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 …

Infidel Documents  —  Intelligence, jihadists and the Iraq war debate.  —  The scaffolding of the Iraq war is under renewed attack.  So there had been no meeting between Mohamed Atta and Iraqi intelligence operative Ahmad al-Ani in Prague; and Saddam's regime was "intensely secular" while al Qaeda was steeped in religious doctrine.

Webb Denies Ever Using Word as Epithet  —  Racial Slur Overshadowing All Else in Contest  —  Democratic Senate candidate James Webb on Wednesday sought to explain remarks he had made a day earlier, in which he refused to say whether he had used the "N-word," but he insisted he has never used it as a racial epithet aimed at anyone.

Heralded Iraq Police Academy a 'Disaster'  —  A $75 million project to build the largest police academy in Iraq has been so grossly mismanaged that the campus now poses health risks to recruits and might need to be partially demolished, U.S. investigators have found.

Iraq war 'recruiting extremists'  —  The Iraq war has acted as a "recruiting sergeant" for extremists, a research paper prepared for the Ministry of Defence's Defence Academy says.  —  The paper on Pakistan admitted serious failings in the war on terror, the BBC's Newsnight programme has learned.

Menendez Dumps Key Adviser Caught On Tape Seeking 'Favors'  —  U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez's closest political adviser was secretly recorded seven years ago boasting of political power and urging a Hudson county contractor to hire somone as a favor to Menendez, according to a transcript obtained by The Star-Ledger.

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 …

Question for Michelle Malkin: Does the Conscience of a Conservative Still Exist?  —  I'm publicly calling out Michelle Malkin, someone whom I often disagree with but usually respect.  I hope she will think about it and respond thoughtfully and not angrily or flippantly.

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.

Threatening letter no joke  —  Keith Olbermann responds to the New York Post's report  —  The Rupert Murdoch-owned newspaper, The New York Post, may have just impeded an FBI investigation into terroristic threats.  —  I know this because I was a recipient.

Arnold's Turnaround  —  A GOP Governor Finds the Key: Independence  —  SACRAMENTO — The Terminator has rescued himself from political ruin by reinventing his approach to government, thus demonstrating in the most dramatic way possible the value of political independence.

Pirro bugged over tap flap  —  FBI probing AG candidate's spy try on hubby she thought was cheating; she says it's nobody's business  —  In a jaw-dropping disclosure that could shatter her campaign to become New York's attorney general, Jeanine Pirro said yesterday she is under investigation …

Cost of Iraq war nearly $2b a week  —  WASHINGTON — A new congressional analysis shows the Iraq war is now costing taxpayers almost $2 billion a week — nearly twice as much as in the first year of the conflict three years ago and 20 percent more than last year — as the Pentagon spends …

Poll: Iraqis back attacks on U.S. troops  —  WASHINGTON - About six in 10 Iraqis say they approve of attacks on U.S.-led forces, and slightly more than that want their government to ask U.S. troops to leave within a year, a poll finds.  —  The Iraqis also have negative views of Osama bin Laden …

Hard to sort out the truth in mainstream media  —  WASHINGTON - How can we know what to believe?  That is what a neighbor asked me several weeks ago over dinner.  We were discussing the fact that she no longer believes everything she sees in the news and often wonders what is the truth.

Iraq terror leader recruits scientists  —  CAIRO, Egypt - In a new audio message Thursday, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq called for explosives experts and nuclear scientists to join his group's holy war against the West.  He also said that more than 4,000 foreign insurgent fighters …

Giuliani Defends Clinton on 9/11 Efforts  —  Rudy Giuliani defends Bill Clinton over former president's counterterrorism efforts  —  (AP) Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani defended Bill Clinton on Wednesday over the former president's counterterrorism efforts, saying recent criticism …