U.S. Is Studying Military Strike Options on Iran  —  Any Mix of Tact, Threats Alarms Critics  —  The Bush administration is studying options for military strikes against Iran as part of a broader strategy of coercive diplomacy to pressure Tehran to abandon its alleged nuclear development program …

A 'Concerted Effort' to Discredit Bush Critic  —  Prosecutor Describes Cheney, Libby as Key Voices Pitching Iraq-Niger Story  —  As he drew back the curtain this week on the evidence against Vice President Cheney's former top aide, Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald for the first time described a …

Pro-Life Nation  —  It was a sunny midafternoon in a shiny new global-economy mall in San Salvador, the capital city of El Salvador, and a young woman I was hoping to meet appeared to be getting cold feet.  She had agreed to rendezvous with a go-between not far from the Payless shoe store and then come to a nearby hotel to talk to me.

More Damning Documents On Saddam  —  Origins Of War: The latest in a stream of eye-opening Iraqi documents shows Saddam Hussein's regime was planning suicide attacks on U.S. interests six months before 9-11.  Why won't Washington get the word out?  —  Last month the Pentagon began releasing …

Bigs bunny: monster rabbit devours English veggie plots  —  LONDON (AFP) - In a tale reminiscent of the last Wallace and Gromit movie, furious villagers in northeast England have hired armed guards to protect their beloved communal vegetable gardens from a suspected monster rabbit.

The Same Subject Continued  —  Here's some more via the NYT: For President, First a Leak; Now, a Jam … Well, sure, there is a rather radical difference between "authorized" and "unauthorized."  However, that isn't really the issue.  —  If I understand the timeline correctly …

'Forgers' of key Iraq war contract named  —  TWO employees of the Niger embassy in Rome were responsible for the forgery of a notorious set of documents used to help justify the Iraq war, an official investigation has allegedly found.  —  According to Nato sources, the investigation …

Hammered  —  What I Saw at the Republican Revolution  —  It was my first week as Tom DeLay's communications director in late 1995.  And we were already in crisis.  —  On the House floor, DeLay had gotten into a shoving match with a Wisconsin Democrat named Dave Obey.  I had no idea what had happened.

U.S. Study Paints Somber Portrait of Iraqi Discord  —  WASHINGTON, April 8 — An internal staff report by the United States Embassy and the military command in Baghdad provides a sobering province-by-province snapshot of Iraq's political, economic and security situation …

Perplexing No-Show By Joe  —  Lieberman Reacts With Silence After Report Ties Leaks To Bush  —  News of President Bush authorizing leaks of intelligence reports to discredit critics of the Iraq war broke before noon Thursday.  Democrats quickly lined up to demand a public accounting.

Lobbying Cases Shine Spotlight on Family Ties  —  WASHINGTON, April 8 — On Dec. 3, 2003, Aeneas Enterprises opened for business in the Woodland Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, and judging by its bank records, the small consulting company with no listed telephone number was an instant success.