Wonkette

* Ken “Wanna See Me Fit My Whole Foot In My Mouth?” Livingstone made London proud again. Blogger David Bernstein gives him a crash course in Jewish marriage — with a thinly veiled hint that he’s registered at Pottery Barn. [The Volokh Conspiracy]
* The Archbishop of Canterbury doesn’t want the kids learning creationism. Tristero, blogging live from sixteenth-century England, claims the trend-setting Archbishop has “irrevocably recast the [creationism] debate.” [Hullabaloo]
* Josh! Come stai? Come si dice “Run this script by De Niro” in italiano? [Talking Points Memo]
* John Burgess petitions Tiger Beat for a Tony Blair spread. [Outside the Beltway]
* The Amazon is thriving on its own decay. Research dibs on “Orrin Hatch: Biome in Disguise” [Tim Blair]

* Reliable Source: Tony Blair’s son is trying to be inconspicuous as a Capitol Hill intern. . . Hill staffers will continue to receive free subscriptions to Hustler. [WP]
* Inside the Beltway: Laura Bush on the film “Glory Road”: “You’ll be amused when you watch the movie and you see the lines that, ‘Blacks can’t play basketball.’”. . . Humane Society wants the White House to use cage-free eggs for its East Egg Roll. [WT]
* Page Six: Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) on Hillary: “I hear Bill is driving her nuts. Apparently, she came home the other day, saw him on the sofa and yelled at him to turn off ‘Oprah,’ get off his butt, and pick up the towels on the bathroom floor. And Bill said, ‘Don’t try that stuff with me. You’re trying to run this place like the House of Representatives… and you know what I mean.’”. . . Morrissey was investigated by FBI and British counterpart after calling Bush a terrorist. [NYP]

Over the weekend, a knowledgeable Wonkette operative suggested that we look into the rumors of Senator Orrin Hatch having lots of “senior moments” lately. Apparently Sen. Hatch’s mental lapses have become more serious and more frequent over the past few weeks. MORE »

* Reliable Source: Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) to Rolling Stone: “You look at the social impact of the countries that have engaged in homosexual marriage. You’ll know [Sweden] by their fruits.”. . . CNN throws farewell party for Robert Novak at the Palmer steakhouse; Pat Buchanan, Donna Brazile, Kate O’Beirne attended. [WP]
* Inside Politics: Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) have “floor spat” over Alito. [WT]
* Lloyd Grove’s Lowdown: Arianna Huffington: “Inviting Tim Russert to keynote a conference on journalistic ethics is like having Jack Abramoff keynote a conference on lobbying reform.” [NYDN] MORE »

• Samuel Alito rallies the Republican base while riling liberals; the fight “seems to be the political confirmation battle that both sides have been gearing up to fight for more than a decade.” Harry Reid: “Bush would leave the Supreme Court looking less like America and more like an old boys club.” Orrin Hatch: “This one is going to be Armageddon.” [WP, NYT, NYT, NYT, LAT, WT, WT, USAT, USAT]
• Alito will shift court to the right: “On some of the most contentious issues that came before the high court, Alito has been to the right of the centrist swing voter he would replace.” [WP, LAT, USAT, USAT]
• Alito’s fate rests in the vote of moderate Republicans; filibuster remains available. [WP, LAT]
• Alito was an easy second choice for Bush; Karl Rove phoned key conservative leaders before the announcement. [WT, WT]
• Bush’s selection of Alito works to unite his party after misstep of Miers. [WP, LAT]
• Abortion seen as the central issue. [NYT, NYT, LAT]
• Alito “has a strong free-market philosophy likely to please corporate America,” say experts. [LAT]
• At trial, Scooter Libby’s interests will be divorced from the prerogatives of the White House. [WP]
• More than 30,000 people have paid tribute to Rosa Parks at the Capitol Rotunda. [WP, USAT]
• Scott McClellan takes fire from correspondents. Terry Moran: “There’s been a wound to your credibility here. A falsehood, wittingly or unwittingly, was told from this podium.” [WP]

MORE »

• Bush defends selection of Miers: “I picked the best person I could find.” Brownback, Grassley remain skeptical; Hatch, Sessions are supportive. [WP, NYT, WT, LAT, USAT]
• White House and RNC campaign to convince conservatives that Miers is a wise pick; uncertainties about Miers mutes “rapid response” from advocacy groups. [WP, WSJ, USAT]
• Bush asks Congress to offset costs of hurricane relief with “substantial” cuts in entitlement programs; says there is need for new oil refineries. [WSJ, NYT]
• Bush implies he will use executive privilege to withhold Miers documents. [NYT]
• Miers reportedly told a former boyfriend that “life begins at conception” and abortion is “taking a life”; turned to faith and conservative causes in her mid-30s. [WP, NYT, WT]
• Bork: “I think [Bush] is just trying to avoid trouble — but the message comes through: Do not be controversial, do not express strong opinions that arouse opposition.” [LAT]

MORE »

“Hold still, hold still… Jeez, I still can’t believe I’m totally in the Senate Judiciary Hearing! This is so cool!”

[Larry Downing/Reuters]

At Final Day of Roberts Hearings, Hatch Snaps . . . and Snaps [WP] MORE »

• Bush packs for Texas as Hurricane Rita approaches. [NYT]
• Senate Judiciary Committee approves Roberts by vote of 13 to 5. [WP, NYT, WSJ, LAT, WT, USAT]
• Defying White House calls to control spending, the Senate passes $100b bill for farm and rural development and approves $82.9b military bill. [WSJ]
• Department of Homeland Security is playing hands-on role in preparations for Hurricane Rita. [WSJ]
• Bush says pulling out of Iraq “would allow the terrorists to claim an historic victory over the United States” and “make that country a source of terror and instability. . . for decades.” [USAT]
• Jack Abramoff bragged about his close relationship with Karl Rove, says Tyco executive. [WP]

MORE »

• Names & Faces: Is Lloyd Grove through at the New York Daily News? [WP]
• Under the Dome: Hillary roasts Rahm Emanuel: “Republicans may have the Hammer, but we have the Nutcracker! He has calves like Baryshnikov and a mouth like Cheney.”. . . Elizabeth Dole, Richard Burr, Bob Novak, Jerry Falwell, Orrin Hatch attend tribute to Jesse Helms. [The Hill]
• Inside the Beltway: Congressional staffers enjoy hemp feast. [WT]
• Cindy Adams: Donna Brazile: “I’m an African-American whose life has been a victory. But then came Katrina. . . Right now we need a president who will help. He’s helping. I’m so grateful. Poverty and misery is humbling. I’m humbled to the core that this administration is helping the poorest of the poor. . . I applaud this president for stepping up.” [NYP]
• Rush & Molloy: Bette Midler booed at Madison Square Garden Katrina fundraiser for joking, “George Bush likes my music. He came to see me in the ’70s. A coke dealer of mine got him some tickets.” [NYDN]
• Lloyd Grove’s Lowdown: 9/11 activist mothers call for tough investigation into Katrina response. Kristen Breitweiser: “This time, there’s got to be accountability. If you’re an elected official, you should be inviting accountability for yourself.” [NYDN]

• Bush, during address tonight, will announce plans to put the nation “on pace to spend more in the next year on the storm’s aftermath than it has over three years on the Iraq war.” [WP, NYT, USAT]
• Distrust and disapproval of Bush and the government at large is growing, according to two new polls. NBC/WSJ poll: 55% want to withdraw troops from Iraq and 75% believe the nation is not prepared for nuclear, biological or chemical attack. CBS/NYT poll: Bush’s approval rating slips to 41% and 68% think Bush lacks a clear plan for hurricane victims. [WSJ, NYT]
• Democrats complain Roberts is evading questions. Roberts: “I’m not standing for election.” Hatch: “If people can’t vote for you, then I doubt that they can vote for any Republican nominee.” [WP, NYT, WSJ, WP, NYT]
• Bush at the United Nations: “When a country or a region is filled with despair and resentment and vulnerable to violent and aggressive ideologies, the threat passes easily across oceans and borders and could threaten the security of any peaceful country.” [WP, WP, NYT]
• Nearly 150 killed and over 500 injured by at least a dozen suicide blasts in Baghdad; Al Qaeda group claims responsibility. [NYT, USAT]

MORE »

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition. . . but, Jesus, they could do better than this: MORE »

We know, we know, we have absolute faith that some aspect of the John Roberts confirmation hearings is exciting. That aspect is probably happening underneath the desk. (Has everyone been keeping their eyes on where Biden’s hands are? He really likes himself, you know. Then again, Biden does most of his masturbating on camera.) MORE »

• Under the Dome: Could ‘08 bring a McCain-Kerry ticket?. . . Hatch faces fire for his position on intellectual-property rights. [The Hill]
• Lloyd Grove’s Lowdown: Is Matt Cooper job hunting at The New York Times?. . . MSNBC President Rick Kaplan “erupted angrily and at length” towards Keith Olbermann after the anchor told viewers of his own cancer scare. [NYDN]
• Liz Smith: Peter Jennings had told Aaron Brown: “Aaron, drop this morning paper idea. You are not funny!” [NYP]
• Names & Faces: Mayor Williams makes risotto and lamb on Channel 16’s “InStyle Washington” cooking program. [WP]