GOP Plans Hearings on Issue of Immigrants  —  In a move that could bury President Bush's high-profile effort to overhaul immigration law until after the midterm elections, House GOP leaders yesterday announced a series of field hearings during the August recess, pushing off final negotiations on a bill until fall at the earliest.

Bush Accuses Iran of Dragging Its Feet  —  President Bush on Wednesday accused Iran of dragging its feet on a Western incentive package aimed at getting Tehran to suspend uranium enrichment activity.  Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said earlier in the day that his country will respond …

Key Figure in al-Qaida in Iraq Killed  —  Key figure in al-Qaida in Iraq killed by U.S. airstrike; described as group's 'religious emir'  —  (AP) A key al-Qaida in Iraq leader described as the group's "religious emir" was killed in a U.S. airstrike hours before two American soldiers went missing …

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.

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 …

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.

Lawyer Representing Saddam Hussein Killed  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - One of Saddam Hussein's lawyers was shot to death Wednesday after he was abducted from his home by men wearing police uniforms in Baghdad, court and police officials said.  —  Khamis al-Obeidi, who represented Saddam …

VIDEO PODCASTS … LONGFORM PROGRAMMING View Archive  —  Dirt Warriors (2:00 p.m. ET, June 16)  —  Dirt track racing is the biggest sport you've never heard of.  CNN's Michael Jones and CNN Senior Producer Ted Rubenstein fill you in.  CNN Presents: "Dirt Track Warriors" …

Is the NSA spying on U.S. Internet traffic?  —  Salon exclusive: Two former AT&T employees say the telecom giant has maintained a secret, highly secure room in St. Louis since 2002.  Intelligence experts say it bears the earmarks of a National Security Agency operation.

Soldiers of fortune go free as judge denounces Chirac over island coup  —  COVERT attempts by President Chirac to exert influence over Africa were exposed by a French court yesterday, when it denounced his secret services for conniving with a band of mercenaries in a coup in the tiny Comoros Islands.

Al-Qaida video shows alleged 20th hijacker  —  WASHINGTON - Al-Qaida has identified a would-be 20th hijacker for the Sept. 11 attacks as a Saudi operative who was killed in a 2004 shootout with his country's security forces.  —  In a statement accompanying a new video …

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 …

'PA doctors cut victim needlessly'  —  Representatives of the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov) said on Tuesday that Ralia Niham, a 21-year-old woman who was seriously wounded in the Gaza beach explosion on June 9 that is at the center of a continuing controversy over who is to blame …

An A-to-Z Book of Conservatism Now Weighs In  —  WASHINGTON, June 20 — It has red states and blond pundits; home schoolers and The Human Life Review; originalists, monetarists, federalists and evangelists; and no shortage of people named Kristol.  —  Now American conservatism can claim another mark …