Top Items:
Pajamas Media:
From the Oval Office to the blogs — Michelle Malkin liveblogged Bush's prime time speech in the Oval Office last night, and blogs started commenting right after it ended: — Instapundit: "[O]ne big thing struck me: In this national televised speech, Bush went out of his way to take responsibility for the war.
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Gateway Pundit:
After Only 1,000 Days, Bush Takes Credit for Iraq — "We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weapons of mass destruction... Saddam may well hide his most lethal weapons in mosques, schools and hospitals. If our forces attempt to strike such targets …
White House:
President's Address to the Nation — THE PRESIDENT: Good evening. Three days ago, in large numbers, Iraqis went to the polls to choose their own leaders — a landmark day in the history of liberty. In the coming weeks, the ballots will be counted, a new government formed …
Discussion:
Hugh Hewitt, The Political Pit Bull, chicagoboyz.net, Althouse, Left I on the News, This Blog Is Full Of Crap, The Carpetbagger Report, The Claremont Institute, Blogs for Bush, CALIFORNIA YANKEE, No More Mister Nice Blog, Conservative Thinking, Balloon Juice, BizzyBlog.com, In the Bullpen, Barcepundit, Suitably Flip and The Rude Pundit
Jonathan Chait / The New Republic:
A SURPRISE IN BUSH'S IRAQ SPEECH: — I am not, to say the least, a fan of President Bush. But a portion of his speech tonight genuinely moved me and made me think more highly of him. It was the part where he addressed opponents of the Iraq war, said he understand their passion but asked …
William M. Arkin / Early Warning:
9/11 Gone Wild — Yesterday's New York Times editorial on National Security Agency spying in the United States refers to "your mail and your e-mail" and "your telephone conversations" being monitored. — The connotation of course is that the "you" is some New York Times reading Cappuccino …
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Ezra Klein / TAPPED:
ONE QUESTION. Over at The Washington Post's Early Warning, William Arkin sniffs: … Okay. So uh, why couldn't the Federal Intelligence Surveillance Courts be told about the wiretapping then? — See, the problem for Arkin, and Powerline, and all the other apologists is that …
Discussion:
Eschaton
Washington Post:
Gonzales Defends Eavesdropping Program — Congress 'Authorized' Domestic Surveillance in Iraq War Resolution, Claims Attorney General — Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales this morning defended the Bush administration's domestic eavesdropping operation, saying it derived its legality …
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New York Times:
Rice Defends Domestic Eavesdropping — WASHINGTON, Dec. 18 - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Sunday defended President Bush's decision to secretly authorize the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on Americans without seeking warrants, saying the program was carefully controlled …
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Scott Lemieux / Lawyers, Guns and Money:The Schmittian Libertarians
Discussion:
Michael Bérubé Online, Jay Currie, The Heretik, Obsidian Wings, The Political Pit Bull and Pandagon
Bulldogpundit / anklebitingpundits.com:
Live Blogging The Bush Presser — We "liveblogged" the Bush presser, and you can see our live recap by clicking "Read More". In general, the message was obvious on both the Patriot Act and the "spying" - It's my job to protect the American people, and I'm using whatever I'm doing to do that.
Discussion:
Hugh Hewitt
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Michael A. Fletcher / Washington Post:
President Gives Both Reassurance, Warnings on Iraq — 'Victory or Defeat' Are Only Options, He Says — President Bush last night hailed Thursday's Iraqi elections as a vital step toward stabilizing that nation, but warned that despite the political progress more violence lies ahead …
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Elisabeth Bumiller / New York Times:Asking for Patience, Bush Cites Progress in Iraq
Discussion:
ScrappleFace
Tom Shales / Washington Post:
From the Oval Office, a Call to See the Light at the End of the Tunnel — Determined to sound determined, President Bush addressed the nation on the troublesome subject of Iraq in a 16-minute speech last night from the Oval Office. Grim-faced, yet with a trace of anxiety in his eyes …
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Peter Baker / Washington Post:Bush Brings More Realistic View of War to Forefront
Discussion:
The Carpetbagger Report
David Finkel / Washington Post:
U.S. Ideals Meet Reality in Yemen — On the first day, which would turn out to be the best day, the one day of all 180 days when everything actually seemed possible, the president of Yemen hadn't yet dismissively referred to an American named Robin Madrid as an old woman.
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New York Times:
The Business of Voting — Diebold, the controversial electronic voting machine manufacturer, is coming off a tumultuous week. Its chief executive, Walden O'Dell, resigned. It was hit with a pair of class-action lawsuits charging insider trading and misrepresentation …
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Oliver Poole / Telegraph:
Iraqis in former rebel stronghold now cheer American soldiers — In the low-slung concrete buildings of Tal Afar, a city built on dirty sand and mud, George W Bush sees the potential for military success in Iraq. — In recent weeks it has been one case study the American president …
Discussion:
Captain's Quarters
NewsMax.com:
John McCain: Bush Right to Use NSA — Sen. John McCain disappointed Democrats on Capitol Hill on Sunday by defending the Bush administration's decision to use the National Security Agency to monitor a limited number of domestic phone calls in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.
Pete Yost / Associated Press:
Bush Argues the Case for Staying in Iraq — WASHINGTON - Democrats and Republicans are applauding President Bush for acknowledging mistakes in Iraq and taking responsibility, but critics say he still has not given Americans a realistic plan that will lead to the withdrawal of U.S. forces.
John McIntyre / realclearpolitics.com:
Have The Democrats Walked Into a Trap......Again? — The political pendulum is swinging back towards President Bush. The President's approval rating has a pattern of dipping when he takes his Crawford vacation every August then bouncing back in September upon his return to Washington.
