Bush seeks political gains from foiled plot  —  CRAWFORD, United States (AFP) - US President George W. Bush seized on a foiled London airline bomb plot to hammer unnamed critics he accused of having all but forgotten the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Peretz: Israel will exhaust diplomatic options before expanding war  —  Defense Minister Amir Peretz stated Thursday that Israel will exhaust diplomatic options before expanding the military operation in Lebanon.  —  "We are responsible for considering all options," Peretz said while visiting …

Lieberman Seizes on Terror Arrests to Attack Rival  —  Senator Joseph I. Lieberman seized on the terror arrests in Britain today to attack his Democratic rival, Ned Lamont, saying that Mr. Lamont's goals for ending the war in Iraq would constitute a "victory" for the extremists who are accused …

Hezbollywood  —  I think we've posted on some of this before, but I want to put it in one post in one place.  —  The fauxtography scandals and speculation point to something lurking behind the scenes of the war in Lebanon and the greater war against radical Islam-the post-modern nature of this war.

Lieberman loses, CODE RED, CODE RED, CODE RED  —  UPDATE: I'm reading Ron Suskin's book, the "One Percent Doctrine," and highly recommend it.  It's a look at the inside workings of the Bush administration and how they turned the war on terror into such a botched mess.

More Death Cult Propaganda  —  This AP photograph from Gaza, published yesterday, claims to show a little Palestinian girl killed by an Israeli airstrike being carried into a hospital, surrounded by armed men (probably Hamas). … Another photo, this one from Reuters, shows the dead girl lying …

I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation  —  for the GOP choosing to make Howard Dean look like Hitler on its official website.  —  Atrios posted this screen grab:  —  So I went hunting.  Yes, that "moustache" photo does exist on someone guy's blog under the header "Dean Goes Mad," …

What retirement?  Mike Wallace gets scoop in Iran  —  NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - "60 Minutes" veteran correspondent Mike Wallace may have retired last March but that hasn't stopped him from scoring an exclusive interview with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The Guns Of August  —  Two full-blown crises, in Lebanon and Iraq, are merging into a single emergency.  A chain reaction could spread quickly almost anywhere between Cairo and Bombay.  Turkey is talking openly of invading northern Iraq to deal with Kurdish terrorists based there.

Recipients of "Leaks" May Be Prosecuted, Court Rules  —  In a momentous expansion of the government's authority to regulate public disclosure of national security information, a federal court ruled that even private citizens who do not hold security clearances can be prosecuted for unauthorized receipt …

Rice's Hurdles on Middle East Begin at Home  —  As fighting was breaking out last month between Hezbollah and Israel, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice worked through the night at her guest quarters on Russia's Baltic coast to draft America's response to the unfolding crisis.

GA-04: McKinney Backers Blame Jews For Her Loss  —  So who's to blame for Rep. Cynthia McKinney's crushing loss in Tuesday's Dem primary runoff to Hank Johnson?  —  Why, the Jews, of course.  —  That's what some McKinney supporters were caught on video saying at McKinney's primary night party.

Dems say plot proves Iraq is a diversion from the war on terror  —  There are bits from Reid and Kerry too, but as usual it's Teddy who provides the pull-quote for the day's events: … We've reached the point where either you see instantly what's wrong with that statement or you don't …