McCain's Stand On Detainees May Pose Risk For 2008 Bid  —  Opposition to Bush Could Alienate Republican Base  —  Sen. John McCain's bid to position himself as the natural heir to President Bush as a wartime commander in chief and to court conservative leaders in advance …

Poll finds rebound in Bush approval  —  WASHINGTON — Amid falling gas prices and a two-week drive to highlight his administration's efforts to fight terrorism, President Bush's approval rating has risen to 44% in a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll.  That's his highest rating in a year.

Canadian Was Falsely Accused, Panel Says  —  After Tip From Ally, U.S. Sent Muslim to Syria for Questioning  —  Canadian intelligence officials passed false warnings and bad information to American agents about a Muslim Canadian citizen, after which U.S. authorities secretly whisked him to Syria …

Connecticut Senate: Lieberman (I) 45% Lamont (D) 43%  —  In one of the country's most closely watched races, incumbent Senator Joseph Lieberman (I) continues to sustain a bare lead, now 45% to 43%, over Democrat Ned Lamont (see crosstabs).  —  Lieberman is running as an Independent against the wishes of the Democratic establishment.

Americans Deserve Secure Borders  —  Bringing the "Secure Fence Act of 2006" to the Floor  —  A nation that can't secure its borders can't secure its destiny or administer its laws.  And the reality is that America's borders today are inexcusably porous.  —  One of the most important …

Bush owes us an apology  —  Sept. 11: A special comment about 9/11 five years after the terrorist attacks.  —  MSNBC TV  —  • Have you no sense of decency, sir?  —  Sept. 5: Keith Olbermann says Bush will regret following in the footsteps of Donald Rumsfeld in comparing war critics to Nazis.

The Senator's Gentile Rebuke  —  First came Sen. George Allen's Macaca Moment.  Then we learned of challenger Jim Webb's thoughts on the "horny" women of the Naval Academy.  —  Now, just when you thought Virginia's U.S. Senate race couldn't get any weirder, the Jews of Tunis are making a cameo.

Arrest Ahmadinejad  —  Hardliners in the war on Islamic extremist terrorism have long called for it to be treated as a war rather than a law-enforcement issue.  Yet by allowing, in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of an Axis regime to come to New York and stay on Park Avenue …

Chirac calls for threat of Iran sanctions to be lifted  —  President Jacques Chirac has broken ranks with the US and Britain by calling for the suspension of UN Security Council action against Iran during negotiations over its nuclear programme.  —  In a radio interview yesterday before flying …

Iranian leader urges more papal protests  —  CAIRO, Egypt - Al-Qaida in Iraq warned Pope Benedict XVI on Monday that its war against Christianity and the West will go on until Islam takes over the world, and Iran's supreme leader called for more protests over the pontiff's remarks on Islam.

Enough Apologies  —  Already, angry Palestinian militants have assaulted seven West Bank and Gaza churches, destroying two of them.  In Somalia, gunmen shot dead an elderly Italian nun.  Radical clerics from Qatar to Qom have called, variously, for a "day of anger" or for worshipers to "hunt down" the pope and his followers.

Warner: Kerry wrong on tax cuts  —  The ex-Virginia governor claims Democrats could appeal to more voters if they'd stop alienating the wealthy.  —  Former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner said in Iowa on Monday that Democrats have taken the wrong approach in arguing against tax cuts enacted under President Bush …

Burns on Vonage Plane After Pushing Bill  —  WASHINGTON — Montana Sen. Conrad Burns, a Republican in a tight re-election race, flew on a private plane chartered by Vonage Holdings Corp. just days after he pushed legislation that the company has advocated for more than a year.