Liberal Kevin Drum, the Washington Monthly's Political Animal, isn't too disturbed by the targeting of a "phantom" plane, since Bush and Cheney didn't learn about United 93's hijacking until a minute before its impact. "As it turned out, that was the last of the hijackings, but no one knew it at the time and NORAD was in full battle mode. At the time the decision was made it was surely every bit as difficult as Cheney made it out to be." Adds Drum: "Oh, and one other thing. Why did the Pentagon release the full NORAD recording from 9/11 to a film producer but not to anyone else? Shouldn't this have been publicly released long ago if it wasn't classified?"

Read more about the Vanity Fair disclosures.

Murtha on trial: Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, one of the Marines accused of indiscriminate killing of Iraqis in Haditha, is suing vocal anti-war Democrat Rep. John Murtha for defamation. Murtha went on CNN shortly after the Haditha story broke and made comments presumptive of the Marines' guilt. Wuterich wants $75,000, a retraction, a public apology, and an injunction against similar future statements.

Josh White at the righty Bullwinkle Blog argues that the tedious spadework will have to be performed by Murtha himself, showing how his comments fell within the scope of his official duties as a congressman: "I only hope that Sergeant Wuterich can take a few million of Murtha's ill-gotten gains from KSA Consulting as compensation for Murtha's defamation of him and that all the other Marines involved follow suit and sue Murtha also."

Cosmopolitan conservative Alexandra von Maltzan at All Things Beautiful is likewise gleeful at the representative's tortuous comeuppance: "If you choose to lead a lynch mob and in the process callously ruin a marine's sterling reputation, you deserve to be held liable for it. Now get out of that one without moving Rep. Murtha. ..."

However, Austin, Texas, resident David at The Supreme Irony of Life ... wonders "who is funding Mr. Wuterich? The former Swift Boaters of the 2004 election cycle aren't hiding the fact that they are going to try and bring Murtha down with the same dishonest tactics they used against John Kerry. It makes me wonder if this is part of their plan."

Read more about Murtha's legal headache.