Morning News Roundup (08 May)

First a note: this week is going to be a slow week from me on the blog as I need to focus on work as well as take some time to enjoy the company of some out-of-town guests. So posting will be largely limited to the news roundups in the morn.

• As expected, President Bush looked to the inner circle and nominated Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden (who formerly oversaw the NSA's illegal wiretapping program) to head the CIA after Porter Goss' surprise resignation on Friday. However, the welcome wagon is still sitting in the garage (via the WaPo):
  

  Republican chairmen of the House and Senate intelligence panels raised serious concerns Sunday about Hayden, whose name surfaced for the job immediately after the abrupt resignation of Porter Goss on Friday, with Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.) calling him "the wrong man at the wrong place at the wrong time."
  
  Other Republicans and Democrats, appearing on Sunday talk shows, praised Hayden's credentials but said they, too, are troubled by President Bush's decision to place a military officer at the helm of a civilian intelligence agency. Hayden has defended Bush's domestic eavesdropping program, run by the NSA under Hayden's leadership, since its disclosure in December.

  
  Salon's War Room also has this reminder:
  

  Hayden was the point man on the president's warrantless spying program, and in that role he showed something less than a clear appreciation for -- or even an understanding of -- the laws that protect American citizens from government intrusion. Defending the warrantless spying program back in January, Hayden said that employees at the NSA were experts in the Fourth Amendment, that it doesn't mention "probable cause," and that it sets a "reasonableness" standard for government searches. In fact, the Fourth Amendment says that "no warrants shall issue but upon probable cause," a standard Hayden admitted wasn't used in the Bush administration's warrantless spying program.

• In related news to the Goss departure: Kyle (Dusty) Foggo, the No. 3 official at the CIA, could soon be indicted in a widening FBI investigation of the parties thrown by defense contractor Brent Wilkes, named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the bribery conviction of former Rep. Randall (Duke) Cunningham, law enforcement sources said. A CIA spokeswoman said Foggo went to the lavish weekly hospitality-suite parties at the Watergate and Westin Grand hotels but "just for poker." [NY Daily News]
  
  
• Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has written to George W Bush proposing "new solutions" to their differences. This development comes a day after Iran's parliament threatened to pull out of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty if Western pressure over its programme increases. [BBC]
  
  
• Two economic items from ThinkProgress' daily summary, ThinkFast:
  

  “Near poor” Americans feeling the pinch: “[I]n recent years, with the soaring costs of housing and medical care and a decline in low-end wages and benefits, tens of millions are living on even shakier ground than before, according to studies of what some scholars call the ‘near poor.’”
  
  Senator Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) and Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-IL) “plan to extend [tax] breaks that mostly benefit the wealthy and Wall Street at the expense of reductions for middle-income households.”

• A group of House Republicans wants to do away with bilingual ballots and translation assistance at the polls, a reflection of how tensions over immigration are pervading other issues. The 56 lawmakers support the act, but say the language assistance to voters — provided throughout much of California — undermines national unity, increases the risk of election fraud, and puts an undue burden on state and local governments. [LATimes]
  
  
• Car bombs killed at least 16 people and injured dozens yesterday in Baghdad and a Shi'ite holy city, dashing hopes that formation of a new government alone would provide a quick end to the country's violence. At least 25 others were killed or found dead yesterday, including a US Marine who was mortally wounded in the insurgent bastion of Anbar Province in western Iraq.
  
  Some of the victims appeared to have been abducted and killed by sectarian death squads that target members of rival religious communities. [Boston Globe]
  
  
• Tom Cruise's latest Mission Impossible vehicle landed at the top of the charts over the weekend, but underperformed at just around $48 million (coming in under the openings for other recent spy adventures like Mr. and Mrs. Smith and the Bourne Supremacy). Mrs. F and I saw it this weekend, and it was actually a pretty darn good summer popcorn movie, and far better than the last effort directed by John Woo.
  
  
• Sven-Goran Eriksson has named his 23-man provisional lineup for England's World Cup team, and it's got some surprises:
  

  The biggest shock is the inclusion of Arsenal's 17-year-old striker Theo Walcott, who is yet to play a single minute in the Premiership and has only played 23 professional matches, scoring five goals. Another surprise is the appearance of Spurs' 19-year-old Aaron Lennon - who wasn't a first-team regular until two months ago.

• FotF Kat has the goods on the President's one shining moment.