–As West Virginia’s Attorney General examines the state’s ambiguous succession process, Democratic Gov. Joe Manchin is pushing for a speedy special election. He said he would “highly consider” running for the seat but will not appoint himself in the interim.
–A British panel basically cleared the University of East Anglia scientists implicated in “Climategate” of wrongdoing, but the finding is unlikely to satisfy skeptics.
–Politico outlines how the Justice Department’s lawsuit against Arizona complicates life for Western Democrats.
–Despite predictions that the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling would open the floodgates for corporate campaign donations, unions are the top spenders so far this year. The balance may well shift as the cycle progresses.
–In an interview with Hugh Hewitt, veteran New York Times foreign correspondent John Burns is the latest journalist to say he would have handled the McChrystal story differently. Michael Hastings, the writer of the Rolling Stone piece, has already inked a book deal.
–And Spain edged Germany, 1-0, setting up a heavyweight showdown with the Netherlands in Sunday’s World Cup final.