Lawyer says McKinney a victim in scuffle  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — A lawyer for Rep. Cynthia McKinney, the Georgia congresswoman who had an altercation with a Capitol Police officer, says she was "just a victim of being in Congress while black."  —  McKinney awaited word Friday on whether …

Questions About Carroll's Captivity  —  I spoke to David Bloom days before he died and then covered his memorial service.  I wrote about the death of Michael Kelly.  I said goodbye to Bob Woodruff before he went to Iraq and got badly injured by a roadside bomb.

Conservatives Stand Firm on Immigration  —  WASHINGTON, March 30 — Conservative House Republicans bluntly warned their leaders Thursday against any immigration compromise that would allow temporary foreign workers and assailed a Senate proposal that would open the way for illegal immigrants to earn citizenship.

Immigration tensions spark flag-burning in A.J.  —  This week's tensions over immigration reform literally caught fire in the East Valley on Thursday when students raised a Mexican flag over Apache Junction High School — and then other students yanked it down and burned it.

Ex-DeLay Aide Pleads Guilty  —  Deal Protects Tony C. Rudy From Additional Charges  —  A former top aide to Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) pleaded guilty to conspiracy today and promised to aid a wide-ranging federal investigation into corrupt lobbying practices.

Levee Repair Costs Triple  —  The Bush administration said yesterday that the cost of rebuilding New Orleans's levees to federal standards has nearly tripled to $10 billion and that there may not be enough money to fully protect the entire region.  —  Donald E. Powell, the administration's …

As France Approves Labor Law, Students Block Roads and Rails  —  PARIS, March 30 —France's Constitutional Council ruled this evening that a disputed labor law that has brought more than a million protesters into the streets was valid, setting the stage for further confrontation.

To Bloggers from Borders  —  An Open Letter from Gregory P Josefowicz CEO/Chairman of the Board/President/Director, Borders Books to Charles Johnson, Director, Pajamas Media, CEO Little Green Foosballs, Rock 'N' Roller in the Free World, Stealth Cyclist.  —  Dear Mr. Johnson (or can I call you "Charles"?),

Air America Anniversary, Sacramento, New York City, Al Franken, Bill O'Reilly  —  DEBACLE  —  After Two Years, How Else To Describe Air America?  —  As certain as the presence of a dozen Dunkin' Donuts outlets in every New England town, today's second Air America Radio on-air anniversary …

Calm Is Urged in Iran Debate  —  Mohamed ElBaradei, the U.N. nuclear agency chief, sees no imminent danger from Tehran and asks those discussing the issue to 'lower the pitch.'  —  BERLIN — United Nations atomic energy chief Mohamed ElBaradei urged the international community Thursday …

The Twilight of Objectivity  —  How opinion journalism could change the face of the news.  —  CNN says it is just thrilled by the transformation of Lou Dobbs—formerly a mild-mannered news anchor noted for his palsy-walsy interviews with corporate CEOs—into a raving populist xenophobe.  Ratings are up.

G.O.P. Is Taking Aim at Advocacy Groups  —  WASHINGTON, March 30 — To many Republicans, the liberal activist organization MoveOn.org is a political boogeyman that they hope to chase off with new restrictions on so-called 527 groups.  —  But the pursuit may turn out to be fruitless.

ABC Suspends Producer John Green After E-Mail Flap  —  ABC News executives have suspended Weekend Good Morning America executive producer John Green for a month, after two politically charged personal e-mails Green sent to a colleague were leaked to the press, according to two network sources.

Money  —  Ah, money.  John Aravosis brings the subject up again.  A few comments on his post, which is well worth reading:  —  1. No one should be surprised that, one-on-one, politicians are really, really nice.  It's their job to be nice.  If you think about it for twenty seconds …

Study fails to show healing power of prayer  —  CHICAGO (Reuters) - A study of more than 1,800 patients who underwent heart bypass surgery has failed to show that prayers specially organized for their recovery had any impact, researchers said on Thursday.  —  In fact, the study found …

Rice admits "thousands" of errors in Iraq  —  BLACKBURN (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accepted on Friday the United States had probably made thousands of errors in Iraq but defended the overall strategy of removing Saddam Hussein.  —  Local Muslims and anti-war activists told Rice …

Bill Clinton's A Convert To Dean's 50-State Project  —  NOTE: This post is updated above.  —  Will Howard Dean's Democratic National Committee be ready for the November elections?  Party leaders and congressional campaign strategists are nervously pressuring Dean to stop spending money …