Joe Lieberman’s letter explaining his decision to collect signatures for a possible independent run.
TPM Reader LB has an idea on congressional candidate Peter Roskam’s bailing on that Social Security vote …
Oh, man, would that ever make a super campaign ad. The scene: the floor of the Illinois state senate. The voice of clerk of the senate (or whoever performs this duty) intones, “We are voting on SJR0013, a resolution urging the US Congress to protect Social Security and reject any diversion of its funds into private accounts.” And then he launches into a voice roll-call — and here you’d need to fudge a little bit, since the top of the roster starts with a non-vote and a series of nays — but you’d want it to go something like “Mr. Hunter?” “Yea.” Mr. Jacobs?” Yea.” “Mr. Raoul?” “Yea.” “Mr. Roskam?” Silence. “Mr. Roskam?” Silence. Pan to empty chair. “Mr. Roskam?” Then a voice-over with something to the effect that the voters of the 6th District deserve better than an empty chair when it comes to important issues like protecting Social Security.
For now I’ll just settle for getting a straight answer out of him on where he stands. Can anyone track him down and ask him?
Guns, sex, and earmarks. Highlights from today’s Vanity Fair expose of Duke Cunningham.
I think Laura may be on to something here. This isn’t directly tied to the Niger stuff. But I think Laura’s reading of the macro-politics is likely on the mark. And it could lead to more.
Ann Coulter charges that the NY Post, which first published the plagiarism charges against her, “has been reduced to tabloid status.” But … um, it’s a tabloid, right?
Ahhh, when wingnuts attack. This should be fun to watch.
Here’s a good article in Slate by Amanda Schaffer. She tells the story of how some new public health studies and the new HPV vaccine have — in addition to saving a lot of women’s lives over the coming decades — dealt a severe blow to the always highly mendacious abstinence-only campaign against condom use.
Hmmm.
WaPo: Lobbying Firm Underreported Income: Some Clients Paid With Public or Tax-Exempt Funds in Bids for ‘Earmarks’
I guess imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
More bad news for the lobby firm in the middle of the Jerry Lewis investigation. That and other news of the day in today’s Daily Muck.
Plagiarism sleuth at the center of the Ann Coulter imbroglio talks to Justin Rood at TPMmuckraker.com, confirms he was contacted twice yesterday by Coulter’s newspaper column syndicate.
TPM Reader BB can’t get a straight answer from Rep. Regula (R-OH) …
I called my congressman’s office [Ralph Regula]. The spokesman said that as long as Social Security reform is not an issue that the congressman will vote on this year that he has no statement about the need for reform. Until the president puts forth a plan he has no comments on the president’s suggestions.
Has anyone else tried to get a straight answer from Rep. Regula?