Senate rejects bid to raise minimum wage  —  WASHINGTON - The Republican-controlled Senate smothered a proposed election-year increase in the minimum wage Wednesday, rejecting Democratic claims that it was past time to boost the $5.15 hourly pay floor that has been in effect for nearly a decade.

Iran won't respond to offer 'til August  —  TEHRAN, Iran - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that Iran will respond in mid-August to the package of incentives on its nuclear program offered by the West, but President Bush accused Tehran of dragging its feet.  —  "We are studying the proposals.

Troops echo frustration over war in Iraq  —  JOHNSTOWN, Pa. - While Staff Sgt. Randy Myers was dodging roadside bombs in Iraq, his congressman was calling the war a lost cause.  —  Sixteen-term Rep. John Murtha (news, bio, voting record), a decorated Vietnam veteran and military hawk …

Shill Wind  —  All of Washington's political reporters read ABC's The Note.  That's why they keep missing the story.  —  In the spring of 2005, a story came along that was so important, so history-altering that it threatened to revive a killer press instinct that had been dormant for the previous four years.

Some 85 Iraqi workers abducted by gunmen  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq - Gunman abducted about 85 workers Wednesday as they left an industrial plant north of Baghdad, police and a witness said.  —  The workers were thought to be mostly Shiite and the plant is located in a predominantly Sunni Arab area.

Did George Bush deface American flags in Vienna, Austria today?  —  UPDATE: The Associated Press caught Bush defacing American flags in 2003.  The Democrats need to offer an amendment to the "flag burning amendment" that says that writing on the flag is also illegal.

Human rights groups silent on death of Americans  —  Two American soldiers, missing since an insurgent ambush at the checkpoint they were manning last Friday, were found dead Monday night on a street just south of Baghdad.  An Iraqi General confirmed to the Associated Press that the soldiers' bodies showed …

On Iraq, Kerry Again Leaves Democrats Fuming  —  WASHINGTON, June 20 — When Senator John Kerry was their presidential nominee in 2004, Democrats fervently wished he would express himself firmly about the Iraq war.  —  Mr. Kerry has found his resolve.  But it has not made his fellow Democrats any happier.

THE BLOGOSPHERE'S SMOKE-FILLED BACKROOM:  —  Are Jerome Armstrong and Markos Moulitsas (of the famous Daily Kos) engaged in a pay-for-play scheme in which politicians who hire Armstrong as a consultant get the support of Kos?  That's the question that's been bouncing around the blogosphere ever since …

Global Warming Affecting Your Life?  E-Mail Us  —  Send Us Your Stories and Video...Extend the Reach of ABC News' Reporting by Sharing Your Observations  —  Witnessing the impact of global warming in your life?  —  ABC News wants to hear from you.  We're currently producing a report …

Murder & Media Manipulation: Al-Qaeda's Strategy in Iraq  —  Since I first learned of the murder of the two U.S. soldiers whose booby-trapped bodies were recovered earlier today, I've been trying to find words to express my outrage at this atrocity.  Simply put, it shows the barbarity of our adversary …

Ex-Aide To Bush Found Guilty  —  A federal jury found former White House aide David H. Safavian guilty yesterday of lying and obstructing justice, making him the highest-ranking government official to be convicted in the spreading scandal involving disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Defendant expected to take stand in sexual harassment case  —  EDINBURG — Political consultant and ad producer Carey Lee Cramer is expected to testify today defending himself against charges he sexually molested two young girls.  —  Cramer, 44, took the stand shortly before court recessed at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Lieberman Vs. the Democrats  —  Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman is as seasoned a pol as anyone can find, but he seems to have forgotten the very purpose of elections.  —  In a remarkable interview he recently gave to The Post's David S. Broder [op-ed, June 18], the Democrats' 2000 vice …