Could U.S. Troops End Up in Lebanon?  —  There's much discussion of putting a multinational, NATO-led force in southern Lebanon as part of a ceasefire agreement in the Israel-Lebanon conflict, but Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, according to a story in the Washington Post, has said that she does …

McCain Falsely Claims the Iraqi Prime Minister Has 'Condemned Hezbollah'  —  Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has repeatedly refused to condemn Hezbollah for its role in initiating the Lebanon-Israel conflict.  Yesterday, in a press conference with President Bush, he …

Polls show Harris losing GOP voters  —  In the latest poll on the U.S. Senate race, Republican Katherine Harris remained far behind incumbent Democrat Bill Nelson, indicating that her prospects of beating him are slim.  —  mcaputo@MiamiHerald.com  —  In only three months …

Interstate Abortion Bill Clears Senate  —  The Senate voted yesterday to make it a crime to take a pregnant minor to another state to obtain an abortion without her parents' knowledge, handing a long-sought victory to the Bush administration and abortion opponents.

Jury finds Yates not guilty in drownings  —  HOUSTON - Andrea Yates was found not guilty by reason of insanity Wednesday in her second murder trial for the bathtub drownings of her young children.  —  Yates, 42, will now be committed to a state mental hospital, with periodic hearings …

Israel troops 'ignored' UN plea  —  UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon contacted Israeli troops 10 times before an Israeli bomb killed four of them, an initial UN report says.  —  The post was hit by a precision-guided missile after six hours of shelling, diplomats familiar with the probe say.

Iran: The Next War  —  Even before the bombs fell on Baghdad, a group of senior Pentagon officials were plotting to invade another country.  Their covert campaign once again relied on false intelligence and shady allies.  But this time, the target was Iran.  BY JAMES BAMFORD

Browner Still  —  At approximately 7:00 AM Central European Time I received a phone call from a blocked number.  The person on the phone told me I had written naughty things on my blog, and then laughed when I asked them who they were.  —  "You're a dead man."

Cry Bias, and Let Slip the Blogs of War  —  J.P. Borda started a Web log during his 2004 National Guard deployment in Afghanistan to keep in touch with his family.  But when he got home, he decided it was the mainstream media that was out of touch with the war.  —  "You hear so much about what's going wrong," he says.

Dump Condi: Foreign policy conservatives charge State Dept. has hijacked Bush agenda  —  Conservative national security allies of President Bush are in revolt against Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, saying that she is incompetent and has reversed the administration's national security and foreign policy agenda.

Rome conference fails.  —  I'm watching al-Jazeera's live coverage of the Rome conference right now.  Al-Jazeera bumper sticker summary: Rome conference fails because United States rejects a ceasefire.  The camera captured Condoleeza Rice looking visibly uncomfortable Lebanon's Prime Minister Seniora calmly …

Tax Cuts May Come At a Price, Study Says  —  The federal government will need to either cut spending or raise taxes down the road to pay for extending President Bush's recent tax cuts, the Treasury Department said in a report released yesterday, dismissing the idea popular with many Republicans that such sacrifices can be avoided.

Chris Matthews comes unglued on the Imus In The Morning program.  —  If you're a rancher, according to Matthews, you can't be president.  —  Here is an excerpt of audio from Chris Matthews from earlier today on the Imus In The Morning program.  Listening is fine, but you need to really read what he had to say.

ConocoPhillips profit leaps 65 pct. in 2Q  —  HOUSTON - Lofty oil prices fueled a 65 percent surge in ConocoPhillips' second-quarter net income, the company announced Wednesday.  Its shares rose 2 percent in morning trading.  —  The nation's third-largest oil company earned $5.18 billion …

Senator Santorum Repugnant Remarks on Islam, Iran, and Syria  —  Sen. Rick Santorum (R., Pa.) remarks at the National Press Club on Wednesday July 19th 2006 calling for regime change in Iran and described "Islamic fascism" as the "great test" of this generation, as threatening to the United States …

An ABA Hit Job  —  Political payback against a judicial nominee.  —  In March 2001, barely two months after taking office and two months before announcing his first judicial nominees, President Bush told the American Bar Association to buzz off.  Specifically, Mr. Bush ended the tradition …