• Republicans wish Dick Cheney would stop saying that Barack Obama will cause a terrorist attack, too, because he's making them all look like racist fear-mongers. Oh, wait. [The Hill]

• Minnesota Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann is encouraging her constituents to arm themselves against the government and consider revolution over Obama's cap-and-trade plan on carbon dioxide emissions. Dick Cheney thanks her. [Huffington Post]
• New York State Attorney General Andrew "Shucking And Jiving Is Not A Racist Term" Cuomo says that he has personally persuaded 9 or the top 10 AIG bonus recipients to give back their bonuses. It totes has nothing to do with the armed mobs. Also, he'll be running in the primary against incumbent governor David Paterson next year. [NY Times]
• Because some of the AIG guys are giving back their bonuses — except the guys in London, who are telling Andy to go fuck himself gently with a chainsaw — the Senate is delaying action on the bill that would tax the hell out of those bonuses. Well, that and because they don't have the votes and Obama might not sign it. [Washington Post]
• Goldman Sachs will probably pay its TARP loan back early because they're sick of dealing with government restrictions and never needed the money in the first place, but Henry Paulson made them take it. Oh, great. [NY Times]
• The Senate just voted to increase the ranks of community organizers for Sarah Palin to insult at the 2012 Republican National Convention. [NY Times]
• Some Senators are introducing a campaign finance reform bill that is never going anywhere because it would prohibit lobbyists from ever donating to candidates and publicly finance all House and Senate Candidates (about 800-850 in an average election year, since many Congress members don't face challengers) to the tune of an average of $1 million apiece as long as they can get 1,500 people in their own states to donate money. In other words, your tax dollars will be paying for those ubiquitous campaign ads if it does pass. [Washington Post]
• Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz revealed that she's had breast cancer for more than a year, and is introducing a bill to get people more educated about breast cancer. [ABC News]
• China and Russia want the International Monetary Fund to create a world currency so that America will lose influence in the world financial market, and Ron Paul's head just exploded. [Wall Street Journal]

Look, she's a great politician, but (as anyone who works in Washington knows), being a great politician doesn't mean you have to be book-smart or good at the issues and, as these non-Hannity, non-ass-kissery interviews are showing, she's really sort of not. Even her sister admits that learning about all the important stuff you need to run the country "is like the worst college exam cram period ever." You know what sucks about cramming for exams? You never recall all the information you need for the exam, and you sure as shit don't remember a word of it later. Governor Palin's going to be Vice President for 4 years if she gets elected (or, if anything happens to Old Johnny, President) and we're supposed to rely on her cramming for two weeks for a 90-minute debate as her preparation to tackle the challenges facing our country? When she can't even retain enough information to stand her ground in an interview with Katie Couric?

I mean, I can answer the question of when John McCain was out there pushing for more regulation: The McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Bill. Of course, Republicans all hate the bill and pushing for regulation was, until last week, an anathema to them, but that was McCain's singular biggest accomplishment this decade and she can't pull that one out of her ass in a soft-focus interview with softball pitcher Katie Couric? What is she going to do in meetings with heads of state when they aren't trying to fuck her?

Anyway, so, basically, this whole hullabaloo about McCain postponing the debate to be in Washington has as much to do about getting Sarah Palin out of having to play in the Big Leagues as it does with showing some bullshit leadership by fucking over the political process. Campbell Brown was right — either she can play the game or she can't, and there's not a damn sexist thing about asking her to do it and a ton of sexist shit about not letting her try. You know Hillary Clinton would be ready, at 9 pm or 3 am.

Worst Of Sarah Palin's Katie Couric Interview (So Far) [Gawker]
One-On-One With Sarah Palin [CBS News]
McCain Camp Wants To Postpone VP Debate [Huffington Post]
Pact on Debates Will Let McCain and Obama Spar [NY Times]
Did Palin Get Vetted? [Time]
"I Never Thought I’d Say, 'My Sister, the Vice President'" [Glamour]
Palin Has Meetings for a Second Day With Foreign Leaders [NY Times]

BREAKING NEWS OH MY GOD Sarah Palin took questions from actual reporters! And she still managed not to say anything substantive. Recap: 9/11 was bad, we have to "take the fight to [them]," she is "watching" Alaska Senator Ted Steven's trial and she only supports the bailout package if it includes every single thing McCain has ever asked for, not that she knows what that is. She'll get back to you. [Politico]