Sam Donaldson To Retire
Monday, February 16th, 2009
Youngsters know Sam Donaldson as one of the geezers on This Week who’s always yelling at George Will. But those of you over the age 15 might also recall that Sam Donaldson has been in the news business for several centuries and is prone to marvelous, sweeping and generally wrong predictions, like how Bill Clinton would leave office in like minus two seconds if the Monica Lewinsky rumors were true. He also enjoyed shouting at Ronald Reagan a lot. Here is a loving tribute from Cokie Roberts: on an overnight flight to France, Sam Donaldson once “had the flight attendants literally on their knees at his seat.” This American Hero will retire next week at the age of 74. [Washington Post]
The most patriotic mayor in the world will not be mayor of Detroit anymore. Kwame Kilpatrick has reached a plea bargain with authorities, so now he has to resign and serve four months in jail, and also he will repay the city ONE MILLION DOLLARS. After the jump, a quick review of the mayor’s goofy hijinks that we shall never see again now that he is an awful humiliated loser who can’t spell “Ben’s Chili Bowl.” 
A week and a half ago NBC newsman and Meet the Press moderator Tim Russert died, and the earth stopped in its orbit and let out a wild yawp of despair for the most wonderful person who ever lived. Speculation quickly ensued about who would replace Russert in a job that he alone among all living humans was uniquely suited to do: sit in a chair and ask politicians questions. And now we know who will host Meet the Press until the “election,” which will be called off at the last minute when we start bombing Iran. It’s Tom Brokaw! 
Passionate Clinton promoter Lanny Davis is an endearing toady who wears comical pin-striped suits and says things like “Hillary can still win” while everybody else on the teevee panel 
Today Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton both took some time to profess their enduring love and affection for legendary civil rights leader Cesar Chavez — but only one of these candidates loves Cesar Chavez enough to call for a national holiday in his honor. Guess who? It’s the same candidate who also plagiarized the three words Chavez invented many years ago, Si Se Puede (HINT: Barack Obama). Meanwhile, John McCain celebrated by angrily eating a bunch of grapes. [
This weekend marks the passing of yet another year in our thousand-year Mesopotamian adventure. Just yesterday it seemed our little Iraq War would be smothered in its crib, too fragile to survive more than a few months. But it surprised us all with its moxie and stick-to-it-iveness, and now our tiger is old enough to go to War Kindergarten. 