Today’s edition of quick hits:
* A rough spring for bad guys: “Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, Al Qaeda’s leader in East Africa and the mastermind of the American Embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, was killed in a late-night shootout at a security checkpoint in Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, Somali and American officials said Saturday.”
* Astounding statistic out of Afghanistan: “The United Nations reported this weekend that May 2011 was the deadliest for civilians since the war began.”
* Pakistan fails to inspire confidence: “Twice in recent weeks, the United States provided Pakistan with the specific locations of insurgent bomb-making factories, only to see the militants learn their cover had been blown and vacate the sites before military action could be taken, according to U.S. and Pakistani officials. Overhead surveillance video and other information was given to Pakistani officials in mid-May, officials said, as part of a trust-building effort by the Obama administration after the killing of Osama bin Laden in a U.S. raid early last month. But Pakistani military units that arrived at the sites in the tribal areas of North and South Waziristan on June 4 found them abandoned.”
* Congress recently passed resolution criticizing President Obama for using U.S. forces in an offensive against Libya. Last week, Moammar Gadhafi sent lawmakers a thank-you note, praising them for their rejection of the Obama line.
* Aides to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) released the first photographs of the congresswoman since the shooting in January.
* The Bush administration lost $6.6 billion in cash, sent to Iraq after the start of the war. Eight years later, we still don’t know where the money went, but investigators suspect our money was stolen.
* The Obama administration is expanding benefits to same-sex couples under Medicaid.
* There are at least 100 reasons why it’s a bad idea that will never happen, but Mark Halperin suggests making Bill Clinton a “jobs czar,” and I have to admit, I kind of like the idea.
* Remember that massive Republican push to convince Americans the president doesn’t support Israel? It looks like the clear majority of the country didn’t buy it.
* With tuition costs rising, are middle-class families getting “priced out” of higher ed?
* Republicans keep saying that discretionary non-defense spending is up 80% under Obama. They’re lying.
* Herman Cain’s newest criticism of the president is that Obama “was raised in Kenya.” That’s not even close to true.
* Just a reminder, the first big debate for Republican presidential candidates is tonight at 8 eastern. I won’t be live-blogging it, but if I remember, I’ll put up an open thread.
Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
