Daily Briefing: The Plans We Made
- As Israel moves "thousands of soldiers" into Lebanon, the EU called for an immediate cease-fire, and the US insisted that there couldn't be one without "a solid plan in place to disarm Hezbollah." [WP, WP, NYT]
- George W. Bush has always been a staunch defender of Israel, promising to "use force to protect Israel" in his first term, and putting him at odds with the policies of his father, who considered himself a "neutral arbiter." [NYT]
- House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi attacked Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean for not spending enough on get-out-the-vote efforts. Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Rahm Emanuel (not speaking to Dean) asked for more donor money to fund a new turnout program. [WP]
- Cuban President Fidel Castro is "stable" (though no pictures or recordings of him have surfaced) after surgery at an undisclosed location. Some observers see his handover of temporary power to his brother as a test drive for how he'd like the nation to deal with his death. [NYT, WP]
- A Marine involved in the alleged Haditha massacre is suing Representative John Murtha for defamation, for remarks Murtha made earlier this year, before the incident had been made public. [WP]
- Members of the 9/11 commission knew the Pentagon was lying to them about its response on that day, declined to press charges or go public about it until now. [WP]
- The heat wave across much of the US has shattered records of electrical use. [NYT]
