Wonkette

France’s glamorous first lady, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, went with her husband to Tunisia. She put this thing on her head and then she went into a mosque. Then her husband signed some nuclear-power dealy with the North Africans, and later this week he is expected to give them a hard time about their crappy human rights record. [VOA News, AP Photo]

After six years of kissing the ass of Kazakhstan’s autocrat president, the Bush Administration has finally decided to notice the dreadful lack of human rights in the “former” Soviet Central Asian country that just happens to sit atop some of the biggest oil and gas reserves in the world … and right between Russia and China. According to a new report from Condi’s State Department, the mean old guys in Kazakhstan took Borat’s website away! Total lack of precious freedoms! MORE »

While god-crazy American politicians are taking two weeks off to get drunk and IM young boys, our atheistic friends in Britain are looking towards the Future — a future of rat-brained self-aware robotic service workers and soldiers who will likely organize and demand “human” rights by 2056. MORE »

• Karl Rove is “just eight days from having his genius designation revoked — or upgraded to platinum status.” [WP, LAT]

• US Military has “misplaced” about 14,000 automatic weapons somewhere in Iraq. [NYT]
• New crop of centrist Democrats, including former Redskin flop Heath Shuler, may help retake Congress, only to do battle with more liberal elements of the party. [NYT]
• It’s not just global warming: Bush administration officials overrule scientists’ recommendations to protect species facing extinction, such as the very cute Gunnison sage grouse. [WP]
• Nancy Pelosi is financing the Democratic ascendancy one garden party at a time. [NYT]
• “A host of sleeper social issues, including abortion, same-sex marriage and stem-cell research will keep campaign 2006 interesting to the end.” [Newsweek]
• Heavy hitters on human rights weigh in against North Korea’s abuses. [NYT]

* Demand for oil tops agenda for meeting of Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao; “China has invested heavily in Iran, and as a permanent member of the Security Council, its position on the question of sanctions is crucial.” [NYT]
* Pentagon preps for war games about Iran. Bush: “All options are on the table.” [USAT]
* Construction of $592M embassy in Baghdad –the size of 80 football fields– is on target. [USAT]
* Bush: “I’m the decider, and I decide what’s best, and what’s best is for Don Rumsfeld to remain as the secretary of defense.” [NYT, USAT]
* Administration has not improved the sharing of intelligence data among agencies, GAO finds. [WP]
* Rob Portman, trade representative, is selected to replace Bolten as budget director; sends “gloomy signal [about] the prospects for achieving significant gains in trade talks with foreign countries anytime soon.” [WP, NYT, WP, USAT]
* Army Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller ordered to testify on abuse in Iraq. [WP]
* News organizations attempt to block subpoenas for documents related to leak investigation. [NYT]
* FBI seeks access to the files of the late columnist Jack Anderson. [NYT]
* Bush’s interest in human rights complicates visit with Jintao. [WP]
* Rumsfeld is playing dead, says Dana Milbank. [WP]

* Over 1,300 Iraqis have died in the past week due to the sharp uptick in violence. Asks one Iraqi, “And they say there is no sectarian war? What do you call this?” [WP]
* 70% of Americans are against the Dubai port deal, including 58% of Republicans; Bush’s approval rating slips to 34% in NYT-CBS poll. [NYT]
* Coast Guard assessment cited “many intelligence gaps” in Dubai port deal. [WP, NYT, USAT, WT]
* Senate drafts bill to curb earmarks. [WP]
* India meets Bush with a new sense of empowerment. [NYT]
* Intelligence agencies remain in bureaucratic disarray. [NYT]
* Administration will oppose new United Nations panel on human rights. Kofi Annan: “I think we should not let the better be the enemy of the good.” [WP]

MORE »

• Democratic leaders believe the “ethics-corruption issue,” not Samuel Alito, will win them seats in November. [WP, W$J]
• Rep. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) says he has enough votes to be the next majority leader. Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio): “We’ll see where the votes really are.” [USAT]
• Bush orders insurers to fill gaps in Medicare program; “Republicans have joined Democrats in asserting that the federal government botched the beginning of the prescription drug program.” [NYT]
• Under pressure of Jack Abramoff scandal, Rep. Bob Ney (R-Ohio) will temporarily step aside as head of the House Administration Committee. [WP, NYT]
• Twenty-five year friendship with Abramoff is “proving highly inconvenient” for Ralph Reed as he runs for governor of Georgia; his records have been subpoenaed. [WP]
• After signing bills, Bush maintains the presidential power to override them. Political professor: “The president is basically saying that those structural changes are nice, but I don’t have to listen to anybody in particular.” [NYT]
• Sen. Specter (R-Penn.) vows to look “closely” at NSA eavesdropping: “I don’t see any talk about impeachment here.” [NYT, WT]
• Success of Alito challenges the conventional wisdom on the Supreme Court and abortion. Sen. Feinstein (D-Calif.): “I do not see a likelihood of a filibuster.” [NYT, WT]
• At the hearings, Alito said “I don’t know” 29 times, Democrats mentioned Vanguard 68 times, and Republicans uttered “integrity” 43 times. [WP]
• Laura Bush is “irritated” by criticism of the administration’s AIDS prevention program in Africa. [WT]
• At the United Nations, the administration takes a defensive posture regarding human rights. [WP]
• Opponents of abortion are making strides outside of the political arena. [NYT]