Usama bin Laden says he "is in partnership with Iraq" in a new statement that will be aired on Arab television Tuesday, Secretary of State Colin Powell told a Senate panel.

Powell said he read a transcript of "what bin Laden — or who we believe to be bin Laden" will be saying on the Al-Jazeera Arab satellite station later Tuesday, "where once again he speaks to the people of Iraq and talks about their struggle and how he is in partnership with Iraq."

Generation Y organizes

More on filibusters
American Prowler details the GOP qualms about a potential filibuster and some Republicans' desire to stoop to the Democrats' level and hurl race-based accusations.
[11:18 AM 11-Feb-03 | Ryan B. Zempel]

Humanist environmentalism

"Mr. Bush unveiled several new initiatives in the state of the union message. One called for an increase in funding, to a total of $1.2 billion, for research into hydrogen-powered cars. Another was a program of $15 billion over five years to provide medicine for AIDS sufferers in Africa. Together, the two are suggestive of some very innovative thinking with, I think, an identifiable source: Call it "humanist environmentalism" and trace it to Bjorn Lomborg, the controversial Danish statistician who is both left-wing and the author of "The Skeptical Environmentalist," a withering critique of the orthodoxies of doom currently propounded by the community of environmental activists."

Another celebrity speaks out for peace
This time it's Madonna who thinks her celebrity status makes her an expert on foreign policy.
[10:31 AM 11-Feb-03 | Jennifer Roberts]

Getting away from politics for a sec...
... the Oscar nominations have just been announced.  The movie "Chicago" leads the way with 13 nominations.  I can't wait to see "Chicago" now that it's finally opened in my neighborhood.
[09:28 AM 11-Feb-03 | Jennifer Roberts]

Saudi nerves

Introducing....

Title IX
Phyllis Schlafly on Title IX and "equal rights."
[07:07 AM 11-Feb-03 | Jonathan A. Garthwaite]

Defending the Prince
Aziz Poonawalla is defending Prince Charles.
[09:55 PM 10-Feb-03 | Jonathan A. Garthwaite]

Let ’Em Talk!
Kate O'Beirne says Bill Frist should make the Dems talk all night if they really want to filibuster Miguel Estrada.
[09:15 PM 10-Feb-03 | Jonathan A. Garthwaite]

Bush's numbers are up a bit
President Bush’s job performance rating has jumped to 62%, an increase of 5 points from his recent low of 57% in late January.  I think Colin Powell's case against Iraq in front of the U.N. probably boosted Americans' confidence in the President.  According to Zogby, nearly 3/4 of those surveyed who had seen Powell's presentation said he made a convincing case for war with Iraq.
[05:08 PM 10-Feb-03 | Jennifer Roberts]

Iraq Agrees to U-2 Surveillance Flights

"The inspectors are now free to use the American U-2s as well as French and Russian planes," Ambassador Mohamed al-Douri told The Associated Press.

In Washington, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said, "The bottom line is the president is interested in disarmament. This does nothing to change that."

In Baghdad, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein said he did not know what more to do to stop American "aggression."

A question
So macaroni and cheese dinners are fair game?  Oh, good....
[12:19 PM 10-Feb-03 | Ryan B. Zempel]

A promise
Anyone discussing bad dates and dirty socks here will be promptly burried up to their head and stoned.
[11:30 AM 10-Feb-03 | Jonathan A. Garthwaite]

Unions hurt the economy

Blogging not for everyone

...there is a reason we don't generally pay attention to the inner workings of the minds of everyone we meet on the street. Most of them just aren't that interesting. Do we really want to read about the bad dates and dirty socks and macaroni and cheese dinners of every guy with a computer?

Dodd for President?
Sen. Christopher Dodd is apparently considering jumping into the presidential race with Connecticut's other Senator, Joe Lieberman, and the rest of the Democrats running.
[10:30 AM 10-Feb-03 | Ryan B. Zempel]

Filibusters

"Now, debate is starting up again. But this time, Republicans say, things will be different. If Democrats want to change the subject to hydrogen cars or asbestos or North Korea — or anything else to delay the matter at hand — Republicans will likely say no. You wanted more time to debate Estrada, they'll say, so we're going to debate Estrada. As one Republican puts it, "It's going to be all Estrada, all the time. We're not going to turn to anything else. We're just going to talk about Estrada."

At some point, Republicans will again ask for a vote. And if Democrats again say, No, no, no, we need more time to talk about Estrada, Republicans will answer: OK, you want to talk, let's keep talking. Let's keep talking through the afternoon. And into the night. And into the morning. And into the next afternoon. At some point, Republicans will again demand a vote. If Democrats do not agree, Republicans will suggest more talking."

Noonan's convinced

"How is Saddam a threat to world safety? Well, you don't develop chemical and biological weapons to establish world peace. You get them, you spend your treasure to get them, to use them, one way or another at one time or another. He's used the weapons he has in the past--both conventional weapons in his invasions, and unconventional weapons in his gassing of the Kurds and Iranians. He seems never to shy from violence. Do we want him to go nuclear, and then deal with him then? That would seem an unwise gamble."

Goodbye to a 'Good Old Girl'

"[N]ow seven wonderful men and women have been lost, along with our sweet Columbia. Sadly, she'll never have her place of honor in the Smithsonian alongside the Wright Flyer or the Apollo 11 moon craft. Fortunately, her three sisters remain. They're true national assets. Unless there's some unlikely fundamental flaw in their design, I think we should get them back to work, doing what they're designed to do, even with some risk. The astronauts, all volunteers, are willing. I'd go with them if I could.

But let's also state forthrightly if a part of the space flight program needs to be improved. After all, to paraphrase my dad, how can we get good if we don't know where we've been bad? Then we should follow another of his guidelines. Let's not blame somebody else for our problems. Let's fix what's wrong and get on with business."

Rove Watch: Florida Senate
American Prowler thinks it may be time for Karl Rove to work his magic to avert a contentious primary.  In Florida, Rep. Mark Foley has been lining up support to run for Bob Graham's Senate seat.  Now, former Rep. Bill McCollum has announced his intention to run for the seat as well.  McCollum lost a Senate race in 2000 to Bill Nelson and some state Republicans are hoping the White House can convince him not to run.
[09:40 AM 10-Feb-03 | Ryan B. Zempel]

Decide for yourself
Judith Hooper has written an intense new book calling into question the controversial peppered moth studies that your teachers tried to use to convince you that evolution was fact.  You can read a review of the book at the Townhall Bookclub.
[09:32 AM 10-Feb-03 | Jennifer Roberts]

Locker room chatter

Martha Burk: "It is because, when men get together, denigrating women is often a part of the social interaction. When women get together, denigrating men is rarely done. It's just not even on the radar screen. Even among the so-called strident feminists of the women's movement. We don't have anything to hide in that way, and men seem to."

The Royals
These folks never cease to amaze me.
[10:53 AM 09-Feb-03 | Jonathan A. Garthwaite]

NATO at a crossroads too.

Another celebrity thinks we care
This time it's Dave Matthews who believes his voice needs to be heard protesting war against Iraq.
[08:13 PM 08-Feb-03 | Jennifer Roberts]

Heart surgery for Senators
Two U.S. Senators were released from the hospital Friday after having heart surgeries within weeks of each other.  One of them, Sen. Mitch McConnell, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, had triple bypass surgery after a routine examination last week showed arterial blockages.
[08:09 PM 08-Feb-03 | Jennifer Roberts]