The Alabama House Judiciary Committee approved a bill to legalize the use of marijuana for medical purposes. It now goes to the full House for a vote.

No story out yet, but here’s confirmation in a Tuscaloosa News brief.

One of the groups pushing the proposal in the state is Alabamians For Caring Use.

As President George W. Bush started his prime time news conference, he looked like he just drank some bad tasting medicine.

He is right to think a majority of Americans, those who voted for him, are a bunch of dumbasses. He ain’t fooling the rest of us on Social Security, energy, taxes or anything else.

Open thread for comments, folks. I’ll post more story links as they go online.

It seems the president is just throwing out canned, rehearsed answers. He is not showing that he has an original thought in his head to answer a direct question honestly. Absolutely pathetic.

AP - Bush Pushes Social Security in Rare, Prime Time New Conference

NYT - At Symbolic Milepost, Bush Holds News Conference

WP - Bush’s ‘Plan’ Would Cut Future Benefits

If you want to keep up with the latest on the migration of news from print to digital, head on over to Press Think’s discusssion of The Migration.

The subhead?

“While people in the old press pack up, and tell stories about giants they knew in the era when . . . they are also asking each other: where (are we) headed? As in: How are your people planning to make it across (from print to online)?” Plus: Podcasted radio is here; Infinity goes open source in SF.”

Our question is, when are news management teams going to get smart and hire the best blogger journalists for a ton of money, give them some freedom, and stand by them - and the new form - in the trenches?

Without “The Press” in some form, American Democracy is screwed. You can quote me on that : )

GW