POWDER PUFF SPOOKS KEITH  —  MSNBC loudmouth Keith Olbermann flipped out when he opened his home mail yesterday.  The acerbic host of "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" was terrified when he opened a suspicious-looking letter with a California postmark and a batch of white powder poured out.

Deja vu — Judith Apter Klinghoffer  —  POLL: AL QAEDA LOST IN IRAQ  —  Al Qaeda has desicively lost the Iraqi battlefield. … Iraqi confidence in Iraqi forces (as opposed to militias) is increasing while its confidence in US forces is decreasing.  Given US policies there can be little doubt …

House approves bill on terror detainees  —  WASHINGTON - The House approved legislation Wednesday giving the Bush administration authority to interrogate and prosecute terrorism detainees, moving President Bush to the edge of a pre-election victory with a key piece of his anti-terror plan.

On the NIE, the Right and the Left Are Both Wrong  —  The National Intelligence Estimate regarding trends in global terrorism, partially released by the administration yesterday in response to weekend news leaks, is not centrally about Iraq, and it is certainly not the final word on the subject.

New Hope for Democrats in Bid for Senate  —  Six weeks before Election Day, the Democrats suddenly face a map with unexpected opportunities in their battle for control of the Senate.  —  In Virginia, a state that few expected to be seriously competitive, Senator George Allen, a Republican …

Rushing Off a Cliff  —  Here's what happens when this irresponsible Congress railroads a profoundly important bill to serve the mindless politics of a midterm election: The Bush administration uses Republicans' fear of losing their majority to push through ghastly ideas about antiterrorism …

Casey increases lead over Santorum  —  Democrat Bob Casey appears to have doubled his lead over Sen. Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania's Senate race, according to a poll released today.  —  Mr. Casey had a 14-point lead in the Quinnipiac University Poll, with 54 percent of likely voters saying …

Iraq war was terrorism 'recruiting sergeant'  —  The Iraq war has acted as a "recruiting sergeant" for extremists in the Muslim world, according to a paper prepared for a Ministry of Defence thinktank, which also said the British government sent troops into Afghanistan "with its eyes closed".

Ailes: `An assault on all journalists'  —  NEW YORK - Fox News chief Roger Ailes says former President Clinton's response to Chris Wallace's question about going after Osama bin Laden represents "an assault on all journalists."  —  Ailes said Clinton had a "wild overreaction" in the interview, broadcast on "Fox News Sunday."

What Do You Know?  —  If you're an American college student, probably not much. … So how is America's modern education system doing in this regard?  Are our citizens enlightened enough to exercise the powers of our democracy?  Do our colleges and universities provide their students …

Mitt Romney lies about abortion  —  "I believe that abortion should be safe and legal in this country.  I have since the time when my Mom took that position when she ran in 1970 as a U.S. Senate candidate.  I believe that since Roe v. Wade has been the law for 20 years that we should sustain and support it …

Report: hostage wounded  —  BAILEY — 9 News has reported that one of the hostages at Platte Canyon High School has been critically wounded.  Emergency personnel rushed a gurney out of the school at 3:45 p.m. with an injured person.  —  An armed man walked into the school at took six hostages …

GOP Attack Calls May Violate Fed Rules  —  Starting about four weeks ago, Paige Barnes said she started getting "tons of calls a day," sometimes between ten and twenty, from angry West Virginians and Iowans, demanding that her company stop bombarding them with political calls.

Chairman seeks review, possible removal of memorial inscriptions  —  PHOENIX — A state commission that authorized placement of the Arizona 9-11 Memorial in Wesley Bolin Plaza will review controversial laser-cut inscriptions "and see if some of them could be removed," the panel's chairman said Wednesday.

House Passes Ban on Permanent Iraq Bases  —  WASHINGTON — Congress is on the verge of barring the construction of permanent bases for U.S. forces in Iraq, a move aimed at quelling concerns in the Arab world that American forces will remain in the war-torn country indefinitely.

The Choice: A Longer Life or More Stuff  —  The most authoritative report on the cost of health insurance came out yesterday, and it's sure to cause some new outrage.  —  The average cost of a family insurance plan that Americans get through their jobs has risen another 7.7 percent this year …