Morning Buzz: March 11, 2008

New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer triggered the prostitution investigation in which he is now ensnared by moving large amounts of cash from several bank accounts to one operated by a call-girl ring, the Associated Press is reporting this morning. Banks noticed frequent transfers from the accounts and filed suspicious activity reports with the Internal Revenue Service. When the accounts were traced to Spitzer, public corruption investigators opened an inquiry, which revealed that the governor was a frequent customer of the Emperors Club.

Eight U.S. soldiers were killed in Iraq yesterday, making it the bloodiest day for American forces since September 10, when eight soldiers were killed in two road attacks and two marines were killed fighting insurgents in Anbar province. On Monday, five soldiers were killed on foot patrol in Baghdad by a suicide bomber, and three were killed by a roadside bomb north of Baghdad. In southern Iraq, a roadside bomb hit a bus, killing at least 16 civilians on board.