Security around pope beefed up  —  Italian media report security around Benedict XVI tightened following harsh responses to his remarks on Islam; pope expected to deliver weekly sermon from his summer home on Sunday, but it remains unclear whether he will address international uproar

Save Yourself, Blame Bush  —  I can't help but feel sorry for my old Republican friends in Congress who are fighting for their political lives.  After all, it must be tough explaining to voters at their local Baptist church's Keep Congress Conservative Day that it was their party that took …

What Would the Democrats Do?  —  Some Democrats in the center of the war debate: Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, James Webb of Virginia, Ned Lamont of Connecticut, Senator John Kerry, Patricia Madrid of New Mexico and Senator Joseph Biden Jr.  —  FOR Democrats in Congress and those hoping to join them …

Racial Politics This Week — A Roundup  —  Brought to you by Jill Tubman of Jack and Jill Politics  —  This week, a controversial photo snapped at a blogger lunch in Harlem with Bill Clinton is under much discussion in the progressive blackosphere.  You can follow the conversation here …

UN should stick to defending Lebanon from Israel: Hezbollah  —  TYRE, Lebanon (AFP) - A top Hezbollah leader said the Shiite group would have no problems with UN peacekeepers as long as they limit their work to defending Lebanon against Israel and do not pursue other agendas.

Na Na Ney Ney Goodbye  —  Bob Ney became the first lawmaker to admit corruption in connection with Jack Abramoff yesterday, pleading guilty to conspiracy and false statements regarding gifts he received.  Ney came up with a new excuse for his abrupt fall as he entered his plea:

Major Problems At Polls Feared  —  Some Officials Say Voting Law Changes And New Technology Will Cause Trouble  —  An overhaul in how states and localities record votes and administer elections since the Florida recount battle six years ago has created conditions that could trigger a repeat …

The Late Show  —  Even a blind pig, they say, can occasionally find an acorn.  And in like fashion, Peggy Noonan appears to have stumbled across an insight: … The Rovians have always acted as if constant, mind-numbing repetition was an absolute virtue — the key to drowning out any competing message.

Carnival of the Vanities, RIP  —  Zeuswood has announced the end of the Carnival of the Vanities, the granddaddy of all blog carnivals. … All good things must end.  —  I hosted the 43rd Edition of the Carnival in a little over three years ago and it was a ton of work but brought welcome linkage and traffic.

Bayh says Democrats can't be 'bunch of wimps' on terror  —  DES MOINES, Iowa - Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh defended Democratic assaults on President Bush's prosecution of the war on terror, but he warned Friday that his party can't come across as "a bunch of wimps" on security issues.

In Campaign Ads for Democrats, Bush Is the Star  —  From Rhode Island to New Mexico, from Connecticut to Tennessee, President Bush is emerging as the marquee name in this fall's Congressional elections — courtesy not of his Republican Party but of the Democrats.

Three bombs hit southern Thai town  —Text+HAT YAI, Thailand (Reuters) - Three bombs exploded almost simultaneously at two department stores and a hotel in the southern Thai town of Hat Yai on Saturday, wounding several people, police and the army said.  —  "I've had a report there might …

HERETICALLY SEALED  —  I don't do Christianity any better than I do atheism (nor am I Jewish), so I may not be the right person to propose something like this.  —  But it occurred to me that the best way to honor Oriana Fallaci might be with some sort of alliance between religious and non-religious …

John Yoo's Falsehoods  —  Back to the stage returns the utterly discredited John Yoo as he pens one of the most audaciously mendacious columns seen on the Op-Ed page of the New York Times this side of David Brooks.  The man is truly shameless: … The Administration has gone to war?