Today’s edition of quick hits.
* GSA Adminstrator Lurita Doan was back before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform today, and her explanations for her legal violations were no more persuasive than last time. Eventually, Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) urged Doan to resign.
* Frustrating news from the AP: “An Iraq war veteran will be kicked out of the Marines with a general discharge after he wore his uniform during an anti-war demonstration, the military announced Wednesday. The military said Lt. Gen. John W. Bergman agreed Monday to give Marine Cpl. Adam Kokesh the general discharge, one notch short of honorable. The decision was in line with a military panel’s recommendation last week. Kokesh got in trouble after The Washington Post published a photograph of him in March roaming the nation’s capital with other veterans on a mock patrol.”
* The panel investigating the tragic Virginia Tech slayings has found a some disconcerting patterns: “Schools, doctors and police often do not share information about potentially dangerous students because they can’t figure out complicated and overlapping privacy laws, according to a report released Wednesday on the Virginia Tech shooting…. As a result, information that could be used to get troubled students counseling or prevent them from buying handguns never makes it to the appropriate agency, the report by three Cabinet agencies said.”
* Bush’s State Department believes there’s “irrefutable” evidence that Iran is arming the Taliban. Bush’s Defense Department isn’t so sure. Given the subject, I’d be more encouraged if they were on the same page.
* Right-wing book publishers are feeling a little antsy: “Authors of the right are unsure who to attack, and who to defend. There are no clear front-runners, Democratic or Republican, for the 2008 election. Democrats took over Congress after the 2006 election, but publishers agree they have been in power too briefly, and have accomplished too little, to anger the right. Meanwhile, publishers say they rarely see proposals for books that praise Bush. His presidency is perceived as essentially over, and increasingly unpopular, even among those who have supported him.”
* The NRA, Congress, and the Brady Campaign are all pleased on recent progress on new legislation that will improve background checks.
* ABC: “A terrorist watch list compiled by the FBI has apparently swelled to include more than half a million names. Privacy and civil liberties advocates say the list is growing uncontrollably, threatening its usefulness in the war on terror.”
* Wesley Clark is finally out of his Fox News contract and will now serve as a military analyst exclusively for MSNBC.
* TV preacher Pat Robertson just doesn’t know when to quit: “Ladies and gentlemen, we have to recognize that Islam is not a religion. It is a worldwide political movement meant on domination of the world. And it is meant to subjugate all people under Islamic law.” He characterized the American Muslim community as “Islam light” and went on to say Muslims “want to take over and we want to impose Sharia on you.”
* Bush is down to a 28% approval rating in the Quinnipiac poll.
* Conversely, 63% support Bush’s immigration plan of allowing “illegal immigrants to become citizens if they pay fines, learn English and meet other requirements,” according to an LA Times poll.
* MSNBC held seven hours of discussion on immigration policy with a number of political leaders — but didn’t invite a single Democrat on to participate in the debate. Wow.
* Republican lawmakers have directed $63 million for the development of the DP-2 aircraft, meant to hover and take off and land vertically, even though it doesn’t work and the Pentagon (and NASA) urged Congress not to invest in the project. Duncan Hunter, whose district includes the company that makes the plane that doesn’t work, continues to demand more funding for the project. Dems are balking.
* Bob Barr on DADT: “Conservatives are supposed to favor meritocracy — rewarding ability — especially in the armed forces. Instead, the military is firing badly needed, capable troops simply because they’re gay, and replacing them with a hodge podge that includes ex-cons, drug abusers and high-school dropouts.”
* And finally, how big a right-wing hit-job is Jeff Gerth’s and Don Van Natta’s new Hillary Clinton book? Let’s put it this way: NewsMax is using the book as a subscription premium. That’s not a good sign.
Anything to add? Consider this an end-of-the-day open thread.