Miniblog: In which I am irked by NPR's political reporting

NPR (probably Steve Inskeep) just referred to Jay Rockefeller as being "in the liberal wing of his party."

That's true. If there's one thing us liberals love, it's companies getting paid in tax dollars to illegally eavesdrop on Americans, then using some of that money to pay Senators like Jay Rockefeller to get them off the hook. That is one of our core liberal values.

I also enjoyed the clip of Rockefeller praising Reid as a Good and Righteous public servant, unconcerned with how healthcare will affect his re-election. I have no doubt that is true.

Hummingbirds in Cap Hill

Scalia: No constitutional problems executing an innocent man

“This Court has never held that the Constitution forbids the execution of a convicted defendant who has had a full and fair trial but is later able to convince a habeas court that he is ‘actually’ innocent. Quite to the contrary, we have repeatedly left that question unresolved, while expressing considerable doubt that any claim based on alleged ‘actual innocence’ is constitutionally cognizable.” --Antonin Scalia

This is the case he's talking about. Seven of 9 eyewitnesses have now recanted.

Quote from The Gamble

I'm reading The Gamble on my new Kindle and I came across this mind-blowing quote:

A senior intelligence officer in Iraq described the long-term American goal as "a stable Iraq that is unified, at peace with its neighbors, and is able to police its internal affairs, so it isn't a sanctuary for al Qaeda. Preferably a friend to us, but it doesn't have to be."

So basically our goal for at least the next 10-20 years is to get Iraq back to where it was before we invaded. Sobering thought...