1.) Obama resumes coddling the fragile psyches of Islamic extremists — Decider in Chief Obama has decided: The American people do not need to see a picture of a dead Osama bin Laden, for which they have paid roughly $1 trillion over the last decade. “It is important to make sure that very graphic photos of somebody who was shot in the head are not floating around as an incitement to additional violence or as a propaganda tool,” Pres. Obama says in an upcoming 60 Minutes interview. (The White House has propaganda locked down, what with allowing the world to believe for an entire day that bin Laden used his own wife as a human shield.) Conversely, the only people who would want to see said picture (according to the White House, a gutless Beltway press corps, and God knows who else) are conspiracy theorists who need proof of Osama’s death. Those who believe that bin Laden is dead, and still feel entitled to see the fruits of a ten-year war on terror–for closure, to gloat, as compensation for countless TSA pat-downs, suspicious package alerts, and the anxiety that comes with flying anywhere nowadays–apparently do not exist. Even House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers is opposed to the idea, saying, “Imagine how the American people would react if al Qaeda killed one of our troops or military leaders and put photos of the body on the Internet.” You mean like they did with the bodies of those poor Blackwater contractors?
2.) Obama owes Bush a cold one, says WaPo — And not just for the deficit Pres. Bush helped create on his way out the door, or the groundwork he laid for Obama’s bailout and stimulus programs, but for exercising our military into the fittest of conditions, and for desensitizing the American public. “Public tolerance for military operations over the past decade has shifted to the degree that a mission carried out deep inside a sovereign country has raised little domestic protest,” reports the Washington Post. “And a detention and interrogation system that Obama once condemned as contrary to American values produced one early lead that, years later, brought U.S. forces to the high-walled compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and a fatal encounter with an unarmed Osama bin Laden.” For some reason, we doubt Obama will be sending his predecessor so much as a grateful e-card any time soon.
3.) The Attorney General of the United States on gun-running scandal: ‘I frankly don’t know’ what happened — “Did the Justice Department knowingly allow assault weapons and military-grade sniper rifles to cross the U.S.-Mexico border headed for drug cartels, with the goal of tracking the weapons electronically?” Asks TheDC’s Jonathan Strong. “Attorney General Eric Holder, the official in charge of the federal agency which conducted the mission, says he doesn’t know. ‘I frankly don’t know … it’s something that we take very seriously,’ Holder said under grilling by Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, the top-ranking GOP senator on the Judiciary Committee in a hearing Wednesday.” During the hearing, Holder was asked to explain a recent memo to border bureaus explicitly instructing them not to “walk” American guns into Mexico. The memo, dated March of this year, was a few years too late to save the life of Border Agent Brian Terry. When asked about the memo, Holder said, “I don’t think it represents a change in policy, but I certainly wanted to make sure that people in the field understood that that is in fact the policy. And to the extent there was any confusion, I wanted to make sure there was none.”
4.) Former Romney staffer looking to trade ‘My Man Mitt’ for ‘My Man Mitch’ — Former Romney strategist Bruce Keough is ditching the best head of hair in the GOP primary for a candidate with some substance. “I don’t think the voters are looking for somebody who’s going to be recasting himself,” Keough said of his former boss and the man who laid the groundwork for Obamacare. “They want somebody who’s been true to a certain set of political ideals for a while,” Keough said, adding that Romney “manages to say things that cause people to think, ‘Wait a second: I thought I knew him, and now I’m not so sure.'” If it’s any consolation, Romney’s mane hasn’t changed a bit.
5.) Jimmy Carter has a thing for Jon Huntsman — “In an interview printed Wednesday by CNN, Carter said that Jon Huntsman is ‘very attractive to me personally,'” writes TheDC’s Steven Nelson. Despite this attraction, Carter said his “intention is to vote for the Democratic candidate.” A pseudo-endorsement from one of the worst American presidents of the 20th century isn’t the only thing Huntsman has going for him, though. There are also the fawning letters written by Huntsman to President Obama and former President Bill Clinton, in which Huntsman called Obama a “remarkable leader” and complimented Clinton’s “brilliant analysis of world events.”
6.) Matt Labash handicaps the GOP presidential field — Daily Caller columnist (and president emeritus of the Southern Maryland campus of the Mid-Atlantic Clown Academy) Matt Labash has waded into the GOP presidential primary field with his feather boa of truth to help you make the right decision. Here he is on phenom Herman Cain: “Before I can endorse Cain, I need to hear more about his position on thin-crust. Odds: 5,000-1.” Newt Ginrich: “Some things, however, are better left in the 90s: Reebok pumps, Zima beer, Ace of Base, and Newt Gingrich. Odds: 25-1.” Tim Pawlenty: “His best bet is probably to stay home from the Ames Straw Poll later this year, and to pray fervently that a meteorite hits the Hilton Coliseum, where it will be held. If the other serious candidates perish, then his mediocrity can finally shine. Odds: 10-1.” There’s more at the link, including Labash’s tips for mastering the unicycle.
VIDEO: Harry Reid on Marco Rubio
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