CAIRO, Egypt - A leader of militants in Iraq has purportedly written to Osama bin Laden saying his fighters are being squeezed by U.S.-led coalition troops, according to a statement posted Monday on Islamic Web sites.
Glenn Reynolds: FRANCE IS NICE this time of year. I think this is another argument for early elections in Iraq.
Tim Blair: It all depends on your point of view: [snipped quote] France is nice this time of year.

Recruiters Try New Tactics to Sell Wartime Army
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
LYNDON, Kan. , June 13 — Katherine Jordan, who marched self-consciously across a basketball court in a black robe and orange flip-flops the other afternoon to collect her diploma, has just a few days left to fill the high school scrapbook she keeps here on the floor of her bedroom.
Gary Farber: WARNING: WAR IN MIRROR MAY BE CLOSER than it appears. [snipped quote] To be sure, it's hardly as if most soldiers will wind up in Iraq, or some other battlezone, under fire.
Cori Dauber: Well, here it is, right here on the front page of the New York Times: But the world of recruiting has shifted significantly.
Phillip Carter: It takes a village... to build an army — The New York Times has an interesting article on the challenges to military recruiting in the months since the Iraq War.
Nathan Hallford: Here's an article looking at tactics used by recruiters (you may be deployed to Iraq; you may not) along with the ideas...
James Joyner: Recruiting During Wartime — NYT — Recruiters Try New Tactics to Sell Wartime Army [RSS] [snipped quote] Of course, there is a wide range of scores one can have on the ASVAB.

Feeding the Minotaur
  NRO   —   Permalink 
Our strange relationship with the terrorists continues.
As long as the mythical Athenians were willing to send, every nine years, seven maidens and seven young men down to King Minos's monster in the labyrinth, Athens was left alone by the Cretan fleet.
Cori Dauber: You should most definitely read the whole thing, but here's a taste to whet the appetite: In the European mind, and that...
Charles Johnson: Feeding the Minotaur — A recurring theme of many LGF entries is that we are not yet serious about the war against...
Mike Hendrix: VDH notices something damning, unnerving, revealing, and ultimately depressing: "Ever since the storming of the Tehran...
Jesse Taylor: After far too much time spent pretending that detailing exactly why bin Laden is evil is a substitute for explaining how...

Tackle the Nuke Threat
  By / MSNBC   —   Permalink 
June 21 issue - The G8 Summit in Sea Island, Ga., produced no new cooperation on Iraq. No surprise there. The rifts over it are deep, and though the United States has changed course, it will take time before other countries jump in.
Tom Smith: On a related point, this is also why we cannot let Iran get nukes.
Dale Franks: Today, The Telegraph, and the Wall Street Journal are engaging in a bit of grumbling about the worldwide indifference to...
Gary Farber: AVOIDING THE BIG BOOM. Fareed Zakaria is mostly right (as he often is) on nuclear non-proliferation.
James Joyner: Nukes for Al Qaeda — Fareed Zakaria argues that we're not doing enough to prevent terrorist groups from getting nuclear weapons.

Supreme Court Decides Pledge Case on Technicality
  By / Reuters   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Monday that California atheist Michael Newdow lacked the right to bring a constitutional challenge to the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, avoiding a decision on the key church-state issue.
Steve M.: The ruling by the justices was based on the technicality that Newdow could not bring the case before the court because...
Jeff Goldstein: Supreme Court to Newdow: "...try minding your own business, Pops." *
Steven Taylor: Supreme Court Decides Pledge Case on Technicality [snipped quote] This strikes me as a legitimate ruling—it has always...

Contractor Immunity a Divisive Issue
  By / WaPo   —   Permalink 
BAGHDAD, June 13 — In an early test of its imminent sovereignty, Iraq's new government has been resisting a U.S. demand that thousands of foreign contractors here be granted immunity from Iraqi law, in the same way as U.S. military forces are now immune, according to Iraqi sources.
Tyler Cowen: Contractor immunity in the new Iraq: This topic is far outside the area of my blogging expertise, but I couldn't help...
Phillip Carter: Row develops over contractor immunity in Iraq — The Washington Post reports this morning that a diplomatic dispute has...
Tim Dunlop: First it was th Geneva conventions on torture and prisoner abuse and now it's the Vienna Convention, the international...
Aaron @LiquidList: So whether these people were present interrogating inmates at the Abu Ghraib prison or leading a raid on a political...

Somali Charged with Plotting to Blow Up Ohio Mall
  Reuters   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Somali man living in Ohio was charged with plotting with al Qaeda supporters to blow up a shopping mall in Columbus, Ohio, Attorney General John Ashcroft said on Monday.
Jeff Goldstein: May the very fires of hell incinerate your Great Steak 'n' Potato Company, what with their seriously overpriced and...
Steven Taylor: Ohio Mall Targeted by al Qaeda Member — Somali Charged with Plotting to Blow Up Ohio Mall "A Somali man living in Ohio...
Captain Ed: Attorney General John Ashcroft announced a new criminal indictment against a Somali immigrant, whom a grand jury has...

Galloway's Euro ambitions dashed
  By / Guardian   —   Permalink 
George Galloway's attempt to enter the European parliament with his anti-war party Respect ended in failure last night.
The former Labour MP secured 91,175 votes but was beaten by Labour and the Conservatives, who each picked up three seats, and the...
Jan Haugland: Update: George Galloway's neo-Stalinist anti-war party Respect was crushed, or more correctly ignored, by British voters...
Tim Blair: NEWS BRIEFLETS — George Galloway failed to win a seat in the European parliament and his Respect Party claimed just 4.79% of the vote.
Will Collier: It's An Ill Wind That Blows No Good (huh huh, he said "blows") I really didn't mean to make this a full afternoon of...

Red Cross ultimatum to US on Saddam
  Guardian   —   Permalink 
Saddam Hussein must either be released from custody by June 30 or charged if the US and the new Iraqi government are to conform to international law, the International Committee of the Red Cross said last night.
Jan Haugland: ICRC: Charge or release Saddam — The International Committee of the Red Cross has issued an "ultimatum" to the United...
Steve Antler: An Internet Experiment in Political Science — The Red Cross is now charging the US with potential war crimes over its incarceration of Saddam Hussein.
Emperor Darth Misha I: If we had, we wouldn't be dealing with this kind of nonsense now (link thanks to LC Joe Dromedary) "Jonathan Steele in...
James Joyner: Red Cross: Release Saddam — Guardian — Red Cross ultimatum to US on Saddam [snipped quote] This is Exhibit A in...
Jesse Taylor: The Idjit Brigade Is Tuning Up The War Machine — The Red Cross has issued an ultimatum against the U.S. - either charge Saddam by June 30th, or free him.
Jason Van Steenwyk: Link. "The United States defines Saddam Hussein as a prisoner of war.
Also: Jeralyn Merritt, Charles Johnson, Atrios

Unit Says It Gave Earlier Warning of Abuse in Iraq
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
FRANKFURT, June 13 — Beginning in November, a small unit of interrogators at Abu Ghraib prison began reporting allegations of prisoner abuse, including the beatings of five blindfolded Iraqi generals, in internal documents sent to senior officers, according to interviews with military personnel who worked in the prison.
Ted Barlow: It's considerably harder to hold on to the "few bad apples" theory.
Michael Froomkin: Gen. Janis Karpinski, the commander of the 800th Military Police Battalion, and Maj. Gen. Barbara Fast, the top Army...
Digby: More Paper Trails To Torture — Unit Says It Gave Earlier Warning of Abuse in Iraq: "Military officials said the...
Mary InLosGatos: A further problem for the Bush administration is the news that the reports of abuse in Abu Ghraib had been raised to the...
Jeralyn Merritt: Abuse Warnings Began Last November — The New York Times reports that interrogators at Abu Ghraib prison began reporting...

Poll: Edwards Top Choice for Kerry Ticket
  By / Newsday   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON — Sen. John Edwards, the smooth-talking populist who emerged from the nominating campaign as John Kerry's chief rival, is favored among registered voters to be the Democratic vice presidential candidate, according to an Associated Press poll.
Steve Soto: A recent AP poll shows that a Kerry/Edwards pairing polls slightly better than Bush/Cheney, and that other combinations poll slightly behind Bush/Cheney.
Taegan Goddard: Poll Shows Edwards Favored For Veep — An AP poll finds Sen. John Edwards "is favored among registered voters to be the Democratic vice presidential candidate."
Chris Bowers: The nation wants Edwards, but by a plurality rather than a majority. Supposedly, Edwards is the favorite of Democrats in the Senate as well.

Clinton Planning to Use Book Tour to Assist Kerry
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
As former President Bill Clinton prepares for a barrage of publicity and a cross-country tour to promote his memoirs, his political advisers are consulting with the Democratic Party and Senator John Kerry's campaign about ways that Mr. Clinton can lend a political hand in the process.
Steve Soto: Secondly, Bill Clinton will be using his book tour to help John Kerry. Not only that, but the Kerry campaign will be using Clinton wherever he can help.
Hugh Hewitt: Days after being rejected by John McCain, Kerry also has to read a New York Times headline underscoring his weakness as...
Tbogg: And, as usual, he's wrong: As former President Bill Clinton prepares for a barrage of publicity and a cross-country tour...
Nathan Hallford: Lending A Helping Hand: Former President Bill Clinton, who couldn't quite keep his eyes open this past Friday at the...
Taegan Goddard: Clinton Will Use Book Tour To Help Kerry — Bill Clinton "plans to lend a political hand to the Kerry campaign while on...
Digby: OhFerChristsake — [snipped quote] Yes, it would be terrible to remind people of a time when the country was so peaceful...

Meet Joe Blog
  Time   —   Permalink 
A few years ago, Mathew Gross, 32, was a free-lance writer living in tiny Moab, Utah. Rob Malda, 28, was an underperforming undergraduate at a small Christian college in Michigan. Denis Dutton, 60, was a professor of philosophy in faraway Christchurch, New Zealand.
Gary Farber: MORE BLOGGER TRIUMPHALISM, this from Time. [snipped quote] Read The Rest Scale: I've lost track of how many times I've...
Robert Garcia Tagorda: Coherence — Time is the latest major media outlet to recognize the emergence of political blogs.
Bill Hobbs: Gleefully, Unabashedly Biased — The new Time magazine has a long and very good story about blogs. Read the whole thing.
Donald Sensing: Yours truly is quoted. And Time magazine has a long and balanced article about blogging.
McQ: TIME discovers blogs ... and actually does a good article about them: [snipped quote] Read it if you have a moment.
Jesse Taylor: Restraint — TIME does a piece on bloggers (the sites are free, fast, funny, and smell like peppermint!), but I have to...
Also: Tim Blair, Greg Ransom, Mathew Gross, Kevin Drum

Fallujah Brigade tries U.S. patience
  By / USA Today   —   Permalink 
FALLUJAH, Iraq — A top Marine officer here says the compromise that gave control of Fallujah to an Iraqi brigade in exchange for the withdrawal of Marines may be a failure.
"This was a noble experiment that may not work out," Col. Larry Brown, the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force's operations officer, said this weekend.
Smash: While this agreement has brought relative calm to the city, the "Fallujah Brigade" appears to be a flop.
Steve M.: It's been over a month now and to be frank, the progress hasn't been what we wanted it to be," Brown said... —USA...
Mike Hendrix: Updated update! And Bill Quick links to a couple of depressing examples of what Hanson is ultimately talking about here.

Did We Do War Crimes?
  NRO   —   Permalink 
Justice and Abu Ghraib.
The high non-Reagan moment of last week came when Attorney General John Ashcroft contended with Senator Edward Kennedy on the whole business of torture. Ashcroft was explaining something not terribly complicated, but it led to combat.
The Poor Man: Advanced Problems In Moral Philosophy, by Andrew Sullivan — Andrew Sullivan breaks new ground here, as he grapples with...
Andrew Sullivan: WFB GETS IT: Whenever I think I'm going crazy (having qualms about extra-legal torture while most conservatives are fine...

Libertarian Candidate Won't Concede to 'Evil'
  By / Fox News   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON — Smaller government, protecting civil liberties, getting U.S. troops out of Iraq and ensuring that a military draft won't be instituted to fight a protracted War on Terror (search) are all staples of the Libertarian Party's (search) presidential campaign this year.
Tgirsch: Hope Springs Eternal — Here's hoping that this guy can do to Bush in 2004 what Nader did to Gore in 2000: [snipped quote] That's right, Rightists!
Steven Taylor: The Silliness of the Big "L" Libertarians — Libertarian Candidate Won't Concede to 'Evil' [snipped quote] Ok, not only...

Behind the Scenes, a Restless and Relentless Kerry
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
BOSTON, June 12 — Like a caged hamster, Senator John Kerry is restless on the road. He pokes at the perimeter of the campaign bubble that envelops him, constantly trying to break out for a walk around the block, a restaurant dinner, the latest movie.
Steve Soto: The media is also seeing Kerry now as someone who wants more contact with the public, and these types of stories can...
Betsy Newmark: Mickey Kaus is not impressed with the New York Times story that purported to show the real John Kerry.
James Joyner: Kaus on Jodi Wilgoren's infamous Kerry puff piece: [quote] Doesn't the NYT have an editor with the power to write "Example, pls"? [end quote]

Leaders rue Euro poll 'disaster'
  BBC   —   Permalink 
Senior politicians across Europe have voiced dismay at EU parliamentary election results, after low turnouts and big gains for opposition parties.
Governing parties in Germany, France and Poland suffered big losses, while many eurosceptic parties had their best result at the polls.
Chris Bowers: They finished third behind the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives locally, and the European elections were not much better for them.
Will Collier: Just Not Getting The Message — Here's another story about the "disastrous" EU parliamentary elections.

White House Officials and Cheney Aide Approved Halliburton Contract in Iraq, Pentagon Says
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
In the fall of 2002, in the preparations for possible war with Iraq, the Pentagon sought and received the assent of senior Bush administration officials, including the vice president's chief of staff, before hiring the Halliburton Company to develop secret plans for restoring Iraq's oil facilities, Pentagon officials have told Congressional investigators.
Oliver Willis: Not I. White House Officials and Cheney Aide Approved Halliburton Contract in Iraq, Pentagon Says In the fall of 2002,...
Tbogg: If it says Libby Libby Libby on the memo memo memo — There's corruption corruption corruption and the press is sure...
Jon Henke: The Halliburton theory goes "poof" again... Well, I hope that meme had fun while it lasted... [snipped quote] Oddly,...

Analysis: Voters punish leaders in EU poll
  By / UPI   —   Permalink 
BRUSSELS, Belgium, June 14 (UPI) — Europe's governing parties received a mauling from disgruntled voters Sunday as preliminary results from the EU Parliament elections showed opposition parties making sweeping gains across the continent.
Stephen Green: So what to make of this? Read: [snipped quote] Is the trend in the Western democracies an anti-incumbent one?
Jonah Goldberg: THE EURO-VOTE — Such good news on the Euro-front.

Kerry's liberalism a weapon for Bush
  By / Washington Times   —   Permalink 
President Bush's re-election campaign has begun a concerted effort to divide the Democratic Party by forcing its congressional candidates to either embrace or reject Sen. John Kerry's liberalism.
"This is one of the huge stories of the campaign," said Bush campaign manager Ken Mehlman.
Tim Graham: WILL SOROS PLAY IN PREORIA — Bill Sammon reports in today's Washington Times that the Bushies are going to push...
Betsy Newmark: Bill Sammon looks at how Republican candidates in the South are using John Kerry and other quotes as wedge issues in...

Taking the High Ground
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
At a time when the Israeli rightist parties are going through a wrenching debate over whether to approve Ariel Sharon's proposal for a unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, it's worth recalling Israel's previous experience in this regard — its unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon.
Matthew Yglesias: Maureen Dowd. Katherine Hepburn and Ronald Reagan were actually different in a number of ways. Thomas Friedman.
David Gerstman: In today's column, "Taking the High Ground"

Big Government Again
  By / WaPo   —   Permalink 
Last week's Reagan-Bush comparisons emphasized the similarities between the two presidents. But the biggest contemporary change in American politics is revealed by the difference between them.
Jonah Goldberg: So does Sebastian Mallaby in a good column. Mallaby blames the times. I blame Bush.
Greg Ransom: MORE - "Big Government Again".

Bush, attorney consult in CIA name leak probe
  Newsday   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON — President George W. Bush has had discussions with an outside attorney in case he needs to retain a lawyer in the investigation of who in the administration leaked the name of an undercover CIA operative, the White House confirmed Wednesday.
Brad DeLong: "The White House Counsel is part of the Office of the President, and the Counsel is the President's staff lawyer, just as..."
Michael Froomkin: The White House Counsel is part of the Office of the President, and the Counsel is the President's staff lawyer, just as...

A Cold Morning in Vermont
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
IGNAT SOLZHENITSYN understands why so many people have warm thoughts of Ronald Reagan, but one of his earliest memories is on the frigid side.
In 1980, Ignat was an 8-year-old transplanted to Vermont by his father, the famous chronicler of Siberia's gulags.
Jim Henley: I mean the progressive Vermont school Ignat Solzhenitzyn talked about in the Sunday Times: [snipped quote] I visited...
Betsy Newmark: Here's an example of how open-minded some liberals are. Read how they treated Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's sons when Reagan won reelection.
Edward Driscoll: FROM THE GULAG ARCHIPELAGO TO BERNIE SANDERS' STATE: Betsy Newmark looks at what Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's sons went...

UKIP breakthrough at Euro polls
  BBC   —   Permalink 
The Tories and Labour have both taken a battering at the hands of the Eurosceptic UK Independence Party in the European elections.
With two results left to come, UKIP is on course for third place, with 16.8% of the vote.
Michael Totten: The right-wing Tories came out ahead of both Labour and the Independence Party, but even so it's their worst performance since 1832.
Andrew Sullivan: Just as interesting was the surge in support for the new UK Independence Party, a group that, on the latest results,...

Go with the flow
  Observer   —   Permalink 
I had one of those days the other day, rushing from one appointment to the next, from early in the morning till 10 at night, and noticed on walking to my parked car to drive home that, in the push to get things done, helped along by a fair few cups of tea and glasses of water, I'd forgotten to - what's the polite way of saying it - pass water.
Mike Hendrix: Practical knowledge — Sullivan found a funny: "I had one of those days the other day, rushing from one appointment to...
Andrew Sullivan: TIP-TOE THROUGH THE URINALS: You learn something new every day: "[T]he Taoists laid great store in the ability to...

France 2-1 England
  BBC   —   Permalink 
Zinedine Zidane scored a majestic free-kick and a penalty in injury time to secure holders France a stunning victory over England in Group B.
Frank Lampard had given England a first-half lead when he rose to head home David Beckham's free-kick.
Jan Haugland: PS: And in case you wonder, Napoleon was a Corsican, not French, and Zinedine Zidane is Algerian. That's my story, and I stick with it.
Chris Bertram: Euro 2004 (England-France) They'll be dancing in the streets of Glasgow and Cardiff tonight after England's last minute collapse to France at Euro 2004.
Damian Penny: In the meantime, what a downer to come home to this. A couple of quick notes: - I found out about Ray Charles's death in the Globe and Mail on Friday morning.

I Believe the National Enquirer
  By / Slate   —   Permalink 
Almost three decades ago, the National Enquirer abandoned the traditional supermarket tabloid formula of UFOs, bizarre sex, sances, gross-outs, Loch Ness-ish monsters, cooked-up stories, and celebrity gossip for a new formula mostly devoted to celebrities.
Robert Garcia Tagorda: Should Inquiring Minds Believe the National Enquirer? Yes, according to Jack Shafer.
Eugene Volokh: Slate praises the National Enquirer: No, really; and I'd heard similar things from others.
Jan Haugland: Tabloids all — Slate's Jack Shafer writes such an unlikely thing as a defense of tabloid National Enquirer, and makes...

Short on Priests, U.S. Catholics Outsource Prayers to Indian Clergy
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
BANGALORE, India - With Roman Catholic clergy in short supply in the United States, Indian priests are picking up some of their work, saying Mass for special intentions, in a sacred if unusual version of outsourcing.
Gary Farber: IS ASKING GOD FOR HELP WITH YOUR PROBLEMS OUTSOURCING ANYWAY? In any case, this is. [snipped quote] Read The Rest Scale: 1 out of 5.
Daniel Drezner: Saritha Rai has the details in the New York Times: [snipped quote] Thanks to alert danieldrezner.com reader R.S. for the link.
Tyler Cowen: Here is the full story, from The New York Times. Thanks to the ever-wise David Nishimura for the pointer.

Commander Swift Objects
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
Lt. Cmdr. Charles Swift received his first lesson in the misuse of power in 1980, when he was a plebe at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. Subjected to one indignation after another at the hands of upperclassmen, he came to realize that those...
Jeralyn Merritt: The New York Times reports on Lt. Commander Charles Swift [link via Cursor]: [snipped quote] Major Dan Mori represents...
Phillip Carter: LCDR Swift for the defense — Jonathan Mahler has a great profile of LCDR Charles Swift, the defense attorney detailed...
Michael Froomkin: Commander Swift Objects won't tell people who have been following the story closely much that's new, but it's well-told, and has a very sympathetic profile of Lt. Cmdr.
Jack Balkin: Some Lawyers, Making a Difference — As a tonic to the embarassment of the Administration's torture memo, here's a New York Times story about litigation by Navy Lt. Cmdrs.
Cori Dauber: Well, it struck folks enough that it gets retold today in the form of a magazine piece.

Ex-President Bush Makes Birthday Skydive
  AP   —   Permalink 
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — Former President George H.W. Bush celebrated his 80th birthday Sunday with a parachute jump from 13,000 feet over his presidential library.
Blackfive: This photo via AP/Army Golden Knights and quote from the Chicago Tribune/AP: BushSkyDive...The elder Bush made his first...
James Joyner: (AP) NYT/AP — Ex-President Bush Plans Birthday Skydive "Former President George H.W. Bush celebrated his 80th birthday...
Edward Driscoll: BUSH 41 TURNS 80, SKYDIVES TO CELEBRATE: George H.W., the first President Bush, decided to celebrate his 80th birthday...

Poll: Edwards Top Choice for Kerry Ticket
  AP   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. John Edwards, the smooth-talking populist who emerged from the nominating campaign as John Kerry's chief rival, is favored among registered voters to be the Democratic vice presidential candidate, according to an Associated Press poll.
Shawn @LiquidList: Its what people seem to want at this point. And frankly, none of the other folks are really that good.
Steven Taylor: I have seen this story breathlessly noted in various places: Poll: Edwards Top Choice for Kerry Ticket "Sen. John...

Powell: Terrorism Report a 'Big Mistake'
  AP   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON - A State Department report that incorrectly showed a decline last year in terrorism worldwide was a "big mistake," Secretary of State Colin Powell said Sunday.
He said he was working with the CIA , which helped to compile the data, to determine why the errors got into the report.
Jim Henley: Oops. Anyway, I wasn't impressed then and I'm not overly-impressed by the reversal.
Mathew Gross: Quote of the Week — Colin Powell, on the State Department report that incorrectly showed a global decline in terrorism...
Steven Taylor: Terrorism Report was Incorrect — Powell: Terrorism Report a 'Big Mistake' "A State Department report that incorrectly...

Now I can get back to the business of ignoring you
  By / Telegraph   —   Permalink 
First the good news. By nine o'clock tonight, 25 countries will have participated in open and orderly elections. No one will be sent into exile as a result of these polls, or placed under house arrest. Defeated MEPs will depart peacefully, clutching their enormous redundancy packages.
Kim du Toit: Down The Slope — I read this article in the Telegraph and was filled with utter despair.First the good news.
Andrew Stuttaford: NOT A FAN, APPARENTLY — Daniel Hannan, MEP: [snipped quote] Ouch.

Bush rival joins Latham attack
  By / Sydney Morning Herald   —   Permalink 
The campaign of the Democratic candidate for the US presidency, John Kerry, has for the first time rejected Mark Latham's plan to recall Australian troops from Iraq by Christmas, leaving the Labor leader without support for the policy in America's political mainstream.
Tim Blair: Now the Caged Massachusetts Hamster (grrrr! grrrr!) is joining Bush's conservative conspiracy: "The campaign of the...
Tim Dunlop: UPDATE: A John Kerry spokesman joins the Lathamfest. No word on what they think about the Netherland's plans.

Mural by Jewish child prisoners in WW2 desecrated in France
  Reuters   —   Permalink 
PARIS - Vandals have desecrated a mural painted by Jewish children during World War Two in a transit camp in southern France where they were held before deportation to Nazi Germany, police said Sunday.
Betsy Newmark: How the French can claim that anti-semitism isn't on the rise in France is beyond me.
Charles Johnson: French Antisemitism Watch — Mural by Jewish child prisoners in WW2 desecrated in France. (Hat tip: Goldie.)

John Howard: Man of tradition who reshaped history
  The Australian   —   Permalink 
I WAS wrong about Ronald Reagan. Back in 1980 when the Republican primaries were being held I wanted George Bush (who later became 41st president) to win. My view reflected much of the conventional wisdom at the time. Reagan was a movie star.
Tim Blair: Yay for learning. UPDATE. John Howard admits that he, too, got Reagan wrong: "I was wrong about Ronald Reagan.
Tim Dunlop: MEANWHILE in the LAND OF BROWNNOSE: John Howard gets down on his hands and knees and offers contrition to those who must be obeyed.

Retired Officials Say Bush Must Go
  By / LAT   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON — A group of 26 former senior diplomats and military officials, several appointed to key positions by Republican Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, plans to issue a joint statement this week arguing that President George W. Bush has damaged America's national security and should be defeated in November.
Ezra Klein: Losing Friends — This report from Daniel Drezner on the Council of Foreign Relations meeting is pretty heartening: [snipped quote] Well that's good.
Howard Kurtz: Los Angeles Times: "John F. Kerry had more than half a dozen conversations with Sen. John McCain about the prospect of...
Daniel Drezner: This is not limited to those involved in this petition (some of whom were at the conference).
The Poor Man: This is not limited to those involved in this petition (some of whom were at the conference).
Mitch Berg: The Dinosaur Revolt — Ron Brownstein, of the nation's most overtly liberal newspaper, the LA Times, leads this piece...
Harley: Informed Opinion — Not mine, of course.
Also: Robert Garcia Tagorda, Jesse Taylor, Patterico, Paradox

Bush Asked for Vatican's Help on Political Issues, Report Says
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
On his recent trip to Rome, President Bush asked a top Vatican official to push American bishops to speak out more about political issues, including same-sex marriage, according to a report in the National Catholic Reporter, an independent newspaper.
Robert Garcia Tagorda: Lobbying the Pope — Liberal pundits, including Josh Marshall, Ezra Klein, Oliver Willis, and Kevin Drum, are all over...
Liz Cox Barrett: Josh Marshall singles out a report from The National Catholic Reporter— elaborated on by The New York Times— reporting...
Nick Confessore: According to the New York Times (citing a report in the National Catholic Reporter), President Bush: [snipped quote] Lovely.
David Allan Pell: The centrality of religion in this President's political life was on display once again during his recent visit to the...
Adam Mordecai: From the NY Times: [snipped quote] He sure is a uniter, isn't he? I'm not going to go into all the ways this is aboslutely reprehensible.
Howard Kurtz: And don't miss this NYT story on Bush seeking political aid from the Vatican.
Also: Josh Marshall, Andrew Sullivan, Digby, Ezra Klein, The Poor Man, Betsy Newmark, Oliver Willis

Nader Had Campaign Office at Charity
  By / WaPo   —   Permalink 
Since October, Ralph Nader has run his campaign for president out of the same downtown Washington offices that through April housed a public charity he created — an overlap that campaign finance specialists said could run afoul of federal laws.
Matthew Yglesias: Don't miss The Washington Post's report from yesterday on the seemingly illegal ties between Ralph Nader's presidential...
Jan Haugland: Nader campaign shared offices with charity — Ralph Nader has been running his presidential campaign from the same...
Jesse Taylor: Nader's Folly — It looks like Ralph Nader may be steering the ship U.S.S. Bush's Election into dangerous waters:...
Aaron @LiquidList: Politics: Bad News For Nader — At last, the media starts digging into Nader.
Tim Graham: NADER SCOOP — The Washington Post reports on Page One today that the Ralph Nader campaign is sharing office space (and...
Captain Ed: Maybe He Doesn't Know The Law — Ralph Nader, who gained fame as a consumer-advocate lawyer, appears to need a brush-up course on electoral and tax law.
Also: QD @SouthernAppeal

Interrogation abuses were 'approved at highest levels'
  By / Telegraph   —   Permalink 
New evidence that the physical abuse of detainees in Iraq and at Guantanamo Bay was authorised at the top of the Bush administration will emerge in Washington this week, adding further to pressure on the White House.
DHinMI: They are the directives of high-ranking officials, and according to the Telegraph, this week we may know who in the Bush...
Kevin Raybould: Torture "approved at highest levels" — This makes me sick: [snipped quote] One wonders if these were the same Pentagon...
Mark Kleiman: More torture documents coming — Interrogation abuses were 'approved at highest levels' By Julian Coman in Washington...
Kevin Drum: UPDATE: And this from the Telegraph: "The Telegraph understands that four confidential Red Cross documents implicating...
Jack Balkin: A Few Bad Apples at the Top of the Barrel — According to this report from the London Telegraph (link via Mark Kleiman),...

Like Thatcher, Americans grasped Reagan's worth
  By / Chicago Sun Times   —   Permalink 
'It's so American,'' Margaret Thatcher is said to have remarked, watching from Bill Frist's Senate office as Ronald Reagan's casket was brought to the Capitol and 21 jets flew overhead in missing-man formation.
She's right. Serious nations have serious ritual, but each in its own way.
Michael DeBow: Mark Steyn on the events of the past week, here. "One day even the network anchors and Ivy League professors will get it."
Roger Kimball: What is an ''intelligent'' person? It's an excellent question that Mark Steyn asks.
Tim Blair: REAGAN UNDER REVIEW — Mark Steyn on the anti-Reagan media: "If anything is laid to rest with him at the end of this...
Tom Smith: Mark Steyn on Reagan — Right as usual. BTW this is also why the media preferred GHWB's tribute to the PresidentBush 's.
Greg Ransom: UPDATE: Steyn on Reagan & the Professors raises the question, What is an Intelligent" person anyway?
Betsy Newmark: Mark Steyn looks at how Americans were much better at evaluating Reagan than the elites in the media were.
Also: Deacon

Bush Spending--a Comparison
  By / American Enterprise Institute   —   Permalink 
George W. Bush is increasingly being compared to President Ronald Reagan—some even call him his heir. President Bush, like Reagan, has implemented large across-the-board tax cuts and has boosted defense spending. The analogy is tempting but incorrect.
Greg Ransom: "The following table lists how many of the major agencies or departments had their budgets cut in a given Presidential...
Tyler Cowen: Here is one unnoticed achievement of Ronald Reagan: [snipped quote] Here is the full and sad story on Bush's fiscal policy for the agencies and departments.

President Reagan, Champion Budget-Cutter
  By / American Enterprise Institute   —   Permalink 
Everyone talks about the Reagan tax cuts, yet there is more to President Reagan's legacy than tax cuts. There is also his courageous and largely unappreciated willingness to fight for reductions in domestic spending.
Robert Garcia Tagorda: Reagan and Bureaucracy — Tyler Cowen highlights this American Enterprise Institute study, which applauds Ronald...
Tyler Cowen: Here are the underlying data.

Group Seeks Change In Security Policy
  By / WaPo   —   Permalink 
Angered by President Bush's conduct of foreign policy and dismayed about America's diminished reputation abroad, more than two dozen former top diplomats and military leaders will release a statement this week calling for a change in U.S. national security policy.
Patterico: So far only one has stated he's a Republican — sort of. Bill Harrop firmly states: "I really am essentially a Republican."
Kash: Well, today's Washington Post is reporting that a group of grownup Republicans and Democrats will be speaking out this...

Hiding a bad guy named triple X
  By / US News   —   Permalink 
The top U.S. commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, issued a classified order last November directing military guards to hide a prisoner, later dubbed "Triple X" by soldiers, from Red Cross inspectors and keep his name off official rosters.
DHinMI: In at least one case, according to documents obtained by U.S. News, Sanchez ordered a prisoner be hid from Red Cross inspectors and his name kept off official rosters of detainees.
Jesse Taylor: Who was "Triple X"? [snipped quote] As we all know, this story isn't going anywhere, as it was just six independent soldiers...or, uh, seven.
Jeralyn Merritt: Report: Lt. Gen. Sanchez Ordered Prisoner Hidden from Red Cross — US News and World Report says there is now evidence...
Kevin Drum: And there's this from U.S. News & World Report: "The top U.S. commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, issued a...
Mark Kleiman: Just asking — What was being done to "Prisoner XXX" that Gen. Sanchez didn't want the Red Cross to know about?

Errors Are Seen in Early Attacks on Iraqi Leaders
  NYT   —   Permalink 
WASHINGTON, June 12 — The United States launched many more failed airstrikes on a far broader array of senior Iraqi leaders during the early days of the war last year than has previously been acknowledged, and some caused significant civilian casualties, according to senior military and intelligence officials.
Noam Scheiber: Here's what The New York Times reported yesterday: [snipped quote] Well, couldn't we, you know, just ask Saddam where he...
Cori Dauber: Not a word in this article about prior bombing campaigns, not even prior campaigns in Iraq, only that it now turns out...
Oliver @LiquidList: NYT: "United States launched many more failed airstrikes on a far broader array of senior Iraqi leaders during the...
Matt Yglesias: Easy Solution — Bad airstrikes; poor tactical intelligence; higher-than-reported civilian casualties?
Jason Van Steenwyk: The New York Times Blows it Again. Big Time. I'm trying to contain myself reading this abominable piece of tripe from the New York Times.

Probing 'Liberal' Bias
  By / Editor and Publisher   —   Permalink 
How "liberal" are the nation's newsrooms? What does "liberal" mean, anyway? Should editors embark on an ideological affirmative action program? All of these questions, and more, grow out of the recent Pew survey that seemed to sustain arguments that newsrooms tilt left, in composition if not coverage.
Jason Van Steenwyk: Greg Mitchell, Editor of Editor and Publisher, is promising to look further into the numbers behind the Pew survey which...
Cori Dauber: RAMPANT QUESTION BEGGING — With the smugness we have come to expect from him, the editor of Editor and Publisher...

Labor accuses US of interference
  The Australian   —   Permalink 
THE president of the Labor Party today accused Washington of meddling in upcoming elections by criticising the party's pledge to withdraw Australian troops from Iraq.
Tim Blair: VAST CONSPIRACY BECOMES VASTER — Demonic BusHitler conservatives are conspiring to re-elect John Howard, claims Labor...
Arthur Chrenkoff: Lawrence out of Arabia by Christmas — The president of the Australian Labor Party, Carmen Lawrence, accused the US...

General Granted Latitude At Prison
  WaPo   —   Permalink 
Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, the senior U.S. military officer in Iraq, borrowed heavily from a list of high-pressure interrogation tactics used at the U.S. detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and approved letting senior officials at a Baghdad jail use...
DHinMI: Sanchez Approved Torture; White House May Be Linked to Decision — There is more proof that the torture at Abu Ghraib...
Andrew Sullivan: Surely Rumsfeld was aware of the new relaxed interrogation methods.
Kevin Drum: First, from the Washington Post: "Lt. Gen. Ricardo S. Sanchez, the senior U.S. military officer in Iraq, borrowed...

Iraqis Start to Exercise Power Even Before Date for Turnover
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
BAGHDAD, Iraq, June 12 — With less than three weeks to go before sovereignty returns to Iraq, American and Iraqi officials are saying that much of the transfer has already happened.
Robert Garcia Tagorda: Not only did the resolution pass unanimously, but the president called for additional NATO involvement, and the UN...
Gregory Djerejian: Rainesian Encroachements — Tucked into a Jeffrey Gettleman New York Times article today, the U.S. Embassy is described...

Israel Says Children Enlist Children as Suicide Bombers
  By / NYT   —   Permalink 
NABLUS, West Bank - When teenage suicide bombers began emerging from Nablus last fall, Israeli and Palestinian leaders expressed concern that Palestinian factions were cynically exploiting the youths.
Guest Author: Meanwhile, Israel's crackdown on Palestinian 'militants' has so decimated the ranks of adults that children are being heavily recruited.
Charles Johnson: Children Corrupting Children — The New York Times headline attempts to cast doubt on this story ("Israel Says..."), but...
Fred Lapides: This one from New York Times "When teenage suicide bombers began emerging from Nablus last fall, Israeli and...

Iraq Tactics Have Long History With U.S. Interrogators
  By / WaPo   —   Permalink 
A CIA handbook on coercive interrogation methods, produced 40 years ago during the Vietnam War, shows that techniques such as those used in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have a long history with U.S. intelligence and were based on research and field experience.
Jeralyn Merritt: CIA Has Long Torture History — The Washington Post reports that the torture history of the C.I.A. goes back 40 years.
Billmon: Washington Post Iraq Tactics Have Long History With U.S. Interrogators June 13, 2004 "The first trial of the July 20...

Iran Rejects Restraint on Nuclear Program
  By / AP   —   Permalink 
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Toughening its stance in advance of a meeting of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, Iran on Saturday said it would reject international restrictions on its nuclear program and challenged the world to accept Tehran as a member of the "nuclear club."
Stephen Green: Plan B — From the AP: "Toughening its stance in advance of a meeting of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, Iran on...
Pejman Yousefzadeh: WARMING THE COCKELS OF OUR HEARTS — This ought to brighten everyone's weekend: [snipped quote] Some of these claims could, of course, constitute bluffing.