Journalist Jill Carroll Released in Iraq  —  BAGHDAD, March 30 — American journalist Jill Carroll, abducted in early January by gunmen in Baghdad, was released to a Sunni Arab political party in the capital Thursday morning after 82 days in captivity.  —  "I was never hurt, ever hit," she told a Washington Post reporter.

Staring Down Shariah  —  We are not finished with Abdul Rahman, yet — the Afghan who was being tried on the capital crime of converting to Christianity, until international pressure got him released — for the very reason that the Afghans are not finished with him yet.

Senate Approves Lobbying Limits by Wide Margin  —  WASHINGTON, March 29 — The Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed the first major restrictions on lobbying in more than a decade, banning lobbyists from giving gifts and meals to lawmakers and tightening rules for pet projects known as earmarks.

VERDICT: THE NEW YORK TIMES BLEW THE STORY  —  Yesterday, five former judges of the Federal Intelligence Surveillance Court testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the subject of the amendments to FISA that have been proposed by Senator Arlen Specter.

G.O.P. Risking Hispanic Votes on Immigration  —  WASHINGTON, March 29 — The battle among Republicans over immigration policy and border security is threatening to undercut a decade-long effort by President Bush and his party to court Hispanic voters, just as both parties are gearing up for the 2006 elections.

Democrats Offer National Security Strategy  —  WASHINGTON — Democrats on Wednesday proposed a wide-ranging strategy for protecting Americans at home and abroad, an election-year effort aimed at changing public perception that Republicans are stronger on national security.

Gallup Throws Doubt On Political Polling  —  Editor & Publisher noted yesterday that Gallup reported a shift in party identification in the US; Democrats outpoll Republicans in party identification — by a single point: … However, that's not exactly how Gallup itself headlines its results:

Borders, Waldenbooks Won't Carry Magazine  —  Borders and Waldenbooks stores will not stock the April-May issue of Free Inquiry magazine because it contains cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad that provoked deadly protests among Muslims in several countries.  —  "For us, the safety and security …

Patriots, Then and Now  —  With nations as with people, love them or lose them.  —  I had a great experience the other night.  I met some of the 114 living recipients of the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military award.  It was at their annual dinner, held, as it has been the past four years, at the New York Stock Exchange.

When History, Destiny Converged  —  The Assassination Attempt on President Reagan Changed the Future Not Only for Those Involved but for the Rest of the U.S. as Well  —  The shots came from the crowd outside the Washington Hilton that drizzly afternoon — six shots that would show …

Congressional Candidate Slams Press Coverage of Iraq—With Bogus Photo  —  NEW YORK How far will critics of media coverage of the Iraq war go to prove reporters are wrongly focusing on the negative?  —  One answer came this week, in a shocking if amusing episode featuring one Howard Kaloogian …

'SOUTH PARK' SLAMS GEORGE CLOONEY'S OSCAR ACCEPTANCE SPEECH  —  ... and dug at environmentalists and San Francisco liberals!  In all, a tour de force in "Smug Alert!"  — the second episode of the new season.  —  In the episode, Kyle's dad buys a hybrid car (called a "Pious") …

The Erring Republican Authority  —  Kevin Phillips is wrong about everything.  Why is he taken so seriously?  —  In 1969, an obscure Republican political strategist named Kevin Phillips published a nerdy, statistics-laden book titled The Emerging Republican Majority that offered …

Iran Defiantly Rejects New U.N. Demands  —  BERLIN (AP) — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned Iran on Thursday the "international community is united" in the dispute over its nuclear program, but a Tehran envoy defiantly rejected a U.N. call to reimpose a freeze on uranium enrichment.