I usually stay out of the fray between journalists and bloggers. But this one, picked by Nation Editor Katrina Vanden Heuval against the liberal blogosphere, and Ezra Klein in particular, I just can't pass up. I agree with Crooks and Liars and Jane.

If it was just Ms. Vanden Heuval's comments justifying the Democrats' choice of Virginia Governor Tim Kaine to give the SOTU response, even though I disagree with the pick, I'd probably demur. But she attacked my pal Ezra, and I don't like when my friends are attacked and she's just flat out wrong, or as Jane says, blind.

One of the first things I learned in law school is the difference between a residence and a domocile: A residence is where you hang your hat, a domocile is where your heart is. In other words, your domicile is your home, not where you happen to be sleeping and eating.

In 1790, it was determined that inmates should be counted according to where they are housed while doing time, not where they come from -- or where they will return once their sentences are up.

The issue is gaining more attention as a result of a congressional directive to the U.S. Census bureau to study the issue of where inmates should be counted as living, for the purpose of determining the population of legislative districts. Population is what determines both funding and districting.

Sen. Bill Frist was on Meet the Press today. The transcript is here and Crooks and Liars has the video) but Arianna says Russert led him to the edge of the water but stopped short of making him drink his lies. She was hoping for a full Oprah-style turnaround.

Frist told Meet the Press on an earlier occasion his HCA stock was in a blind trust and he didn't know he owned it. Today there was this exchange:

RUSSERT: You told CNBC, "It should be understood I put this into a blind trust. So far as I know I own no HCA stock. ...It's a blind trust. Totally blind. I have no control." That's not accurate.

FRIST: You know, I could have been more precise in my words.

According to Bloomberg News today,

by TChris

A homeless man leans against a pickup truck, smoking a Camel. Inside the truck, police find a Camel pack that's full of methamphetamine. The homeless man has $300 in his pocket. The man must be a drug dealer, right?

A jury said yes, but the judge who presided over Paul Magnan's trial isn't so sure.

A judge threw out the conviction -- which had been Magnan's third strike -- earlier this month, finding that Magnan's attorney ignored his innocent explanation for the money: His mother had wired him several hundred dollars a week before his arrest, so he could fly to visit her.

Prosecutors neglected to dislcose "that the woman sitting in the pickup truck, talking with Magnan at the time of his arrest, was someone police suspected in a separate incident of selling methamphetamine." Confronted by the Mercury News, the Santa Clara County district attorney's office said it was dismissing the meth case, while defending its decision to hide evidence from Magnan.

The fraud trial of Enron's Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling begins in Houston tomorrow. The Judge has said he expects jury selection to take one day.

The two are the biggest fish in a federal probe of the fallen Houston-based energy giant that has produced criminal charges against about 30 people. They were the only chief executives Enron ever had and were chief architects of its storied rise during the 1990s.

Remember the "Marlboro Man" Marine? He's now 21 and home from Iraq, suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

The photo of the 'Marlboro Man' in Fallujah became a symbol of the Iraq conflict when it ran in newspapers across America in 2004. Now the soldier has returned home to Kentucky,where he battles the demons of post-traumatic stress.

....The man in the photograph is James Blake Miller, now 21, and he is an icon, although in ways [Dan] Rather probably never imagined. He's quieter now -- easier to anger. He turns to fight at the sound of a backfire, can't look at fireworks without thinking of fire raining down on a city. He has trouble sleeping, and when he does, his fingers twitch on invisible triggers. The diagnosis: post-traumatic stress disorder.

How did the Marines' react to him becoming a recognizable symbol? They asked him to leave Fallujah to ensure he didn't die and become a public relations nightmare.

by TChris

Senator Frist wants to be President Frist. Not long ago, Frist believed he could secure his party's nomination by pandering to religious extremists. To that end, Dr. Frist thought it appropriate to question the conclusion drawn by Terry Schiavo's physicians that Schiavo was in a persistent vegetative state. Frist was wrong (basing a diagnosis on a videotape rather than an in-person examination turns out not to be a prudent way to practice medicine), but being wrong on the facts has never deterred the religious right from pressing forward. Why, then, has Frist again backed away from an extreme position of importance to the religious right?

On ABC's This Week, Sens. Joe Biden and Barak Obama were critical of the Democrats' filibuster plan, but Biden said he will vote for it "one time."

Keep the faxes going. It's not over. And go for the phones Monday morning. You can use these toll-free numbers (and ask for the Senators by name): 888-355-3588 or 888-818-6641.

Fax numbers are here or use Save The Court's form and they'll send it for you.

The next time I shop at Target I will be thinking about this article in the Washington Post.

In the past few years, the retailer has taken a lead role in teaching government agencies how to fight crime by applying state-of-the-art technology used in its 1,400 stores. Target's effort has touched local, state, federal and international agencies.

Besides running its forensics lab in Minneapolis, Target has helped coordinate national undercover investigations and worked with customs agencies on ways to make sure imported cargo is coming from reputable sources or hasn't been tampered with. It has contributed money for prosecutor positions to combat repeat criminals, provided local police with remote-controlled video surveillance systems, and linked police and business radio systems to beef up neighborhood foot patrols in parts of several major cities. It has given management training to FBI and police leaders, and linked city, county and state databases to keep track of repeat offenders.

Target considers it's assistance "corporate giving." I'd much rather it gave to social service agencies that help the poor and its customers and called the program "community giving."

Think good thoughts for Bob Woodruff, who along with his cameraman, have been seriously injured in Iraq after being hit with an explosive device. ABC will release more details later today. [via Crooks and Liars.]

More from the AP:

The two journalists were with U.S. and Iraqi troops near Taji, about 12 miles north of Baghdad, when the device went off, ABC News President David Westin said. Both suffered serious head injuries and underwent surgery at a U.S. military hospital in the area, the network said.

Woodruff and cameraman Doug Vogt were wearing body armor and helmets, but were standing up in the hatch of the Iraqi armored vehicle when the device went off. No one else was hurt in the explosion, the network said.

Newsweek has a five page article, The Palace Revolt, on how former prosecutor James Comey and former Office of Legal Counsel head Jack Goldsmith bucked Cheney and Addington over the Administration's torture policy. An excellent read.

They were loyal conservatives, and Bush appointees. They fought a quiet battle to rein in the president's power in the war on terror. And they paid a price for it. A NEWSWEEK investigation.

[hat tip Patriot Daily.]

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales came to speak last week at Georgetown. Check out the pictures.

In Gonzales' speech, he attempted to justify the warrantless NSA surveillance program of U.S. citizens. During the course of the speech, the students did something both ballsy and brave-- They got up from their seats and turned their back on him.