How the Chicks survived their scrap with Bush  —  Adam Sweeting assesses how the Dixie Chicks have weathered a political storm  —  Will it be the salmon teriyaki with organic greens, or asparagus tempura and tuna sashimi?  As the waiter hovers with pencil poised, the Dixie Chicks debate …

Antiwar Crucible in Connecticut  —  Back in 1962, when Joseph Lieberman was 20, he attended a raucous Democratic state convention in Hartford, Conn. Abraham Ribicoff, the former governor, had decided to leave his post in the Kennedy Cabinet to run for the Senate.

Contradictions Cloud Inquiry Into 24 Iraqi Deaths  —  What really happened in Haditha on Nov. 19, 2005?  —  On that day, marines killed 24 Iraqi civilians, including 10 women and children and an elderly man in a wheelchair.  But how and why it happened and who ultimately bears responsibility are matters of profound dispute.

Exclusive Book Excerpt: How an Al-Qaeda Cell Planned a Poison-gas Attack on the N.Y. Subway  —  The plot was called off by Bin Laden's No. 2 only 45 days from zero hour, according to a new book by Ron Suskind  —  Al-Qaeda terrorists came within 45 days of attacking the New York subway system …

Democrats Outline a Platform for the Fall  —  WASHINGTON, June 16 — Declaring their party "ready for this election," Democratic leaders in Congress on Friday announced the platform they hope to use to regain the majority in November.  —  Their plan, presented at a news conference …

Moving Ahead, Rather Throws Sad Look Back  —  The 74-year-old man with the Mets cap pulled far down on his forehead slid into a booth at a diner on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and ordered a glass of milk without so much as turning a head — so quietly, in fact, that it was hard to believe it was Dan Rather.

WASHINGTON POST EDITORS HELP KARL ROVE BURNISH HIS REPUTATION.  The political media is utterly incapable of acknowledging its own role in shaping voter perceptions of our political figures.  This blind spot borders on pathological.  —  Case in point: In today's Washington Post …

Bush: Iraq must know it won't be abandoned  —  CRAWFORD, Texas - President Bush, reminding listeners of his surprise trip to Baghdad, said Saturday it was important for the Iraqi people to know after three years of war that "America will not abandon them after we have come this far."

Police may let Muslims see terrorism intelligence  —  Vikram Dodd  —  The police are considering a proposal to let selected British Muslims examine the intelligence used to mount anti-terrorism raids before they take place, the Guardian has learned.  —  The proposal will be considered …

Hard Sell  —  Warner flops with the Kossaks, gets a bounce with the MSM, and learns that courting the Democratic netroots is no simple thing.  —  LAS VEGAS — The YearlyKos convention that took place at the end of last week wasn't a bit like the bar scene in Star Wars.

Baghdad explosions bring Iraq toll to 23  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq - A series of explosions struck commercial areas in Baghdad within hours Saturday, killing at least 17 people and dealing a blow to a huge government operation to secure the capital.  —  The blasts — seven within five hours …

THE SWIFTBOATING OF GENERAL HAGEE:  —  Yesterday bloggers picked a new military target—General Michael Hagee, the outgoing commandant of the Marine Corps.  Hagee, apparently, is a secondary target in the ongoing campaign to destroy Jack Murtha.  Yesterday, The Washington Times reported …

"Media Matters"; by Jamison Foser  —  Weekly Part 4: where do we go from here?  —  Three weeks ago, we began what has now turned into a four-part series: … A week later, we elaborated on the notion that the "dominant political force of our time is the media," with a look back at more than a decade …

Betting on Defeat?  —  It's far from a safe bet.  —  National Review Online  —  Lately, it has become popular to recant on Iraq.  When 2,500 Americans are lost, and when the improvised explosive device monopolizes the war coverage, it is easy to see why — especially with elections coming up in November …

Documents Support Saddam-Taliban Connection  —  Prologue:  —  Did Saddam Hussein's inner circle and the Taliban rulers in Afghanistan actively court each other in hopes of forging an anti-American alliance in the region?  —  Ray Robison, a former member of the CIA-directed Iraq Survey Group …