Rice Makes Unannounced Visit to Beirut  —  BEIRUT, July 24 — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made an unannounced stop in Beirut Monday in an effort to shore up Lebanon's fragile government, beleaguered by nearly two weeks of relentless bombing raids that have wrecked much of the country's infrastructure …

Dialing for Spines...And the Constitution  —  Last week Pachacutec asked all of the Roots project members to reach out to their senators to find out how they intended to vote on Arlen Specter's revision of FISA legislation.  [If you haven't yet joined the Roots Project, you should] (see UPDATE below).

Peace prize winner 'could kill' Bush  —  NOBEL peace laureate Betty Williams displayed a flash of her feisty Irish spirit yesterday, lashing out at US President George W.Bush during a speech to hundreds of schoolchildren.  —  Campaigning on the rights of young people at the Earth Dialogues forum …

The Boxer Meltdown  —  Maura and CTBob had quite the face off with Barbara Boxer today when they tried to dodge the public in an event only annnounced to the press at a local candy store normally closed on Mondays.  (You'll remember Maura from her encounter with Lieberman when the dog ate Joe Biden's train schedule.)

About the American Dream Initiative  —  Editor's Note: Due to the large size of these files, and increased website traffic, these files may take a few moments to load.  —  At the 2005 national conversation in Columbus, Ohio, DLC Chair Gov. Tom Vilsack asked Sen. Hillary Clinton to lead …

Joe Lieberman's War  —  The senator was looking to shake it off.  He needed more people contact.  So his driver pulled into a small shopping center nearby.  Lieberman spied the Village Wine and Spirit store and walked in, saying, "I'm going back to my roots."

Kos, Hezbollah, and Israel  —  WHEN THE BOMBS began to fall in the Middle East, the Daily Kos had a problem.  And the Daily Kos's problem could soon be the Democratic party's problem.  —  On the one hand, one of the most solid blocks of support for the Democratic party is America's Jewish community.

Civil rights hiring shifted in Bush era  —  Conservative leanings stressed  —  WASHINGTON — The Bush administration is quietly remaking the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, filling the permanent ranks with lawyers who have strong conservative credentials but little experience in civil rights …

'Chickenhawk'  —  ``IT'S TOUCHING that you're so concerned about the military in Iraq," a reader in Wyoming e-mails in response to one of my columns on the war.  ``But I have a suspicion you're a phony.  So tell me, what's your combat record?  Ever serve?"

RUDY, THE FRONT-RUNNER  —  CRUISING AHEAD OF MCCAIN  —  July 24, 2006 — IT'S early in the game yet, but it's becoming undeniable: Rudy Giuliani will run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 - as the clear front-runner.  —  For months, the media have treated their favored candidate …

That Raise Might Take 4 Years to Earn as Well  —  Those with bachelor's degrees are finding their incomes stagnate despite a growing economy.  —  WASHINGTON — The economy has been steadily growing, with unemployment low and corporate profits at historic highs.  —  So why can't David Lewis get a decent raise?

Sectarian break-up of Iraq is now inevitable, admit officials  —  The Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, meets Tony Blair in London today as violence in Iraq reaches a new crescendo and senior Iraqi officials say the break up of the country is inevitable.

Democrats pledge to fight Bolton nod  —  Senate Democrats have promised a "bruising fight" over the administration's nomination of John R. Bolton as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.  —  Mr. Bolton's nomination was sent out of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last year without …

He Who Cast the First Stone Probably Didn't  —  LONG before seat belts or common sense were particularly widespread, my family made annual trips to New York in our 1963 Valiant station wagon.  Mom and Dad took the front seat, my infant sister sat in my mother's lap and my brother and I had what we called "the wayback" all to ourselves.

THE DEMOCRATS STAND WITH ISRAEL.  WHERE DO THE LIBERALS STAND?  Is there a silver lining to the clouds over the Middle East?  I'm not so sure, but it certainly is nice to see that politicians across the spectrum are standing up for Israel.  Here's what Joe Biden had to say:

"The Lord Will Smite"  —  From progressive lefty site the Booman Tribune: … Wow!—a hard leftist wishing harm to a political opponent's children?  Where have I heard that before?  —  A note to the progressive left: for behavior such as this to be labeled "non-representative" …

'It Looked Weird and Felt Wrong'  —  From its first days in Iraq in April 2003, the Army's 4th Infantry Division made an impression on soldiers from other units — the wrong one.  —  "We slowly drove past 4th Infantry guys looking mean and ugly," recalled Sgt. Kayla Williams …