Taking of hostages by Iran is not Britain's finest hour  —  Twenty-seven years ago, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was a student in Tehran and is said (by a former Iranian president, for one) to be among those in the U.S. embassy who seized and held American citizens hostage for more than a year.

A Sunday Stroll in Iraq's Capital  —  Baghdad, April 1, 2007.  It wasn't your typical Sunday stroll.  A Republican congressional delegation led by Sen. John McCain popped by the Shorja market in Baghdad this afternoon, a stop on an unannounced Iraq trip.  They spent over an hour browsing market stalls …

Mitchell: Petraeus Held Closed-Door Strategy Meeting With Republican Caucus  —  This morning on the Chris Matthews Show, NBC News' Andrea Mitchell revealed that Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, met "very recently" with the Senate Republican caucus to discuss their strategy on Iraq legislation.

MTP Transcript for April 1, 2007  —  Patrick Leahy, Orrin Hatch, Charlie Rangel  —  MR. RUSSERT: Our issues this Sunday: Tough words on Capitol Hill over the firing of eight U.S. attorneys.  —  SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D-VT): The Republicans are the ones who don't want to have the hearings.

Clinton Raises $26M... Good, Bad, Or Brick-Crap Time?  —  Here it is: Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign raised a record-setting $26 million for her presidential campaign in the first three months of a year, an impressive feat that may nonetheless be overshadowed in the next few days by news that Sen. Barack Obama managed to keep pace.

U.S. House Visit Syria to Discuss Ties  —  DAMASCUS, Syria — U.S. House members meeting with President Bashar Assad Sunday said they believed there was an opportunity for dialogue with the Syrian leadership.  —  The U.S. House members, who included Virginia Republican Frank Wolf …

Tommy Thompson to run for president  —  WASHINGTON - Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson on Sunday joined the crowded field of Republicans running for the White House in 2008 and proclaimed himself the "reliable conservative" in the race.  —  Thompson, who was health and human services …

Obama says Congress will fund Iraq war  —  SIOUX CITY, Iowa - If President Bush vetoes an Iraq war spending bill as promised, Congress quickly will provide the money without the withdrawal timeline the White House objects to because no lawmaker "wants to play chicken with our troops," …

Prosecutor Posts Go To Bush Insiders  —  Less Preference Shown for Locals, Senators' Choices  —  About one-third of the nearly four dozen U.S. attorney's jobs that have changed hands since President Bush began his second term have been filled by the White House and the Justice Department with trusted administration insiders.

Australian's Plea Deal Was Negotiated Without Prosecutors  —  The plea deal that allows Australian David M. Hicks to leave the detention facility here with a nine-month sentence was negotiated between defense attorneys and the convening authority for military commissions without the knowledge of prosecutors …