NAMES & FACES  —  It all started with a simple video rental.  Who knows where it will end?  —  Potomac Video store clerk Charles Williamson, 28, posted a message on his blog, Freelance Genius, Dec. 23 that described how he set up a movie rental account for MSNBC host Tucker Carlson at the MacArthur Boulevard store the day before.

Newly in the Minority, G.O.P. Shows Signs of Division on Iraq and Domestic Policies  —  After years of rock-solid party discipline and fealty to President Bush, Congressional Republicans have suddenly fractured in their new role as members of the minority, with some prominently deserting …

Mahdi Army lowers its profile, anticipating arrival of U.S. troops  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq - Mahdi Army militia members have stopped wearing their black uniforms, hidden their weapons and abandoned their checkpoints in an apparent effort to lower their profile in Baghdad in advance of the arrival of U.S. reinforcements.

Picking Up the Pieces  —  It was surreal how disconnected President Bush was the other night, both from Iraq's horrifying reality and America's anguish over this unnecessary, mismanaged and now unwinnable war.  Indeed, most Americans seem far ahead of the president.

A Skeptic's Case For the Surge  —  President Bush's plan for a surge of American troops in Iraq has run into a brick wall of congressional opposition.  Critics rightly argue that it may well be too little, way too late.  But for a skeptical Congress and nation, it is still the right thing to try …

Terror: 'We're Going to Get Hit'  —  Intel director john Negroponte gave Congress a sobering assessment last week of the continued threats from groups like Al Qaeda and Hizbullah.  But even gloomier comments came from Henry Crumpton, the outgoing State Department terror coordinator.

US diluting Iraq surge, general says  —  The military mastermind of President George W Bush's new troop "surge" strategy for Iraq has hit out at signs that the Pentagon is watering down the proposal for political reasons.  —  "You cannot try and do this piecemeal.

We can't surrender to the doves  —  Anti-war liberals turned out to be right about Iraq, but they shouldn't necessarily be regarded as foreign policy sages.  —  I DON'T WANT to accuse American doves of rooting for the United States to lose in Iraq because I know they love their country and understand the dire consequences of defeat.

Bush set for climate change U-turn  —  Downing Street says that belated US recognition of global warming could lead to a post-Kyoto agreement on curbing emissions  —  Gaby Hinsliff, Juliette Jowit and Paul Harris  —  George Bush is preparing to make a historic shift in his position …

Contradicting Bush, Cheney Claims 'We Have In Fact Made Enormous Progress' In Iraq  —  For years, President Bush and Vice President Cheney have asserted that "absolutely, we're winning" in Iraq.  Bush put an end to such happy talk last Wednesday night, omitting suggestions that we're "winning" or making "progress," and instead stating:

On Iraq, U.S. Turns to Onetime Dissenters  —  Timothy M. Carney went to Baghdad in April 2003 to run Iraq's Ministry of Industry and Minerals.  Unlike many of his compatriots in the Green Zone, the rangy, retired American ambassador wasn't fazed by chaos.  He'd been in Saigon during the Tet Offensive …

IN WHICH THE STAR TRIBUNE EMBARRASSES ITSELF COURTESY OF US  —  The Star Tribune purports to cover the political blogosphere in a weekly column buried on Saturday's editorial page.  The column is by the editor of the Star Tribune's letters to the editors, the otherwise faceless drone who assures …

Exxon Cutting Ties to Global Warming Skeptics  —  Oil Giant to Join in Talks on Greenhouse Gas Rules  —  Oil major Exxon Mobil Corp. is engaging in industry talks on possible U.S. greenhouse gas emissions regulations, a move experts said could indicate a change in stance from the long-time foe of limits on greenhouse emissions.

Obama's charm lost on America's black activists  —  HE is a media darling, a paparazzi target and a source of inspiration for millions of Democrats who dream of retaking the White House in 2008.  But Senator Barack Obama, the charismatic African-American who is shaking up the presidential primary race …

Video: Barney Frank throws a fit ... on the House floor  —  The Republican arguing with power-hungry Barney Frank is Patrick McHenry.  McHenry rose to offer an amendment that would exempt American Samoa from the stem-cell bill — a clear dig at the fact that Samoa, which is home to StarKist factories …