Mr. Comey's Tale  —  JAMES B. COMEY, the straight-as-an-arrow former No. 2 official at the Justice Department, yesterday offered the Senate Judiciary Committee an account of Bush administration lawlessness so shocking it would have been unbelievable coming from a less reputable source.

Republican Presidential Debate in South Carolina  —  The following is a transcript of the Republican presidential primary debate at the University of South Carolina on May 15, 2007, as recorded by the Federal News Service:  —  Participants: Senator Sam Brownback; former Virginia Governor James Gilmore …

Romney Leaps to GOP Lead in Iowa; Edwards Keeps His Edge  —  Giuliani the big loser, while McCain remains steady; Hillary, Obama remain strong in tight Dem contest  —  Republican Mitt Romney has pushed from a distant third place into a small lead in Iowa, the continuation of progress …

Wolfowitz to Resign This Afternoon?  —  Brian Ross Reports:  —  World Bank officials say the bank's board is completing an "exit strategy" that will allow World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz to resign this afternoon and "still save some face" over the issue of his efforts to seek a promotion …

Iraq Withdrawal Move Thwarted in Senate  —  WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate on Wednesday rejected legislation that would cut off money for combat operations in Iraq after March 31, 2008.  —  The vote was a loss for Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., and other Democrats who want to end the war.

Climate Momentum Shifting: Prominent Scientists Reverse Belief in Man-made Global Warming - Now Skeptics  —  Growing Number of Scientists Convert to Skeptics After Reviewing New Research  —  Following the U.S. Senate's vote today on a global warming measure (see today's AP article …

Feingold Amendment Defeated  —  As expected, it goes down, 29-67.  —  But the vote allowed the Dem Presidential candidates — Hillary, Obama, Biden — as well as many other Dems, to make strong antiwar statements, endorsing the idea of cutting funding in principle.

We must attack Iran before it gets the bomb  —  Iran should be attacked before it develops nuclear weapons, America's former ambassador to the United Nations said yesterday.  —  John Bolton, who still has close links to the Bush administration, told The Daily Telegraph that the European Union had to …

Bush Pick Gets Extra Payment From Old Job  —  A senior lobbyist at the National Association of Manufacturers nominated by President Bush to lead the Consumer Product Safety Commission will receive a $150,000 departing payment from the association when he takes his new government job …

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: An International Update on the Comparative Performance of American Health Care  —  Authors: … Overview  —  Despite having the most costly health system in the world, the United States consistently underperforms on most dimensions of performance, relative to other countries.

Report: Closing in on Al Qaeda in the Triangle  —  Iraqi soldiers conduct a joint search mission with US troops near Yusifiyah [Getty].  Click to view.  —  Coalition forces may have narrowed the search for the missing soldiers missing since last Saturday's attack

Administration vaunted bogus credentials  —  Records from the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine show that Dr. Keroack did not finish his residency in obstetrics and gynecology until 1993.  This means he could not possibly have practiced obstetrics for 20 years.

Pentagon General to Be 'War Czar'  —  WASHINGTON — President Bush has chosen Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute, the Pentagon's director of operations, to oversee the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan as a "war czar" after a long search for new leadership, administration officials said Tuesday.

BREAKING: Emanuel Blocks Dem Debate on Trade Deal As White House Signals Real Agenda  —  Breaking news out of Washington today, five days after a handful of senior Democrats and the Bush administration announced a secret deal to push a package of free trade pacts just months …