“Thomson Reuters Group Ltd” on The Daily Caller

If you’ve looked at online, print or broadcast news in the past 48 hours, you’ve probably seen coverage of the President’s Cancer Panel report that hypes potential environmental causes of cancer. To not notice alarming headlines like, “Cancers from Environment ‘Grossly Underestimated,’” “Americans Bombarded with Cancer Causes,” and “‘Grievous Harm’ Posed by Unchecked Chemicals,” it would take a stock market crash, an attempted terrorist attack in Times Square, and a huge oil spill, all in the same week. (more)

“Every day we don’t act…” How those impassioned those words are. How commanding. The very essence of presidential, moral leadership. Unsurprisingly, such eloquence escaped President Obama’s lips during the weekly address—and for a blink, I had “Hope.” Hope that he would switch from the sexy topic of financial regulation to matters more pressing on the presidential portfolio. Like genocide prevention, crimes against humanity, rigged elections, or just foreign affairs in general. Instead, Obama embraced the domestic politics of the day—and willfully ignored the elections in Sudan. (more)

The political jockeying in Iraq continues as the Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, demands neighboring countries stay out of Baghdad’s politics. “Some are talking through the media as if they were our guardians,” Mr. Maliki told The Los Angeles Times on Monday. It is reported that the Iraqi Shiite leader, Ammar al-Hakim, has met with Saudi King Abdullah to discuss “issues of mutual interest.” Other political factions in Iraq, including the Sadrists, have also met with the Saudi King, perhaps prompting Mr. Maliki’s comments. (more)

The votes are in from Muqtada al-Sadr’s Iraqi “referendum” and the winner is … neither of the front runners, former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi or current Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. It’s the former interim Prime Minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, who served from 2005-06. So, why did the Sadrist movement pick Mr. al-Jaafari? (more)

Paul Volcker, current White House adviser and former Chairman of the Federal Reserve under Presidents Carter and Reagan, had some sobering news for U.S. consumers.  At a New York Historical Society event on Tuesday, Volcker said the United States will have to consider a “European-style value-added tax” to address the fiscal crisis facing the federal government. (more)

Classified U.S. military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff, was released on Monday by a group that promotes leaking to fight government and corporate corruption. (more)

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has emerged from the global financial crisis as the nation’s most admired company, thanks to its CEO’s “humility and sense of accountability.” (more)

As if things couldn’t get any more unsettling in Iraq, word came down this week that the Justice and Accountability Committee is recommending six individuals, elected to parliament in the March 7 elections on the winning ticket of former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, be dismissed. (more)

At this writing, we know nothing of the political leanings of [intlink id="714880" type="post"]Hutaree, the paramilitary group arrested by federal authorities for conspiracy to commit sedition[/intlink]. (more)

CNN continued what has become a precipitous decline in ratings for its prime-time programs in the first quarter of 2010, with its main hosts losing almost half their viewers in a year. (more)

The results from the March 7 elections were announced in Baghdad Friday night and what an upset it was.  Former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi narrowly beat out current Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki taking 91 seats in the Iraqi Parliament.  Maliki’s party won 89 seats.  That’s close and a severe setback for Maliki.  However, the outcome doesn’t necessarily guarantee Allawi his old job back, only allowing him to be the first to try to form a government.  Maliki did win 26 seats in the key Baghdad province, two more than Allawi. (more)

The March 7 national elections have left Iraq divided. Final results are expected today and the political jockeying is in full swing. (more)

Today marks the 7th anniversary of the start of the Iraq War and it’s quite remarkable to see just how far this country has come. In looking at the preliminary election results it’s hard not to reflect on the 2000 presidential election in the United States. It’s close and the votes are still being tallied. At one point this week, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki trailed his closest contender, former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi. Now, with al-Maliki back in the lead, some 40,000 votes separate their coalitions out of 83 percent counted. He is fighting for his political life. (more)

Inarguably, there are parallels between Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley—the two highest-profile pop star deaths of the post-Vietnam era. At the times of their respective deaths, both men’s careers were in terminal decline. Elvis hadn’t had a great single since “In The Ghetto” almost a decade before. And Michael Jackson, the self-proclaimed and trademarked King of Pop? Dan Quayle was a presidential prospect the last time his music was truly relevant. (more)

The events of Election Day in Iraq were truly breathtaking. Despite repeated attacks around the country by the enemy that killed some 35 people to frighten Iraqis away from the polls, their perseverance showed. Miguel Marquez of ABC News summed it up this way: “Iraqis are really tough.” Walid Abid, a 40-year-old father of two, spoke as mortars landed several hundreds yards away from his polling station. “I am not scared and I am not going to stay put at home. Until when? We need to change things. If I stay home and not come to vote, it will get worse.” Another voter, Maliq Bedawi, said, “Iraqi people are not afraid of bombs any more. We took our children with us.” (more)

As voting begins in Iraq, the Iranian government is wringing their hands with fear and nervousness that this young democracy will alter the landscape of the Middle East into something they do not welcome. “They continue to play a role in supporting surrogates inside of Iraq that continue to conduct attacks both against U.S. and Iraqi security forces,” Gen. Ray Odierno, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, said at a Pentagon press conference last week. (more)

The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for jobless benefits tumbled last week, a government report showed on Thursday, reversing a recent spike that had raised concerns about renewed labor market weakness. (more)

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is rebuffing Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell’s (R) recent call to move ahead with oil-and-gas leasing plans off the state’s coast next year and will instead delay action until at least 2012, according to a news report. (more)