Maligning Murtha

"A man can change his mind. It's unfortunate, however, that a former President couldn't leave policy differences at the water's edge. And Mr. Clinton would do well to consider that while it's one thing for Senators to grasp at poll numbers to win an election, it's quite another for a former President to give them political cover. Mr. Clinton's remarks will only make it harder for the next Democratic President--maybe his own wife--to lead the country during wartime."

The Plame case may be getting most of the press, but a lot of Republicans are nervous about a plea agreement yesterday:

"Michael Scanlon, a former business partner of the lobbyist Jack Abramoff and a former top aide to Representative Tom DeLay, pleaded guilty on Monday to conspiring to bribe a member of Congress and other public officials," says the New York Times .

"Mr. Scanlon also agreed to repay $19.6 million to his former Indian tribe lobbying clients.

"He acknowledged in a plea agreement that he and Mr. Abramoff, identified in the court papers as 'Lobbyist A,' agreed to make lavish gifts to public officials, including all-expense-paid trips to Europe and the Super Bowl, in exchange for official actions."

Court papers say that Representative No. 1 "accepted gifts, including a 2002 golf trip to Scotland and regular meals at Mr. Abramoff's restaurant, "in exchange for a series of official acts and influence. Representative Bob Ney, an Ohio Republican and chairman of the House Administration Committee, has acknowledged that he is the lawmaker, while saying there was no quid pro quo with Mr. Abramoff or Mr. Scanlon. Mr. Ney, who was subpoenaed this month by the grand jury investigating Mr. Abramoff, has said he was 'duped' by the lobbyists."

How knowledgeable are folks about foreign affairs? The New Republic's

Michael Crowley spots some disturbing stats:

"A new Pew Institute poll helpfully reminds us not to take U.S. public opinion about foreign affairs too seriously. When asked whether certain countries possessed nuclear weapons, nearly a third said that Libya does. More people--55 percent--believe Iran has nuclear weapons than think Great Britain (52 percent) or France (38 percent) does. Only 48 percent got Israel right. And just over one-fifth didn't know or weren't sure about Russia--Russia! Which has some 20,000 nukes. Yeesh.

"On a slightly more pertinent note, the poll found that the savvier Americans are about global affairs (based on their knowledge of key world figures and events), the less likely they are to support a quick withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. Sixty-six percent of the least knowledgeable folks--i.e., ones who couldn't even ID Vladimir Putin--support a fast withdrawal. Only 48 percent of the best-informed ones took that position. Perhaps that offers some small consolation to the currently besieged stay-the-course crowd."

The Alito story has faded a bit, but Slate's Dahlia Lithwick is struck by the right's handling of the abortion revelation:

"The revelation that Judge Samuel Alito is on record, as early as 1985, insisting that he 'personally believes very strongly' that there is no constitutional right to abortion should have conservative pundits and thinkers jigging for joy. After all, they claim that they're dying to have this big, defining, national conversation about the role of judges; about the need to repair the damage wrought by renegade liberal activists who've been trampling all over the Constitution for decades. So, here is Sam Alito, unequivocally opening the door to that national conversation with his personal assertion that Roe is bad law.