Kerry Roundup: Are You Bored Yet?

·Drudge clarifies: "The woman fled to Africa." OK, that sounds more plausible. (But still, she slept with Kerry? Really?) [ Drudge ]

·From Slate: "Ten ways torationalize the publication of infidelity rumors." No. 11: "You could write an article about the media attempts to rationalize it." [ Slate ]

· February 6, 2004: "Rumor has it that John Kerry (D) is going to be outed by Time Magazine next week forhaving an affair with a 20 year old womanwho remains unknown." So there, Drudge! [ WatchBlog ]

·Just in case you think Kerry's not getting enough head, NPR sucks long and hard: "This is a John Kerry I'd never known before: affable, funny, relaxed. . . So what gives with this transformation? Sure, he needs the media more now. But here's my theory: Kerry has, for better or worse, thenatural temperament of a leader,a loner in charge." [ NPR ]

·Top 10 Reasons Kerry Cheated on His Wife: "What fun is a meteoric rise to power without someIcarian self-destruction?" [ D-Nasty ]

·A very detailed tick-tock on the coverage so far: "The new questions is this: How long does it take for apotentially major storyto hit the mainstream blogosphere?" [ Strathlachlan ]

·The Grand Unifying Theory of Politics: "If Hillary wants to be president in 2008, if Hillary wants to be president, period, theClintons will take care of this year's nominee." [ RushLimbaugh.com ]

·Across the pond, the standards are lower: The Scotsman and The Times figure out ways to cover the flap, covering their asses by attributing the news to a "right-wing news web site." [ Times and Scotsman ]