Muslim anger grows at Pope speech  —  A statement from the Vatican has failed to quell criticism of Pope Benedict XVI from Muslim leaders, after he made a speech about the concept of holy war.  —  Speaking in Germany, the Pope quoted a 14th Century Christian emperor who said Muhammad …

A Defining Moment for America  —  PRESIDENT BUSH rarely visits Congress.  So it was a measure of his painfully skewed priorities that Mr. Bush made the unaccustomed trip yesterday to seek legislative permission for the CIA to make people disappear into secret prisons and have information extracted …

Ohio Congressman Is Said to Agree to Plead Guilty  —  Representative Bob Ney, Republican of Ohio, has agreed to plead guilty to federal criminal charges related to his dealings with the corrupt lobbyist Jack Abramoff, lawyers and others with knowledge of the investigation said Thursday.

Novak "Would Hope" Bush Would Pardon Libby  —  Bob Novak took questions on C-Span today.  Some highlights (and I am straining my TiVo here):  — Novak "would hope" that President Bush would pardon Libby.  Whether a pardon should be given before or after the trial seems to be a point …

Bush wants 'clarity' on interrogations  —  WASHINGTON - Facing a GOP revolt in the Senate, President Bush urged Congress on Friday to join in backing legislation to spell out strategies for interrogating and trying terror suspects, saying "the enemy wants to attack us again."

The Tehran Calculus  —  In his televised Sept. 11 address, President Bush said that we must not "leave our children to face a Middle East overrun by terrorist states and radical dictators armed with nuclear weapons."  There's only one such current candidate: Iran.

Lieberman criticizes Republicans who assail war critics  —  FAIRFIELD, Conn. — Sen. Joe Lieberman on Friday criticized Republicans who accuse Democratic critics of the Iraq war of encouraging terrorists, arguing such talk "demeans the freedom we are all fighting for."

In a Volatile Region of Iraq, U.S. Military Takes Two Paths  —  AL-FURAT, Iraq — With a biker's bandanna tied under his helmet, the Special Forces team sergeant gunned a Humvee down a desert road in Iraq's volatile Anbar province.  Skirting the restive town of Hit, the team of a dozen soldiers crossed …

Senate approves bill to tighten port security  —  WASHINGTON - The Senate approved a port-security bill Thursday that its sponsors said would make the nation safer from terrorist attack, after it rejected a plan to inspect every inbound cargo container for nuclear weapons.

Democrats Meander in a New New Direction  —  House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, the woman who will become speaker of the House if Democrats get lucky in November, began her weekly news conference yesterday holding up a red-white-and-blue brochure.  —  "I hope you all received 'A New Direction for America …

Ritter tops in poll  —  Democrat holds 17-point lead over Beauprez for guv  —  Democrat Bill Ritter has a remarkable 17-point lead over Republican Congressman Bob Beauprez in the race for Colorado governor, according to a Rocky Mountain News/ CBS 4 poll of likely voters.

Obama Watch: Another Hint of '08 Intent?  —  After yesterday's post on Barack Obama's visit to Iowa this weekend, another tidbit of information came to The Fix's attention that will certainly fuel even more chatter that the Illinois senator is seriously pondering a 2008 presidential bid.

Speaker discusses role of Christ in Islam  —  Lecture bridges gap between religions  —  In the spirit of promoting understanding across religious denomination lines, the Muslim Student Association hosted a lecture clarifying some of its religious beliefs.  —  "Christ in Islam," held at 4 p. m.

Ace of Spades Reader Spotted Wanted Terrorist?  (Updated: Limited Confirmation From FBI)  —  TKS alerts me of an interesting comment posted here: … Name withheld (and I hope she used a pseudonym).  —  Later, after Purple Avenger provided the contact information for the Texas FBI,  —  she reported:

Attacks on Yemen oil plants kill 5  —  SAN`A, Yemen - Suicide bombers tried to strike two oil facilities in Yemen with explosives-packed cars, but authorities foiled the attacks and four bombers and a security guard were killed, the government said Friday.  —  The attempts came ahead …

Why Oh Why Can't We Have a Better Press Corps?  (CJR Daily Jumps the Shark Edition)  —  UPDATE: Bree Nordenson of Columbia Journalism Review says that she will explain her side of the story about why she wrote that Paul Krugman's references to median earnings of households headed by college graduates was "partisan slipperiness."

The Great Nuclear Debate  —  To add your voice to the nuclear debate click here. … Nuclear Energy Provides Practical Baseload Power  —  by Patrick Moore  —  When I helped found Greenpeace in the 1970s, my colleagues and I were firmly opposed to nuclear energy.  But times have changed.

Citizen Lanny  —  Lanny Davis is currently flogging a new book about how "Gotcha" politics are destroying America.  This is mildly paradoxical because Davis is famous for exactly nothing else except his willingness in 1998 to be the publicity point man for Bill Clinton in the whole Lewinsky mess.

Ellsberg Calls on Insiders to Leak Details of Alleged War Plans  —  NEW YORK When Daniel Ellsberg, the defense analyst, leaked the Pentagon Papers to the press in 1971, it created one of the most significant newspaper stories — and battles — of the century.