Uhm, No  —  Can't someone tell the monsignor that these endless paeans to his alleged salt-of-the-earth fabulousness are just a tad unseemly? … More questions than answers is right.  —  Is it really necessary that we hear over and over again about his Dad joining up after Pearl Harbor …

In Closed Meeting With Gonzales, Prosecutors Express Their Dismay  —  Many Remain Upset, Fear Damage to the Justice Department's Image  —  Even as he came under renewed political pressure in Washington this week, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales faced sharp criticism from many of his own U.S. attorneys …

Sexual Perversion And Modern Conservatism: Joined At The Hip?  —  Via Atrios, I learned about the arrest of S.D. Republican Ted Klaudt on rape charges.  The charges are revolting: He duped foster children in his care into letting him perform "exams" on them to see if they qualified as egg donors.

The Saturday Profile: Sarkozy's Top Diplomat: Undiplomatic Opposite  —  BERNARD KOUCHNER, France's new top diplomat, would never describe himself as diplomatic.  —  Named as foreign minister, Mr. Kouchner is in many ways the political opposite of his new boss, President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Poisoned Toothpaste in Panama Is Believed to Be From China  —  Diethylene glycol, a poisonous ingredient in some antifreeze, has been found in 6,000 tubes of toothpaste in Panama, and customs officials there said yesterday that the product appeared to have originated in China.

Evolution Opponent Is in Line for Schools Post  —  The National Association of State Boards of Education will elect officers in July, and for one office, president-elect, there is only one candidate: a member of the Kansas school board who supported its efforts against the teaching of evolution.

'Welcome to Tehran' - how Iran took control of Basra  —  Britain has failed to stop southern Iraq falling into grip of militias  —  On a recent overcast afternoon in Basra, two new police SUVs drove onto a dusty, rubbish-strewn football pitch where a group of children were playing.

Iglesias recounts a lunch with politics on the menu  —  The fired U.S. attorney says he was targeted for not pressing charges that could have helped the GOP.  —  WASHINGTON — Weeks before the 2006 midterm election, then-New Mexico U.S. Atty. David C. Iglesias was invited to dine …

Analysis: The Court and the 2008 Election  —  As the presidential campaign season gets an unprecedented early start, it is not too early to start the hyperbole on the importance of the election for the future of the Court and, as a consequence, the future of American law.

It Was 40 Years Ago Today  —  With 'Sgt. Pepper,' the Beatles indulged their whims — and changed rock forever  —  It's possible for two reasonable adults, probably older than 45, to argue for hours about the most significant pop music event of the 1960s.  My own vote would be cast in favor …

The Saturday Cartoons  —  And here's Mark Fiore with another great animation called The Pentagon Film Fest in which he tells us about such stellar Pentagon fiction as "Saving Private Lynch" and "Officer and a Tillman."  —  Click on the screenshot above or go here to see it.

Israeli planes pound Hamas targets  —  GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah spoke by phone with Hamas' exiled leader in a new bid to end Gaza's factional fighting, as Israeli missiles hit two suspected Hamas rocket workshops Saturday.  —  Meanwhile, gunmen clashed near …

House Dem Staffer: Liberals Are Worried That Leadership Will Cave On Iraq  —  Today the White House said No to all of Dems' offered concessions on Iraq, effectively telling the Dem Congressional leadership to take its "surrender date" and shove it deep into its posterior.  So now what?

Death Toll for Contractors Reaches New High in Iraq  —  Casualties among private contractors in Iraq have soared to record levels this year, setting a pace that seems certain to turn 2007 into the bloodiest year yet for the civilians who work alongside the American military in the war zone, according to new government numbers.

OZZIE WAS JUST A LITTLE AHEAD OF HIS TIME  —  "War Pigs" is one of the best known of all Black Sabbath's work.  It first appeared on their incredible 1970 release, Paranoid.  Now it's a classic and not only has it been covered by dozens of bands (including Faith No More, Weezer, Phish …

Fox News Conspiracy Theories  —  Andrew Sullivan, whose defense of Ron Paul this week put H&R's to shame, catches Fox News accusing the candidate of "9/11 Truthism": … Paul never said that or anything like it at the debate.  What's Malkin's evidence?