Cheney vs. Obama  —  Two speeches, two very different men.  Former Vice President Cheney seeks no political future.  He speaks from the vantage of one who witnessed the killing of our fellow citizens, who deliberated and defined the strategy that would successfully prevent further murders of our fellow Americans.

Speed Reading Clerk Reads Stalling Amendment To House Climate Change Legislation  —  Earlier today, we reported that Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee have taken an extraordinary measure to combat nefarious Republican stall tactics.  Faced with the possibility …

Pelosi Gets Poor Marks for Handling Interrogation Matter  —  More disapprove than approve of speaker's response  —  PRINCETON, NJ — More Americans disapprove than approve of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's handling of the matter concerning the government's use of harsh interrogation techniques on terrorism suspects.

History Is (Re)Written By The Winners  —  ... or at least, by the ad agencies.  —  The History Channel is a generally well-respected brand in the United States.  The shows routinely make “water-cooler” conversation at sites like Redstate.  Indeed, the sister networks like The Military Channel …

Replacing Justice Souter  —  With Supreme Court Justice David Souter set to retire next month at the end of the Court's current term, President Barack Obama faces one of the most important decisions of his tenure.  Reason.com asked a panel of leading legal scholars and commentators for their views …

RNC Launches ‘Daisy’ Web Ad  —  ABC News' Rick Klein reports: Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele this week promised an aggressive new approach to opposing President Obama.  —  That starts now.  —  The RNC is launching a Web ad on Friday highlighting Democrats' divisions …

Glenn Beck Demands “A Damn Apology” From The View (AUDIO)  —  Here's the latest dumbassed escalation in the Glenn Beck versus The View story!  Beck is now demanding apologies from the View for accusing him of lying.  GLENN BECK HAS CHECKED AND RECHECKED HIS MINUTIAE BY CRACKEE, and needs reparations!

The Road to Bankruptcy  —  At the end of his book's harrowing account of mortgage mistakes and credit card crises, Edmund Andrews writes: “While our misadventure had certainly been more extreme than those of many other Americans, our situation was not all that unusual.”

RNC Hits Obama For Criticizing Slavery … RNC: as he prepares to deliver remarks in hall that holds the constitution, flashback obama: “constitution flawed” http://bit.ly/tFL7O #RNC [Twitter, 5/21/09]  —  FACT: Obama Explains The Constitution's “Fundamental Flaw” Was Slavery.

Santorum: ‘Conservatives believe in the stewardship of patrimony.’  —  Last night on Fox News, former senator Rick Santorum told Greta Van Susteren that the Republican party “has to stand up for conservative principles.”  They have to support the “patrimony” against “a guy named Barack Obama” who wants to upend “our social structure”:

Cheney: Adult  —  A serious, important speech.  Politicians and the media seem unduly impressed by favorability polls, often drawing unwarranted conclusions from them.  Since Cheney has relatively high unfavorables, it's assumed that the public dismisses his statements.

S&P cuts New York Times rating deeper into junk status  —  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Standard & Poor's on Thursday cut its rating on the New York Times Co (NYT.N) deeper into junk status, citing rising leverage in the midst of a newspaper industry slump.  —  A drop in ad revenue aggravated …

California For Sale  —  The fact that California is in bad shape financially does not make it unique.  What makes it unique is Governor Schwarzenegger's suggestion to help get California back on its sandaled feet.  He recently proposed that the state sell off some of its most famous properties …

Independents Take Center Stage in Obama Era  —  Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2009  —  Centrism has emerged as a dominant factor in public opinion as the Obama era begins.  The political values and core attitudes that the Pew Research Center has monitored since 1987 show little overall ideological movement.

Obama ‘Distracted’ by Biden's ‘Indiscipline,’ Book Asserts  —  The president is so “distracted by his vice president's indiscipline” that he has been forced to rebuke privately Vice President Biden, according to a new book by Richard Wolffe.  —  FOXNews.com

NYT Reporter: Maybe 1 In 7 Detainees Didn't “Return” To Terrorism  —  New York Times reporter Elisabeth Bumiller is now casting doubt on the claim in her front page story today, pounced on by the right and quickly picked up on cable, that one in seven detainees released from Guantanamo “returned to terrorism or militant activity.”

Porn star: panel to explore possible Senate run  —  NEW ORLEANS - Porn star Stormy Daniels says she's formed a committee to explore a possible run for the U.S. Senate seat held by Louisiana Republican David Vitter and will begin raising money for a potential campaign.

Dissecting the Republican Health Care Plan (Part 2)  —  An admission: I shouldn't be calling this “the Republican health care plan.”  There's no involvement from GOP leadership.  There's no endorsement from the House Republican Caucus.  The Patient's Choice Act is the work of four men.