The Feingold Resolution and the Sound of Silence  —  Democratic senators, filing in for their weekly caucus lunch yesterday, looked as if they'd seen a ghost.  —  "I haven't read it," demurred Barack Obama (Ill.).  —  "I just don't have enough information," protested Ben Nelson (Neb.).

A Stumble a Day ...  Every second-term presidency tends to get tired and falter a bit.  But these days, when so many big things are going so very wrong, smaller errors seem like an echo of overall ineptitude.  And since President Bush has convinced Americans that we live in a permanent state …

College paper's editor fired over Mohammed cartoons  —  CHAMPAIGN, Illinois (AP) — An editor who chose to publish caricatures of Prophet Mohammed in the University of Illinois' student-run newspaper last month has been fired, the paper's publisher announced Tuesday.

Get on the Damn Phone  —  "Seriously folks - it's gameday.  Get on the horn. "  —  Friends,  —  We've been working for a long time on HR 1606 - The Online Freedom of Speech Act.  It will come up for a vote on the floor of the House TOMORROW but as you read this - the campaign regulation community …

The Conservative Case Against John McCain In 2008  —  There is no Republican up on Capitol Hill more disliked by his own GOP brethren than John McCain.  That's why, despite the size of his fan club in the mainstream media, McCain seems rather unlikely to capture the party's nomination for President in 2008.

The Abu Ghraib files  —  279 photographs and 19 videos from the Army's internal investigation record a harrowing three months of detainee abuse inside the notorious prison — and make clear that many of those responsible have yet to be held accountable. … By Joan Walsh  —  Print EmailFont: S / S+ / S++

A Continent Splits Apart  —  Normally new rivers, seas and mountains are born in slow motion.  The Afar Triangle near the Horn of Africa is another story.  A new ocean is forming there with staggering speed — at least by geological standards.  Africa will eventually lose its horn.

Rail advocacy puts Menendez on gravy train  —  Robert Menendez helped make the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail line a reality.  And in a way, the light rail line also helped make him.  —  As a mayor, a state legislator and then member of Congress from Hudson County, Menendez fought to win state …

Senate G.O.P. Blocks Tight Budget Rule  —  WASHINGTON, March 14 — Senate Republicans on Tuesday narrowly defeated an effort to impose budget rules that would make it harder to increase spending or cut taxes, a move that critics said that showed Republicans were posturing in their calls for greater fiscal restraint.

Clooney to Arianna: I Did Not Blog  —  Oscar-winner George Clooney may make politically provocative films like "Syriana."  But he doesn't write politically provocative blogs.  —  So imagine his ire when Arianna Huffington used some of his recent answers to political questions in a way that makes …

FBI Took Photos of Antiwar Activists in 2002  —  An FBI agent in Pittsburgh photographed members of an antiwar activist group in 2002, according to documents released yesterday by the American Civil Liberties Union, which said the disclosure marks the latest incident in which the FBI has monitored left-leaning groups.

Times Brushes Up On Hillary Races With New Beat Star  —  How can you tell how seriously to take Hillary Clinton's Presidential aspirations?  Gamblers have the London bookmakers, who gave the junior Senator from New York 5-to-1 odds as soon as the 2004 election ended—better …