A Judicial Misfire  —  THE NATION would benefit from a serious, scholarly and hard-hitting judicial examination of the National Security Agency's program of warrantless surveillance.  The program exists on ever-more uncertain legal ground; it is at least in considerable tension with federal law and the Bill of Rights.

Officials: U.S. blocked missiles to Hezbollah  —  WASHINGTON — The United States blocked an Iranian cargo plane's flight to Syria last month after intelligence analysts concluded it was carrying sophisticated missiles and launchers to resupply Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, two U.S. intelligence officials say.

Would Party Forgive Joe?  —  Lieberman Says Democrats Can Count On Him If He Wins; Vice Versa Is Iffy  —  WASHINGTON — Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman says he'll stick with the Democrats if he wins his third-party re-election bid - but will the Democrats stick with him?

Wal-Mart Image-Builder Resigns  —  The civil rights leader Andrew Young, who was hired by Wal-Mart to improve its public image, resigned from that post last night after telling an African-American newspaper that Jewish, Arab and Korean shop owners had "ripped off" urban communities for years …

Suspects Sought in Near Terror Disaster on German Trains  —  (By Ray D.)  —  According to reports circulating throughout the German media today, two suitcase bombs placed by two unidentified men very nearly went off on regional trains in Dortmund and Koblenz at the end of July.

Israel alarm at UN force members  —  Israel says it would be "difficult if not inconceivable" to accept nations which do not recognise its right to exist as part of a UN force in Lebanon.  —  Israeli UN envoy Dan Gillerman was speaking after Indonesia and Malaysia, which do not recognise Israel, pledged troops for the UN deployment.

Video provokes questions of Lebanese army  —  Lebanese forces move southward; Beirut airport reopens  —  BEIRUT, Lebanon (CNN) — A video showing Lebanese soldiers cordially offering Israeli troops glasses of tea during the military offensive earlier this month has hit Israeli and Hezbollah airwaves.

Hagel awaits nation's mood  —  In the tenth August of his Senate career, this is a time of reflection for Chuck Hagel.  Decision time comes later, and it can wait.  —  Gliding above the green hills of northeastern Nebraska this week in a King Air bound from Norfolk to Sioux City, the shirtsleeved senator embraces the moment.

Republicans Losing The 'Security Moms'  —  Married women with children, the "security moms" whose concerns about terrorism made them an essential part of Republican victories in 2002 and 2004, are taking flight from GOP politicians this year in ways that appear likely to provide a major boost …

It sounded so good to start with.  But where did it all go wrong, George?  —  "HOW'M I DOIN'?" was the question the quixotic Ed Koch used to ask New York's voters during Hizzoner's eleven turbulent years as the city's mayor.  For a man who governed the globe's most neurotic metropolis …

Pocketbook Jihad  —  Look at any of the casualty figures coming out of Lebanon in the world's major media organizations, and you'll see something very close to this: … What is missing from this death toll (which CBS News has now quietly removed from this web report) are the casualties sustained by Hezbollah.

New Limits Set Over Marketing for Cigarettes  —  A federal judge ordered strict new limitations on tobacco marketing on Thursday after finding that cigarette makers deserved to be punished for a decades-old conspiracy to deceive the public about the dangers of smoking.

Fill the cup  —  One more hour of Headline News and I'll be done  —  Apparently Ace is whining that there are Americans who don't act like seven year-old girls at their first Kiwanis Halloween Haunted House who screech and go,"Omigawdomigawdomigawd" and do the pee-pee dance every time that CNN …

Terror War  —  KIRYAT SHMONA, ISRAEL - The Israel/Lebanon war created hundreds of thousands of refugees on each side of the border, but that's where proportion ends.  Israel has a real army and a real air force and can inflict real damage on its enemies.  Hezbollah, on the other hand, is only strong enough to terrorize people.

Breaking the law has consequences  —  My overall analysis of today's extraordinary federal court decision on the NSA warrantless eavesdropping program is in the post below, here.  I also have an article up at Salon summarizing the importance of this ruling, here.