Politico – Gamewhere players spend trillions was taken down after reports that it offered offensive items for sale. View original here: (Politico)”> (Politico)”>RNC pulls game selling offensive items (Politico)

AFP Gates warns against excess with F-22s Los Angeles Times Lawmakers have sought funding to build additional F-22s, which President Obama and Defense Secretary Gates are opposed to. The Pentagon has spent about $65 billion researching, developing and building 187 F-22s. The Defense secretary says the expensive … Defense Chief Criticizes Bid to Add F-22s New York Times Gates Calls Arguments for More F-22 Fighter Jets ‘Far-Fetched’ Bloomberg Gates and Congress Duel Over Future

elizabeth creekmore byrd – Google News WJTV Elizabeth Creekmore Byrd Suit! LALATE Was Elizabeth Creekmore Byrd Chip Pickering’s mistress? Leisha Pickering claims in a suit against Elizabeth Creekmore Byrd adultery by now ex-husband Chip … Wife of ex-US Rep. Pickering claims he had affair The Associated Press Pickering’s wife sues alleged mistress Politico Suit: Pickering Chose Mistress Over Senate Seat TPMMuckraker Jackson Free Press

New York Times Gates warns against excess with F-22s Los Angeles Times The Defense secretary says the expensive F-22 fighter jet has limited use and building more may make the US more vulnerable. By Julian E. Barnes Reporting from Chicago — Intensifying a fight over the fate of the military’s F-22 stealth fighter jets, … Defense Chief Criticizes Bid to Add F-22s New York Times Gates Calls Arguments for More F-22 Fighter Jets ‘Far-Fetched’ Bloomberg Pentagon, Congress square

The Hill:Centrist Democrats are threatening to oppose their party’s healthcare legislation unless House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) accepts changes that make the bill more to their liking.Seven Blue Dogs on the House Energy and Commerce Committee have banded together to draft amendments that they’ll co-sponsor in the committee markup, which starts Thursday. Rep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.), the Blue Dogs’ point man on healthcare, says if those changes aren’t accepted, they’ll vote down the bill.“We cannot support the current bill,” Ross said.

Politico:Embattled House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, facing a multi-pronged investigation by the House ethics committee, shelled out nearly $280,000 to four differentlawfirmsover the last quarter, according to his newest campaign disclosure report.Overall, Rangel has paid $928,000 to his attorneys during the last year as his personal finances have come under scrutiny on a variety of fronts.But despite his ethics troubles, Rangel remains a prolific fundraiser, raising nearly $405,000 in the period from April 1 to June 30, according to the latest report filed with the Federal Election Commission.Related Posts:Politico — Blago: Ill.

The Star:Rocket the giant tortoise has become a little too giant for the Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita.The 77-year-old tortoise weighs 609 pounds, and that means he needs to leave the zoo where he has lived for 40 years.Related Posts:Good luck, Mr. President — Politico: Obama calls for ‘world without’ nukesReuters: Arianespace launches “largest commercial satellite”Alan Dershowitz in WSJ: Has Obama Turned on Israel?AP: Missile experts see Soviet parts in NKorean rocketThe Star: Statue of Liberty

Blood and Oil in Central Asia by Conn Hallinan – Foreign Policy in Focus/Common Dreams “It’s no coincidence that the map of terror in the Middle East and Central Asia is practically interchangeable with the map of oil.” In the past month, two seemingly unrelated events have turned Central Asia into a potential flashpoint: an aggressively expanding North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and a nascent strategic alliance between Russia and China.

Is the Obama cool factor down? According to a story in the Politico, Obama has had what can only be characterized as an un-cool week. Widely regarded as the coolest President in history, some would disagree, the Obama cool factor took a hit this week for sure. Obama Cool Factor Down? First I suppose we need to ask, what makes him so cool ? Is it because he’s the first African-American President? Well, that would insinuate that only blacks are cool.

Politico – When President Barack Obama takes the stage here Thursday night at the NAACP’s annual conference, he will be greeted by a base of black supporters who see him as the crowning achievement in the struggle for civil rights. Six months into his presidency, there are few signs that black support for Obama is softening.