NAACP: Tenn. Senate ad plays to racism  —  NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A political TV ad targeting a black candidate for Senate contains what critics, including the NAACP, are calling racist sexual innuendo about a black man and white woman.  —  The Republican National Committee ad began airing Friday …

U.S. MILITARY: NO SIGNS OF SOLDIER MISSING IN IRAQ  —  Oct. 24: 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team soldiers stop traffic in the Karradah district looking for a missing translator.  —  Oct. 24: 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team soldiers stop traffic in the Karradah district looking for a missing translator.

Press Conference by the President  —  THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all very much.  I'm going to spend a little more time on my opening comments than I usually do, but I'll save plenty of time for questions.  —  Over the past three years I have often addressed the American people to explain developments in Iraq.

Michael J. Fox ads for Democrats spark backlash  —  NEW YORK (AP) — The campaign ad opens with a familiar boyish face, now atop a body that sways uncontrollably.  Michael J. Fox, wearing a shirt and suit jacket, talks directly to the camera.  —  "They say all politics is local …

Insult to Injury in Iraq  —  It's been coming for a long time: the idea that fixing Iraq is the Iraqis' problem, not ours — that we've done all we can and now it's up to them.  —  Such arguments have been latent in the Bush administration's Iraq strategy and explicit in Democratic critiques of that strategy for some time.

Federal Rules Back Single-Sex Public Education  —  The Bush administration is giving public school districts broad new latitude to expand the number of single-sex classes, and even schools, in what is widely considered the most significant policy change on the issue since …

One of FBI's 'Most Wanted Terrorists' confirmed dead  —  (CNN) — An al Qaeda operative wanted in connection with the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombings was killed in April in Pakistan, American officials have confirmed.  —  Pakistani officials had said that Muhsin Musa Matwalli Atwah was killed …

Why Barack Obama is Overrated  —  I usually avoid blogging about black "golden boy" Democratic politicians like U.S. Senator Barack Obama because I know I'll be accused of "player hating," but I can't let the hype parade pass without comment.  —  Barack Obama, the "He speaks so well!" …

The House Elections  —  People are always asking me, Which party is going to win the House elections?  The answer is, I don't know.  We have very many more publicly released polls than we used to have, and therefore more basis for making estimates.  But they're still just estimates, subject to error.

Congressman From Arizona Is the Focus of an Inquiry  —  Federal authorities in Arizona have opened an inquiry into whether Representative Rick Renzi introduced legislation that benefited a military contractor that employs his father, law enforcement officials said Tuesday.

COVERING IRAQ: THE MODERN WAY OF WAR CORRESPONDENCE (EXTENDED VERSION)  —  Would you trust a Hurricane Katrina report datelined "direct from Detroit"?  Or coverage of the World Trade Center attack from Chicago?  Why then should we believe a Time Magazine investigation of the Haditha killings …

Porter rejects request  —  Congressman won't release phone records or schedule to disprove former aide's charges  —  Rep. Jon Porter refused Tuesday to release phone records or copies of his daily schedule, even though his office says the documents would disprove charges by a former aide …

Idle Contractors Add Millions to Iraq Rebuilding  —  A prison built in Nasiriya, Iraq, by the Parsons group.  Overhead costs eat up large shares of such contracts.  —  Overhead costs have consumed more than half the budget of some reconstruction projects in Iraq, according …

ABC News Director To O'Reilly: Media Has Liberal Bias And 'We've Got To Fix That'  —  Yesterday, Mark Halperin, ABC Political Director and co-author of the new book The Way To Win, went on The O'Reilly Factor and agreed with Bill O'Reilly that members of the "old media" are too liberal and should …

Georgetown gets $20 million from prince promoting Islam  —  Just months later, university ejects evangelical Christians from campus  —  The Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University has been renamed after Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal donated $20 million to its projects.

For Governor in Maryland  —  WHEN HE RAN for governor of Maryland four years ago, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s claim to the job seemed to rest on little more than a sense of entitlement and a telegenic, genial personality.  In fits and starts, though, he has grown in the role to become a generally proficient …

The GOP Leans on A Proven Strategy  —  Beset by discouraging polls and division within ideological ranks, the White House is accelerating efforts to woo back disaffected conservatives and energize the Republican base in a reprise of a strategy that succeeded in the last two campaign cycles.

Bush Finding Welcome Mats as G.O.P. Looks for an Edge  —  President Bush cannot show up just anywhere in the waning days of this midterm campaign.  But there is a certain class of Republicans who are somewhere between eager and willing to have him at their sides.

The Supreme Press Critics  —  SCALIA, ALITO, AND KENNEDY TAKE ON THE FOURTH ESTATE.  —  It almost makes you long for the day when they contented themselves duck hunting with the appellants.  —  Once a reclusive bunch, Supreme Court justices are taking to the lecture circuit, speaking out boldly on vital issues of public concern.

Lieberman Often Repeated Key White House Phrase  —  Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut has used the phrase "stay the course" several times in discussing the war in Iraq in recent years, echoing a key phrase of the White House, contrary to an article published Tuesday in The New York Times.

Venezuelan's Diatribe at U.N. May Have Backfired  —  Venezuela's populist leader, Hugo Chávez, earned giggles and guffaws at the United Nations last month with his mass appeal diatribe ridiculing President Bush as the devil.  Mr. Chávez said he could still smell the telltale scent …