Responding to the President's op-ed  —  I would like to respond to the President's Washington Post op-ed, “Rebuilding Something Better.”  All quotes in this post are from the President. … The President and his team use this language to lower the bar against which they are measured.

McCain: Palin not a quitter  —  Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) defended his former running mate Sarah Palin on Sunday, saying she wasn't a quitter and that her decision to resign as governor was consistent with his own leadership qualities.  —  McCain said Palin did not tell him she was resigning …

The Future of Conservative Ideas  —  Drake Bennett profiles four up-and-coming right-of-center thinkers: Luigi Zingales, Bradford Wilcox, Reihan Salam, and Megan McArdle.  I've never heard of Wilcox, but his ideas (family is good!) don't sound very interesting.

FOLKS: O, FOR SHAME!  —  'GIRL'S NO SEX SYMBOL!'  —  The Secret Service might want to put a new threat on its watch list: the mad-as-hell mama of the 17-year-old Brazilian beauty ogled by President Obama and French leader Nicolas Sarkozy at the G8 summit last week.

The Holder trial balloon: Abu Ghraib redux  —  (updated below - Update II - Update III)  —  Yesterday, I treated this new Newsweek report that Eric Holder is “leaning toward appointing a prosecutor to investigate the Bush administration's brutal interrogation practices” as something to celebrate.

Goldman Sachs Likely to Post Huge Profits, Analysts Say  —  Most of Wall Street, and America, is still waiting for an economic recovery.  Then there is Goldman Sachs.  —  Up and down Wall Street, analysts and traders are buzzing that Goldman, which only recently paid back its government bailout money …

How to Win in Afghanistan  —  Summary — The deployment of more U.S. troops to Afghanistan is necessary to tip the balance of power against the Taliban.  But this military “surge” must be accompanied with a political one designed to persuade insurgents to give up their fight.

Lawmakers reject tax to pay for health reform  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers on Sunday criticized a plan to raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for a $1 trillion healthcare overhaul and warned Congress was unlikely to meet President Barack Obama's goal of passing the measure by August.

Republicans Reject Science; Scientists Reject Republicans  —  The Republican Party has a serious infection of anti-science syndrome.  And, scientists have noted the The Republican War on Science.  The Pew Research Center for the People and the Press came out, last week …

GOP Responds To Cheney's Concealment Of CIA Program With Strawmen And Shrugged Shoulders  —  Earlier this week, seven House Democrats on the Intelligence Committee released a letter revealing that CIA Director Leon Panetta had “recently testified to Congress that the agency concealed information …

Teen Girl Falls In Open Manhole While Texting  —  Alexa Longueira Suffers Deep Cuts, Bruises After Landing In Raw Sewage, Blames DEP For Leaving Hole Unattended  —  NEW YORK (CBS) ― It was an accident waiting to happen — an open sewer and a 15-year-old girl who was texting while she walked.

Charge in Fla. slayings: Evidence tampering  —  PENSACOLA, Florida (CNN) — A Florida man has been arrested on evidence-tampering charges in connection to the killings of a Gulf Coast couple known for adopting special-needs children, a case that has become increasingly “multifaceted,” authorities said Sunday.

Will ObamaCare threaten medical innovation?  —  Glenn Reynolds argues that the wait lines for treatments in a single-payer system are not the biggest concern.  In a Washington Examiner column, Glenn relates personal stories of how his family members have benefited from innovation in medical treatments …