memeorandum: Larry Craig's Real Mistake (Alec Baldwin/The Huffington Post)

9:25 PM ET, September 1, 2007

Top Items:

Senator Craig Announces Resignation — Embattled Idaho Republican Lawmaker to Step Down Sept 30 — Sen. Larry E. Craig, the Idaho Republican caught in a police crackdown on sexual solicitation in an airport men's room, announced his resignation from the Senate today …

Washington Post:

GOP Faces Dimming Prospects in '08 — A Senate electoral playing field that was already wide open for 2008 has become considerably more perilous for Republicans with the retirement of Sen. John W. Warner (R-Va.) and the resignation of Sen. Larry E. Craig (R-Idaho).

Discussion: Comments From Left Field, AMERICAblog, Booman Tribune, The Moderate Voice and The New Republic

Fred Barnes / Weekly Standard:

Clearing the Decks — The new GOP formula: purge and elect. — Republicans are so intent on pushing scandal-plagued members of Congress out of office and far from the media spotlight that the entire party—from the White House to congressional leaders to the Republican National Committee …

Discussion: Blue Crab Boulevard, Riehl World View and The Carpetbagger Report

Logan Murphy / Crooks and Liars:

Breaking: Republican Senator Larry Craig Resigns — Disgraced Republican Senator Larry Craig announced that he would resign from the Senate effective September 30th. Apologizing to his family, colleagues and constituents, Craig was somewhat humbled, yet remained defiant to the end.

Discussion: Firedoglake, New York Times, TalkLeft and Sisyphus Shrugged

Alec Baldwin / The Huffington Post:

Larry Craig's Real Mistake — I feel sorry for Larry Craig. Truly. Even though Craig voted to censor Barney Frank for Frank's tryst with a male prostitute. Craig has been behind some of the most intolerant and anti-gay legislation that a US Senator could put his mark on.

Discussion: NewsBusters.org

Jay Newton-Small / Time:

Craig is Gone, Leaving GOP Bruised — The only regret the GOP is likely to feel about the end of Idaho Senator Larry Craig's 27-year congressional career is that it didn't happen two days earlier. Craig's announcement, Saturday, that he intends to resign effective Sept. 30 comes amid …

Discussion: The Atlantic Online

Logan Murphy / Crooks and Liars:
Ben Stein's Delusional Defense Of Senator Larry Craig

Discussion: Pharyngula

Patrick O'Connor / The Politico:
Craig ouster marks new GOP strategy

Discussion: CNN Political Ticker

Idaho Statesman:
UPDATED 1:01 p.m. — Sen. Larry Craig announces his resignation this morning

Discussion: Tennessee Guerilla Women, Hot Air and michellemalkin.com

William Yardley / New York Times:
Idaho Senator to Step Down Over Sex Sting

Discussion: Pottersville

Carl Hulse / New York Times:
Senator to Quit Over Sex Sting, Officials Say

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, CNN Political Ticker, The Swamp and Horses Mouth

William Yardley / New York Times:
Senator's Plan to Quit Sets Off Moves in Idaho

Discussion: The Right's Field, The Newshoggers and Jules Crittenden

Michelle Malkin:

Geraldo Rivera unhinged — The Boston Globe has a fawning Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous-ish profile of Fox News Channel's Geraldo Rivera. In between musing about his favorite pair of soft Uggs ("I've worn these in Tora Bora and Somalia," he says, admiring the suede slip-ons with the sheepskin lining.

Discussion: Boston Globe, Hot Air and Riehl World View

Joy Powell / Minneapolis Star Tribune:

19 bicyclists arrested after rally turns into melee — Officers watching the event in downtown Minneapolis say they were attacked, escalating the confrontation. — Police arrested 19 bicyclists, including three juveniles, after a protest ride took an ugly turn in downtown Minneapolis Friday night.

Discussion: Minnesota Monitor and Power Line

Ed Morrissey / Captain's Quarters: A Harbinger Of 2008? — We're almost exactly a year …

Tina Susman / Los Angeles Times:

Iraqi civilian deaths climb again — War-related fatalities rose in August, the second month in a row, suggesting that the U.S. troop increase has had little effect. — BAGHDAD — Bombings, sectarian slayings and other violence related to the war killed at least 1,773 Iraqi civilians in August …

Discussion: Liberty Street, Night Light, Weekly Standard, Washington Monthly, Greatscat!, Middle Earth Journal and Daily Kos

Andy McCarthy / The Corner:

Federal Bombing Charges Against Florida "Students" Arrested in South Carolina — Remember those two Egyptian "students" arrested in South Carolina back in early August for possessing what CAIR spokesman Ahmed Bedier claimed were fireworks but turned out to be pipe bombs according to state authorities?

Discussion: Little Green Footballs, Articles by the … and Flopping Aces

Joanna Weiss / Boston Globe:

Candidates hope to click with keywords — Search engine ads link to campaigns — Do a Google search for "POW," and besides links to advocacy groups and databases, an ad appears that links to Republican John McCain's presidential campaign website. — A Yahoo search for "Iowa caucus" turns up a similar ad for Democrat Barack Obama.

Jim Rutenberg / New York Times:

In Book, Bush Peeks Ahead to His Legacy — When President Bush is asked what he plans to do when he leaves office, he often replies curtly: "I don't have that much time to think beyond my presidency" or "I'm going to sprint to the finish." — But in an interview with a book author …

Discussion: Hullabaloo and Prairie Weather

Teresa Nielsen Hayden / Making Light:

Hugo! — Patrick's won the Hugo! —for Best Editor (long form), that is. He just phoned from Japan to tell me. I'll give you more news as it happens—the ceremony is still going on. — Yay, Patrick! — Rocket rocket rocket rocket rocket!

Discussion: The Sideshow

Adam Nagourney / New York Times:

Thompson Plans to Crash This Party — Fred D. Thompson, the soon-to-be-official presidential contender, has come under a good deal of criticism in New Hampshire this week for scheduling his formal announcement for next Thursday morning and thus skipping the Republican debate in Manchester on Wednesday night.

Discussion: Captain's Quarters, TPM Election Central, Hot Air, MyDD, TVNewser and Tennessee Guerilla Women

Yael Lavie / Sky News:

Scarface Director's Iraq Soldier-Rape Movie — American director Brian De Palma is launching his controversial new film based on the rape and murder of an Iraqi girl by US troops. — The creator of classics like Scarface, Casualties of War and The Untouchables is tackling the Iraq war …

Discussion: NewsBusters.org, The Diplomad and Andrew Bolt