From Holden: The lawyers representing Irving Lewis “Scooter” Libby in his perjury trial are asking for just about every classified document under the sun in order to stop the wheels of justice from running him down. Yesterday they demanded that Patrick Fitzgerald provide them with nearly a years worth of PDBs — even though the Special Counsel does not have them and has not used them to prosecute Libby. Lawyers for a former top White House aide want access to classified intelligence briefings to show that he had more pressing matters on his mind than lying about leaking the identity … Continue reading The [Secret] Kitchen Sink Defense

From Holden: Last night His Royal Lieness said in refernece to his war on Iraq: Fellow citizens, we are in this fight to win, and we are winning. But if we’re “winning” how come US soldiers don’t feel safe, even in the Green Zone? U.S. troops in Iraq fired warning shots at the Canadian envoy’s car on Tuesday after his convoy failed to slow down while approaching an American military convoy, the U.S. military said on Wednesday. A statement said the shots were fired inside the heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses the Iraqi government and diplomats and is the … Continue reading Reality v. Bush, Part 1

From Holden: Chimpy, last night: And, third, we’re striking terrorist targets while we train Iraqi forces that are increasingly capable of defeating the enemy. Iraqis are showing their courage every day, and we are proud to be their allies in the cause of freedom. And in the real world… Just two days before a mission to send hundreds of Iraqi soldiers after insurgents in this troubled western part of Iraq, U.S. and Iraqi commanders confronted an untimely problem — an Iraqi battalion commander was suddenly fired for incompetence. The commander’s soldiers, a third of those assigned to the mission, would … Continue reading Reality v. Bush, Part 2

From Holden: I’m down with Josh. Bush’s SOTUs are unwatchable, and I too have not sat still for one since the lie-filled 2003 edition. You remember that one, the pep rally for war on Iraq that went unquestioned by our lovely media. This time around the Washington Post does a decent job of fact-checking His Lieness, while the New York Times (click on “Graphic: The Words He Used ” in the left-hand margin) provides a handy chart noting the frequency with which Chimpy has uttered certain key words in his six speeches. For instance the words “surplus” or “surpluses” was … Continue reading I Concur

From Scout: Knight Ridder reports the GAO will release a sharp report blaming the federal government for the poor Katrina response. The Government Accountability Office, the investigatory arm of Congress, in a preliminary report to be released Wednesday faulted Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and his designee, former Federal Emergency Management Agency chief Michael Brown, for not filling a crucial “leadership role during Hurricane Katrina.” That void “serves to underscore the immaturity of and weaknesses relating to the current national response framework,” according to a copy of the report obtained Tuesday evening by Knight Ridder. While the report says little … Continue reading GAO Blames Feds for Katrina Response

From Scout: Editor & Publisher has chosen Jim Amoss of the Times Picayune in NOLA as the 2006 Editor of the Year. In an unprecedented 10-page profile for the February 2006 issue, E&P’s Mark Fitzgerald reveals that Amoss is being honored for directing his newsroom in its remarkable coverage “before, during, and after Hurricane Katrina hit” the editor’s hometown of New Orleans last August. SNIP Amoss, 58, is credited with setting the tone of the Times-Picayune’s aggressive post-Katrina reporting and commentary that makes the newspaper a must reading for residents who have returned, and those still scattered throughout the country. … Continue reading Well Deserved…..

You sexy thing … The President said, “If we were to leave these vicious attackers alone, they would not leave us alone.” Paul Hackett said, “One question for the President: Where is Osama bin Laden? And why did you direct American forces to stand down when he was trapped at Tora Bora?” More Dem response like this, please. A. Continue reading HACKETT