Daily Briefing: Pet Peeves
•$286b transportation bill, which funds a record 6,371 pet projects, marks a "significant shift fromBush's once-uncompromising stand on earmarks." [ WP , NYT , USAT ]
•NARAL's anti-Robertsadvertisement sparks backlash; Annenberg study concludes "the ad is false" and "uses the classic tactic of guilt by association." [ NYT ]
•9/11 Commission was notified of military intelligence about the hijackers;Weldonsays the panel's "refusal to investigate. . . is evocative of the worst tendencies in the federal government that the commission worked to expose." [ NYT ]
• RobertsadvisedO'Connorto be evasive at her confirmation hearings, suggesting he will duck questions about his opinions on specific cases. [ WP ]
• Spectersupports administration's position onRoberts' memos. [ NYT , WSJ ]
•Protesters set to joinSheehan;Rice, Rumselfplan to visit ranch today. [ USAT ]
• Robertswas critical of "new right" movement in the 1980s. [ WT ]
•Still unclear: who sentJoe Wilsonpacking to Niger? [ WP ]
•States are standing up for their Air National Guard bases. [ NYT ]
• Pirroofficially launches campaign in New York senate race: "I'm Republican red on fiscal policy with conservative beliefs on making tax cuts permanent, but I've got broad blue stripes on social issues that don't change based on the office I run for." [ WP , NYT ]
• Pirromust increase name recognition. [ NYT ]
•Republicans are more likely to go for professional degrees, argues White House deputy director of public liaison. [ WP ]
•Several Republican governors are attempting to loosen organized labor's grip on public employees. [ WSJ ]