Low-key office launches high-profile inquiry  —  The Office of Special Counsel will investigate U.S. attorney firings and other political activities led by Karl Rove.  —  WASHINGTON — Most of the time, an obscure federal investigative unit known as the Office of Special Counsel confines itself …

Video: Reid vows not to believe Petraeus if he reports progress in Iraq  —  He's willing to compromise.  Unlike some Democrats, he'll hear Petraeus out; he'll just simply refuse to believe anything he says that doesn't fit the left's narrative.  If that "reasoning" sounds familiar …

Lawmakers to open Tillman-Lynch hearing  —  WASHINGTON - As the Army probed Pat Tillman's death, investigators implored the CIA and Pentagon last year to scour their databanks for aerial video of the friendly fire incident, footage they believed might have been captured as a Predator drone flew over the scene.

Pelosi Won't Attend Petraeus Briefing  —  House Speaker Had Phone Conversation With Top U.S. Iraq Commander  —  As the House and Senate prepare to vote this week on the final conference report on the $124 billion troop funding bill — which would also mandate that U.S. combat troops begin withdrawing …

Jawa Celebration: Abu Izzadeen & 5 Others Arrested in Terror Ring *Sticky*  —  UPDATE EXCLUSIVE: An Islamist forum connected with Omar Bakri Mohammed, and previously exposed here at The Jawa Report, has listed the names of the six terror suspects arrested today.

'I ain't a pretty boy no more'  —  My Ninth Annual Overlooked Film Festival opens Wednesday night at the University of Illinois at Urbana, and Chaz and I will be in attendance.  —  This year I won't be speaking, however, as I await another surgery.  —  I have received a lot of advice that I should not attend the festival.

Senate Democrats Look to Hold 'No Confidence' Vote on Gonzales  —  With Attorney General Alberto Gonzales vowing to remain in his job and President Bush standing by him, Senate Democratic leaders are seriously considering bringing a resolution to the floor expressing no confidence in Gonzales, according to a senior leadership source.

Fascist America, in 10 easy steps  —  From Hitler to Pinochet and beyond, history shows there are certain steps that any would-be dictator must take to destroy constitutional freedoms.  And, argues Naomi Wolf, George Bush and his administration seem to be taking them all

Rep. Rohrabacher: 'I Hope It's Your Families That Suffer' From A Terrorist Attack  —  Last week, a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee held a hearing on the Bush administration's practice of extraordinary rendition, whereby hundreds of "terror suspects who had never been indicted for any crimes" …

Equal Pay, Equal Respect  —  (Please welcome Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton who joins us today to talk about equal pay issues and the Paycheck Fairness Act.  She will be chatting with us in the comments for the next half hour — jh)  —  If men in this country were paid just 77 cents …

Boris Yeltsin  —  His rule was marked by lost opportunities and fearsome political corruption.  —  The era of Boris Yeltsin, who died yesterday, was a time of lost opportunity.  Yeltsin led the revolution that overthrew the Soviet Union.  But his attempt to build democracy in Russia was a failure …