Cheney's Pipeline ... At this point Josh Marshall is probably best known for the lead role he took in staving off Bush's "private accounts" social security reform.

Yet well before that effort Josh had already established himself as the preeminent blogger of the American left. Although part of that reputation owes to how well he conveys the news behind the news, Josh's greater talent lies in how acutely he perceives the national implications of seemingly local stories.

A great case in point is his post this morning about an oil pipeline in Mississippi. Evidently Vice President Cheney ordered the pipeline up and running on August 30 -- a day after Katrina hit, and even though getting the pipeline on-line meant that two rural hospitals went without power.

To get the story, Marshall followed a brief tip in the Washington Post back to its source in the Hattiesburg (Mississippi) American. In the process his post becomes, however unwittingly, a textbook example of how local news analysis ought to inform political commentary.

Definitely check it out if you get the chance.