Attorney general coming here, expects questions  —  Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is likely to face questions about the allegedly mediocre status of U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald when he arrives here Tuesday for a scheduled round table discussion and press conference.

Tests Show Snow's Cancer Has Returned  —  WASHINGTON (AP) - Presidential spokesman Tony Snow's surgery to remove a small growth showed that his cancer has returned, the White House said Tuesday.  —  Snow, 51, had his colon removed in 2005 and underwent six months of chemotherapy after being diagnosed with colon cancer.

Republicans to Rely on President Bush's Veto to Block Troop Withdrawal Plan  —  As the Senate opened debate Monday on a $122 billion Iraq spending bill, Republicans vowed not to allow Congress to impose a withdrawal date for American troops, but said they would rely on President Bush's veto pen rather …

US captures car-bombing ring in Iraq  —  The US military has captured the leaders of a car-bombing ring blamed for killing hundreds of Iraqis.  —  The news came as the departing US ambassador said Americans are in ongoing talks with insurgent representatives to try to persuade them to turn against al-Qaeda.

McCain-Feingold: Five Years of Failure  —  Five years ago today, President Bush signed into law the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002.  Today, American politics is so clean you could eat off it — except for the mud-slinging, back-scratching, favor-trading, influence-peddling, bald-faced lying, indictments, and convictions.

Hacking John McCain  —  politics, humor, myspace, gay-marriage, mccain, john-mccain, hacks  —  If you visit John McCain's MySpace page (as of 9am PST Tuesday morning), you will notice an interesting announcement from him.  He's apparently reversed his position on gay marriage as well as revealed a bias towards attractive lesbians.

The Thompson factor  —  Our latest weekend USA Today/Gallup poll is full of interesting insights into American public opinion.  Tops among them may be the changing landscape of the Republican primary field.  —  Of course it's early and much can change.  But, as I noted here, that's the point.

Exclusive: Report Charges Broad White House Efforts to Stifle Climate Research  —  Justin Rood Reports:  —  Bush administration officials throughout the government have engaged in White House-directed efforts to stifle, delay or dampen the release of climate change research that casts …

Webb Aide Tried To Take Gun Into Senate Building, Capitol Police Say  —  A top aide to Sen. James Webb was charged yesterday with trying to carry a loaded pistol and extra ammunition into a Senate office building, U.S. Capitol Police said.  —  The staffer, Phillip Thompson …

Drudge and The Politico — poisonously joined at the hip  —  The new online political magazine, The Politico, is a pernicious new presence in our media landscape.  As I noted the other day, it really is nothing more than the Drudge Report dressed up with the trappings of mainstream media credibility.

Democrat Proposes Making Withdrawal Date Secret  —  Only Congress, White House and Iraqi Government Would Know Plan  —  In one of the more unusual proposals to emerge in the Senate debate on Iraq withdrawal, Sen. Mark Pryor wants to keep any plans for bringing troops home a secret.

Poll backs subpoenas of Bush aides  —  WASHINGTON — Americans overwhelmingly support a congressional investigation into White House involvement in the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, and they say President Bush and his aides should answer questions about it without invoking executive privilege.

Hirsi Ali under threat in US  —  AMSTERDAM - Former MP Ayaan Hirsi Ali is now in danger in the US as well.  Her security has been stepped up for the past three weeks.  Because of concrete threats, she is now receiving the same level of protection as she previously needed in the Netherlands, the Volkskrant reports.