Cheat Sheet

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Better late than never. Apparently deciding that two wrongs don’t make a right, Governor Mark Sanford said in a statement today that he would reimburse the state of South Carolina for a trip to Argentina on which he met his mistress. “While the purpose of this trip was an entirely professional and appropriate business development trip, I made a mistake while I was there in meeting with the woman who I was unfaithful to my wife with,” Sanford said. “That has raised some very legitimate concerns and questions, and as such I am going to reimburse the state for the full cost of the Argentina leg of this trip.” According to documents released by the state Department of Commerce, airfare for the trip was $8,644.03 and more than $9,000 on Sanford’s expenses alone.

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In the wake of Michael Jackson’s passing on Thursday night, some of the biggest names in Hollywood shared their reactions. “I can’t stop crying over the sad news,” Madonna said to People. “I have always admired Michael Jackson. The world has lost one of the greats.” Jackson’s ex-wife—and daughter of fellow “king” Elvis Presley—Lisa Marie Presley said, “I am so very sad and confused with every emotion possible. I am heartbroken for his children who I know were everything to him and for his family. This is such a massive loss on so many levels, words fail me.” Music producer Quincy Jones, who produced Jackson’s Thriller album, said that Jackson “had it all—talent, grace, professionalism and dedication.” He added, “I’ve lost my little brother today, and part of my soul has gone with him.” Jackson was preparing for a 50-date tour in London at the time of his cardiac arrest, for which $85 million in tickets had already been sold. Some fans paid into the multi-thousands for their tickets to Jackson’s first major performance in more than a decade.

Although he may have put himself in jeopardy by doing so, the Iranian doctor who tried to save Neda's life has come out to address her final moments. Dr. Arash Hejazi, who is studying at a university in England, revealed his identity as one of the men depicted in the viral video of Neda's death. He noted that Neda died in less than a minute, and his attempt to stop bleeding from the wound in her chest was unsuccessful. Hejazi says that he did not sleep for three nights after the incident. He also mentioned that the Basij member who supposedly shot Neda was quickly grabbed from his motorcycle by protesters, who took his ID card. As he was accosted by protesters, the Basij shouted that he did not want to kill her. Hejazi said that he believes his statements will prevent him from returning to Iran, but that he didn't want Neda's "blood to have been shed in vain."

Farrah Fawcett, the famed actress, passed away at 62 after a lengthy and public battle with cancer at 9:30 am on Thursday, June 25. Fawcett was in a Los Angeles hospital. Most famous for her role in Charlie’s Angels, Fawcett achieved icon status with a famous poster of her in a red bathing suit and feathered bombshell-blonde hair. After a long and brave battle with cancer, our beloved Farrah has passed away," Ryan O'Neal, a longtime companion of Fawcett's said. "Although this is an extremely difficult time for her family and friends, we take comfort in the beautiful times that we shared with Farrah over the years and the knowledge that her life brought joy to so many people around the world."

Mir Hossein Mousavi has been heard from, but not seen, for a week. How come? The New York Times relays a report from Gooya.com, a Farsi-language website, saying that Mir Hossein Mousavi is under house arrest. The Iranian reform leader has not been seen since last Thursday’s huge rally.

Did you know that the U.S. Census is really a secret plot for mass imprisonment? Well, if not, you haven’t been paying enough attention to Michele Bachmann. The crazy congresswoman from Minnesota was on Fox News on Thursday, and said that that Americans should not comply with the census because it allowed the internment of the Japanese during WWII. “If we look at American history, between 1942 and 1947,” she said, “the data that was collected by the census bureau was handed over to the FBI and other organizations, at the request of President Roosevelt, and that’s how the Japanese were rounded up and put into the internment camps. I’m not saying that’s what the Administration is planning to do. But I am saying that private, personal information that was given to the census bureau in the 1940s was used against Americans to round them up.”

A ride on the New York subway isn't so bad--unless you have a New York Post photographer hounding you the whole time. A dogged photographer snapped a hilarious picture of Ruth Madoff riding the F train, ironically sitting in front of an advertisement for a 99-cent cell phone. "Are you having fun embarrassing me--and ruining my life?" Ruth said to the Post photographer. The article notes that Ruth is looking much less upper-class than she did during her and husband Bernie's glory days; her clothes are not too fashionable and her hair is unkempt.

Michael Jackson was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital after going into cardiac arrest and died this afternoon, according to TMZ. Jackson had been rehearsing in LA for his highly-anticipated series of concerts in London, though he has been dogged by rumors of being physically unable to make it through all the routines. Jackson's mother and brothers are at the hospital. He is survived by his children Michael Joseph Jackson, Jr., Paris Michael Katherine Jackson, and Prince "Blanket" Michael Jackson Jr. Producer Quincy Jones said of Jackson's death: "I am absolutely devastated at this tragic and unexpected news. For Michael to be taken away from us so suddenly at such a young age, I just don't have the words."

She did not stand beside him at his press conference on Wednesday, but Jenny Sanford is spending the day with her husband. The two have announced that they will try to reconcile after South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford admitted yesterday that he was having an affair with an Argentinean woman. The governor, his wife, and their four sons are at the family’s beach home on Sullivan Island.

While Iran's anti-democratic crackdown is garnering the world's attention, trouble may be brewing in Iraq's upcoming election as well. According to The Washington Post, Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki's government has been using increasingly coercive measures to break the opposition. Political rivals have been arrested and threatened in Diyala and Basra, leading to comparisons to Iraq's former leader, Saddam Hussein. An aide to Maliki told the Post that while his boss was not a dictator, he has a "strong personality" and a willingness to push the limits of the constitution. Some are worried that Maliki's tactics could lead to new divisions in the already violently split nation. "These political tensions are undermining the security of the country, and I'm worried about it," Barham Salih, the deputy prime minister and a Kurdish leader, told the Post.

Labeling Judge Sonia Sotomayor a racist and suggesting she was a not-too-bright affirmative action case may have backfired for Republicans, but GOP Senators are hoping that they'll have better luck going after her on gun rights. Los Angeles Times reports that Senate Republicans plan on bringing up Sotomayor's previous rulings on gun rights in the hopes of dividing conservative Democrats, many of whom are pro-gun. The ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Jeff Sessions, said in a press conference on Wednesday that he would bring up a recent case in which Sotomayor ruled that federal gun rights do not apply to states, a decision Sessions said "would eviscerate the 2nd Amendment in many parts of the country."

Perez Hilton may have temporarily lost the battle—for once—when the manager for the Black Eyed Peas allegedly attacked him, but he intends to win the war in court. The celebrity blogger filed a civil lawsuit today in Los Angeles against Polo Molina, who he claims hit him three times for comments he made about the Black Eyed Peas’ new album on his website. Perez is seeking over $25,000 in unspecified damages for battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress, which he claimed violated his First Amendment rights. “Whether you love Perez or hate him, he is entitled to his freedom of speech without fear of physical violence,” said Bryan Freedman, Hilton’s lawyer. Hilton, an openly gay man, also called band member will.i.am a “faggot” and refused to apologize at the request of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

For the first time, Iranian opposition candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi spoke out about being isolated and pressured by authorities to withdraw his challenge to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's contested presidential win. USA Today reports that 70 university professors were arrested on Wednesday night after visiting Mousavi. While Ahmadinejad took to State TV to rant against Obama, Mousavi released a statement through his official Web site on Thursday saying authorities had "completely restricted" him and expressing frustration with "recent pressures" to drop his political stance. Mousavi's message does not appear to be falling on deaf ears: Tehranian newspapers are reporting that only 105 of 290 Iran's parliament members attended Ahmadinejad's victory party on Tuesday. Among the high-profile abstainers was Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani, an Ahmadinejad appointee and close ally of the supreme leader's.

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South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford said today that he paid for his most recent visit to Argentina (“It was my own ticket,” he told reporters), but one trip since his election in 2002 was financed by the South Carolina Department of Commerce. The trip most likely took place after he met his mistress, Politico reports, though it is unclear when exactly it occurred. But it’s unlikely that other aspects of his trip—or the affair—raise legal issues. According to John Simpkins, a professor at the Charleston School of Law, transfer-of-power requirements in the state of South Carolina don’t indicate Sanford violated any laws in fleeing the country without word of where he was going. “There's been a tradition that the governors will notify their lieutenant governors when they are out of state, typically," Simpkins said to NPR, "and when they are out of the country, certainly,” but his behavior was more “imprudent” than anything else.

Every time an American politician has a scandalous affair, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi pops up to remind us that things could be much more lecherous. The latest in Berlusconi's scandal du jour: 42-year-old escort Patrizia D'Addario, who claims the 72-year-old billionaire paid to sleepw ith her on the night of Obama's inauguration, gave an interview yesterday denying Berlusconi's claim that she is part of an organized "mission" to smear him. D'Addario says Berlusconi "cannot deny" the tale because she says she has it recorded on audio tape and told friends about the it immediately afterwards. She says Berlusconi summoned her back for a second rendezvous promising not money but "to help me and construct the resident on my family's land." Italian continue to debate whether prosecutors are maliciously pursuing Berlusconi, and whether he is unfairly using his power to quash their case.

The "when in doubt, blame America" strategy got Mahmoud Ahmadinejad this far, so why stop now? The Iranian president whose disputed re-election ignited the current unrest in Tehran went after President Obama in an interview with an Iranian news agency, demanding an apology for his recent condemnation of violence by the Iranian government. “I hope you will avoid interfering in Iran’s affairs and express regret in a way that the Iranian people are informed of it," Ahmadinejad said. He added: "Our question is why he fell into this trap and said things that previously Bush used to say." Ahmadinejad has mostly stayed out of the spotlight since the election. His words come as the opposition claims some 70 university professors have been arrested. While protests are becoming less common in the streets than last week, some 100 MPs reportedly refused to attend a victory party for Ahmadinejad, a symbolic act of defiance that shows that the divisions on the street are at play in the government as well.