Wonkette

Our dear President finally noticed this year that he has the power to veto stuff, and his favorite thing to veto these days is the increase in funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). One of the reasons he likes vetoing that bill in particular is that the Democrats want to fund it with a tobacco tax increase. If there’s one thing he really hates, it’s tax increase because, as he put it, “Raising taxes is habit-forming — once you start in one area, it’s hard to stop in others.” Sir? Please leave the puns to the professionals and stick to mangling words, mmkay? [CQ Politics]

Albert Gore Jr., winner of the Oscar, Emmy, Nobel and Vice President prizes, knows diddlyshit about journalism. In the above clip from this morning’s Today, Gore chastises the media for “the old habit of taking the ‘on-the-one-hand, on-the-other hand’ approach” when it comes to global warming. He supports this argument by noting that if you’re putting together a piece about the earth being round, you don’t try to find someone who thinks it’s flat just for balance’s sake.

That’s the most ethically reprehensible defense of poor journalism we’ve heard this entire week. Being objective is important, Albert, and this is somehow… racist. Al Gore is racist. No more awards for racist Al Gore.

• Zagat restaurant guide gets punk’d as giggle inducing puns evade detection. [Brunch Bird]

• Fistful of change goes missing, clues point to DC-DMV employees know as “Half Street Mafia.” [Countersignature]
• Hundreds of punk rock fans forced to call mom for an early pick-up last night after 9:30 club sorta caught fire. [DCeiver]
• WaPo’s “best bets” rankings not as useful as a list of the worst bars in DC, compiled by ” drunkards and vagrants.” [Cafe 227]

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Ah, the lengths some copy editors will go in order to avoid using the word “leak”: MORE »

Many of you have emailed us about this headline. We’re just passing it along to stem the flow of messages: MORE »

The big news of the day, which we blogged about earlier, is Scooter Libby’s testimony that President Bush himself authorized the leak of a classified NIE. MORE »

This headline appears on the front page of the Washington Post Metro section, above the fold: MORE »

Bush shuffles aides, Card out as chief of staff [Reuters]
Not Showing His Cards [Politics Extra]
Card Folds, Bush Draws To the Inside [The Nation]
Card Shuffled [Patriot Ledger]
And winner of the Annual Wonkette LL Cool J Reference Award is The Dallas Morning News with “Don’t Call It a Shakeup”. MORE »

Check out the headline and lede of this article by Dana Milbank of the Washington Post (who was arrested earlier this morning by Wonkette’s Capitol Fashion Police; but we sent him a Valentine’s Day card to make up for it): MORE »