In a frenzied fit of uncontrollable blog-ardor, Salto published this -- a suggestion about the identity of Watergate's "Deep Throat" -- on admittedly thin evidence. That was late on Monday night.

Digby was nice enough to pick up on it (Out of pity? -ed.). The next two days saw Salto's traffic go straight-line vertical on Sitemeter's graph. The blogging giants might scoff at 4000 hits in two days, but it was staggeringly exciting for me while at lasted.

Salto is now experiencing near-normal traffic, which is probably for the best. If I've picked up any new readers in this last week, I'd just like to say:

Yo.

I promise that I'll finally get around to finishing the "Who Salto?" etc. on the right within a week. Yes, it's true: light just might be shed on the the lingering mystery that is Salto within seven days. Check back.

A "reporter" that asked rightish loaded questions at White House press briefings turns out to (1) not be using his real name, (2) be affiliated with a "news organization" that is funded by a GOP moneyman, (3) conveniently have access to a classified CIA memo regarding the Plame/Wilson affair when it happened, and (4) seemingly be affiliated with a bunch of homoerotic websites.

Naturally, the media picks up on (4), crying foul, and ignores (1)-(3).

The Times does a good job of summarizing the important stuff today.

The hidden propaganda efforts of this administration are still just coming to light. I guarantee there will be much, much more.

I really can't let Rep. James Sensenbrenner's Real ID Act pass without comment. (Sensenbrenner's motto: "Making Wisconsin look good since November 1978.")

The law allows the Secretary of Homeland Security to, um, waive any laws he wants to in the course of a specific duty. Seriously:

Section 102(c) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 … is amended to read as follows:

“(c) Waiver. —

“(1) In general. — Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall have the authority to waive, and shall waive, all laws such Secretary, in such Secretary’s sole discretion, determines necessary to ensure expeditious construction of the barriers and roads under this section.

“(2) No judicial review. — Notwithstanding any other provision of law (statutory or nonstatutory), no court shall have jurisdiction —

“(A) to hear any cause or claim arising from any action undertaken, or any decision made, by the Secretary of Homeland Security pursuant to paragraph (1); or

“(B) to order compensatory, declaratory, injunctive, equitable, or any other relief for damage alleged to arise from any such action or decision.”

Atrios gets the clever prize for this one:

The bad news is that the Bush budget cuts out almost 10,000 border guards.

The *good* news is that pending legislation empowers future DHS Chief Michael Chertoff to murder at will.

Nice.

Maybe you want to write a few newspapers in Sensenbrenner's home district?

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Milwaukee Daily Reporter

West Bend Daily News / Waukesha County Freeman

Oconomowoc Focus

Brookfield News / Germantown Banner Press

And don't forget about Wisconsin's other major papers:

The Capital Times

The Wisconsin State Journal

Appleton Post-Crescent

[Via TAPPED]

...or maybe our Sonny Bono.

Native Minnesotan Al Franken, come on down!

...no, I agree that it might be better for Franken to challenge America's Worst Senator, Mark DaytonNorm Coleman (R-MN) in 2008. Maybe Keillor will run for Dayton's seat...heh.

[Duh. -ed.]

John Dean wrote an article reporting that Deep Throat is "ill." This according to Bob Woodward. Ben Bradlee of the Post says that Deep Throat's obituary has been written.

Sounds like Deep Throat might be this guy:



He was

a Deputy Attorney General in the "Office of Legal Counsel" from 1969-1972 under Nixon's Deputy AG, Richard Kleindienst. [He] and Kleindienst were very good friends when both were lawyers in Phoenix, and Kleindienst recruited [him] into the Justice Department when Nixon got elected. [He] stayed three years [before moving on]. Just six months later AG John Mitchell resigned to head Nixon's re-election committee (CREEP), and Kleindienst replaced Mitchell as AG just five days before the June '72 Watergate break-in. Kleindienst resigned in 1973 along with Haldeman, Ehrlichman and Dean, but he and [our mystery man] remained close.

His name?

William Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.

(But I could be wrong.)

I like the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer enough to occasionally listen to it online if I've missed the broadcast.

Yesterday two Senators come on to discuss Bush's budget. Bush's budget is a bit comic to me (yeah, I know) so I excitedly click to listen to the interview, which is here.

Kent Conrad (D-ND) comes on and complains that Bush's budget just doesn't include (1) any costs of the war in Iraq past September 30, 2005, (2) "the trillions of dollars" that Bush's social security privatization plan will cost (not like it's gonna get passed, but still), (3) $700 billion to fix the Alternative Minimum Tax, and (4) $1.7 trillion to make Bush's tax cuts permanent over the next ten years.

At about 2:40 of the interview, superstar Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) responds, and it really is a classic.:

"As to the, uh, specific issue of for example war costs, five years from now hopefully we won't be at war. In fact, I'm sure we won't be at war in Iran or Iraq, and, uh, or, in, (hhrmm), in Iraq or Afghanistan, and as a result, uh, we shouldn't be building that number into the base."

I mean, it's probably not true, obviously, but that bit about Iran?

Yikes.

Oh dear me.

The Times reviewed the new Murakami book.

Need a lift?

This will do it.