George Bush personally called Mrs. Ashcroft to tell her his thugs were coming over to rough up the Attorney General in the ICU Ward.

As Jane wrote yesterday, the Blue Dogs in the House of Representatives just did their part in trying to sabotage healthcare reform, forcing the Democratic leadership to delay introducing their proposed bill. But some of their members aren’t sticking with the pack.

We’ve added Emanuel Cleaver and Donna Edwards (still waiting on a formal statement from her office) to the “Took the Pledge” category.

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Since I began serving in the U.S. Senate, I have consistently heard how our broken health care system affects Americans. I have heard about sky-rocketing premium increases that small business owners are paying in order to continue providing health care to their employees … I have heard from people with “pre-existing conditions” who simply can’t get coverage … And I have heard absolutely heart-breaking stories from retirees who have had to

Marjorie W. reports:

The aide who answered the phone said Rep. Moran is in favor of the public option, but knows that the votes for it are not there, and wants to get something through rather than have the whole reform package voted down.

We’re trying to confirm with Moran’s office right now.

Illinois’ appointed junior Senator Roland Burris has just made official what was reported yesterday: He will not run for for his own full term. (Funny how hard it is to say he will not run for re-election without saying “re-election”)

Mike Stark was on Capitol Hill for us yesterday and he interviewed about 15 members of Congress, asking them on video if they’d take the Pledge. They were mostly non-committal, seemed really uncomfortable that anyone would be asking this question and really didn’t want to be bothered. The one bright spot was Emanuel Cleaver II of Missouri, who gave — without question — the strongest statement that any member of Congress has given about the principles he is committed to on health care.

We’ve started an Act Blue page for members of Congress who have taken the pledge. Right now, on the list are Raul Grijalva, Keith Elison, Lynn Woolsey, Jerrold Nadler, Rush Holt, Maxine Waters, Phil Hare and Cleaver. We hope there will soon be many more.

I’m headed over there right now myself to donate $100 to Emanuel Cleaver for being brave enough enough to say what every single other Democrat should be saying right now. I hope you’ll join me.

The long-awaited report of the CIA’s inspector general on the Bush Administration’s warrantless domestic surveillance program was released last hour. It reveals that what it calls “The President’s Surveillance Program” (as opposed to the public name: “The Terrorist Surveillance Program”) started in late 2001 and went far beyond wiretaps without obtaining a court order.

That will hardly be the only big story to come out of today’s release. How do I know? Marcy has a working thread up at emptywheel. . . .

There’s some real zingers in Nooners’ latest Palin beatdown — especially the surgical rebuttal of the Kristol/Douthat “the snobby elites and the media hate Palin” spin. But, as always, Nooners indicts herself as well.

Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)

When I went on MSNBC yesterday, the thing I was intending to talk about (before getting interrupted by a pile of insurance industry BS) was the fact that members of Congress like Carolyn Maloney are wasting our time. When she announced that she would challenge Kirsten Gillibrand for the Senate, the Huffington Post reported: