In 2005, Maureen Dowd noted that “if you use Google Earth’s database to see [former Vice President Cheney's] official residence, the view is scrambled and obscured. You can view satellite photos of the White House, the Pentagon and the Capitol — but not of the Lord of the Underworld’s lair.” But Gawker reports today that as of last week (when Cheney left office), the overhead view is now clear:

Biden is also moving toward greater transparency in other areas, including disclosing his daily schedule. By contrast, Cheney “drew the line at the obligatory notices for public events.”

Fulfilling a campaign promise that was relentlessly attacked by the right wing, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice said today that the Obama administration will engage in “direct diplomacy” with Iran in order to curb the country’s alleged nuclear program:

“We look forward to engaging in vigorous diplomacy that includes direct diplomacy with Iran, as well as continued collaboration and partnership” with the other four permanent members of the Security Council — Britain, China, France and Russia — plus Germany, Rice said.

‘Not since before the 1979 Iranian revolution are U.S. officials believed to have conducted wide-ranging direct diplomacy with Iranian officials,” notes the AP. Rice “warned that Iran must meet U.N. Security Council demands to suspend uranium enrichment before any talks on its nuclear program.”

In recent days, conservatives have been stepping up their opposition to any stimulus proposal that favors smart spending over tax cuts for businesses. To push their argument — which most economists have discredited — they have tried to call out wasteful spending in the bill. Last week, for example, House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) went on a tirade about funding to revitalize the National Mall.

This week, the focus is on contraceptives. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) has claimed that the package would spend “hundreds of millions on contraceptives.” Yesterday on ABC’s This Week, host George Stephanopoulos asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) about the provision. Pelosi replied:

PELOSI: Well, the family planning services reduce cost. They reduce cost. The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children’s health, education and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those – one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government.

Today on his radio show, Rush Limbaugh said that if Pelosi “wants fewer births, I have the way to do this and it won’t require any contraception: You simply put pictures of Nancy Pelosi…in every cheap motel room. … That will keep birthrates down because that picture will keep a lot of things down.” Now on the top of the Drudge Report:

As usual, in addition to throwing out insults, conservatives are distorting and simplifying the facts. Here is the actual text from the stimulus package’s summary:

State Option to Cover Family Planning Services. Under current law, the Secretary has the authority under section 1115 of the Social Security Act to grant waivers to states to allow them to cover family planning services and supplies to low-income women who are not otherwise eligible for Medicaid. The bill would give states the option to provide such coverage without obtaining a waiver. States could continue to use the existing waiver authority if they preferred.

Like other portions of the stimulus bill, this measure would not only aid states, but also provide preventative, cost-saving health care to help low-income women support their families and keep working. It focuses on access to recommended services and contraception to prevent unplanned pregnancies and promote maternal and infant health — not abortion. ThinkProgress has learned that an upcoming Congressional Budget Office report estimates that this change would save $200 million over five years and $700 million over 10.

No one would be forcing states to pay for family planning services. States can now cover low-income women if they get a state waiver, but approval can take a long time. Despite these bureaucratic hassles, 27 states have already “obtained federal approval to extend Medicaid eligibility for family planning services to individuals who would otherwise not be eligible.” This bill would simply allow states to skip the administrative delays.

Today, Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol wrote his final column for the New York Times and — despite a dismal record with the facts — will soon take up residence at the op-ed pages of The Washington Post. Noting that “[i]t’s extraordinary to see the job security someone like Kristol enjoys,” Steve Benen asked, “In what universe does the nation’s second most prominent newspaper decide it wants to pay and publish the failed cast-off of its chief rival?” Perhaps a universe in which Fred Hiatt is boss. The Post’s editorial page editor explained the decision:

“I think he’s a very smart, plugged-in guy,” Hiatt told Politico, “and the question of how and whether the conservative movement and the Republican party are going to right themselves, and redefine themselves, will be one of the really interesting subtexts of the Obama era.” [...]

“I thought he wrote a good column,” Hiatt said, of Kristol’s work at the Times.

It does seem fitting that Hiatt — whom Forbes magazine has said is the nation’s third most influential liberal — would think highly of Kristol. After all, both fervently advocated and continue to support the Iraq war, both defended the Bush administration’s leak of Valerie Plame’s CIA identity, and both seem to have trouble making sure their editorials are 100 percent truthful.