FRIDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Terror in Pakistan: "A suicide bombing at a Shiite demonstration in the western Pakistani city of Quetta left at least 55 people dead Friday, triggering fears of an outbreak of sectarian violence as the nation continues to struggle with ruinous floods. The strike followed a suicide attack that killed at least two people in northwest Pakistan at a mosque of the Ahmedi sect, another religious minority whose members are the frequent victims of Islamist extremists. On Wednesday, suicide bombers struck a Shiite march in the city of Lahore, killing at least 30 and sparking riots."

* Hurricane Earl swipes North Carolina, heads towards New England a little worse for wear. Early reports suggest damage in North Carolina was not as bad as feared.

* Earthquake in New Zealand: "Authorities said Saturday that a major earthquake near New Zealand's second-largest city, Christchurch, caused extensive damage and scores of minor injuries but no major casualties."

* President Obama addressed the monthly jobs report at a press availability this morning, and before wrapping up, mentioned, "I will be addressing a broader package of ideas next week."

* Why is long-term unemployment declining?

* I was going to say "nice try," but it wasn't even that: "A judge on Thursday denied a request for President Barack Obama to testify at a court martial for a U.S. Army flight surgeon who refused to deploy to Afghanistan until he saw proof that Obama was born in the United States."

* Former OMB Director Peter Orszag is getting a New York Times column. It should be interesting.

* Daniel Luzer: Paying for college with retirement money.

* The NRCC embezzlement scandal leads to a guilty plea.

* Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.), currently the subject of criminal and ethics investigations stemming from his sex/corruption scandal, told constituents this week, "If you don't hold us accountable, we'll do some real bad things in Washington, D.C." He was trying to talk about the economy, but I nevertheless found his lack of self-awareness hilarious.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

MONDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Iran: "Three months after the United Nations Security Council enacted its harshest sanctions yet against Iran, global nuclear inspectors reported Monday that the country has dug in its heels, refusing to provide inspectors with information and access they need to determine whether the real purpose of Tehran's program is to produce weapons."

* Tolerating corruption in Afghanistan: "U.S. commanders in southern Afghanistan are adopting a strategy that increasingly places the priority on fighting the Taliban even if that means tolerating some corruption."

* On a related note, this is an important setback: "A quarter-billion dollar program to lure low-level Taliban fighters away from the insurgency has foundered, with Afghans bickering over who should run it, and international donors slow to put up the money they had promised."

* A revised price-tag for the war in Iraq: $3 trillion.

* I don't know what kind of changes to Social Security his deficit commission might propose, but President Obama isn't about to let privatization move forward.

* In one of the dumber media exchanges in a long while, Fox News' Chris Wallace noted that President Obama recently characterized his "central mission" as "restoring the economy." Wallace said, "s it unfair to say that this a president whose heart doesn't seem to be into winning the war on terror, no matter what it costs?" The [i]Weekly Standard's Stephen Hayes replied, "No, I don't think that's at all unfair." No wonder the network's poor viewers are so darned confused.

* And in honor of Labor Day, be sure to check out E.J. Dionne's column today: "When unions mattered, prosperity was shared."

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

TUESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* This really is scandalous, and it's created real emergencies throughout the judiciary: "A determined Republican stall campaign in the Senate has sidetracked so many of the men and women nominated by President Barack Obama for judgeships that he has put fewer people on the bench than any president since Richard Nixon at a similar point in his first term 40 years ago."

* On a related note, the judiciary is becoming so politicized that Justice Clarence Thomas will only accept clerks who've worked in the offices of judges appointed by Republican presidents. It's unheard of on the modern court.

* NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen is the latest leader to denounce the fringe right-wing church in Florida planning an event this week to burn copies of the Quran. "I strongly condemn that. I think it's a disrespectful action and in general I really urge people to respect other people's faith and behave respectfully. I think such actions are in strong contradiction with all the values we stand for and fight for," Rasmussen said.

* In his first-ever column, former OMB Director Peter Orzag calls for keeping all of the Bush-era tax rates in place for two more years, and then scrapping all of them at the end of 2012. Jon Chait isn't fond of the idea.

* Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R) very quietly backed off her ridiculous "beheadings" claim, but she has plenty more to apologize for.

* Marty Peretz's contempt for Muslims isn't new, but it's getting uglier. Now he isn't sure if Muslim Americans are "worthy of the privileges of the First Amendment"? Seriously?

* Are American colleges like American car companies?

* I read and thoroughly enjoyed "Heads in the Sand," and can say with certainty that Jonah Goldberg's criticism of the book makes no sense at all.

* I'll look forward to Hannity, Beck, and other Fox News personalities condemning News Corp's indirect investments in North Korea.

* Tom Toles has a unique talent for capturing an important phenomenon in just one powerful frame. He does this frequently, but some days stand out. Today is one of those days.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

WEDNESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Operation Iraqi Freedom may be over, but the country can still be deadly for U.S. troops: "Two U.S. service members were killed and nine others were wounded when a Kurdish Iraqi soldier sprayed them with gunfire at an Iraqi army commando base north of Baghdad on Tuesday afternoon, Iraqi and U.S. military officials said."

* BP spreads the blame around, and points to a "shared responsibility" for the disaster in the Gulf: "BP released a long-awaited report Wednesday on an internal investigation into the causes of its Gulf of Mexico oil well blowout, blaming multiple failures by BP and other firms but absolving its much-criticized well design."

* An inkling of good news on the job front: "Job openings rose in July after two months of declines, a positive sign that companies could step up hiring in the coming months." The openings are at their highest levels since April.

* The Wall Street Journal would have you believe the Affordable Care Act is causing health insurance companies to raise their premiums. Stephanie Cutter cuts through the nonsense.

* Is the alleged "rift" between the White House and former OMB Director Peter Orszag over tax policy overblown? It sure seems like it.

* Feisal Abdul Rauf intends to "clearly identify all of our financial backers" for Park51. That probably won't help with Fox News.

* Robert Schlesinger urges the Tea Party crowd to stop treating the Constitution like a rough draft.

* Daniel Luzer on "the triumph of student loans."

* High on the list of people I'm not going to feel sorry for: Scooter Libby.

* Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) tends to have a way with words. Today he described the increasingly radicalized Republican Party as "nuts" and "flat-out crazy." He added, "We are going to turn the reins of the Congress over to these people who are more and more dominated by the whacko right?"

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

THURSDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Details are a little sketchy as I write this, but multiple news outlets are reporting that the Florida church's planned Quran burning has been cancelled.

* Good news in the Senate: "Retiring Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) said he plans to help push a package of small-business incentives through the Senate next week, a move that would give President Obama and congressional Democrats a key victory on the economy in the final weeks before the November midterm elections."

* Good news in the job market: "nitial jobless claims dropped last week, falling from an adjusted 478,000 to 451,000."

* It's hard to believe, but the right [i]still wants people to believe that Democrats are "coming after your guns." Who's dumb enough to fall for this stale nonsense?

* Everything you wanted to know about national infrastructure banks but were afraid to ask.

* Daniel Luzer: How journalists talk about higher education.

* Here's a crazy idea: if the Pentagon hires a company to provide translators for the Afghan battlefield, maybe they should know languages that people in Afghanistan actually speak.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

FRIDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Afghanistan: "A fringe Florida preacher may have suspended his Koran-burning, but word reached Afghanistan too late for 24-year-old Muhammed Daoud. He was shot to death during a protest outside a NATO base in western Afghanistan, according to Afghan officials." Two separate protests became violent, both outside NATO reconstruction bases, and at least 12 people were wounded, three of them critically."

* New diplomatic idea for Iraq: "The Obama administration is encouraging a major new power-sharing arrangement in Iraq that could retain Nuri Kamal al-Maliki as prime minister but in a coalition that would significantly curb his authority."

* Salvatore Giunta's truly extraordinary heroism leads to a well-deserved, hard-earned Medal of Honor. Giunta is the first living recipient of the medal in any war since Vietnam.

* Austan Goolsbee will replace Christian Romer as the chairman of President Obama's Council of Economic Advisers. Key detail: because the Senate had already confirmed Goolsbee as a member of the council, he will not need approval to become its chair. (In other words, the dysfunctional embarrassment of the Senate will not leave the CEA without a leader for the next several months.)

* Actually, the Affordable Care Act does "bend the curve," at least a little.

* Great item from Jay Bookman: "However you want to measure it -- the ratio of government employees in the workforce, average income tax rates, total federal revenue -- government is not increasing its death grip on the American economy and by many important measures is taking less of a bite than it ever has. In other words, the basic narrative driving today's conservative anger has no real basis in fact."

* Charles Krauthammer actually managed to praise the Obama administration for the way its structured the latest round of Middle East peace talks.

* University employees pay more for health care.

* Sam Seder: "It's not that Beck fans are stupid -- it's that they passionately protest stuff they know nothing about."

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

MONDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* A encouraging new Basel III agreement: "The world's top bank regulators agreed Sunday on far-reaching new rules intended to make the global banking industry safer and protect international economies from future financial disasters."

* Felix Salmon helps explain how the Basel III agreement works, and why it's generating positive reviews.

* Better than expected results along the Gulf Coast? "[A]s the weeks pass, evidence is increasing that through a combination of luck (a fortunate shift in ocean currents that kept much of the oil away from shore) and ecological circumstance (the relatively warm waters that increased the breakdown rate of the oil), the gulf region appears to have escaped the direst predictions of the spring."

* On the other hand: "Scientists on a research vessel in the Gulf of Mexico are finding a substantial layer of oily sediment stretching for dozens of miles in all directions. Their discovery suggests that a lot of oil from the Deepwater Horizon didn't simply evaporate or dissipate into the water -- it has settled to the seafloor."

* Have I mentioned lately that global austerity measures are a bad idea? "Rising long-term unemployment poses the next big threat to the global recovery, the International Monetary Fund warned Monday, as slower growth forces governments to expand social safety nets and stimulate job creation even as they are being pressed to rein in finances."

* Warren Buffett sounds optimistic about the recovery: "I am a huge bull on this country. We are not going to have a double-dip recession at all."

* Jon Chait raises an observation I've been pushing for a while: "Gingrich was once the most powerful Republican in America and remains an influential figure within the party. D'Souza has done stints at the most prestigious conservative think-tanks. The line between man and kook is getting harder and harder to discern."

* The deficit is quite a bit smaller this August than last.

* Something to watch closely on Thursday: "A long-awaited showdown vote on the START arms control treaty between the U.S. and Russia will be held this week by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee."

* Apparently, Jamie Kirchik has been running a secret email list for center-right writers. (It's called "Freedom Mail." Seriously. How could I possibly make that up?) One wonders if the media will spend weeks obsessing over it.

* Newsweek relies on the Monthly to report on America's Top Service Schools.

* When Forbes decides credibility and journalistic standards are overrated.

* Martin Peretz recently made some truly bizarre anti-Muslim remarks, sparking high-profile rebukes from, among many others, Nicholas Kristof and James Fallows. Today, Peretz tried to walk back his inflammatory comments, but Andy Sabl didn't find the apology especially compelling.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

TUESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Welcome news out of Iran: "Sarah Shourd, one of three Americans held in Iran for more than a year on suspicion of spying, left the country on Tuesday after she was released on bail, and arrived in Oman a few hours later where she and her mother were reunited."

* Peace talks: "Israeli and Palestinian leaders met at this Red Sea resort Tuesday for their second round of direct talks, tackling for the first time some of the toughest 'core issues' dividing the parties as Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton scrambled to keep the talks from collapsing over the issue of renewed Israeli settlement construction."

* Best retail numbers since March: "Retail sales rose in August by the largest amount in five months, suggesting a late spring economic swoon was temporary and not the start of another recession."

* Better yet, the biggest monthly gain on business inventories in more than two years: "Inventories held by businesses jumped in July by the largest amount in two years while sales rebounded after two months of declines."

* Rumors abound on a possible Elizabeth Warren nomination to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

* The DNC pounced on the latest news about John Boehner's (R-Ohio) affinity for lobbyists, released its second ad of the week targeting the House Minority Leader.

* Violent crime fell sharply in 2009, but no one seems to know why.

* The International Monetary Fund is not insane. I'm delighted to hear that.

* The Press-Herald of Portland, Maine, really ought to be humiliated for running that apology.

* Fox News, in a surprising twist, will run Media Matters' ad on News Corp's RGA donation after all.

* Daniel Luzer chats at length with Alan Khazei, CEO of Be the Change, Inc., an organization that works to create national coalitions of non-profits and citizens to address issues like poverty and education, about the importance of national service.

* And sometimes, a headline can tell quite a story: "[Glenn] Beck puts his 8-28 rally on a timeline with Ten Commandments, the end of slavery, and Apollo 11."

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

WEDNESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* No breakthroughs: "Palestinian militants and Israeli forces attacked each other Wednesday, forming a grim backdrop for the latest round of U.S.-driven peace negotiations. The talks ended with no agreement on the most pressing issue: Jewish settlements."

* The oil leak stopped in July, but it's time to finish this once and for all: "The U.S. government's point man on the Gulf of Mexico oil spill said Wednesday that BP's blown-out well is expected to be permanently sealed and declared dead by Sunday, nearly five months after a rig explosion set off the disaster."

* Let your friends and family members who served in the military know -- veterans affected by the stop-loss policy are eligible for retroactive pay, but the filing deadline is in a couple of weeks.

* More good news out of Detroit: "U.S. auto sales this month are surprisingly strong, and the pace picked up during the nation's Labor Day holiday weekend, said Mark Fields, Ford Motor Co.s president of the Americas." (thanks to T.K.)

* He's serious about this, and I'm glad: "Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates on Tuesday laid out details of his plans to save $100 billion in five years as he tries to run the Pentagon more efficiently."

* For the discussion about "uncertainty," the facts are remarkably clear: "Businesses aren't hiring because of poor sales, period, end of story."

* The DNC hopes to show voters around "BoehnerLand."

* GOP leaders really do seem to believe, for no reason at all, that their tax policies are popular. They're not.

* Daniel Luzer explores "financial literacy" and student debt.

* I have no idea what the National Federation of Republican Women was thinking by hosting this event, but having the South Carolina Senate President Glenn McConnell (R) dressing up as a Confederate general, and posing with African Americans dressed as slaves, was a spectacularly bad idea.

* Elon Green on Debra Burlingame, who the media treats as "an apolitical voice representing relatives of the 9/11 victims," but who more closely resembles "a political operative with a right-wing agenda."

* And two years ago today, the economy "teetered on the brink of collapse as the nation's largest financial institutions began to fail." It was genuinely horrifying; here's my post from that morning.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

THURSDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Economists expected an increase in unemployment claims; fortunately, we saw a slight dip: "Weekly initial claims for unemployment insurance fell by 3,000 to 450,000 last week, the Labor Department said this morning. It is an encouraging sign, although no weekly number should be read into too much, as the data tends to jump around."

* The Senate Banking Committee ponders Chinese currency: "The Obama administration ratcheted up its criticisms of China's economic policies on Thursday, as Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner told Congress that China had substantially undervalued its currency to gain an unfair trade advantage, engaged in widespread theft of foreign technology and improperly blocked American imports."

* While Hurricane Karl takes aim at Mexican Gulf coast, Hurricane Julia, taking advantage of unusually warm water in the Atlantic, rose in intensity to become a powerful Category 4 storm.

* While the vast majority of national polls show Republicans with a generic-ballot edge, Politico's poll shows the parties tied.

* In a surprising move, Fox News has filed a lawsuit against Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan (D), who's taking on Rep. Roy Blunt (R) in a key Senate race. It appears to be "the first time such a fair use fight between a media company and a political campaign has been taken to court."

* In just a few weeks, the White House will host a summit on community colleges. Daniel Luzer added, "All that's needed are a location, participants, and, well, any substantive ideas at all."

* DNC's latest video hopes to characterize the Republican slate this year as uniquely crazy. The clip, hot on the heels of this week's Senate primary in Delaware, is called "Republicans 2010: What a Bunch," and it's a frame the GOP will have to hope doesn't catch on.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

FRIDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Elizabeth Warren finally and officially joins the Obama White House team. She even wrote a post today for the White House blog.

* Afghanistan: "Insurgents have kidnapped a parliamentary candidate and at least 18 election workers, Afghan officials said Friday, raising fears on the eve of an election that has emerged as a test of wills between the Afghan government and the Taliban."

* Finishing one of the jobs in the Gulf: "BP's once-gushing Macondo well should be finally and firmly 'killed' by Saturday, company officials said Friday morning. Both company and federal officials said that a "relief well," which had been drilled down nearly 18,000 feet beneath the floor of the Gulf of Mexico, appears to have broken through into the Macondo well's shaft at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. That was necessary in order to pump cement into the well from below, completing the long-awaited 'bottom kill' that will guarantee the well is sealed."

* Brian Beutler does a nice job gaming out how the House Democratic leadership may yet pull out a victory on the fight over Bush-era tax rates.

* A new phrase to look out for: "global climate disruption."

* One of the problems for Rush Limbaugh's listeners? The host struggles to tell the difference between facts and Internet hoaxes.

* The National Park Service hasn't quite issued the permits yet for the Stewart/Colbert event(s) scheduled for Oct. 30.

* Daniel Luzer: "After a decade of college costs (the actual cost of running an institution, not the price of tuition) increasing at the rate of two to five percent a year, they barely rose at all last year."

* Rep. Michele Bachmann thinks she understands what "negative rights" are. She really doesn't.

* In what I saw as one of the day's more interesting quotes, former Sen. Rick Santorum told right-wing activists at the Values Voter Summit, "Don't let them put you in the back of the bus." In context, when he mentioned "them," Santorum was referring to Republicans, not Democrats.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

MONDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Afghanistan's parliamentary elections on Saturday featured 309 violent incidents and 11 civilian deaths. Officials expected much worse, and "declared a semi-victory" over how smoothly the process went.

* Iraq: "Six car bombs detonated across Baghdad on Sunday and a suicide bomber blew up a car in nearby Fallujah, killing a total of 37 people and wounding more than 100 in the deadliest day of violence in Iraq since the United States announced the end of combat operations three weeks ago."

* BP's Macondo oil well really is dead. Good.

* It seems like a whole lot of apologies are in order (and then some): "The FBI improperly opened and extended investigations of some U.S. activist groups and put members of an environmental advocacy organization on a terrorist watch list, even though they were planning nonviolent civil disobedience, the Justice Department said Monday."

* Hurricane Karl kills three in Mexico, while a weakening Hurricane Igor bears down on Bermuda.

* Would the House really adjourn this week? It'd be the earliest adjournment in 50 years.

* It's frightening to see how anxious Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to initiate a military confrontation with Iran.

* If wealthy hedge fund managers are waiting for mainstream sympathy, they'll be waiting a long time.

* Why for-profit colleges are like a pack of smokes.

* Sign of the times: "Howard Fineman, one of the more recognizable pundits on cable television and a correspondent for Newsweek for 30 years, is leaving the magazine to become a senior editor at The Huffington Post."

* Who helped break the Senate? "Gingrich Senators" had a lot to do with it: "That is, almost all of the increased polarization in the Senate over the past three decades is due to House members elected since 1978 who have since migrated to the Senate."

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

TUESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* The Fed is worried, but for now, it isn't doing anything: "Federal Reserve officials signaled for the first time on Tuesday that they are worried that the slow-moving recovery could be undermined by very low rates of inflation and hinted that they might resume buying vast amounts of government debt."

* Paul Krugman, summarizing the Fed' position, added, "We're failing in our mandate to deliver full employment; meanwhile, inflation is below target; therefore, we've decided to do nothing."

* Afghanistan: "The worst helicopter crash in four years killed nine people, bringing NATO fatalities in 2010 to 529 and making it the most deadly year of the war since 2001.... The NATO statement did not list the nationality of the soldiers, but Pentagon officials said Tuesday that most of the dead were Americans."

* Lawrence Summers will leave his job as the president's National Economic Council director after the midterm elections. Bloomberg reported this earlier, and the White House confirmed the news this afternoon.

* Despite rumored reports to the contrary yesterday, the House will not adjourn this week: "Majority Leader Steny Hoyer on Tuesday shot down the suggestion that the House might adjourn at the end of this week, saying Members would definitely be in session at least through next week."

* Unexpected news from the housing sector: "Some good news for the housing market: Building starts on new homes climbed 10.5 percent in August, the Census Bureau announced this morning. Construction ramped up to an annualized pace of 598,000 homes, the highest rate since early spring. Economists had expected starts to decline slightly."

* President Obama, speaking in Philadelphia last night, offered a message to the Democratic base: "Folks, wake up! This is not some academic exercise."

* The Kaiser Family Foundation has done a tremendous job creating a new site explaining the new health care law, including an extremely helpful timeline, noting when changes will take effect. Worth bookmarking for future reference.

* Daniel Luzer on those with college degrees making more money than those without: "[C]ollege is still worth it. This is not, however, because college is any more valuable or remunerative than it used to be, but just because things are much, much worse for people who didn't go to college."

* Fox News really isn't in a position to complain about anything being taken out of context.

* GOProud, a group of gay Republicans, apparently doesn't understand that Harry Reid had to switch his vote on the defense authorization bill today for procedural reasons. Not the sharpest group of folks.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

WEDNESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Jerusalem: "With Israel's construction freeze on Jewish settlements in the West Bank due to end this weekend, Israeli and Palestinian negotiators were seeking an elusive formula on Wednesday to keep their new peace talks going while both sides warned that if the talks ended, violence could erupt. As if to illustrate that warning, Palestinians clashed with Israeli security forces in and around the Old City of Jerusalem on Wednesday after an Israeli security guard fatally shot a Palestinian resident of Silwan."

* In a surprise move, Senate Republicans decided not to replace Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) as the ranking member on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The caucus did replace her, though, in the Senate leadership with John Barrasso of Wyoming.

* House Republicans will unveil "The Pledge to America" tomorrow. I'll have plenty of coverage once it's released.

* Look for Senate Dems to give the Disclose Act another try tomorrow, but it's probably best to keep expectations low.

* Justice Antonin Scalia and women's rights really don't go together well.

* In an apparent attempt to make my head explode, disgraced Republican lobbyist Ralph Reed insists he's "proud" of the work he did for Jack Abramoff.

* Michael Tomasky makes it plain: "A black guy with an alien name who was called a Muslim and a terrorist got elected president of the US by saying that he would raise taxes on people above $250,000. To which a Blue Dog would say, well, he lost my district by 15 points. To which I say, well, you're not black with an alien name who's being called a Muslim. Get out there and show some guts for a change."

* A pet peeve: when folks exaggerate the length of the Senate Dems' 60-vote majority. Kevin helpfully sets the record straight.

* Wait, the RNC is still paying Sarah Palin's legal bills? The 2008 campaign was nearly two years ago, but the expenses are apparently ongoing.

* On a related note, Craig Smith makes my day a little brighter, noting that "former half-term governor" line is catching on.

* Apparently the rate at which Americans finish college is not improving much.

* If you haven't seen Sen. Al Franken's (D-Minn.) remarks on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" from the Senate floor last night, they're well worth watching.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

THURSDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* The U.S. is looking for some partners: "Telling the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday that his efforts to engage friends and adversaries were beginning to bear fruit, President Obama called on Arab states to support fragile Middle East peace talks and warned Iran that it would face sustained international pressure if it did not negotiate seriously over its nuclear program."

* Soon after, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told the General Assembly that most of the world believes the U.S. government was responsible for executing the Sept. 11 attacks. The remarks prompted U.S. and European delegations to walk out.

* There were some hopes that the number of first-time filers of unemployment benefits would drop this week. That didn't happen: "Initial claims for jobless aid rose by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 465,000, the Labor Department said Thursday." The uptick reversed a five-week trend.

* Housing market: "Sales of previously occupied homes rose last month, but not enough to keep August from being the second-worst month for sales in more than a decade."

* The author of the House Republicans' "Pledge for America" is a House GOP staffer "who, up till April 2010, served as a lobbyist for some of the nation's most powerful oil, pharmaceutical, and insurance companies."

* Good news out of Florida: "A 30-year-old Florida law that prohibits adoption by gay men and lesbians is unconstitutional, a state appeals court ruled on Wednesday, and the state's governor said the law would not be enforced pending a decision on whether to appeal." Gov. Charlie Crist (I) applauded the decision and said the ban would stop being enforced immediately.

* As if conservative Republicans weren't enough, conservative Democrats can screw up our system of government, too: "President Obama's pick to serve as head of the Office of Management and Budget looked headed for an easy Senate confirmation, until this afternoon, when Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) announced she will place a hold on the nomination until the Obama administration lifts a moratorium on deep-water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico."

* It's a problem that's getting worse: "At a time of growing tensions involving Muslims in the United States, a record number of Muslim workers are complaining of employment discrimination, from co-workers calling them 'terrorist' or 'Osama' to employers barring them from wearing head scarves or taking prayer breaks."

* New allies for for-profit colleges?

* Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) knows someone in his office was responsible for publishing "all f*ggots must die" online, but he doesn't know who.

* The House GOP leadership probably should have scheduled their "Pledge" event a little better -- it coincided with President Obama's remarks at the United Nations, and the news networks covered the president instead of John Boehner.

* President Obama, talking to Democratic supporters last night: "The single biggest threat to our success is not the other party. It's us. It's complacency. It's apathy. It's indifference. It's people feeling like, well, we only got 80 percent of what we want, we didn't get the other 20, so we're just going to sit on our hands."

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

FRIDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* A "stronger-than-expected increase in orders for manufactured goods in August" signaled encouraging economic news.

* The House probably won't vote on tax cuts before the midterm elections, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi hinted today that the schedule is far from final.

* Mahmoud Ahmadinejad argued yesterday that much of the world believes the U.S. government was responsible for 9/11. In an interview today, President Obama was not pleased: "It was offensive. It was hateful. And particularly for him to make the statement here in Manhattan, just a little north of ground zero, where families lost their loved ones -- people of all faiths, all ethnicities, who see this as the seminal tragedy of this generation -- for him to make a statement like that was inexcusable."

* For those of us who eat food, the news from the Hill isn't good: "Sen. Tom Coburn objected again Thursday to bringing up a sweeping overhaul of food safety regulations, putting the future of the bill in doubt as the 111th Congress enters its final months."

* The Justice Department feels compelled to defend the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law in court, but the White House went out of its way to make clear that "the legal maneuver was a formality, not an indication of presidential policy." Press Secretary Robert Gibbs even issued a statement: "This filing in no way diminishes the president's firm commitment to achieve a legislative repeal of D.A.D.T. -- indeed, it clearly shows why Congress must act to end this misguided policy."

* On a related note, when the DADT policy ends, Harvard will reinstate its ROTC program on campus.

* In media news, Jonathan Klein is leaving CNN, and Jeff Zucker is leaving NBC Universal.

* Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) was asked today to identify some government program congressional Republicans would cut if they were in the majority. He couldn't name anything.

* Does Fox News' lawsuit against Senate candidate Robin Carnahan (D-Mo.) have merit? No, actually, it doesn't.

* If "Young Guns" is going to be a best seller, folks probably should check the comprehensive fact-check of the book.

* The New York Times reports on Americans for Job Security really being a front for political operatives funneling corporate money for electoral ends. Of course, Washington Monthly readers learned all about this in our magazine six years ago.

* The Tea Party crowd thinks it embodies the traditions of the Founding Fathers. That's absurd.

* In case you missed it, Stephen Colbert testified -- mostly, but not entirely, in character -- before the House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law this morning, speaking at a hearing on "Protecting America's Harvest." It was pretty amusing, but Fox News and Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) really didn't think so.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

MONDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Afghanistan: "Evidence is mounting that fraud in last weekend's parliamentary election was so widespread that it could affect the results in a third of provinces, calling into question the credibility of a vote that was an important test of the American and Afghan effort to build a stable and legitimate government."

* Netanyahu pushes peace talks to the breaking point: "Israel's decision this weekend to end its freeze on West Bank Jewish settlement construction sent diplomats on three continents into desperate activity on Monday as they tried to keep Middle East peace talks alive. And although the discussions covered many topics, in the end they came down to one stubborn goal: how to end settlement construction."

* It never should have taken this for the bill to become law: "With Congress just about out the door for the remainder of the election season, President Obama on Monday signed a bill to aid small businesses, saying it will do 'two big things: It's going to cut taxes, and it's going to make more loans available.'"

* Clearly not the headlines civil libertarians hoped to see: 1. "U.S. Tries to Make It Easier to Wiretap the Internet" 2. "Money Transfers Could Face Anti-Terrorism Scrutiny" 3. "Critics Balk at Obama's Justification for Killing American Terrorist."

* Responding to the headlines, Michael Crowley notes, "My hunch is that Obama could make an excellent argument against all these positions, and that it pains him to adopt them. But also that he gets constant and chilling briefings about the terror threat and would rather be accused of limiting civil liberties than of having been less than fully vigilant."

* Glenn Greenwald is far less forgiving.

* Sharp piece from John Harwood: it's the economy, not "empathy," that's driving down President Obama's political support.

* The president spoke to college journalists today, and delivered a direct message to younger voters about the midterms: "You can't sit it out. You can't suddenly just check in once every ten years or so on an exciting presidential election and then not pay attention during big midterm elections where we have a real big choice between Democrats and Republicans.... That is a big choice. That has big consequences. So even though this may not be as exciting as a presidential election it is going to make a huge difference in terms of whether we are going to be able to move our agenda forward over the next couple years."

* On a related note, the impact of the 2010 elections on American colleges really is significant, whether students fully appreciate it or not.

* And finally, in a rare congressional move, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) got so sick of attacks from Concerned Taxpayers of America that he decided to stop by the right-wing group's offices for a surprise visit.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

TUESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Something to keep a close eye on in Afghanistan: "The commander of NATO troops in Afghanistan said Tuesday that the Taliban are approaching the Afghan government and foreign forces about laying down arms after almost nine years of insurgency. US General David Petraeus, who commands more than 150,000 NATO and US troops in Afghanistan, said many small insurgent groups had already made "overtures" to NATO forces about quitting the fight."

* Hoping to keep the government open: "The Senate voted 83-15 on Tuesday to end debate and move to consideration of a stopgap spending measure to avoid a government shutdown later this week. Senators could vote on final passage of the legislation Wednesday, then head out of town to campaign for the November midterm elections."

* Another successful filibuster: "Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked a Democratic plan to encourage companies to bring jobs back from overseas, as a united GOP caucus voted against a motion to debate the measure on the Senate floor."

* I don't know if we're allowed to talk about this without being accused of class warfare, but the income gap between the richest and poorest Americans grew last year "to its widest amount on record."

* The DNC's ongoing "Boehnerization" of the Republican Party continues with a new web video contrasting GOP rhetoric with Democratic action.

* Tragic shooting at the University of Texas.

* On a related note, an interesting report about gun violence: "A study due to be released this week by a coalition called Mayors Against Illegal Guns uses previously unavailable federal gun data to identify what it says are the states that most often export guns used in crimes across state lines. It concludes that the 10 worst offenders per capita, led by Mississippi, West Virginia and Kentucky, supplied nearly half the 43,000 guns traced to crime scenes in other states last year."

* When Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) talks about treating public colleges "like a business," he doesn't really know what he's talking about.

* Sen. Mary Landrieu's (D-La.) fealty to the oil industry just doesn't seem healthy.

* Wait, World War I isn't technically over?

* Fox News' Stuart Varney, who presents himself as some kind of business journalist, is painfully confused -- even by the network's low standards -- about the basics of economics. What an embarrassment.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

* I don't know if we're allowed to talk about this without being accused of class warfare, but the income gap between the richest and poorest Americans grew last year "to its widest amount on record."

Damn socialist redistribution of wealth!

WEDNESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Terror threat: "Threats of a possible 'Mumbai-style' terror attack on Western interests in Europe are considered 'credible' and U.S. officials aren't ruling out the possibility that the plot could extend to the U.S., a senior U.S. counterterrorism official told NBC News. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said information about a possible plot emanating from al-Qaida-linked groups in northwest Pakistan was first picked up by U.S. intelligence several weeks ago and was believed to be aimed at targets in France, Germany or the United Kingdom."

* It's not much of a surprise, but the House has officially decided to punt on the tax-policy debate until after the midterms.

* Stem-cell research can continue for now: "A federal appeals courts Tuesday ruled that the federal government can continue funding human embryonic stem cell research pending the outcome of a lawsuit challenging the Obama administration's new policies on the controversial field of science."

* Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), a constant source of crushing disappointment, went to the far-right Heritage Foundation today to endorse the Republican line on tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires.

* In light of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel's imminent departure, Dave Weigel reviews why the left has never liked him.

* Good idea: "Nine retired U.S. military officers are urging that the U.S. travel ban to Cuba be lifted."

* Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) holds up millions of dollars in aid for Haiti earthquake survivors. Seriously.

* On a related note, Coburn really will just block anything and everything: "A bill aimed at increasing enforcement of existing legislation to protect sharks was scuttled in the Senate today when Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), one of the chamber's chief obstructionists, objected to a unanimous consent request by Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)."

* Measuring what colleges do isn't easy.

* As appointed Sen. Ted Kaufmann (D-Del.) prepares to wrap up his brief tenure, he makes it plain: "I don't know what the answer is. I don't know what to say about the system. The system is so awful."

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

THURSDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel will leave his post tomorrow, in preparation for a mayoral campaign in Chicago. His post will be filled, at least for now, by senior adviser Pete Rouse, though he may be "interim" and may not want the job long-term.

* A pleasant surprise: "New claims for unemployment benefits plunged by 16,000 last week to 453,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday, a steeper fall than had been anticipated in a sign that labor markets may be strengthening modestly."

* The Senate managed to confirm two Federal Reserve Board governor nominees, Janet Yellen and Sarah Bloom Raskin. A third, economist Peter Diamond, was blocked by Republicans for no reason. Again.

* Afghanistan: "Pakistan brought a critical NATO supply route for U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan to an abrupt halt on Thursday after NATO aircraft crossed into Pakistan in a confused attack that killed three Pakistani paramilitary troops."

* Revised totals showed that the economy grew at 1.7% in the second quarter, up ever so slightly from the previous 1.6% estimate.

* AIG is paying us back, and will likely return a profit to U.S. taxpayers.

* No progress on the Korean peninsula: "The first military talks in two years between North and South Korea ended Thursday with no apparent progress and no new talks scheduled, according to an official with South Korea's Defense Ministry."

* The Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) staffer who published an item online saying "all fa**ots must die" has been identified and fired.

* With Elizabeth Warren leaving the Hill for the administration, departing appointed Sen. Ted Kaufman (D-Del.) will take her place overseeing TARP for Congress. He's a strong choice.

* Good: "J.P. Morgan Chase, one of the nation's leading banks, announced Wednesday that it will freeze foreclosures in about half the country because of flawed paperwork, a move that Wall Street analysts said will pressure the rest of the industry to follow suit. "

* Congress' Net Neutrality bill dies.

* Andrew Shirvell, a lawyer in the office of Michigan Attorney General, seems like a very odd man.

* This is pretty scandalous: "Experts are now seriously questioning Pinal County Sheriff's Deputy Louie Puroll's much-hyped tale of being shot by drug smugglers in a remote part of the Arizona desert. But even if every detail of Puroll's story is true, it still does not square with many of the claims the Sheriff's office has peddled about the case."

* President Obama gave a hearty plug to Jon Stewart's planned rally to "restore sanity" yesterday in Virginia. Describing the kind of folks who'll attend, Obama said, "They are just expecting some common sense. ... Having those voices lifted up is really important."

* And maybe it's just me, but when I hear about a "Goldilocks" planet that appears capable of supporting life, I don't think, "Cool, maybe there are aliens there." I think "Cool, maybe we can move there after we've finished screwing up here."

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

FRIDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* A governing deal in place in Baghdad? "Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki of Iraq appeared almost assured of a second term in office on Friday after winning the support of an anti-American Shiite Islamic movement whose return to political power could reshape relations with the United States.... [A]t a time when public frustration and extremist violence have mounted, it could still take weeks or months more for Mr. Maliki to secure reelection and form a new government."

* As the diplomatic efforts continue, today marks an unflattering milestone: "Iraq on Friday will surpass the record for the country that has gone the longest between holding parliamentary elections and forming a government, experts say."

* Rahm Emanuel gets an emotional send-off from the White House, as Pete Rouse gets to work. (It's still unclear just how long Rouse's tenure is intended to last.)

* Horrifying beyond words: "American scientists deliberately infected prisoners and patients in a mental hospital in Guatemala with syphilis 60 years ago, a recently unearthed experiment that prompted U.S. officials to apologize Friday and declare outrage over 'such reprehensible research.'"

* Pakistan: "Political upheaval in Pakistan and a sudden rupture in relations with the United States have heightened the Obama administration's concern about the stability of a crucial partner in its Afghanistan war strategy."

* Crisis in Quito*: "Ecuador's military staged a spectacular rescue Thursday night to free President Rafael Correa, who was holed up in a hospital for more than 12 hours by a police uprising that threatened the nation's stability."

* Remember the flash crash? "A trading firm's use of a computer sell order triggered the May 6 market plunge, which sent the Dow Jones industrial average tumbling nearly 1,000 points in less than a half-hour, federal regulators said Friday.... The firm's trade, worth $4.1 billion, led to a chain of events the ended with market players swiftly pulling their money from stock market, the report said."

* Daniel Luzer: "[T]here's something wrong with encouraging everyone to get a BA. But there's something very wrong with the fact that our country doesn't really offer much for high school students who aren't going to earn a BA."

* R.I.P., Neil Alan Smith.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

*Corrected

MONDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* The slow process of Iraqi diplomacy: "Officials from the Sunni-backed slate that won the most votes in Iraq's parliamentary election said Monday that they might support letting Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki keep his job if their top candidate is sworn in as president with expanded powers."

* A vague State Department "travel alert" that did not include advice to avoid Europe: "The Obama administration formally warned Americans Sunday about potential terrorist attacks in Europe, urging U.S. citizens to be careful on public transportation and at tourist sites." Japan and Sweden issued similar alerts today.

* Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan spent her first morning on the high court saying more than Clarence Thomas has said in over a decade.

* A pretty significant political corruption scandal in Alabama puts several state lawmakers in handcuffs.

* An overdue resignation: "Wisconsin District Attorney Kenneth Kratz resigned today, effective immediately, after several women alleged he sent sexually inappropriate text messages during his time as DA in Calumet County."

* ThinkProgress did a nice job pulling together a video collection featuring quite a few Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill, all of whom were asked to identify specific areas of the budget they'd like to cut, and all whom failed.

* What do you know, James O'Keefe can be even more insufferable.

* The religious right has every reason to be nervous about the future of their culture war -- young people just don't look at the world the way the far-right movement does.

* On a related note, progress on sex-ed: "For the first time in more than a decade, the federal government is funding sex education programs that are not based solely on abstinence. But they are not just about handing out condoms, either."

* Paul Krugman notices that "the Ministry of Propaganda has, in effect, seized control of the Politburo." (Fox News and the Republican Party, I think he's talking to you.)

* Considering the future of for-profit colleges after the midterm elections have come and gone.

* I don't know if someone enforcing a copyright will force this from YouTube, but for now, "Donald Duck Meets Glenn Beck in Right Wing Radio Duck" is extremely clever and well worth watching.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

TUESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Shahzad sentenced to life behind bars: "Faisal Shahzad, who pleaded guilty to trying to blow up a sport utility vehicle carrying a homemade bomb in May in Times Square, thick with Saturday visitors, was sentenced on Tuesday morning to spend the rest of his life in prison."

* Have Karl Rove's shady campaign operations run afoul of federal tax law? Maybe: "Two campaign finance watchdogs have asked the IRS to investigate a conservative group backed by Karl Rove. Democracy 21 and the Campaign Legal Center argue Crossroads GPS, a conservative group spending heavily in this year's campaign races, is violating tax laws meant to limit political activity by non-profit groups."

* Mining safety matters: "Federal regulators have increased their inspections at 89 coal mines with poor safety records, including Loveridge. They have also upped their use of orders to shut down mines until safety problems are fixed. But despite their efforts, five men were killed by heavy machinery; four were killed by falling rock. They died in mines where safety citations had increased about 31 percent after the Upper Big Branch blast."

* Good idea: "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Zoe Lofgren and other California Democrats are calling for a federal investigation into irregularities in processing foreclosures of thousands of homes by some of the nation's largest mortgage lenders."

* Rachel Maddow stopped by Christine O'Donnell's (R) campaign headquarters today. It didn't go well.

* Another sign of the media times: "Howard Kurtz, a three-decade veteran of The Washington Post who came to embody insider Washington media reporting with his weekly column and CNN television show, is leaving The Post for Tina Brown's news and commentary Web site, The Daily Beast."

* I know the right finds this inconvenient, but energy independence really is a national security issue.

* MSNBC to undergo some rebranding, including a new tagline: "Lean Forward."

* Brilliant piece from Barry Friedman and Dahlia Lithwick: "How to explain the [conservative Supreme Court] justices shoving the law rightward, while everyone thinks it is dead center or too far left? The answer is that [Chief Justice] Roberts is a brilliant magician. He and his four fellow conservative justices have worked some classic illusionist tricks to distract us from seeing the truth. Roberts is likely the first chief justice to understand that the message matters as much as the outcome. He has played his role with consummate skill, allowing the law to shape-shift before our very eyes, even as he and his fellow conservatives claim that nothing is happening."

* Daniel Luzer: "Community Colleges and the Training Part of Education."

* I'm delighted to be included on this list, but I suppose it means I'll have to start taking the Twitter account more seriously.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.

WEDNESDAY'S MINI-REPORT.... Today's edition of quick hits:

* Pakistan received an apology from the U.S. ambassador and condolences from Gen. Petraeus: "An investigation into a NATO airstrike that killed two Pakistani soldiers last week, triggering retaliatory torchings of coalition supply trucks and the closure of a key border crossing, has concluded that the incident was the result of poor cross-border coordination."

* In related news: "Dozens of tankers carrying fuel to Afghanistan for NATO troops were torched near Quetta in western Pakistan on Wednesday, the third major attack on supplies since Pakistan closed one border crossing to Afghanistan a week ago and the first at the only checkpoint that remained open."

* Afghanistan: "Taliban representatives and the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai have begun secret, high-level talks over a negotiated end to the war, according to Afghan and Arab sources."

* I have a strong hunch election-year politics might have had something to do with this: "The state of West Virginia sued two federal agencies on Wednesday, seeking to reverse the stricter controls on mountaintop coal mining adopted in 2009 by the Obama administration."

* ThinkProgress highlighted the problem yesterday of foreign fundraising from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which is investing $75 million in attack ads against Democrats this election season. Yesterday, the Chamber offered a vague defense. Today, the business lobby went after ThinkProgress with a vengeance.

* Rick Sanchez spoke publicly today for the first time since last week's radio tirade, and he apologized for what he called "inartful," "tired and mangled" words that he said "were never intended to suggest any sort of narrow-mindedness and should never have been made."

* For all the grief I gave Thomas Friedman over his last column, he delivers in a big way today with a terrific column on Prop 23 in California.

* R.I.P., former Rep. Karen McCarthy.

* Daniel Luzer: "Community Colleges: Their Finest Hour?"

* And finally, Fox News' "Fox & Friends" told viewers this morning that the city of Los Angeles was ordering 10,000 jetpacks at a cost of $100,000 each. That, of course, wasn't even close to being true. "We certainly haven't bought any jetpacks," police chief Charlie Beck told the L.A. Times. "We haven't bought [squad] cars for two years." So, where'd did Fox News hear about this? The story apparently originated with the Weekly World News, a supermarket tabloid.

Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.