Pinch's Panties in a Bunch

The NY Times "broke" the story that the NSA eavesdropped on calls made to and from the US. Broke is in scare quotes because this story has been out there awhile but with the successful Iraqi elections happening the Times needed something to balance the news that's good for America with the news that's supposedly good for Democrats (and selling books). It seems as though Bush protected himself from wrongdoing (specifically by briefing members of congress):

In a broad defense of the program put forward hours later, however, a senior intelligence official told The Associated Press that the eavesdropping was narrowly designed to go after possible terrorist threats in the United States.

The official said that, since October 2001, the program has been renewed more than three dozen times. Each time, the White House counsel and the attorney general certified the lawfulness of the program, the official said. Bush then signed the authorizations.

This will go nowhere and sadly, the Times has shown that they will do anything to overshadow good news emerging from Iraq. More at the Jawa Report, Texas Fred's, and Cap'n Ed. Here's a lefty viewpoint.

The Democrats are looking for anything to retake the news cycle, a news cycle that has been mostly good news for Bush.