Iraq war is 'lost': US Democrat leader  —  The war in Iraq "is lost" and a US troop surge is failing to bring peace to the country, the leader of the Democratic majority in the US Congress, Harry Reid, said Thursday.  —  "I believe ... that this war is lost, and this surge is not accomplishing anything …

In Testimony, Gonzales Says Firings Were Justified  —  Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales encountered anger and skepticism from senators today as he insisted that he had nothing to hide in the dismissals of eight United States attorneys, an episode that has cast a shadow on the Justice Department and brought calls for his resignation.

McCain visits Murrells Inlet  —  Even though he was nursing a cold, Republican Presidential candidate Sen. John McCain spent nearly 90 minutes talking to nearly 500 people who crammed into the Murrells Inlet VFW Hall Wednesday morning.  —  The "Straight Talk" tour, as it's called, included stops in Summerville and Charleston.

I'm Signing On  —  I really thought that the 2004 presidential campaign would be the last I would be involved in.  I have always wanted to make a difference, but for me I thought those days were over.  —  A few weeks ago, John and Elizabeth Edwards made their decision to continue …

Supreme Ct Kills Range of State Banking Laws in Gift to Predatory Lenders  —  In a blow to consumers, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday that mortgage lending subsidiaries of national banks are exempt from state regulation.  Every state attorney general and bank regulator had urged the High Court …

Package Forced NBC to Make Tough Decisions  —  The package that arrived yesterday at NBC headquarters in New York was almost immediately flagged as suspicious, because it had been mailed from Blacksburg, Va., and bore the return name A. Ishmael.  —  Last night, the anchor of "The NBC Nightly News …

Embattled lawmaker gives up panel seat  —  WASHINGTON - Rep. John Doolittle (news, bio, voting record) has decided to temporarily give up his House Appropriations Committee seat after FBI agents searched his house in a congressional influence-peddling investigation.

House Dems' Fundraising Effort Blows House GOP Out of the Water  —  During the last cycle when the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee was able to effectively match the National Republican Congressional Committee despite the fact that most political analysts saw little chance …

Which lame-o Senator likes dark-ages campaign finance reports and secret holds?  —  Great.  I thought we were done with this nonsense about certain Senators placing secret holds on legislation that might cause them a spot of bother, back last year when this site, together with Porkbusters and TPM …

Gonzales: Criticism Damages DoJ Employees  —  Under questioning from Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Gonzales cautioned against criticizing the good employees of the Justice Department: "when there are attacks against the department, you're attacking the career professionals."

Drinking Age Paradox  —  Public policy often illustrates the law of unintended consequences.  Society's complexity — multiple variables with myriad connections — often causes the consequences of a policy to be contrary to, and larger than, the intended ones.

Pet-food poison from SA firm  —  Johannesburg - Tests have confirmed that Vets Choice and Royal Canin dog and cat dry pet-food products contained corn gluten contaminated with melamine, says the manufacturer.  —  The contaminated corn gluten was delivered to Royal Canin …