Lamont Questions Lieberman's Spending  —  HARTFORD, Conn. — Ned Lamont's campaign says Sen. Joe Lieberman has failed to account for $387,000 in petty cash his campaign spent days before the state's August Democratic primary.  —  "Whenever this much cash is floating around it certainly raises suspicions …

Youths set passenger bus alight in Paris  —  A band of up to 30 youths forced passengers out of a bus in a southern Paris suburb in broad daylight, set it on fire and then stoned firefighters who came to the rescue, a police official said.  —  Police cordoned off the neighbourhood in Grigny …

A possibly fatal flaw in GOP formula for success  —  The great risk in President Bush's political strategy has always been that it leaves him very little margin for error.  —  From the outset of his presidency, Bush has accepted division as the price of mobilization.

Call to Action: Google-Bombing the Election  —  First, I want to thank everyone who has participated in the Use It Or Lose It campaign, designed to drive Democratic money from safe incumbents toward competitive Democratic challengers.  That campaign will continue throughout next week …

Blair gives Iraq 12 months to be ready for handover  —  Tony Blair will put pressure on the Iraqi government today to demonstrate that its security forces will be ready to take over from the British army in southern provinces within roughly a year.  —  Amid mounting international concern …

A Nadir of U.S. Power  —  It's not exactly morning in America.  —  In Iraq, things get ever uglier, and the old remedy of extra troops now seems tragically futile.  The Bush team has recently tried putting thousands of additional soldiers into Baghdad, and the result after two months is that violence there has increased.

Radical Islam finds US 'sterile ground'  —  Home-grown terror cells are largely missing in action, a contrast to Europe's situation.  —  NEW YORK - The Islamist radicalism that inspired young Muslims to attack their own countries - in London, Madrid, and Bali - has not yielded similar incidents in the United States, at least so far.

Sudan Orders U.N. Envoy to Leave Country  —  Sudan's government ordered the chief United Nations envoy out of the country today, saying he was an enemy of the country and its armed forces.  —  Secretary General Kofi Annan said that he was reviewing the letter from the Khartoum government …

Campaign Ad Linking Democrat to 'Sex' Call May Backfire on GOP  —  NEW YORK It seemed like a "gotcha" moment for Republicans in one of the most closely watched congressional races in the country: catching the Democratic candidate calling a sex phone line and billing the call to the local taxpayers.

Babbling Idiots  —  Up until now I've resolutely ignored the mindless media chatter about a possible "change of course" in Iraq, both because of the absurdity of the metaphor (sinking ships can have only one course — straight down) and because so much of it appears designed simply …

Obama Says He'll Consider A 2008 Bid for The Presidency  —  Democratic Senator to Decide After Elections  —  Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) opened the door to a 2008 presidential campaign yesterday, saying he has begun to weigh a possible candidacy and will make a decision after the November elections.

FDL Book Salon: Anntichrist, Superstar  —  (Today's book salon guest is Joe Maguire, who is a) author of Brainless and b) a former Reuters employee.  His activities in "a" seem to have played a role in liberating him from "b."  Please stop by in the comments section and welcome him — JH.

The Path to Power  —  Tennessee's Harold Ford Jr. is running from his party in one of the must-win Senate races for the Democrats.  His story-and the stakes on Election Day.  —  The sun is just rising over Chattanooga when Harold Ford Jr. begins to pray.  A young African-American congressman …

Mike McGavick for U.S. Senate  —  In Sen. Maria Cantwell and challenger Mike McGavick, Washington has two fully qualified choices for the Senate.  The better choice is the Republican, McGavick.  —  Some see this election as a referendum on George W. Bush.  If we did, we would be for a solid Democratic ticket.

Ex-aide alleges Porter made illegal fundraising calls  —  By Tony Cook <tony.cook@lasvegassun.com>  —  Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., made dozens of campaign fundraising phone calls last spring from his district and Washington, D.C., offices, according to a former Porter staffer and e-mails obtained by the Sun.

What the Dems Would Do  —  They've waited 12 long years to reclaim the steering wheel.  How the party out of power would rule if they retake the House.  —  Khue Bui for Newsweek  —  Whose House?  The Dems could take the Capitol next month  —  John Dingell likes to reminisce about the days when Democrats ruled Capitol Hill.

Fighting for The Spoils  —  Lawmaker and Rainmaker Rahm Emanuel Wants a Nov. 7 Victory For the Democrats So Bad He Can Almost Taste It.  If Only He Had Time to Eat.  —  CHICAGO  —  This must be how Machiavelli ate his corned beef sandwiches.  —  Sitting in a South Side deli …