The Early Morning Quickie Edition.

Second day of falling oil prices; I guess the Prez and VP having "big money oil" connections is good for something--drop a quick call and prices drop...it's simply amazing how that works.

Rendition row "hurts US-EU ties"; don't worry, Tony Blair will don the kneepads again to make things right.

Washington sniper on trial again; government prosecutor's now batting 0-1 after losing Moussaoui case, vows better performance in John Allen Muhammad prosecution, hopes to break slump.

UN to quiz Washington on torture; Secret Service bought quiz answers on eBay, still expect low scores.

Citizens getting seriously ill from gas-extraction process, EPA refuses to investigate -- a failure one of its own engineers calls "irrational and corrupt"; really? Where have we heard those words uttered before in a sentence about a certain administration/Congress?

At sentencing, Zacarias Moussaoui was defiant. He said America's grief was "very selective," as if "only you feel pain." He called his trial "a wasted opportunity to know why people like me and Mohammed Atta undertake their activities." Probably true on both accounts--not that it will change anything, but true nevertheless....

In image war, U.S. shows video of bumbling Zarqawi; America's Funniest Home Videos making a version for al-Jazeera to premiere this fall. (Powerline Blog is supposed to have the full video up at their site right here...it's the fourth video down; good luck on getting it working because its player hates Firefox.)

U.S. to step up disassembly of older nuclear warheads; time to get rid of the "old and busted" and get some of the newer, high-tech WMDs.

Resistant lawmakers now back higher gas mileage standards; "Don't make us save our collective asses do our sworn duty," warns Congress to automakers.

Tax deal sets day of reckoning--tough choice on deficit in store for president, Congress in 2011; WTF happened to fiscal responsibility in this country?

To earmarking senators, veto seems to spell vote; pork barrel spending is the "in" thing again. Deficit...what deficit? What tall tales dost thou spin?

Post office hopes idea of "forever stamp" sticks; email, cell phones, web-enabled devices, and cans attached to string--exactly who needs snail mail anymore?

Meaningful African-American participation in new Nationals ownership group lead by Bethesda developer Theodore N. Lerner; still no "meaningful" changes in the ghetto surrounding Washington, D.C..

House lobbying rules call for more disclosure; by a vote of 217 to 213, the House agreed to fly in corporate jets furnished by Boeing, eat lunch paid for by Outback Steakhouse, and sleep on it in free rooms provided by the Hilton head--at no charge, of course.

Rumsfeld now denies he claimed he knew where WMDs were in 2003; crowd amazed as nose grows 2 feet after statement.

Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright about North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il: "We didn't know a lot about him. Our intelligence said that he was crazy and a pervert"; Bill Clinton gives 2 excited thumbs up, "he's my kind of guy."

Tags: [falling oil prices], [cost of oil down by $1.90], [rendition row "hurts US-EU ties"], [Washington sniper on trial again], [John Allen Muhammad], [UN], [United Nations], [UN to quiz Washington on torture], [gas-extraction process], [people getting seriously ill from gas-extraction process, but the EPA does nothing], [EPA: irrational and corrupt], [Zacarias Moussaoui], [Moussaoui defiant after trial], ["a wasted opportunity to know why people like me and Mohammed Atta undertake their activities"], [Zarqawi], [leader of Iraqi al-Qaeda fumbles with gun, caught on video], [US military war propaganda video starring Zarqawi], [US to step up disassembly of old nuclear warheads], [higher gas mileage standards], [resistant lawmakers now back higher gas mileage standards], [day of reckoning], [tough choice on deficit in store for president, Congress in 2011], [whatever happened to fiscal responsibility?], [veto = vote for earmarking senators], [pork barrel spending], [forever stamp], [forever stamp: forever disaster for post office?], [Nationals], [new Nationals ownership group lead by Bethesda developer], [Theodore N. Lerner], [House lobbying rules call for more disclosure], [Rumsfeld], [Rumsfeld denies he claimed he knew where WMDs were in 2003], [Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright], [North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il], ["intelligence said that Kim was crazy and a pervert"]