Live-Blogging the Oscars 2006  —  Does anybody care what Nicole Kidman is wearing (or not)?  Does anybody care how many times Jon Stewart disses Dick Cheney?  Does anybody care who even wins the Academy Awards anymore?  —  Yes, we all care - even if we say we don't... It's the Oscars, after all!

US envoy hints at strike to stop Iran  —  · Bolton says nuclear plant can be 'taken out'  —  · UN agency meets to send report to security council  —  Julian Borger Washington  —  The US ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, has told British MPs that military action …

Scant Drop Seen in Abortion Rate if Parents Are Told  —  For all the passions they generate, laws that require minors to notify their parents or get permission to have an abortion do not appear to have produced the sharp drop in teenage abortion rates that some advocates hoped for, an analysis by The New York Times shows.

Denying al-Qaida  —  The issue is historical now, but still worth exploring.  Why, for two distinct groups of Americans, has it become a matter of conviction held with religious intensity that there cannot have been any relationship between al-Qaida and Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq?

Taliban Man at Yale  —  University officials are embarrassed—but not embarrassed enough.  —  Are there no limits to how arrogant and out-of-touch America's Ivy League schools can get?  Last week it emerged that Sayed Rahmatullah Hashemi, former deputy foreign secretary of the Taliban …

For Democrats, Many Verses, but No Chorus  —  WASHINGTON, March 5 — From Arizona to Pennsylvania, from Colorado to Connecticut, Democratic candidates for Congress are reading from a stack of different scripts these days.  —  At the Capitol in Hartford the other morning …

Guards Say Homeland Security HQ Insecure  —  WASHINGTON - The agency entrusted with protecting the U.S. homeland is having difficulty safeguarding its own headquarters, say private security guards at the complex.  —  The guards have taken their concerns to Congress, describing inadequate training …

Post-9/11 Drive by Republicans To Attract Jewish Voters Stalls  —  Nearly five years ago, immediately after the Sept.11, 2001, attacks, Republican strategists identified what they hoped would be a powerful new engine of support.  "September 12 Republicans" were Jewish Democrats and independents …

What's Behind Those Bad Poll Numbers  —  Judging by the numbers, it wasn't a good week for George Bush.  Of course, news that the administration had approved a deal to turn over the operation of six U.S. ports to a company owned by the United Arab Emirates did nothing to buoy his sagging approval ratings.

Kabuki Congress  —  Imagine being stopped for speeding and having the local legislature raise the limit so you won't have to pay the fine.  It sounds absurd, but it's just what is happening to the 28-year-old law that prohibits the president from spying on Americans without getting a warrant from a judge.

Levee Fixes Falling Short, Experts Warn  —  Corps Rejects Claim Of Substandard Soil  —  NEW ORLEANS — The Army Corps of Engineers seems likely to fulfill a promise by President Bush to rebuild New Orleans's toppled flood walls to their original, pre-Katrina height by June 1 …

Is John Hinderaker Nuts?  —  Today, Powerline's John Hinderaker wrote a post entitled "Is Murtha Nuts?"  He claims that during an appearance today on Face the Nation "pretty much every 'fact' that Murtha hysterically tossed out is wrong."  —  Hinderaker then proceeds to "fact check" …

Russert Watch: Smokin' The Good Stuff  —  The disconnect between reality and the dialog on this morning's Meet the Press was so acute I thought the dog had chewed the remote once again and tuned me in to Mystery Science Theater 3000.  —  First up was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs …

IRAQ POINTS  —  A couple of Iraq points from Sunday's press.  —  (1) A reader:  —  "Dear Derb—In case you didn't see it, on Meet The Press this morning, Tim Russert displayed on-screen WFB's article 'It Didn't Work' and asked Peter Pace how he could remain so optimistic about Iraq …

Lawmakers vow overhauls in response to ports deal  —  Head of Dubai company seeks to reassure Americans  —  (CNN) — Two U.S. lawmakers called Sunday for overhauling the rules by which the United States approves foreign management of facilities involved in national security.

One day left for the White House to squash an investigation  —  (1) Today is the first day for the supplemental guest posting necessitated by the circumstances I described over the weekend here.  —  I'm genuinely excited about the fact that a regular contributor over the next few weeks …