memeorandum: Kyle Sampson Testimony, Part II (Christy Hardin Smith/Firedoglake)

1:35 PM ET, March 29, 2007

Top Items:

Sampson Grilled by Senators on U.S. Attorney Firings: Says Gonzales Made False Statements — NEW YORK We will keep an eye all day on the testimony, and grilling, of former Justice Department official Kyle Sampson at a U.S. Senate hearing today. — He offered his written testimony this morning …

Joseph D. Rich / Los Angeles Times:

Bush's long history of tilting Justice — The administration began skewing federal law enforcement before the current U.S. attorney scandal, says a former Department of Justice lawyer. — THE SCANDAL unfolding around the firing of eight U.S. attorneys compels the conclusion …

Discussion: Political Animal and War and Piece

David D. Kirkpatrick / New York Times:

Former Key Aide Testifies Today on Gonzales's Statements — D. Kyle Sampson, point man for the removal of eight United States attorneys, has spent almost seven years at the right hand of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales. — And over time, friends and former colleagues say …

Discussion: Washington Post, Firedoglake, The Carpetbagger Report, TPMmuckraker, Abovethelaw.com, Law Blog and Washington Wire

Paul Kiel / TPMmuckraker:
Sampson: Answers To Look For

Discussion: Firedoglake and On Deadline

Rick Klein / Boston Globe:
Kennedy: Justice firings are keyed to '08 vote

Discussion: NewsBusters.org

Chitra Ragavan / US News:
Top 10 Questions for Sampson at Judiciary Hearing

Discussion: Taylor Marsh

Christy Hardin Smith / Firedoglake:
Kyle Sampson Testimony, Part II

Discussion: At-Largely, Campaign for America's Future and politburo diktat 2.0

New York Times:
Gonzales Draws Strong Criticism of Prosecutors

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Carpetbagger Report, First Read, Angry Bear, All Spin Zone, Norwegianity, Political Animal, Pandagon and Washington Post

New York Times:
E-Mail Shows Rove's Role in Fate of Prosecutors

Discussion: Real Cities, Macsmind, TPMmuckraker, Prairie Weather, The Mahablog, The Huffington Post, On Politics and Cliff Schecter

Michael D. Shear / Washington Post:

A 'Law & Order' Presidential Candidate? — "Law & Order" star and former U.S. senator Fred Dalton Thompson is considering a bid for the White House that would test whether Hollywood can once again launch a Republican to the world's premier political stage. — His interest, confirmed …

Discussion: News Bloggers Blog, ElephantBiz, The Moderate Voice, Cato-at-liberty, The Democratic Daily and US News

Michael D. Shear / Washington Post:
Thompson Run Could Trigger 'Equal Time' Rule

Discussion: NewsHog, August J. Pollak and Wonkette

John Eggerton / Broadcasting & Cable:

Bush, Rove, Crack Up Press Corp — White House adviser Karl Rove boogied, backed by NBC's David Gregory, Brian Wiliams burped the "Battle Hymn of the Republic" and the President cracked wise, all to the general delight, and occasional gales of laughter, of journalists gathered …

Discussion: David Corn, Gawker, FishBowlDC, On Politics and Public Eye

SilentPatriot / Crooks and Liars:
Give It Up for MC Rove!

Discussion: Firedoglake and The Sleuth

Matea Gold / Los Angeles Times:
Correspondents' dinner features fun, frolicking, and MC Rove

Discussion: The Swamp and WTF Is It Now??

Robin Toner / New York Times:

Democrats Are Building on Unity Over Iraq Pullout — No one has seemed more surprised by the Democrats' success in pushing an exit strategy for Iraq than the Democrats. — Their aggressiveness and unity on a major foreign-policy challenge to the president is a striking change for a party that has …

Discussion: Political Animal, Matthew Yglesias, DownWithTyranny!, Ezra Klein, BAGnewsNotes, TalkLeft, The Corner, MyDD, Prairie Weather and Sister Toldjah

Edith M. Lederer / Associated Press:

Britain takes case against Iran to U.N. — UNITED NATIONS - Britain took its case to free its 15 sailors and marines held by Iran to the United Nations on Thursday, asking the Security Council to support a statement that would "deplore" Tehran's action and demand their immediate release.

Discussion: Jihad Watch

Austin Bay / TCS Daily:

Iran's Latest Hostage Gamble — The sailors call them "RHIBs" — rigid hull inflatable boats. Add powerful outboard motors, and the agile, shallow-draft RHIB becomes an ideal watercraft for scooting around the Tigris and Euphrates estuary or for slipping among suspicious dhows in Iraqi coastal waters.

Discussion: Outside The Beltway

Washington Post:

The Myth Of Voter Fraud — As Congress probes the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, attention is centering on who knew what, and when. It's just as important to focus on "why," such as the reason given for the firing of at least one of the U.S. attorneys, John McKay of Washington state …

Discussion: Unfogged, NewsHog, Gateway Pundit, TAPPED, Think Progress, Political Animal, Talking Points Memo and Lawyers, Guns and Money

Anne Flaherty / Associated Press:

Senate OKs war bill with Iraq timeline — WASHINGTON - Senate Democrats ignored a veto threat and pushed through a bill Thursday requiring President Bush to start withdrawing troops from "the civil war in Iraq," dealing a rare, sharp rebuke to a wartime commander in chief.

Discussion: The Carpetbagger Report and Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog

Jay Carney / Time:

Poll: A Surprising G.O.P. Edge for '08 — Could things be any worse for George W. Bush and his beleaguered party? In the new TIME poll, the President's job approval rating continues to wallow near his all-time lows, at 33%, while his disapproval rating breaks the 60% barrier for the third consecutive survey.

Discussion: Political Radar

Johanna Neuman / Los Angeles Times:

Gore climate event turned away from D.C. — GOP senator says the proposed 'Live Earth' concert is partisan and shouldn't be at the Capitol. — WASHINGTON — When former Vice President Al Gore testified before Congress last week, his appearance was viewed as the triumph of environmentalists …

Discussion: Political Animal, Ezra Klein, Riehl World View, Tennessee Guerilla Women, The Swamp and The Hill

ABCNEWS:

EXCLUSIVE: Rudy Giuliani 'Couldn't Have A Better Adviser' Than Wife Judith — Judith and Rudy Giuliani Talk to Barbara Walters About Their Controversial Relationship and His Presidential Campaign — In an interview with Barbara Walters, former New York City Mayor and presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani …

Washington Post:

Strikes on Baghdad's Green Zone on the Rise — On 6 of Past 7 Days, Rockets or Shells Have Hit Sector That Includes U.S. Embassy — Iraqi insurgents are increasingly hitting Baghdad's fortresslike Green Zone with rockets and mortar shells, officials said Wednesday.

Discussion: AMERICAblog and The Heretik

Sky News:

Scottish Firm In The Poo — A Scottish company has been slammed for inviting customers to "send a poo" to an Englishman on St George's Day. — Edinburgh-based firm PostaPoo.com is selling plastic "realistic poo" to send to "your favourite (or least favourite) Englishman" to mark April 23.

Discussion: Shakespeare's Sister

Hindrocket / Power Line:

MCCAIN STANDS IN THE GAP — Let's put aside for a moment McCain/Feingold and the right's other grievances against John McCain. When it comes to the war on terror, is he the Lincoln of our time? McCain has now launched a petition drive, under the name Surrender Is Not an Option. McCain says:

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Hugh Hewitt's TownHall Blog, NewsHog, Fausta's blog, GM's Corner and TIME