Declassified Truth  —  The War On Terror: The government is finally getting around to unloading some of Saddam Hussein's secret documents.  A look at just a few pages already leads to some blockbuster revelations.  —  In the early stages of the war that began three years ago …

Senate Approves Budget, Breaking Spending Limits  —  WASHINGTON, March 16 — The Senate narrowly approved a $2.8 trillion election-year budget Thursday that broke spending limits only hours after it increased federal borrowing power to avert a government default.

U.S. and Iranians Agree to Discuss Violence in Iraq  —  TEHRAN, March 16 — Iran and the United States agreed Thursday to hold direct talks on how to halt sectarian violence and restore calm in Iraq, offering the first face-to-face conversation between the sides after months of confrontation over Iran's nuclear program.

U.S. Begins Big Assault in Iraq; New Parliament Convenes  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq, March 16 — The American military announced today that it had begun its largest air assault since the invasion of Iraq in 2003, while Iraqi legislators convened the long-awaited first session of the new Parliament in the capital …

GOP Irritation At Bush Was Long Brewing  —  President Bush's troubles with congressional Republicans, which erupted during the backlash to the Dubai seaport deal, are rooted in policy frustrations and personal resentments that GOP lawmakers say stretch back to the opening days of the administration.

Inaction failed  —  United States can't just sit back and wait to be attacked.  —  If we learned anything from 9/11 it's that doing nothing while tyrants and terrorists plot to kill Americans is not a viable policy.  —  But that was U.S. policy for more than 25 years.

Airline screeners fail government bomb tests  —  21 airports nationwide don't detect bomb-making materials … WASHINGTON -  —  Lisa Myers  —  Imagine an explosion strong enough to blow a car's trunk apart, caused by a bomb inside a passenger plane.  Government sources tell NBC News …

Bill Would Allow Warrantless Spying  —  GOP Plan Would Bring Surveillance Under Review of Congress, FISA Court  —  The Bush administration could continue its policy of spying on targeted Americans without obtaining warrants, but only if it justifies the action to a small group of lawmakers …

Democracy Push by Bush Attracts Doubters in Party  —  Even as it presents an updated national security strategy, the Bush administration is facing fresh doubts from some Republicans who say its emphasis on promoting democracy around the world has come at the expense of protecting other American interests.

AFA's Wildmon proposed a hypothetical tour of gay bathhouses, repeated misinformation on average gay incomes … On the March 8 edition of the AFA Report, Donald E. Wildmon, founder and chairman of the American Family Association (AFA), responded to the Equality Ride, a seven-week bus tour …

Can Democrats Play This Game?  —  Russ Feingold tossed a political grenade at President Bush this week, but it fell into the middle of the Senate Democratic Caucus.  Many Democratic senators ran away.  —  The grenade was the Wisconsin senator's proposal to censure the president for violating …

Saddam Hussein maintained pretense of chemical arms to prevent Israeli attack  —  WASHINGTON - Former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein pretended to have chemical weapons because, among other reasons, he feared that Israel might attack if it discovered he did not.

Kurds Destroy Shrine in Rage at Leadership  —  HALABJA, Iraq, March 16 — For nearly two decades, Kurds have gathered peacefully in this mountainous corner of northern Iraq to commemorate one of the blackest days in their history.  It was here that Saddam Hussein's government launched …

Police Memos Say Arrest Tactics Calmed Protest  —  In five internal reports made public yesterday as part of a lawsuit, New York City police commanders candidly discuss how they had successfully used "proactive arrests," covert surveillance and psychological tactics at political demonstrations in 2002 …

Once same-sex marriage is OK, polygamy's next  —  The Minnesota Legislature is considering proposing a constitutional amendment that would define marriage as the union of one man and one woman.  Many opponents claim that definition is antiquated and discriminatory.