Iraq using 'treasure' of al-Zarqawi info  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraq's national security adviser said Thursday a "huge treasure" of documents and computer records was seized after the raid on terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's hideout, giving the Iraqi government the upper hand in its fight against al-Qaida in Iraq.

GOP Measure Forces House Debate on War  —  Divisions Within Party Likely to Surface  —  Nearly four years after it authorized the use of force in Iraq, the House today will embark on its first extended debate on the war, with Republican leaders daring Democrats to vote against a nonbinding resolution …

Schumer vs. Kos?  —  Not surprisingly, Markos, writing at DailyKos, is not happy with the leeway DSCC Chair Chuck Schumer gave himself and the DSCC regarding Joe Lieberman should the incumbent Dem senator decide to abandon the Dem primary in favor of an indie bid.

Crisis Seen in Nation's ER Care  —  Emergency medical care in the United States is on the verge of collapse, with the nation's declining number of emergency rooms dangerously overcrowded and often unable to provide the expertise needed to treat seriously ill people in a safe and efficient manner.

Judge Rules That U.S. Has Broad Powers to Detain Noncitizens Indefinitely  —  A federal judge in Brooklyn ruled yesterday that the government has wide latitude under immigration law to detain noncitizens on the basis of religion, race or national origin, and to hold them indefinitely without explanation.

Bush Plans Vast Protected Sea Area in Hawaii  —  President Bush will create the world's largest protected marine area today, designating as a national monument a 1,200-mile-long chain of small Hawaiian islands and surrounding waters and reefs that are home to a spectacular array of sea life …

Stopwatch Ticking for Dan Rather  —  CBS to Drop Ex-Anchor From '60 Minutes'  —  NEW YORK — CBS executives have decided there is no future role at the network for Dan Rather, making it certain that the man who sat in the anchor chair for 24 years will depart by this fall.

Frank Page wins SBC presidency in upset over powerbrokers  —  GREENSBORO, N.C. (ABP) — In a major upset, outsider Frank Page of South Carolina was elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention over two candidates closely tied to the SBC's conservative power structure.

Bush Apologizes to L.A. Times Reporter  —  WASHINGTON — President Bush, who often teases members of the White House press corps, apologized Wednesday after he poked fun at a reporter for wearing sunglasses without realizing they were needed for vision loss.  —  The exchange occurred at a news conference in the Rose Garden.

Top Bush Adviser to Step Down  —  Michael J. Gerson, one of President Bush's most trusted advisers and author of nearly all of his most famous public words during the past seven years, plans to step down in the next couple weeks in a decision that colleagues believe will leave a huge hole in the White House at a critical period.

Our Flag and Our Freedom  —  With campaigns at full tilt and the Fourth of July just around the corner, the Senate's new priority is to debate and vote on yet another resolution to amend our remarkable Constitution.  This time it's an amendment that would allow Congress to prohibit a form …