Once again demonstrating that everything fucked up about race relations in this country can be traced back to Strom Thurmond, the New York Daily News announced this weekend that one of Al Sharpton’s ancestors was once owned by one of Thurmond’s ancestors. MORE »

* National Governors Association winter meeting like a Miss America pageant — Governors just want to help poor little sick children. [WP, NYT]
* The Governors also give advice to each other about running for President. Haley Barbour fulfils his contractual obligation for one Civil War reference per sound bite. [NYT]
* In other antebellum news, Al Sharpton finds out his ancestors were slaves to more than just a buffet line. [WP]
* John Edwards’ staff orders him to spend Sunday night watching A Few Good Men after telling Bob Schieffer that “Americans can handle the truth.” [WP]
* Congress living by the letter, not spirit of the “no joyriding in lobbyists’ Gulfstreams” law. [USAT]
* White House warns Pakistan that aid money might decrease if they don’t find Osama, and that it’s totally Democrats fault. [NYT]
* The Christian RightTM is having a hard time finding a Presidential candidate that hates all the right things. [NYT]
* House will try to make amends for all that trouble in Holland, 1945. [NYT]

* ABC News chief White House correspondent Martha Raddatz rides dirty with a full clip in her pistola, will put Tony Snow into a coma. [The Swamp]
* U.S. District Court suckers bloggers into covering Scooter Libby trial. [Media Bloggers]
* Like the sun rises in the east, so to shall Al Sharpton run for president. [Wizbang Politics]
* Fred Fielding’s daughter, who worked for Cheney, is definitely hot-for-DC. [TPM Muckracker]
* Bill Nelson thinks Sherrod Brown is a grabastic piece of amphibian shit, makes him drop and do 42. [Hill Blog]
* Louisiana: where racist murders are like cockroaches that survive all manner of natural disasters. [Shakespeare's Sister]

• Paullyblog: Paul Bedard of Washington Whispers has started a blog. [USN&WR]
• Yeas and Nays: Larry Flynt is going after Representative Tom Feeney in Hustler for alleged vote-rigging. [Examiner]
• Lowdown: Al Shaprton is supporting Tucker Carlson on Dancing With the Stars. [NYDN]
• Reliable Source: DC’s Uptown Theater hosted the premiere of The Guardian. Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore were there. [WP]

• Al Sharpton’s descent into madness reaches new milestone with incorporation of the “Space Jam” theme song into Connecticut rally speech. [Hartford Courant]

• Dilbert creator longs to be a cog in the machine. [Dilbert Blog]
• A convenient truth: global warming is producing new premium beers. [BBC]
• Intern humiliates DHS by creating informative website in two flip-flop-wearing months. [Boing Boing]
• If Smith Point advertised on television, this it what it would look like. [Logged Hours]
• Some days Tony Snow wishes he was still asking the questions, instead of not answering them. [Boozhy]
• National Conservative Student Conference peddling masturbatory fodder to “baby wingnuts.” [Pandagon]

• Reliable Source: First daughter Jenna Bush is popular with her students… Dick Cheney dodges questions about his daughter Mary Cheney’s new book. [WP]

• Lloyd Grove’s Lowdown: Anderson Cooper faces the challenges of his increased fame. [NYDN]
• Rush & Molloy: Rev. Al Sharpton is upset at Hillary, because Clintonistas Howard Wolfson and Gigi Georges are working against his favored congressional candidates. [NYDN]
• Page Six: Bill Clinton is worried that New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg might run for president as a third-party candidate, spending $300 million of his own money, and siphoning votes away from Hillary. [NYP]

What the heck is going on? Are famous people abandoning our fair city — or are you, our readers, just not sending in enough sightings to us?

After the jump, a handful of desultory Wonk’d items. We were so hard up for sightings that most of our items involve D.C. types spotted hundreds of miles away from the District.

We know that you can do better for next week. Please email us your sightings, with “Wonk’d” or “Sighting” in the subject line. Much thanks!

MORE »

• Reliable Source: RNC covers the tab for 1.4m White House Christmas cards. [WP]
• Lloyd Grove’s Lowdown: Al Sharpton will attend White House ceremony today honoring Rosa Parks. Sharpton on Bush: “He’s reaching out, but why? Because he’s at 37%? When George Bush reaches out his hand, he’s usually got something up his sleeve.” [NYDN]
• Rush & Molloy: Clinton wore “gold-embroidered military regalia” to Russian ball last weekend. [NYDN]
• Page SIx: Rick Lazio for New York Attorney General? [NYP]

• Reliable Source: Al Sharpton stoops to doing commercials for local car title lenders. . . Fox News cat-fights with the Washingtonian over a photo shoot. [WP]
• Inside the Beltway: The Clinton Museum Store in Little Rock has reported sales of $1.2 million over four months. [WT]
• Rush & Molloy: Alex Kerry is writing a memoir of the campaign. [NYDN]

• Names & Faces: “Save New Orleans Cocktail Hour” comes to Washington on Monday. . . Capitol File, a “346-page upscale glossy” magazine, launches today; premiere issue features Ashley Judd, Arianna Huffington, Al Sharpton, Wolf Blitzer. [WP]
• Inside the Beltway: Lewinsky reportedly dropped her Jenny Craig contract, losing the majority of $2.1m pay-out. [WT]
• Page Six: David Letterman: “I realize that my show was in trouble the other night when the White House dispatched former presidents Bush and Clinton over to the studio.”. . . Madeleine Albright at the Waldorf-Astoria: “And to think, John Bolton is sleeping in my bed! I hate to think what else he’s up to up there!” [NYP]

• Inside the Beltway: White House pool report comments Bush “wore a dark blue suit, looked tired and drawn.”. . . Hank Williams Jr. gives “pledge of support” to Frist. [WT]
• Inside Politics: Leahy says he would not vote for Roberts if nominee expressed positions on specific cases. . . Sharpton’s driver arrested for driving at 110 mph in Texas; Sharpton walked away. AP: “There is no word on where they went.”. . . Sheehan supporters may start releasing video packages. [WT]
• Rush & Molloy: McGreevey milks the “gay social circuit.”. . . Clintons vacation in Kauai, invite Pierce Brosnan. [NYDN]
• Page Six: Judith Miller “is having a perfectly awful time in jail,” her husband reports. [NYP]
• Names & Faces: Deck of Bush playing cards literally leans right (Rove is the ace of diamonds). [WP]