IRAQ: THE UNTOLD TRUTHS  —  AMONG the many positive stories you aren't being told about Iraq, the media ignored another big one last week: In the wake of the terrorist bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra, it was the Iraqi army that kept the peace in the streets.

Democrats Stretch Lead in Vote for Congress  —  Fourteen-point Democratic lead is among the widest since 1994  —  PRINCETON, NJ — The latest CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, conducted Feb. 28 to March 1, finds the Democrats holding a substantial lead over the Republicans as the party …

Child Killing Law Challenged in South Dakota  —  Now this is worth blogging about.  —  Governor Mike Rounds is directly challenging the judge-made law known as Roe v. Wade by banning all abortions in South Dakota.  —  In case you were asleep during Social Studies classes, the Supreme Court …

SINGLE-PAYER HEALTHCARE....Ed Kilgore responds to my angry post about the DLC's wonkish 7-point healthcare plan with this: … Here's my guess: in private, I'll bet all of these gentlemen do acknowledge that a simple single-payer national healthcare plan is the best policy.

Cheney: Iran Faces 'Meaningful Consequences' if It Doesn't Curb Nuclear Program  —  Vice President Cheney threatened Iran today with "meaningful consequences" if it fails to cooperate with international efforts to curb its nuclear program.  —  "For our part, the United States is keeping …

Senate Panel Rejects Proposal to Probe Eavesdropping (Update1)  —  March 7 (Bloomberg) — The U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee rejected a proposal to investigate the Bush administration's program of conducting electronic eavesdropping without warrants, while agreeing to create new congressional panels to increase oversight.

Envoy to Iraq Sees Threat of Wider War  —  He supports the White House view that an early pullout would backfire, but he is bleak about the Sunni-Shiite conflict and says it could spread.  —  BAGHDAD — The top U.S. envoy to Iraq said Monday that the 2003 toppling of Saddam Hussein's regime had opened a …

The Today Show Becomes Matt Lauer's Geography Class  —  I honestly think MSM has given up on any attempt at objectivity.  They know their game is up, so they figure, "Why hide it?"  —  Such is the case this morning with Matt Lauer's rendition of an unbiased Katie Couric interview.

Bush Weaves Rug Story Into Many an Occasion  —  President Uses His Oval Office Floor Covering as a Metaphor for Optimism and Leadership  —  Nothing says power like the Oval Office.  The paintings of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.  The bust of Dwight D. Eisenhower.  The desk used by both Roosevelts.

From 'Three's Company' to two's a crowd  —  BEVERLY HILLS — Seventies icon Suzanne Somers was strolling into Vanity Fair's Oscar party at Morton's when she vanished in the Madonna glare.  —  Somers had just stepped onto the red carpet when a bloodcurdling cry erupted from the paparazzi behind the barricades.

Good night and get lost!  Chris Matthews exhumes McCarthy  —  One of our favorite titles for a CD is NPR's "Driveway Moments" — referring to stories so good you won't leave the car even when you've reached where you're going.  We'd like to release a CD of some of the things we hear …

Ensure consent for sex, men told  —  Men should make certain that a woman has consented to sex to avoid being accused of rape, a new campaign launched by the Home Office is to warn.  —  The magazine and radio adverts and posters are aimed at reducing the number of sex assaults taking place when a woman is very drunk.

8,000 desert during Iraq war  —  At least 8,000 members of the all-volunteer U.S. military have deserted since the Iraq war began, Pentagon records show, although the overall desertion rate has plunged since the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001.  —  Since fall 2003, 4,387 Army soldiers …

AIR AMERICA TUNED OUT?  —  March 7, 2006 — AIR America is close to losing its New York flagship station - knocking Al Franken and his liberal colleagues off the air on their second anniversary.  —  The network has a two-year lease with WLIB (AM 1190) that is reportedly set to expire April 1 …