Today’s edition of quick hits.<\/p>\n
* AP<\/a>: “The Pentagon has notified more than 35,000 Army soldiers to be prepared to deploy to Iraq beginning this fall, a move that would allow commanders to maintain the ongoing buildup of troops through the end of the year if needed.” The administration said this is not related to the escalation strategy, though some have trouble believing that.<\/p>\n * Several of our European allies have an interesting deal<\/a> on the table with the White House: if Bush gets Wolfowitz to resign as head of the World Bank, Europe won’t mind if the United States maintains the power to name his replacement. Of course, should Bush decline the offer, Europe may feel compelled to alter the general World Bank tradition.<\/p>\n * Is it possible that there have been 27<\/a> U.S. military fatalities just in the first week of May? That seems heartbreakingly high, but it’s true<\/a>.<\/p>\n * As bad as Republican corruption has been in DC the past several years, Republican corruption in Alaska<\/i> is even worse<\/a>. Today, Ben Stevens, son of Sen. Ted Stevens (R), was identified as one of the unnamed legislators involved in the VECO cash-for-favors corruption scheme.<\/p>\n * For all the times I’ve criticized Chris Matthews for his on-air comments, I have to admit, he did a fine job yesterday<\/a> taking a war supporter to task. I rarely find Matthews watchable, but this exchange — which was really more of a tirade — was encouraging.<\/p>\n * I didn’t think it was possible, but when it comes to foreign policy, it appears that Mitt Romney is getting dumber<\/a> as time goes on: “Last night on Fox’s Hannity & Colmes, host Sean Hannity asked Romney whether he thought Iraq hid weapons of mass destruction in Syria prior to the invasion. ‘It’s entirely possible,’ Romney said.”<\/p>\n * Even with no facts or evidence, Bill O’Reilly is going to connect<\/a> George Soros and Media Matters if it’s the last thing he does. Poor Bill; I’m really starting to feel sorry for the guy. * True story: I was responsible for changing the primary date<\/a> for elections in Vermont.<\/p>\n * Speaking of Vermont, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Pat Leahy (D-Vt.) has introduced a really good new bill<\/a>: the Personal Data Privacy & Security Act, which is all about protecting the privacy of Americans’ personal financial information. Good stuff.<\/p>\n * Have you heard the story about Fred Thompson’s red pickup truck? Probably, and if not, you will if Thompson runs for president. A few things to remember<\/a>: it was a rental, which Thompson didn’t drive, and which he was anxious to abandon as soon as he was away from the cameras.<\/p>\n * Limbaugh seems to think Hillary Clinton wants to literally<\/i> hurt Barack Obama<\/a>. I expect it to be a tough primary season, but c’mon….<\/p>\n * Condi Rice told Charlie Rose last night: “[O]ur friends in the [Middle East] need to know and the Iraqis need to know that we are not looking to leave Iraq<\/a>.” “Ever?” Rose asked. Rice responded, “We are not going to leave an Iraq that is not capable of defending itself and with a foundation for future reconciliation.” Is that really the message? I thought we wanted Iraq to know that we are<\/i> looking to leave Iraq, and will just as soon as possible.<\/p>\n * Did you catch the latest episode of The Sopranos? Did you happen to notice that Carmela was reading<\/a> Weekly Standard executive editor Fred Barnes’ “Rebel in Chief” in bed?<\/p>\n * Katie Couric’s “Notebook” segment was quite odd last night<\/a>, praising the president for giving in and hosting a dinner for Queen Elizabeth II. Have we reached the point in which Bush gets positive coverage just for throwing a good party? Talk about your soft bigotry of low expectations….<\/p>\n
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\n* White House rhetoric notwithstanding, al Qaeda is getting stronger<\/a> and better organized.<\/p>\n