Idaho Sen. Larry Craig Denies Allegations of Same-Sex Affairs  —  Mike Rogers, who calls himself "the nation's leading gay activist blogger" has just finished a nationally-broadcast interview on the Ed Schultz Radio Show in which he alleges that Idaho Republican Senator Larry Craig has engaged in same-sex sexual activity.

Rove foresees GOP victory  —  White House political strategist Karl Rove yesterday confidently predicted that the Republican Party would hold the House and the Senate in next month's elections, dismissing fallout from the sex scandal involving former Rep. Mark Foley.

Bush to Blame for North Korean Crisis, Soros Says (Update1)  —  Oct. 18 (Bloomberg) — Billionaire investor George Soros today blamed U.S. President George W. Bush for escalating tensions with North Korea, which last week tested a nuclear bomb for the first time.

Bush Sets Defense As Space Priority  —  U.S. Says Shift Is Not A Step Toward Arms; Experts Say It Could Be  —  President Bush has signed a new National Space Policy that rejects future arms-control agreements that might limit U.S. flexibility in space and asserts a right to deny access to space to anyone "hostile to U.S. interests."

655,000 War Dead?  —  A bogus study on Iraq casualties.  —  After doing survey research in Iraq for nearly two years, I was surprised to read that a study by a group from Johns Hopkins University claims that 655,000 Iraqis have died as a result of the war.

Funding Constrains Democrats  —  Party Chiefs See Chance to Take 40-Plus Seats With TV Push  —  Top Democrats said yesterday that they are planning to significantly expand the number of GOP House seats they will target during the final 20 days of the campaign but that financial disputes …

Which Way to Win?  —  As we head toward Election Day 2006, political analysts are focusing on a few dozen tossup races that will determine whether the Democrats take the House and Senate.  But there's a larger, overarching battle this year between two visions of America …

Iraq Removes Leaders of Special Police  —  The Iraqi government removed the country's two most senior police commanders from their posts on Tuesday, in the first broad move against the top leadership of Iraq's unruly special police forces.  —  The two generals had led Iraq's special police commandos …

Video: Tony Blair calls the veil a "mark of separation"  —  Thanks much to kasper kasper, our man in the UK, for clipping this.  The news services are already buzzing about it.  —  Blair, like the public, is siding with Jack Straw, but I don't know what he hopes or expects to happen here.

Hoyer Remark 'Racist,' GOP's Steele Charges  —  Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele accused a leading Democratic congressman yesterday of racial insensitivity for saying the Republican candidate has "slavishly" followed the GOP.  —  Steele, an African American running for the U.S. Senate …

The Dartmouth Fracas  —  Alumni trustees can reconnect the university with American life.  —  Ho-hum about the clash of civilizations?  Blasé about the struggle for Congress?  Then turn your attention to Hanover, N.H., home of Dartmouth College, where the fighting is really intense.

Report Spells Out Abuses by Former Congressman  —  Former Representative Randy Cunningham pressured and intimidated staff members of the House Intelligence Committee to help steer more than $70 million in classified federal business to favored military contractors, according to a Congressional investigation made public on Tuesday.

O'Reilly falsely claimed that a pregnant woman's life could "never" be "in danger" from pregnancy complication … On the October 11 edition of his nationally syndicated radio show, Bill O'Reilly falsely claimed that it "is never the case" that a "mother's life is in danger" during the course of a pregnancy.

Sweeney: You Call That A Sweatshop?  —  Rep. John Sweeney (R-NY) joined the Abramoff party today.  And his blithe remarks about the lack of apparent mistreatment in the Northern Mariana Islands could mean political trouble.  —  In 2001, The Albany Times-Union reports …

Iraq war cost years of progress in Afghanistan - UK brigadier  —  Commander echoes criticism of Blair's foreign policy by head of army  —  The invasion of Iraq prevented British forces from helping to secure Afghanistan much sooner and has left a dangerous vacuum in the country for four years …

Reuters Cameraman Remanded for Inciting Rock Attacks  —  On Tuesday, a Reuters cameraman was remanded to prison until trial for his part in rock-throwing attacks on security forces in Bil'in, where the separation fence is a constant target of protesters.  —  The cameraman, Imad Muhammad Intisar Boghnat …

Human species 'may split in two'  —  Humanity may split into two sub-species in 100,000 years' time as predicted by HG Wells, an expert has said.  —  Evolutionary theorist Oliver Curry of the London School of Economics expects a genetic upper class and a dim-witted underclass to emerge.

Alarm Bells for G.O.P. in a Battleground State  —  Supporters of both candidates in the Senate race in Ohio hit the streets on Friday in Dayton.  Senator Mike DeWine, a Republican, is trailing.  —  The bellwether state of Ohio appears to have become hostile terrain for Republicans this year …