Report: U.S. Troops Raid Iranian Consulate in Iraq  —  U.S. troops raided an Iranian consulate in northern Iraq late Wednesday night and detained several people, Iran's main news agency reported today, prompting protests from Tehran just hours after President Bush pledged to crack down on the Islamic Republic's role in Iraqi violence.

Bush Sends GIs to his Private Fantasyland  —  To listen to Bush's speech on Wednesday, you would imagine that al-Qaeda has occupied large swathes of Iraq with the help of Syria and Iran and is brandishing missiles at the US mainland.  That the president of the United States can come …

SENATOR MCCONNELL ON THE PRESIDENT'S PLAN  —  Senate Minority Leader McConnell held a call with a few bloggers and journalists this morning.  He supports the president's plan for a surge, which he views as "courageous and correct."  He reasons that the object in Iraq is to win …

Poll: 70 percent oppose more troops in Iraq  —  Only 35 percent of respondents believe going to war was the right call  —  WASHINGTON - Americans overwhelmingly oppose sending more U.S. forces to Iraq, according to a new AP-Ipsos poll that serves as a strong repudiation of President Bush's plan to send another 21,500 troops.

J-DAMN  —  And so a major Associated Press claim in "Jamilgate" takes an apparently fatal hit.  —  According to Bill Costlow of CPATT (Civilian Police Assistance Training Team) in Baghdad, and as forwarded by Lt. Michael Dean of Multinational Corps-Iraq/Joint Operations Command Public Affairs …

Report: Nuclear Explosion in Iran  —  A major explosion is being reported in the Iranian desert.  It said to be a nuclear explosion.  In the general area of one of Iran's nuclear testing sitees.  —  The alternative theory is that a UFO crashed.  That is what one Iranian blogger is reporting, anyway.

US Marines build sand walls in latest Iraq tactic  —  Adapting ideas tracing back from ancient history to modern Israel, US Marines have sealed off flashpoint towns with sand walls in a new counter-insurgency tactic to quell the wilds of western Iraq.  —  Driving across the desert to Haditha …

Dodd To Announce Official Presidential Bid  —  WASHINGTON — Sen. Christopher Dodd will announce Thursday he is running for president, friends and supporters said today.  He is expected to reveal his plans in a series of media appearances beginning at 6:30 a.m. on the Don Imus radio show.

Breaking: Dean Chooses Denver  —  The labor pains were hard, but the DNC finally has its 2008 convention city locked down: Denver.  —  A Democrat who was briefed said that chairman Howard Dean made the final decision yesterday, weeks later than planned.  DNC comm. dir.  Karen Finney declined to confirm the choice.

THE REASON FOR MY PANIC.  —  My crisis is that I've had a primary source of income for the last three or so years of ~$600/month.  That was enough for my rent ($475, though it may go up any time), and obviously a bit more, though not enough to to cover my medications, or quite all of my expenses …

Responsibility For Security In An Najaf Province Transferred To Iraqis  —  Third Iraqi Province Handed Over This Year  —  The goal of U.S. security strategy in Iraq is to develop the Iraqis' capacity to secure their country while carrying out a campaign to defeat the terrorists and neutralize the insurgency.

The Mess at State  —  Members of the Senate intelligence committee, Republicans and Democrats alike, were alarmed last week that John Negroponte was leaving as director of national intelligence after less than two years to become deputy secretary of state.  By way of explanation …

Rice loves Fox tv, sees CBS anchor as "decent guy"  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice let slip her media preferences on Thursday, saying "I love every single one" of Fox News network's correspondents and also favors CBS anchor Harry Smith.