What Caught My Eye Today - 100th Edition

Congress - Congress issued subpoenas for former presidential counsel Harriet Miers and political director Sara Taylor, reaching directly inside the White House for the first time in the probe of the firings of federal prosecutors. The Democratic chairmen of House and Senate committees implicitly threatened a constitutional showdown if the White House does not comply with the subpoenas — or strike a deal. The investigation by majority Democrats is fueled by their contention that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has, in effect, allowed the White House to make major political decisions for the traditionally independent Justice Department. The firings of eight federal prosecutors over the winter, Democrats say, was an example of improper political influence. Other than giving the folks at CNN, Fox News and MSNBC something to drone on about for hours, does anyone really care about this? Here's an idea. How about doing something to fix that mess in the Middle East?

Iraq - Here's another entry for the Shocker File. According to the latest assessment by the U.S. Army. Most Iraqi military units arriving in Baghdad for an American-led security crackdown have only 75 percent of their assigned soldiers. About one in six Iraqi policemen trained by U.S. forces has been killed or wounded, has deserted or has just disappeared. The slow development of Iraqi security forces, along with continued sectarian violence, raises doubts about when Iraq will be able to stand on its own and what the consequences of an early U.S. troop withdrawal would be. The report mentioned that progress was being made citing the first Iraqi army battalions that came to Baghdad as part of the U.S.-led security push earlier this year arrived with 50 percent to 60 percent of their assigned soldiers. The units that replaced them did better, at 75 percent. I guess everything is relative. If we had a 1 in 4 soldiers not coming home, can you imagine what the reaction would be?

Vatican - The Vatican has urged all Catholics to stop donating money to Amnesty International, accusing the human rights group of promoting abortion. The Vatican also said it was suspending all financial aid to Amnesty over what it said was the group's recent change of policy on the issue. Amnesty said it was not promoting abortion as a universal right. But the group said that women had a right to choose, particularly in cases of rape or incest. Amnesty says it does not take any position on whether abortion is right or wrong. But it defended its new position in support of abortion for women when their health is in danger or human rights are violated, especially in cases of rape or incest. Well, I must say, with crazy talk like that, no wonder the Roman Catholic Church wants nothing to do with these hooligans.

Basketball - The San Antonio Spurs are closing in on their fourth title in the past nine years with a surge that has impressed even LeBron James. "It's awesome," the Cleveland Cavaliers forward said. "They don't have the great athletes in the world. They don't have the greatest shooters in the world. But they have probably the greatest team in the world and that's what this sport is all about." Down 3 games in a best of 7 series, I'm guessing this isn't exactly the motivational speech that Cleveland fans were hoping for.

Golf - More than its reputation as the toughest course in America, what sets Oakmont apart from other U.S. Open venues is the greens. The greens are but the final piece of the puzzle this week. It starts with a tee shot that must be kept in the fairway to have any reasonable shot at the green, and no miss is a good one. Along with the graduated rough — the farther from the fairway, the deeper it gets — the bunkers are so deep that the only priority is getting out. The USGA always says it wants to have the most rigorous test in golf. "Oak-monster," Rory Sabbatini called it. "You have to be fully in control for 72 holes. This golf course will test every single shot you ever thought you'd need and every single shot you never thought you'd need." Geoff Ogilvy won last year at 5-over 285, and most players figure that would win going away at Oakmont. Some have suggested 10 over par would win, while Sabbatini placed a friendly wager with his caddie that whoever finished last on Sunday would be 40 over par. With a score that high maybe the PGA should consider inviting Michelle Wie to play.

NASCAR - NASCAR finally has it's version of the New York Yankees--Hendrick Motorsports. Dale Earnhardt Jr. announcing a five-year deal Wednesday to join the elite team in 2008. The team fields cars for four-time series champion Jeff Gordon, who leads all active drivers with 79 career victories, and defending Nextel Cup champion Jimmie Johnson. Busch and Casey Mears round out the team, which has combined to win 10 of 14 races this season. Mears was thought to be expendable, but shored up his seat with a dramatic win in last month's Coca-Cola 600. So it was Busch, who was signed through 2008, who was ousted after a successful but turbulent tenure that had tested Hendrick's patience. When talks on a contract extension stalled, Hendrick told Busch he wanted to make a run at adding Earnhardt to the team. The way I hear it, North Carolina state officials, upon hearing the news that Junior was teaming up with the Rainbow Warrior (Jeff Gordon), declared a state-wide day of mourning. That's stock car racing for you.