Intelligence failure cited in Korean crisis  —  Recent U.S. intelligence analyses of North Korea's nuclear and missile programs were flawed and the lack of clarity on the issue hampered U.S. diplomatic efforts to avert the underground blast detected Sunday, according to Bush administration officials.

Exclusive: Book says Bush just using Christians  —  'Tempting Faith' author David Kuo worked for Bush from 2001 to 2003  —  More than five years after President Bush created the Office of Faith-Based Initiatives, the former second-in-command of that office is going public with an insider's tell …

Reform Run Amok  —  A MAJOR piece of the United Nations reform promised by Secretary General Kofi Annan was a new Human Rights Council.  The idea was to replace the Commission on Human Rights, which had been hijacked by rogue states such as Libya and Sudan, with a body that could refocus attention …

Political Climate Warms to Lieberman's Favor  —  Two months after a tumultuous Senate primary that was hailed as a watershed moment in American politics, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut appears to be comfortably ahead of his challenger Ned Lamont in their general election rematch.

Hastert Aides Interest Ethics Panel  —  Staff Members' Knowledge of Foley's Actions With Former Pages in Question  —  With House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert denying personal knowledge of former representative Mark Foley's activities, investigators for the House ethics committee are bearing …

Will Voters Pull the Trigger?  —  The old theater adage demands that if you show a pistol in Act 1, you'd better fire the gun in Act 3.  That same wisdom applies to politics.  —  The voters have been pointing a symbolic gun at the Republican regime in Washington for many months now.

Fraud alleged in St. Louis voter sign-up  —  ST. LOUIS - Election officials say hundreds of potentially bogus registration cards, including ones for dead and underage people, were submitted by a branch of a national group that has been criticized in the past for similar offenses.

Tony Snow Knows How to Work More Than One Room  —  It's Gloves Off (and Pass the Hat) for Bush Spokesman  —  On the morning of Oct. 2, Tony Snow did six back-to-back television interviews from the White House lawn, and one phrase came back to haunt him.  —  While criticizing Mark Foley …

Breaking: Warner May Not Run In '08  —  Ex-VA Gov. Mark Warner plans to make a major announcement today about his 2008 presidential bid, three Virginia Democratic sources said.  According to two Virginia Democrats who have been formally briefed, Warner is expected to say that he has decided not to run for president in 2008.

Avoiding Political Embarrassment the Columbia University Way  —  How do you avoid political embarrassment at Columbia University these days?  —  Disinvite invited guests to a talk sure to interest conservatives and other hawks in the larger NYC community.  —  Why, we wonder …

HOW ROVE TWISTED FOLEY'S ARM:  —  It seems increasingly clear that the GOP congressional leadership, eager for every safe incumbent in the House to run for re-election, looked the other way as evidence accumulated that Mark Foley had a thing for pages.  Holding onto his seat became more important …

NUREMBERG-STYLE TRIALS PROPOSED FOR GLOBAL WARMING SKEPTICS  —  CONTACT: MARC MORANO ( marc_morano@epw.senate.gov ), MATT DEMPSEY ( matthew_dempsey@epw.senate.gov )  —  A U.S. based environmental magazine that both former Vice President Al Gore (http://gristmill.grist.org/print/ 2006/9/19/11408/1106? …

AP's Reid Story Doesn't Add Up  —  Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) "collected a $1.1 million windfall on a Las Vegas land sale even though he hadn't personally owned the property for three years," the AP reports.  —  Except that's wrong.  Reid made a $700,000 profit on the sale, not $1.1 million.

No '08 White House run for ex-Va. leader  —  RICHMOND, Va. - Democrat Mark R. Warner, the former governor of Virginia, has decided not to run for president in 2008, fearing the impact of a drawn-out campaign on his family.  "I want to have a real life," he said.