Clinton, Lamont meet to discuss Connecticut Senate race  —  NEW YORK — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton hosted Connecticut Senate candidate Ned Lamont at her Westchester County home Friday morning, discussing campaign strategy and fundraising in an hourlong meeting over coffee, Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson said.

Syria objects to U.N. troops on border  —  BEIRUT, Lebanon — Israel is demanding that U.N. troops patrol the Syria-Lebanon border to prevent Hezbollah from receiving arms shipments.  But even if Israel overcomes Syrian objections to the idea, policing the mostly mountainous frontier could prove nearly impossible.

The Perils Of Using 'The Allies'  —  The cowboy has been retired.  Multilateralism is back.  Diplomacy is king.  That's the conventional wisdom about George W. Bush's second term: Under the influence of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the administration has finally embraced "the allies."

Fairfax Native Says Allen's Words Stung  —  S.R. Sidarth had built an impressive record of achievements for such a young man: straight-A student at one of Fairfax County's finest high schools, a tournament chess player, a quiz team captain, a sportswriter at his college newspaper …

Protest permit alarms Utah's Jews  —  'It's scary': Many worry such a rally could blur the line between freedom of speech and anti-Semitism  —  Members of Utah's Jewish community are alarmed by a proposed demonstration that will call for "Death to Israel."

Issues of Race and Sex Stir Up Alabama Election  —  When Patricia Todd won the Democratic primary runoff for a seat in the Alabama Legislature last month, the big news might have been her sexual orientation.  With no Republican opponent, Ms. Todd seemed poised to become what political observers …

Washington, D.C.  —  WASHINGTON, in many ways, is an unsurprising place to visit — an expanse of monuments, symbols and sites familiar to any American who watches the evening news (or, at least, "West Wing").  Which is not to say that Washington can't be, with a little effort, a city of surprises and unfamiliar delights.

Kentucky Governor Signs Plea Deal  —  Gov. Ernie Fletcher of Kentucky, who was indicted in May in connection with a hiring scandal, signed an agreement yesterday admitting wrongdoing by his administration and promising to reconstitute the state's Personnel Board.

Pluto vote 'hijacked' in revolt  —  Pluto (L), pictured with its largest moon, Charon, is now a dwarf planet  —  A fierce backlash has begun against the decision by astronomers to strip Pluto of its status as a planet.  —  On Thursday, experts approved a definition of a planet that demoted Pluto to a lesser category of object.

Medicare Ads Paid by Drug Industry  —  WASHINGTON (AP) - The pharmaceutical industry quietly footed the bill for at least part of a recent multimillion-dollar ad campaign praising lawmakers who support the new Medicare prescription drug benefit, according to political officials.

In Poll, G.O.P. Slips as a Friend of Religion  —  A new poll shows that fewer Americans view the Republican Party as "friendly to religion" than a year ago, with the decline particularly steep among Catholics and white evangelical Protestants — constituencies at the core of the Republicans' conservative Christian voting bloc.

Exclusive: Whistleblowers Say State Farm Cheated Katrina Victims  —  Brian Ross and Joseph Rhee Report:  —  State Farm Insurance supervisors systematically demanded that Hurricane Katrina damage reports be buried or replaced or changed so that the company would not have to pay policyholders' claims …

WHY WAL-MART MATTERS.  I'm of the opinion that how to handle Wal-Mart is among the two or three most important issues facing the country.  The conversation hasn't caught up to it, and the arguments being had mostly miss the mark and collapse in their own short-sightedness …

Hezbollah Didn't Win  —  Arab writers are beginning to lift the veil on what really happened in Lebanon.  —  The way much of the Western media tells the story, Hezbollah won a great victory against Israel and the U.S., healed the Sunni-Shiite rift, and boosted the Iranian mullahs' claim to leadership of the Muslim world.

'NYT' Sunday Preview: Barry Goldwater ... Hero of Democrats?  —  NEW YORK An interview in this Sunday's New York Times Magazine with C.C. Goldwater reveals that her HBO film to be aired Sept. 18 paints her late grandfather, Sen. Barry Goldwater, "as a kind of liberal," with testimonials from Al Franken …

GOP Senate challenger McGavick reveals drunken driving incident  —  OLYMPIA, Wash. — Republican U.S. Senate challenger Mike McGavick, in a remarkable confession of what he called his personal and political shortcomings, on Thursday revealed a drunken driving incident and discussed his divorce …

Shays Urges Iraq Withdrawal  —  A Former War Backer, GOP Congressman Calls for Timetable  —  Rep. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.), once an ardent supporter of the war in Iraq, said yesterday that the Bush administration should set a time frame for withdrawing U.S. troops.

Steyn on multiculturalism (Update: Q&A added)  —  Actually, I've got three pieces on multiculturalism to link here, but putting Steyn in the title ensures the clickthroughs.  —  Just to frame the issue for you, here's a photo taken yesterday in Somalia of a henchman for the new Islamist government making sure the trains run on time:

New Yorker Arrested for Providing Hezbollah TV Channel  —  A New York man was arrested yesterday on charges that he conspired to support a terrorist group by providing U.S. residents with access to Hezbollah's satellite channel, al-Manar.  —  Javed Iqbal runs HDTV Corp. …