Catholics for a Free Choice (CFFC) reports that the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue has lost its tax-exempt status.

Bob Novak has a new column today disputing Richard Armitage's version of the Valerie Plame leak.

First, Armitage did not, as he now indicates, merely pass on something he had heard and that he ''thought'' might be so. Rather, he identified to me the CIA division where Mrs. Wilson worked, and said flatly that she recommended the mission to Niger by her husband, former Amb. Joseph Wilson. Second, Armitage did not slip me this information as idle chitchat, as he now suggests. He made clear he considered it especially suited for my column.

Novak writes that June, 2003 was the first time Armitage had sought him out. Before this, Armitage had rebuffed him:

First, the bad news. MSNBC has terminated its relationship with Eric Alterman, writer of its best blog, Altercation.

The good news: Altercation will be moving to Media Matters, where Eric will be a senior fellow.

Update your bookmarks, the new Altercation will be here, starting Sept. 18.

When I started TalkLeft in 2002, Altercation was one of my favorite blogs. Eric was gracious enough to link to it early on. After that, he let me help select and update the list of bloggers on his blogroll and guest write Altercation numerous times when he was out of town, which I continued to do through this summer.

I suspect the higher-ups at MSNBC want to limit themselves to blogs by their tv anchors, reporters and political analysts, in hopes that they can internally feed viewers and readers to each other. There's nothing wrong with that, but still, MSNBC is losing its most independent and provacative voice, and for that I'm sad.

On the other hand, kudos to Media Matters for having the foresight and wisdom to add Eric to their ever-growing team.

(Guest Post by Big Tent Democrat)

So the question is will Iran stand up so the U.S. can stand down?:

In his first state visit to Iran, Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki today discussed the security situation in Iraq with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran and asked for Mr. Ahmadinejad's support in quelling the violence that threatens to fracture this country.

"We had a good discussion with Mr. Ahmadinejad," Mr. Maliki said at a news conference in Tehran, the Iranian capital, after the two met. "Even in security issues, there is no barrier in the way of cooperation." Mr. Ahmadinejad said that "Iran will give its assistance to establish complete security in Iraq because Iraq's security is Iran's security."

For Mr. Maliki, the visit was a kind of homecoming, since he had spent a part of his exile years during Saddam Hussein's rule living in Tehran. Many members of Mr. Maliki's Shiite political group, the Islamic Dawa Party, fled to Iran to escape the wrath of Mr. Hussein's security forces. Iranian leaders are close to Dawa and other religious Iraqi Shiite parties, because Iran is governed by Shiite Persians.

Iran wins. So what about that Axis of Evil?

by TChris

This TalkLeft post criticized President Bush (and the media) for promoting the nonsensical phrase "Islamic fascist." Senator Feingold yesterday echoed that criticism.

"We must avoid using misleading and offensive terms that link Islam with those who subvert this great religion or who distort its teachings to justify terrorist activities," Feingold said Tuesday in a speech to the Arab American Institute on Capitol Hill. ...

"Fascist ideology doesn't have anything to do with the way global terrorist networks think or operate and it doesn't have anything to do with the overwhelming majority of Muslims around the world who practice the peaceful teachings of Islam," Feingold said.

Predictably, the spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee dismissed Feingold's call for the president to stop slandering a religion, accusing Feingold of "overreaching political correctness."

by TChris

Maj. Gen. Richard C. Zilmer: "I think we are winning this war."

Tony Snow: "It is conceivable that other people have differing assessments."

Despite his optimism, Zilmer concurs with the "frank and candid" analysis of "Col. Pete Devlin, the Marine intelligence chief in Iraq, who concluded that prospects for securing Anbar province are dim."

According to several Defense Department officials who have read the report, Devlin also argued that the lack of political progress has created a political vacuum in the province. He wrote that the gap is being filled by the insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq, said one Army officer who read the assessment.

Today's news from Iraq provides little cause for optimism:

by TChris

Michael Chertoff tells us that the goal of al Qaeda is to bankrupt the United States. If so, the President is surely assisting al Qaeda by squandering public resources on the war in Iraq.

Chertoff explained that "the American public must accept that the government cannot protect every possible target against attack." There's no doubt that choices need to be made -- better choices than cutting anti-terrorism grants to New York so that money can be diverted to protect petting zoos and popcorn factories. But finding money to protect ports and to inspect cargo would be easier if the Bush administration didn't continue to squander billions on a war that simply breeds supporters of terrorism.

by TChris

Missouri's latest attempt to fashion a protocol for executing condemned prisoners by lethal injection failed to satisfy Judge Fernando Gaitan Jr. Judge Gaitan wanted a board-certified anesthesiologist to participate in executions to assure that the injected drugs do not cause excruciating pain in a conscious prisoner, but no anesthesiologist was willing to help the state take a life. Judge Gaitan modified his order yesterday to permit "a physician with training in the application and administration of anesthesia to either mix the chemicals or to oversee the mixing of the chemicals for lethal injection."

Gaitan also said the protocol must include additional safeguards for ensuring that inmates were adequately anesthetized before the injection of succeeding chemicals that stop their breathing and heart.

Judge Gaitan barred the doctor who had mixed the drugs in the past from participating in future executions.

Why would I fly to New York for a day? Because former President Bill Clinton invited a group of progressive bloggers (who happen to be Democrats) in for a 2 hour roundtable meeting at his Harlem office. It was awesome. More later, including a list of all the bloggers there (and yes, even the TL kid was there, thrilled at the opportunity.)

Bill Clinton, Peter Daou, Jeralyn Merritt

Bill Clinton and Bloggers

Criminal defense lawyers take note: He's far better on our issues than we thought while he was President, from mandatory minimums, to drug courts to restoring the right to vote to former offenders. I'm totally impressed.

More later, time to board the plane. I'll have lots more pictures up tonight as will all the bloggers there. I'll also update with a list of the bloggers.

First Update:

by TChris

TalkLeft recently introduced you to Majid Khan, one of the detainees held in a (formerly) secret prison before being transferred to Guantanamo. Now meet Muhibullo Abdulkarim Umarov, formerly held as an enemy combatant at Guantanamo.

It was early in the morning of May 19 when Pakistani secret service agents came. The agents woke them up, took the T-shirts down, and used them to tie the men's hands and cover their eyes. When his blindfold was removed, Umarov was in a jail cell, his friends at his side. "I was not afraid," he says. "I knew I'd done nothing wrong."

Umarov was questioned about a suicide bombing in Pakistan that he knew nothing about. After ten days, he was handed over to two Americans wearing civilian garb.

by TChris

This is primary day in many states, including Rhode Island, where Lincoln Chafee, one of the country's few Republican moderates holding elected office, may be voted out by right wing voters. Meanwhile, battles are underway in several states regarding conservative legislative efforts to make voting more difficult.

Here's a place to talk election politics.

I just got back from a great dinner in Manhattan and turned on the tv. The Path to 9/11 was over but a Nightline special was on. It blasted American farmers' opposition to federal attempts to regulate the sale of ammonium nitrate. It was an incredibly misinformed piece of journalism.

Ammonium nitrate is not a bomb. It can be a bomb when it's mixed with fuel oil or some other such substance. The OKC bomb was a mixture of ammonium nitrate and fuel oil. It was the fuel oil portion that created the confusion for the Government -- where did it come from? They didn't arrive at a conclusion until the eve of trial. The ammonium nitrate was not a puzzle. By itself, it is not a bomb. Didn't anyone see Rent?

Its ANFO that is dangerous -- ammonium nitrate and fuel oil -- not ammonium nitrate by itself.

Let's stop the fear mongering -- and let the farmers alone.