Syndicated columnist Molly Ivins dies at 62  —  Best-selling author, sharp-witted Texas liberal succumbs to breast cancer  —  Syndicated columnist Molly Ivins poses for a portrait at her home Sept. 22 in Austin, Texas.  She died Wednesday at 62 after a long battle with breast cancer.

Biden Unbound: Lays Into Clinton, Obama, Edwards  —  Loquacious Senator, Democratic Candidate on Hillary: 'Four of 10 Is the Max You Can Get?'  Edwards 'Doesn't Know What He's Talking About'  —  Senator Joseph Biden doesn't think highly of the Iraq policies of some of the other Democrats who are running for President.

A hearty F*** You to William Arkin  —  Update: Marc Danziger, the Armed Liberal over at Winds of change is much less hyperbolic about Arkin than I am and check on Fuzzy Bear's stuff too.  —  Apologies for the F bombs bursting in air, but...well just read on.

TV Network Takes Responsibility For 'Hoax Devices'  —  BOSTON — Turner Broadcasting plans to take responsibility for the "hoax devices" that were found at several locations in and around Boston Wednesday that forced police bomb units to scramble throughout the area.

Senators Unite On Challenge to Bush's Troop Plan  —  Revised Warner Language That Protects Funds Is Embraced for Bipartisan Appeal  —  Democratic and Republican opponents of President Bush's troop-buildup plan joined forces last night behind the nonbinding resolution with the broadest bipartisan backing …

Terror Plot: Ninth Arrest  —  A ninth suspect has been arrested by police investigating an alleged Iraq-style kidnapping and beheading plot in the UK.  —  It follows the detention of eight people at addresses in Birmingham earlier.  —  Assistant Chief Constable David Shaw, of West Midlands Police …

Franken tells DFLers he's running for Senate  —  WASHINGTON - Comedian and radio talk show host Al Franken has begun calling Democratic members of Congress and prominent DFLers to tell them he will definitely challenge Republican Sen. Norm Coleman in 2008, the Star Tribune has learned.

Gonzales to Release Spy Program Details  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Wednesday he will turn over secret documents detailing the government's domestic spying program, ending a two-week standoff with the Senate Judiciary Committee over surveillance targeting terror suspects.

Reporter Who Was Jailed Testifies in Libby Case  —  WASHINGTON, Jan. 30 — Judith Miller, a former reporter for The New York Times, testified Tuesday as a witness for the prosecutor who had put her in jail for 85 days, recounting details of her once-confidential interviews with I. Lewis Libby Jr.

Democratic Edge in Partisanship in 2006 Evident at National, State Levels  —  Utah and Idaho most Republican states, Rhode Island and Vermont most Democratic  —  PRINCETON, NJ — A review of Gallup polling data from 2006 underscores the relative strength the Democratic Party currently enjoys versus …

Chirac Unfazed by Nuclear Iran, Then Backtracks  —  President Jacques Chirac said this week that if Iran had one or two nuclear weapons, it would not pose a big danger, and that if Iran were to launch a nuclear weapon against a country like Israel, it would lead to the immediate destruction of Tehran.

Obama's Grudge Factor  —  These are chilly days on Capitol Hill ... and on the campaign trail for Fox News journalists — at least when they're anywhere near Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.).  —  Sources tell The Sleuth that the Obama camp has "frozen out" Fox News reporters and producers in the wake …

California may ban conventional lightbulbs by 2012  —  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A California lawmaker wants to make his state the first to ban incandescent lightbulbs as part of California's groundbreaking initiatives to reduce energy use and greenhouse gases blamed for global warming.

Mohammed Jamal Khalifa, Osama bin Laden's brother-in-law, murdered in Madagascar  —  Mohammed Jamal Khalifa.  (CBS Photo).  Click photo to view.  —  Khalifa had an extensive history in funding, plotting al-Qaeda terrorist activities; Task Force 145 likely scored the kill

Millions wasted in Iraq reconstruction aid  —  Quarterly audit paints grim picture of fraud, frustration  —  An employee of a private generator company, which supplies electricity to most Baghdad residents, works on circuit breakers in Baghdad, in March 2006.

U.S. may have botched training of Iraqis  —  WASHINGTON - Training the police is as important to stabilizing Iraq as building an effective army there, but the United States has botched the job by assigning the wrong agencies to the task, two members of the Iraq Study Group said Wednesday.

Dodd's Showing In Polls Laughable  —  At Least Comedians Have Noticed It  —  WASHINGTON — When pollster John Zogby asked a group of 339 likely Democratic voters earlier this month whom they wanted for president in 2008, one or two mentioned Connecticut's senior senator.