Officials: Hastert "In the Mix" of Congressional Bribery Investigation  —  Brian Ross Reports:  —  The Speaker of the House Representatives, Dennis Hastert, is under investigtaion by the FBI, which is seeking to determine his role in an ongoing public corruption probe into members of Congress …

Inconvenient Truths Indeed  —  Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" opens around the country this week.  In the film Gore pulls together evidence from every corner of the globe to convince us that climate change is happening fast, we are to blame, and if we don't act immediately, our Earth will be all but ruined.

Gonzales Defends Phone-Data Collection  —  Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales said yesterday that the government can obtain domestic telephone records without court approval under a 1979 Supreme Court ruling that authorized the collection of business records.

Desperate for Supporters, DeLay Turns to Stephen Colbert  —  A good sign that Tom DeLay doesn't have the facts on his side: the top source for his latest defense against his critics is Stephen Colbert.  —  This morning, DeLay's legal defense fund sent out a mass email criticizing the movie …

Putting stem-cell research back on the front-burner  —  Exactly one year ago tomorrow, the House easily passed bi-partisan legislation that would remove restrictions on embryonic stem cell research.  The companion measure in the Senate had a filibuster-proof majority, Bill Frist endorsed …

Newspaper apologizes for anti-Iran report  —  Tehran summons envoy to explain Canadian leader's remarks  —  OTTAWA, Canada (Reuters) — A Canadian newspaper apologized Wednesday for an article that said Iran planned to force Jews and other religious minorities to wear distinctive clothing to distinguish themselves from Muslims.

OLMERT SPEECH TO JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS: WITNESSING HISTORY  —  And a reliable witness am I.  —  Ehud Olmert became the first Israeli prime minister in more than a decade to address a joint meeting of both houses of Congress.  Before I describe this most impressive speech and the historic moment …

Special counsel: Cheney may be called to testify  —  Prosecutor says vice president's 'state of mind' relevant in CIA leak case  —  WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney could be called to testify in the perjury case against his former chief of staff, a special prosecutor said in a court filing Wednesday.

ACLU Threatens Its Own Members' Free Speech  —  The ACLU-famed defender of terrorists and illegal aliens-may crack down on the right of its own board members to criticize it.  Yes, you read that right.  The ACLU may come out against basic free speech.  Details: … You don't say.

Keep 'America' in Michigan schools  —  State bureaucrats want to do what Stalin, Osama could only dream about  —  C ensoring the word "America" from our own schools is something Josef Stalin, Adolf Hitler and Osama bin Laden would never have thought possible.  Michigan has done it without a whimper.

Desperate Telcos: When the Going Gets Tough, the Absurd Rumors Get Going  —  Opponents of Internet freedom seem shocked that Google, MoveOn, the Christian Coalition, and 700 other diverse organizations are fighting on the same side to preserve the Internet that has revolutionized democratic participation …

Mike Farrell's review of "Baghdad ER"  —  Mike Farrell on "Baghdad ER"  —  Mike Farrell, who most of you know from the TV series "Mash," allowed C&L an exclusive to publish his review and feelings about HBO's documentary, "Baghdad ER."  —  I saw "Baghdad ER" on HBO last night (Sunday, May 21).

Senator McCain Worked Blue  —  On New York Stage  —  Behind Closed Doors, Republican Works in Material: 'I'd Tell Shiites and Sunnis, "Stop the Bulls**t"'; Fresh From Falwell, Attacks Right-Wing Nativism  —  For all the national attention surrounding John McCain's two highly anticipated …