RESEARCH BRIEFINGS  —  The Facts About Border Security and Immigration Reform  —  Administration And Bipartisan Group Of Senators Reach Agreement On Comprehensive Immigration Reform  —  Today, Administration Officials And A Bipartisan Group Of Senators Reached Agreement On Comprehensive Immigration Reform Legislation.

Press Gaggle by Tony Fratto  —  White House Conference Center Briefing Room  —  MR. FRATTO: Good morning, everyone.  The President had his normal briefings this morning; taped the radio address — as you can imagine, it's on comprehensive immigration reform, so look forward to that.

How Battles at Bank Ended 'Second Chance' at a Career  —  Paul D. Wolfowitz was ready to move on from the Pentagon in early 2005.  He had been thwarted in his effort to become defense secretary or national security adviser.  And the war in Iraq had deteriorated.

Majorities of Republicans, conservatives, and frequent church attenders in favor  —  PRINCETON, NJ — A substantial majority of the American public favors the expansion of federal hate crime legislation to include crimes against people based on their gender, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

One Step at a Time for Sen. Johnson  —  Mary Lu Carnevale reports on Sen. Tim Johnson.  —  A South Dakota radio personality who visited with Sen. Tim Johnson last month says the South Dakota Democrat will likely be back in his Senate office sooner than most people expect.

Just the Two of Us  —  For President Bush, the sensation must have been akin to watching his own funeral.  —  Bush's closest ally, Tony Blair, was on his final visit to the White House before the British prime minister, now deeply unpopular, leaves office.

House Democratic Leaders Write to President Bush on  —  Troop Pay Raises, Widows' Benefits  —  May 18th, 2007 by Jesse Lee  —  As noted yesterday, the White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy (pdf) declaring their opposition to a 3.5% pay raise for the troops …

In Rudy's heart & on payroll  —  Judith Giuliani got $125G to craft speeches  —  Being Mrs. Rudy Giuliani can't be easy, but at least it pays well - about $10,000 a month.  —  A day after the former mayor disclosed in federal filings that he considers his third wife, Judith, a salaried employee …

[TS] Op-Ed Columnist: Don't Blame Bush  —  The president has done just what his party wants and expects.

Exxon Still Funding Climate Change Deniers  —  So.  The day of reckoning has come - when we get to find out just how much of the climate change denial industry ExxonMobil is still paying for.  —  This is the company which, apparently, has been "misunderstood" on global warming and has said it has dropped its funding of the deniers.

60 Die in Iraq; Study Warns Of Collapse  —  British Center Finds Country Close to Being a 'Failed State'  —  More than 60 people were killed and dozens wounded in mortar strikes, drive-by shootings, roadside explosions, suicide bombings and other violent attacks in Iraq on Thursday …

The Man Who Wasn't There  —  Fred Thompson isn't yet running, but he's running a great campaign.  —  Having watched the second Republican debate the other night, it's clear to me the subject today is Fred Thompson, the man who wasn't there.  While the other candidates bang away earnestly …

Brooksian wrongism  —  I'm not sure what the point here is.  Brooks leads his column with a pretty big claim: that the Iraq war will devastate international governments for years to come.  But then, rather than backing up said claim, he proceeds to write a glowing review of a book called Brave …

Today's Must Read  —  It would be wrong to call the House ethics committee incompetent.  Because, really, it ably strives to make itself as irrelevant and impotent as possible.  —  Please take a moment out of your day to appreciate its efforts.  —  From Roll Call (sub. req.):

Rush Meets Former President Bill Clinton  —  BEGIN TRANSCRIPT  —  RUSH: I gotta tell you a funny story that happened last night.  As you know, we're here in New York.  I'm coming to you today from high atop the EIB Building in Midtown Manhattan.  I told you about this Kobe Club steakhouse, Jeffrey Chodorow's place.