BBC: Blair to announce troop pullout from Iraq  —  At least 1,500 to return home within the next several weeks, report says  —  LONDON - Prime Minister Tony Blair will announce Wednesday a timetable for the withdrawal of British troops from Iraq, with 1,500 to return home in several weeks, the BBC reported.

Initial Thoughts on Boumediene  —  The U.S. Court of Appeals today by a 2-1 vote dismissed the pending habeas corpus petitons of hundreds of Guantanamo detainees.  In an opinion by Judge Randolph, joined by Judge Sentelle, the court held (i) that the Military Commissions Act stripped …

Tony Snow and White House Reporters Slam The 'Hateful,' 'Polarized' Blogosphere  —  In a press roundtable at the National Press Club tonight, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow led a discussion with White House correspondents about the impact of the internet on their respective jobs.  Their conclusion?

NRSC "Inner Circle Member" Indicted On Terror Charges  —  According to the Associated Press, Abdul Tawala Ibn Ali Alishtari, a self-proclaimed life member of the National Republican Senatorial Committee's "Inner Circle Leadership Committee" has been indicted on charges of financing a terrorist training camp in Afghanistan.

LET ALIENS VOTE: ACTIVISTS  —  Immigrant-rights activists yesterday renewed their push to allow legal noncitizens to vote in the Big Apple.  —  A bill that would grant permanent residents and other legal immigrants the right to vote in municipal elections has been stalled in the City Council since last year.

"Tell the American people we need the U.S. Army here:" An Interview with the Jundi  —  An Interview with the Jundi  —  (L to R) Iraqi Army soldiers Jabbar, Mohaned F, Mohaned N and Mohammed sit in their room at Forward Operating Base Castle in NE Fallujah.

Maybe We Deserve to Be Ripped Off By Bush's Billionaires  —  While America obsessed about Brittany's shaved head, Bush offered a budget that offers $32.7 billion in tax cuts to the Wal-Mart family alone, while cutting $28 billion from Medicaid.  —  What was she thinking?  How about nothing?

Iraq War Attitudes  —  Public Opinion Strategies* has released a survey [PDF file here] of likely voters' attitudes toward the Iraq War that finds that most voters think the country is going in the wrong direction (67%) and President Bush is doing a poor job (60%), and that Iraq will never be a stable democracy (60%).

Police say political dispute with stranger got physical  —  Man's Republican beliefs irritate suspect  —  A Fredericksburg man was arrested Saturday on charges he assaulted three strangers at their home during a dispute over politics, police said.  —  According to a Fredericksburg police report …

Fitting the Bill  —  Why isn't Bill Richardson's presidential candidacy taken seriously?  —  On Thursday, February 8, Bill Richardson delivered a speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies on "The New Realism and the Rebirth of American Leadership," laying out the foreign policy vision …

Clinton stresses credentials  —  N.Y. senator tells Columbia crowd she has experience needed to be president  —  Hillary Clinton told a crowd of more than 3,000 at Allen University on Monday she's "proud to be a woman," but she's not basing a run for president on her gender.

Conservatives Target GOP War Critics in Congress  —  House Republican leaders and conservative activists are targeting critics of President Bush's plan to send more combat forces into Iraq — and some GOP lawmakers are on the hit list.  —  Amid a mounting campaign in Congress …

Female Pakistani minister shot dead for 'breaking Islamic dress code'  —  Devika Bhat, and Zahid Hussain in Islamabad  —  A Pakistani minister and woman's activist has been shot dead by an Islamic extremist for refusing to wear the veil.  —  Zilla Huma Usman, the minister for social welfare …

The Talented Mr. Romney  —  I have been following the zigs and zags of Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and now Republican presidential candidate, watching him grow progressively less progressive, sort of making himself up as he goes along.  As a result, I surf the Web with trepidation …

Teen 'sport killings' of homeless on the rise … MILWAUKEE, Wisconsin (CNN) — All Nathan Moore says he wanted to do was smoke pot and get drunk with his friends.  —  Killing Rex Baum was never part of the plan that day in 2004.  —  "It all started off as a game," Moore said.