So here’s this new affecting radio spot from the American Future Fund, in which Nancy Pelosi is a pirate, right?, because her last name begins with “P”. No, wait. Nancy Pelosi is like the Speaker of the House pirate who is forcing all the other Congress pirates to walk the plank, even though they’re her own crew members. It’s like actual pirates do, yeah? [YouTube]

It has been let’s see, around 20 hours or something since the Ft. Hood massacre, so it was weird that someone who lives on the Internet hadn’t suggested a connection between Obama and alleged gunman Nidal Malik Hasan. So yes, quite sorry for the delay, but conspiracy theorist dilettante Jerome Corsi would like to do just that! So get this: last May, GWU held some vague security brainstorming transition task force thing that does not actually offer security or transition advice to the President. There’s a document and everything. That’s part A, of the theory. Parts B-Z? MORE »

Oh do make sure to help out Dr. Ron Paul by voting in his who should be my Vice President when I am President poll! Look at all the completely random former novelty politicians and immediate family members there are to choose from. [RonPaul via Hit & Run]

Yes here it is, the comical Jon Stewart video from your Daily Show. It’s the “Glenn Beck impression” one and the blogs just love it. [Daily Show]

Joe Lieberman’s above-ground slime cave was not the only office that was invaded and briefly colonized yesterday: 12 anti-abortion people were arrested outside some suite that belonged to Nancy Pelosi and were charged with all kinds of distinctions within the disorderly conduct family. The AP does not want to assume these people were associated with the tea bag people—”the speaker’s staff said those arrested were objecting to language in the health care overhaul that they said would allow federally subsidized abortions”—but it’s definitely safe to just go ahead and assume that they absolutely were. [AP]

• Total body count was 13—with another 30 injured—at Ft. Hood yesterday. The gunman survived after being shot four times. [New York Times]
• Speaking of the gunman, Army psychiatrist,  Maj. Nidal M. Hasan, here is a lengthy biographical portrait. [Washington Post]
• An important Afghan governor and his militia and their rocket launchers are challenging the legitimacy of new president Hamid Karzai.  [WSJ]
• British PM Gordon Brown—and his soldiers and their implied rocket launchers—also threatened Afghanistan to just, you know, it’s enough already with the corruption. [AP]
• The Pakistani Army invaded a Taliban alcove in lawless, mountainy South Waziristan, presumably also a stop on Sarah Palin’s book tour. [Reuters]
• So apparently a giant wall (of symbolism?) was blocking everyone’s view at the Jay-Z/Beyonce/U2 performance at the Brandenburg Gate at last night’s fall-of-the-Berlin-Wall-themed concert. [Daily Mail]

NICE TRY bored irony thrill-seekers in all major U.S. cities, Sarah Palin’s Going Rogue book tour is characteristically going rogue and will be avoiding the large urban areas of New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Philadelphia, and others like them. According to this extremely patronizing CNN story—in which Jacksonville, FL. and Rochester, NY are essentially characterized as nothing more than some dirt paths strewn with human bones, maybe six trailer homes and a Starbucks—the GR Tour will instead be hitting mid-size cities in more traditionally conservative parts of the country. Oh but despair not, cosmopolites! Very decent chance that the Nation and Slate all-stars of Going Rouge will be incidentally touring Whole Foods or some party in Park Slope or whatever. [CNN]

So nine martyr-combatants stormed and briefly occupied the office of Joe Lieberman this morning. After chanting about health care—”Everyone in and no one out, universal health care now!” and “Represent Connecticut, not AETNA!”—they were dragged away and arrested. MEANWHILE: We have not yet heard from Editor Jim Newell this morning! [TPM]

Oh please look at the tragic press release for Bill Donohue’s new-ish book, Secular Sabotage. Not one person—not a single graphic design intern, or PR guy, or someone at the publisher’s office—had any objection to including this blurb. Chilling. (Thank you to Wonkette Informant “Dan T.”) [Catholic League]

Hot on the heels of yesterday’s impossibly exciting news of the opportunity to pay at least $70 to hear Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton sitting in adjacent armchairs and mumble talking points in a vaguely conversational rhythm: a cancellation of that exact thing! Apparently everyone was too into it, and this is why it had to end before it began. According to some Clinton spokesperson: “This event … was supposed to be a discussion between the two former presidents, and has been cancelled because it was not being billed as such by an overeager promoter.” How dare the promoter describe the event in such a way as to attempt to convince people to attend?  [New York Post]

• Last night the Yankees baseball team won the competition that determines the best baseball team of all the other baseball teams! [New York Times]
• 600 UN staffers in Afghanistan will leave the country for a few weeks while the UN works to find them housing that will be harder to blow up. [Washington Post]
• Hurricane Ida is currently in the midst of hitting Nicaragua. It’s expected to bring with it 25 inches of rain, mudslides, all the tradition hurricane accoutrement, etc. [CNN]
• Exxon Mobil and Shell have won the World Series of receiving the rights to oil fields in southern Iraq! The Phillies did not win this either. [WSJ]
• Cash bonuses on Wall Street will be up 40% this year. [Reuters]
• Later this week, Toyota will be sending out a drivers’ mat recall, as the acceleration pedal can get caught in drivers’ mats in certain models. [Los Angeles Times]