Bush Told War Is Harming The GOP  —  House Republican moderates, in a remarkably blunt White House meeting, warned President Bush this week that his pursuit of the war in Iraq is risking the future of the Republican Party and that he cannot count on GOP support for many more months.

Gonzales Seems Confident He Will Stay, Officials Say  —  Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales appears increasingly confident that he will survive the crisis over the dismissal of federal prosecutors, as White House aides who view him as a liability see little point in trying to persuade President Bush …

Blair quits as prime minister  —  Matthew Tempest and agencies  —  Tony Blair today announced he was stepping down after 10 years as prime minister and 13 as Labour leader.  —  The prime minister told a crowd of supporters in Trimdon Labour club he would stand down as PM on June 27.

The Diyala Salvation Front  —  Tribal leaders in the troubled province organize against al Qaeda  —  Map of southern Diyala.  Click map to view.  —  In March, we noted the successful model of the Anbar Salvation Council will very likely be replicated elsewhere in regions where al Qaeda has established bases of operation.

Hamas TV refuses to axe contested kids cartoon  —  RAMALLAH, West Bank — A Hamas-run television channel has defied a Palestinian government request to axe a controversial children's cartoon in which a Mickey Mouse look-alike urges resistance against Israel.

Uncle Sam Probes Michael Moore  —  Treasury Department investigating director's unauthorized Cuba trip  —  Director Michael Moore is being investigated by the Treasury Department for traveling to Cuba in violation of a U.S. trade embargo.  In a May 2 letter, the Office …

Is Obama Readying TV Ad Blitz?  —  Is Sen. Barack Obama thinking about a major television ad blitz?  —  Democratic media buyers say that Obama's media team asked television stations in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada about available ad time and rates.

Film Review: "Islam vs. Islamism"  —  Martyn Burke's documentary "Islam vs. Islamism" (produced with Frank Gaffney and Alex Alexiev) was commissioned by PBS for its "American Crossroads" series, but never shown by the network.  Quality control or censorship?

Giuliani Plans to Publicly Embrace Abortion Rights  —  After months of conflicting signals on abortion, Rudolph W. Giuliani is planning to offer a forthright affirmation of his support for abortion rights in public forums, television appearances and interviews in the coming days …

Pentagon Breaks Pledge To Troops, Sends Them Back To Iraq After Just Nine Months At Home  —  On April 11, Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced that tours of duty for the Army would be extended from 12 months to 15 months, effective immediately.  In exchange for the extensions …

Rush Limbaugh billboard near I-83 defaced … Apparently, somebody in Baltimore isn't a fan of Rush Limbaugh.  —  A large billboard advertising local air times for the conservative radio talk-show host has been defaced.  —  Robert Murrow, a spokesman for the city's Department of Public Works …

The Missing Mission: Expeditionary Police for Peacekeeping and Transnational Stability  —  On Wednesday, April 11, 2007 U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon asked New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg if some of the city's police could be deployed with the U.N. for peacekeeping missions.