Wonkette

Well, we’re glad that the planners of the Democratic National Convention have so diligently put together their celebrity cameo list for Denver. They have announced that Kanye West, Wyclef Jean, and N.E.R.D. will perform music shows. Ben Affleck, Scarlett Johansson, Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Forrest Whitaker, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Cheryl Hines and Edward Norton Jr. have promised to smile for the cameras. Corporate sponsors include United Airlines, Google, Coors Brewing Company, Anheuser-Busch, Xcel Energy, Motorola, Qwest, and AT&T. So many announcements, and such organization! At this rate, the DNCC might actually review media applications soon and let members of the press know whether or not they should buy expensive plane tickets. [WP/The Sleuth]

Presidential hopeful Stephen Colbert, who has declared that Doritos chips are supporting his campaign, was recently the target of populist John Edwards’ sole campaign tactic: That everyone except John Edwards takes donations from evil corporations. In response to South Carolina’s “Favorite Son” campaigning in Columbia Sunday, Edwards spokeswoman Teresa Wells tried to make a meta-funny:

“As the candidate of Doritos, [Colbert's] hands are stained by corporate corruption and nacho cheese. John Edwards has never taken a dime from taco chip lobbyists and America deserves a President who isn’t in the pocket of the snack food special interests.”

Don’t speak too soon, Wells. The manic investigative team at Radar is calling your bullshit. MORE »

• NYT/CBS poll finds “marked disenchantment with Congress” with only 25% of respondents approving of them. 25% is also the number of people who think Bush is “mostly lying when talking about the war.” [NYT]

• Other polls confirm: “Bush has gained ground, but his standing is weak by historic standards.” [LAT]
• Maryland considers switching back to paper ballots for the general elections as Governor Ehrlich worries about electronic machines’ “susceptibility to tampering.” [WP]
• Hewlett-Packard confirms giant evil companies are as giant and evil as you thought. [WP]
• Bill Frist gives “thumbs up” to a 700 miles fence along border with Mexico. [NYT]
• Alberto Gonzalez has a hard time keeping all the different abductions and torturing straight, it’s too much to remember really. [NYT]
• Superdome in New Orleans to reopen Monday for Saints/Falcons game that’s generating “Super Bowl-like buzz.” [USAT]

* When everything that’s soulless and wrong becomes a Power Point slide. [The Nation] MORE »

* What does Butterstick want for his birthday? A few less corporate sponsors and a lot more bamboo. [National Zoo] MORE »

Our chronically dissatisfied brother is holding a fierce tournament to decide, by popular vote, the worst company in America. The round of particular interest to Wonkette readers is the first one, pitting defending champ Halliburton against old-school favorite Monsanto. A commenter notes that “it’s like if we saw Duke vs. UConn in the first round of March Madness” — and who can forget when Duke manufactured Agent Orange and then caused the worst industrial accident in the history of the United States while UConn sold expired meals to the Army and bilked the government out of billions of uncontested reconstruction dollars? MORE »