Quick Hits

So, life intervened today, as it sometimes does. My apologies and I must admit this is not the best way to kick off the fundraising week. But the link is over to your right, and I'd appreciate a donation.

Now, for some things that happened today that I had no time to write about:

• I'll give the Bush Administration some credit for helping to stop this Chinese ship full of armaments bound for Zimbabwe. They're implementing soft power to persuade African nations not to allow the ship to dock. It's a pretty clear-cut case but they have to be credited for this move.

• Cliff Schechter is dishing some more dirt about John McCain. It would be irresponsible not to speculate about all of this for the next six months.

• John Cusack's new film War Inc., which takes the outsourcing of the military to private contractors to its logical extreme, looks pretty darn good. He did a live chat at Crooks and Liars today.

• Republicans can't get anyone decent to run for Congress. And the scraps they end up with have baggage like looking the other way while employers on the Marianas Islands force their sweatshop workers into abortions. Bob Schaffer is a dead man walking in the Colorado Senate race.

• Turns out that the President violated federal law when he tried to restrict the eligibility requirements for S-CHIP. This is someone who is guilty of trying to keep sick children off the health insurance rolls. Even Mr. Burns looks at that and thinks "What a heartless bastard."