Justices Back Most G.O.P. Changes to Texas Districts  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld most of the Texas congressional map engineered by former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay but threw out part, saying some of the new boundaries failed to protect minority voting rights.

Operation Summer Rains  —  Before dawn today, IDF tanks and troops went into Gaza.  Their mission is clear: to secure the release of kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit.  As National Infrastructure Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer told Israel Radio: … According to an army source …

Piling On the New York Times With a Scoop  —  Story on Secret Program Further Rouses Critics  —  President Bush calls the conduct of the New York Times "disgraceful."  Vice President Cheney objects to the paper having won a Pulitzer Prize.  A Republican congressman wants the Times prosecuted.

Bush's Use of Authority Riles Senator  —  WASHINGTON, June 27 — Senators on the Judiciary Committee accused President Bush of an "unprecedented" and "astonishing" power grab on Tuesday for making use of a device that gave him the authority to revise or ignore more than 750 laws enacted since he became president.

Obama: Democrats Must Court Evangelicals  —  WASHINGTON — Sen. Barack Obama chastised fellow Democrats on Wednesday for failing to "acknowledge the power of faith in the lives of the American people," and said the party must compete for the support of evangelicals and other churchgoing Americans.

Not Quite the Banner Day One Might Have Hoped For  —  As the Senate's flag-desecration debate heated up yesterday and the sparks began to fly — but before the smoke cleared — the amendment's backers were asked a burning question: Is this the most important issue facing the nation?

GOP's New `values Agenda' Item Fails  —  House Republicans failed Wednesday to advance a bill protecting the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance.  Only a day earlier, the GOP had placed the measure on its "American Values Agenda" in hopes of bolster the party's prospects in the fall election.

Senator seeks tax on pimps, prostitutes  —  Grassley: 'It's a no-brainer to have the IRS go after sex traffickers'  —  NEW YORK (CNN) — Republican Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa is hoping to stamp out the sex trade by taxing pimps and prostitutes, then jailing them when they don't pay.

Democrats More Eager to Vote, But Unhappy with Party  —  Gay Marriage, Inheritance Tax Among the Lowest Public Priorities  —  Summary of Findings  —  With less than five months to go before Election Day, Democrats hold two distinct advantages in the midterm campaign that they have not enjoyed for some time.

Home Fly-By Sends Message to Syrian Leader  —  Israeli warplanes buzzed the summer residence of Syrian President Bashar Assad early Wednesday, military officials said, in a message aimed at pressuring the Syrian leader to win the release of a captured Israeli soldier.

A Working Girl Can Win  —  THE CASE AGAINST STAYING AT HOME WITH THE KIDS.  —  Get to work, Linda Hirshman admonished American women in a polemical article in the American Prospect last December, in which she argued that it's imperative for women not to "opt out" of employment to stay home with the kids.

we need to stop this... now  —  Guest Contributor: Sen. John McCain  —  Last week I had the honor of speaking to a group of my fellow Republicans at the presidential library of one of my heroes — President Ronald Reagan.  —  When I was first elected to Congress, I was one of many newly elected members …