So much for a slow news Friday: Senator Mel Martinez has decided to take his ball and go home. What’s next? Who does Crist appoint? Marc Rubio Jeb Bush Bob Martinez Tom Feeney The Fix: FL-Senate: Martinez to Resign Chris Frates, Manu Raju, Josh Kraushaar: Mel Martinez Resigning

It’s a slow August Friday in Washington, D.C. … Remember smiling.

Rumors were swirling that legendary Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz was contemplating a run for congress.  Apparently he wised up. "I’m working for ESPN. I don’t want to run for Congress," said Holtz. Smart man.

Twitter is currently defending itself from a "denial of service" attack:  [we didn’t know what it was either] …an attempt to make a computer resource unavailable to its intended users. This means Twitter joins millions of users [congressional constituents] across the country who are unable to get the proper resources …

There is no reason to freak out. Twitter isn’t working and you still have six and a half hours left at work. Here are a few sites to help you kill time until you’re back up and tweeting again: Deadspin Vanity Fair’s write-up of Mad Men FishbowlDC U Do the …

Yesterday we told you that Congress accidentally slipped in a few extra dollars in order to buy some fancy jet airplanes that will be used to shuttle them around the globe.  Now we find out that Congress was even more generous than we originally thought. The House Appropriations Committee put …

While other Democrats are getting an earful from constituents at town halls, Sen. Gillibrand wisely heads to one of the most expensive zip codes in the nation and befriends a well dressed pocket squared reporter (?) at a local market. Wikipedia "The Sagaponack ZIP code (11962), although not synonymous with …

We hardly knew you. So the WaPo’s Mouthpiece Theater wasn’t a hit, so what? Chris Cillizza and Dana Milbank were trying something different – and in these times, you have to. The Fix was nice enough to let his readers and fans know of the changes. The Fix: A Word …

NBC Washington thinks it’s a tacky monstrosity.  We tend to think it’s the Liberace of Presidential birthday cakes.

Roll Call: Obama’s Charm School Is in Session Max Baucus: “It was a, really, a wonderful meeting, led by a terrific man, our president, Barack Obama,” Baucus said. “And one of the Senators was saying to me as we walked out, ‘You know, it’s just so wonderful to hear him …

Months after ripping the CEOs of the Big Three automakers for traveling to Washington, D.C., by private jet, the House approved nearly $200 million for the Air Force to buy three elite Gulfstream jets for ferrying top government officials and Members of Congress. Because if you’re a nation in a …

What will Jay-Z have to say about this? Check out DJ Lungren about two minutes in.

According to the Politico, if you’re a Democrat looking throw down some town hall meetings over the August recess, it’s probably a good idea if you cancel them or call in sick.  [Town Hells]

Even after all of these years, he’s still got it. AP: White House uses Web against Drudge attack Love him or hate him …  Matt Drudge is still 100% effective and can move the media like Moses parting the Red Sea. Get your popcorn .

Obama Debunks Birther Conspiracy – watch more funny videos