White House Upbeat About GOP Prospects  —  Self-Assurance of Bush, Rove and Others Is Not Shared by Many in the Party  —  Amid widespread panic in the Republican establishment about the coming midterm elections, there are two people whose confidence about GOP prospects strikes …

No surprise: Oct. follies arrive  —  Welcome to the spectacular surprises of October 2006.  A tour de force in the political theater of the absurd.  Let's review:  —  North Korea tests a nuke.  It should be shocking and surprising.  But North Korea's nuclear posturing is old news …

Confessions of a 'Defeatocrat'  —  The Republicans are running scared.  In the White House, on Capitol Hill and on the campaign trail, they're worried about losing control of Congress.  And so the administration and the GOP have launched a desperate assault on Democrats and our position on the war in Iraq.

Sen. Reid on the hot seat  —  It didn't quite have the legs to knock the overhyped Foley scandal off the front pages, but another Washington controversy this week at least momentarily threatened the credibility of Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid.  —  The Associated Press on Wednesday reported …

Allen and Webb in Virtual Tie, Post Poll Says  —  Northern Virginia Voters' Views Differ From Rest of Commonwealth  —  Virginia Sen. George Allen (R) and Democratic challenger James Webb are virtually tied in a race that could shift the balance of power in Washington and which reinforces …

Bush keeps revising war justification  —  WASHINGTON - President Bush keeps revising his explanation for why the U.S. is in Iraq, moving from narrow military objectives at first to history-of-civilization stakes now.  —  Initially, the rationale was specific: to stop Saddam Hussein from using …

Where Do We Find Such Men? … He saw the threat and acted, without hesitation or concern for himself to protect his friends.  No time to consider the alternatives, organize a protest or conduct a poll.  —  That brave young man seized the moment sacrificing himself to save his brothers.

The flying spaghetti monster  —  Why are we here on earth?  To Richard Dawkins, that's a remarkably stupid question.  In a heated interview, the famous biologist insists that religion is evil and God might as well be a children's fantasy.  —  Editor's note: This is the latest entry …

What about all those purple fingers?  —  David Brooks has incredible access to the White House so when he said this shocker on "The Chris Matthews Show," I believed him.  Bush is thinking about replacing the entire Iraq government.  I kid you not.  —  Video-WMP Video-QT

Guilty Until Confirmed Guilty  —  When President Bush rammed the bill on military commissions through Congress, the Republicans crowed about creating a process that would be tough on terrorists but preserve essential principles of justice.  "America can be proud," said Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the bill's architects.

It's Official: To Be Married Means to Be Outnumbered  —  Amanda Hawn and Nate Larsen recently in their apartment near San Francisco.  "Moving in together has simplified life," Ms. Hawn said.  —  Married couples, whose numbers have been declining for decades as a proportion of American households …

Minnesota Poll: Deadlocked no more: Hatch leads Pawlenty  —  DFL candidate leads 46 to 37 percent, apparently benefitting from GOP's woes.  —  DFL Attorney General Mike Hatch has pulled in front of GOP Gov. Tim Pawlenty in what had been a deadlocked race for governor, according to the latest Star Tribune Minnesota Poll.

A Call To Arms  —  If you're not already well versed in the travesty that happened to Biting Beaver, click here to read her story and here to read the consequences.  —  Long story short: an adult woman with several children in a committed relationship was not able to obtain emergency contraception in time …

Scrutinizing Muhammad's example and teachings  —  REVIEWED BY ANDREW G. BOSTOM  —  Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the former Dutch Parliamentarian and secular Muslim reformer, has courageously identified the taboo discussion which must take place to understand, and defuse, the scourge of modern jihad terrorism: