Private: Friday Morning News Roundup

Vice President Dick Cheney accused Iran of developing a "fairly robust new nuclear program" and suggested that Iran supported terrorist efforts against Americans. "You look around the world at potential trouble spots; Iran is right at the top of the list," according to Cheney. Cheney did add, "Certainly in the case of the Iranian situation, I think everybody would be best suited by or best treated and dealt with if we could deal with it diplomatically."
Dana Milbank and Charles Babington of the Washington Post write, "In 2nd Term, No Doubt About It Bush and His Cabinet Nominees Concede and Explain Little."
A Federal District Court Judge dismissed several lawsuits against the Saudi government relating to the 9/11 attacks.
Linda Greenhouse reports that yesterday, during the inauguration, Chief Justice Rehnquist, made "Good His Promise." Greenhouse writes, "Whether Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist's participation in the inauguration signified a last hurrah or a re-emergence after three months of intensive treatment for thyroid cancer was, on the basis of his 13 minutes on the platform, impossible to know." How Appealing has a breakdown of the coverage of the Chief Justice's performance yesterday in delivering the the oath of office to President Bush. An Indiana Court of Appeals has upheld that state's ban on same sex marriages. The court said, "The Indiana Constitution does not require governmental recognition of same-sex marriage, although the legislature is certainly free to grant such recognition or create a parallel institution."
Harvard University President has offered this "letter" for his remarks about women in science.
The Daily Pennsylvanian, the student newspaper of the University of Pennsylvania, is reporting that Justice Department will appeal the 3rd circuit's decision declaring the Solomon Amendment, which "provides for the Secretary of Defense to deny federal funding to institutions of higher learning if they prohibit or prevent ROTC or military recruitment on campus," unconstitutional.
The Army has brought charges against Sgt. Kevin Benderman for refusing to return to Iraq. Benderman had filed for conscientious objector status before his unit returned to Iraq, for a second time.
Edward Lazarus argues the Supreme Court's Sentencing Guidelines decision in Booker "will affect the process of sentencing much more than it affects final outcomes."
The Wall Street Journal asks the question, "When Bloggers Make News, As Their Clout Increases, Just What Are the Rules?"
The Progress Report breaks down the costs of President Bush's second inauguration.
The journal Science claims that global warming was the cause for the worst mass-extinction on Earth over 250 million years ago that "wiped out more than 90 per cent of all marine life and almost 75 per cent of all land plants and animals."