Just in case: Bush's Plan B for Iraq...It's a secret...

From American Progress:

"Senior House Democrats said yesterday that they will attempt to derail funding for President Bush's proposal to send an additional 21,500 troops to Iraq, setting up what could become the most significant confrontation between the White House and Congress over military policy since the Vietnam War."

Former Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) was named the ranking member of the House Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee yesterday. "The Democrats in the Senate have signaled they're going to make climate change a big issue," said Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Committee. "We need to have our guys locked and cocked over here."

Aides to President Bush "hinted that the administration had already come up with a 'Plan B' in case the latest strategy failed, with one saying 'there are other ways to achieve our objective.' But he would not describe that strategy."

J. Steven Griles, the former No. 2 official in the Interior Department, has been notified by federal prosecutors that he will most likely be indicted for lying about his relationship with the corrupt lobbyist Jack Abramoff. With the prospect of his indictment, Sue Ellen Wooldridge, the assistant attorney general for environment and natural resources who has been reportedly dating Griles, tendered her resignation this week.

"There were 744,000 homeless people in the United States in 2005, according to the first national estimate in a decade." A majority of the homeless were single adults, but about 41 percent were in families.

One of the caucus' most influential centrists, Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), expressed interest in Sen. Edward Kennedy's (D-MA) legislation to seek congressional approval for Bush's proposed escalation policy. "I'm very interested in it," Baucus said of the Kennedy proposal.

Tony Blair will soon announce that "almost 3,000 [UK] troops are to be cut from the current total of 7,200, allowing the military to recover from four years of battle that have left it severely overstretched."

And finally: What President Bush could learn from Apple’s Steve Jobs about announcing new proposals. "Bush speeches tend to take on a funereal air, what with the dark suits and somber tone. A nice mock turtleneck and snug-fitting jeans could lighten the mood."

Wrap...