The Buckshot's Here

Sheryl Gay Stolberg and David E. Sanger write in the New York Times that last week, "the White House opened the door to talks in the hope of avoiding a full-scale Congressional investigation. According to lawmakers involved in the discussions, a number of senior officials, including Harriet E. Miers, the White House counsel, and Andrew H. Card Jr., the chief of staff, began contacting members of the Senate to determine what it would take to derail the investigation."

Abramoff Watch

The Associated Press reports from Malaysia: Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said Monday that disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff was paid $1.2 million to organize his 2002 meeting with President Bush, but denied the money came from the Malaysian government.

Renewable Energy Jobs

William Neikirk writes in the Chicago Tribune's Washington blog: "Sometimes a visit by a president can change a lot of things -- such as keeping your job. Just ask some 32 people who had been fired last week from their high-paying positions at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colo.

"It appeared that all was lost for these workers until President Bush decided to visit the laboratory on Tuesday to promote his proposals for renewable energy (which will require a good bit of new research by this very institution).

"Suddenly, the earth moved. Suddenly, sympathy for the plight of these victims soared. Suddenly, it dawned on someone in the White House that the president might be coming to Colorado with a mixed message, talking about the promise of renewable energy while slashing some of the very people working on it."

Blogger stygius points to a story about one of the laid-off workers by Douglas Crowl in the Loveland, Colo., Reporter-Herald.

Opinion Watch

Ruth Marcus writes in a Washington Post opinion column: "The Bush administration is constantly telling us that it can't tell us too much, for fear of chilling debate among the president and his top advisers. This argument would be a lot more persuasive if -- on the rare occasions the public is permitted a peak behind the White House curtain -- there were more evidence of something to chill. . . .

"The real chilling effect is the one that runs down the spine of anyone who learns too much about the way this White House operates."