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 …

Panel Hears About Falsehoods in 2 Wartime Incidents  —  House Democrats burrowed into the histories of Pfc. Jessica D. Lynch and Cpl. Pat Tillman in a hearing on Tuesday, holding up the episodes as egregious examples of officials' twisting the truth for public relations in wartime.

Iglesias Reveals He Filed Complaint Against Rove, Leading To Special Counsel Probe  —  Tonight on MSNBC, fired U.S. Attorney David Iglesias revealed key new details about the Office of Special Counsel's (OSC) probe into Karl Rove and other White House officials reported today by the Los Angeles Times.

Six arrested in anti-terror raids  —  Six men have been arrested on suspicion of incitement offences by anti-terror officers from the Metropolitan Police.  —  They include Abu Izzadeen, also known as Omar Brooks, who made headlines when he heckled Home Secretary John Reid at an event last year.

'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.

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

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.

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" …

David Halberstam on today's American press  —  David Halberstam's death yesterday is certain to prompt all sorts of homage from our media stars describing Halberstam as a superior journalist, someone who embodied what journalism ought to be.  And it is true that he was exactly that.

Renzi cut from ROMP  —  A week after FBI agents raided his family's business, Republican Rep. Rick Renzi of Arizona has asked to be dropped from his party's top campaign program to protect vulnerable incumbents, a clear sign that he is considering a resignation from Congress.