First post …

Nothing real to report beyond the obvious, horrifying tragedy unfolding on your TV screen or computer monitor. My immediate observations from DC have been
posted
here at Salon.com toward the bottom of the page.

TPM, of course, is normally all about arguments among us, among Americans. But all of that falls deep into the background now. And my support, and I’m sure yours too, is with our president, our armed services, and all of those struggling mightily to save those who can still be saved.

A proposal to rename the Caucus Room in the Russell Senate Office Building in honor of Ted Kennedy. That and the day’s other political news in the TPMDC Morning Roundup.

I’m seeing the Politico tell me that the Republicans are in danger of having their public profile dominated by cranks on the fringe right.

And then I notice that Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN) of Minnesota, widely seen as a potential moderate savior for the party, is saying he may try interposition/nullification to block the operation of any health care reform in his state. In other words, giving the ole college try to insurrectionary doctrines that were discredited going on two hundred years ago and were last trotted out, more or less as a stunt, by the most rancid of the anti-civil rights Southern governors in the 50s and 60s.

I hope he can bring the party back from the crazies and the fringe.

The former Ohio rep, just out of a seven year stint in the slammer, compares himself to Nelson Mandela and says he may run for Congress again. See the Video.

We’re not sure what’s happening here. But a Coast Guard vessel has apparently just opened fire (though perhaps just as warning shots) on a vessel in a restricted zone on the Potomac River.

Late Update: Conflicting and more very odd details. The Coast Guard is now reportedly denying that shots were fired and there is some questions — unconfirmed reports — that the whole thing may have been a training exercise of some sort. We’ll keep you posted on the latest we hear.

CNN is now confirming that the whole thing (reported incident of the Coast Guard firing on a suspicious vessel in the Potomac) was in fact a training exercise. Not clear what the misunderstanding it was or whether this was a question of one arm of the government not knowing what another arm was doing. Happily, no one, apparently, was ever in any peril. Though presumably there are a few folks whose jobs may now be in real peril.

So it seems like we have a much better idea now of what happened with this false report of the Coast Guard firing on a suspicious vessel in the Potomac.

[ed.note: TPM Reader Mark Blacknell was nearby and took this photo of the exercise this morning. We cannot confirm that either of these is the exact boat that made the faux report of gunfire. Click photo to see full sized image] Read More

Apparently Sens. Baucus and Conrad have decided to toughen up the illegal alien provisions in the senate bill to address Rep. Wilson’s concerns.

Not only was fmr. state Rep. Michael Duvall (R-Yorba Linda) booted from his committee and eventually forced to resign over his raunchy bragging about his sexual exploits at Tuesday’s committee hearing in Sacramento. Now the guy who was sitting next to him — state Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Anaheim) — has been kicked off one of his committees too. Zack Roth has the story.

The Holder Justice Department declines to reverse decision by its predecessor not to indict former Justice Department official Bradley Scholzman for perjury in his testimony to Congress.

Here’s the letter from DOJ to Sen. Chuck Schumer announcing the decision.