Bush Authorizes New Covert Action Against Iran  —  Brian Ross and Richard Esposito Report:  —  The CIA has received secret presidential approval to mount a covert "black" operation to destabilize the Iranian government, current and former officials in the intelligence community tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com.

Democrats Relent On Pullout Timetable  —  Democrats gave up their demand for troop-withdrawal deadlines in an Iraq war spending package yesterday, abandoning their top goal of bringing U.S. troops home and handing President Bush a victory in a debate that has roiled Congress for months.

Bomb Plot Thwarted at Falwell's Funeral  —  Student Arrested With Homemade Bombs, Three Other Suspects Sought  —  Even in death, the Rev. Jerry Falwell rouses the most volatile of emotions.  —  A small group of protesters gathered near the funeral services to criticize the man …

Robert Fisk: The road to Jerusalem (via Lebanon)  —  Inspired by al-Qa'ida, a hitherto little-known militant group is behind the outbreak of bloody violence which has left scores dead  —  They came into Lebanon last summer when the world was watching Israel smash this small nation in a vain attempt to destroy the Hizbollah.

Snow Slams Gore's Book, Says It Should Be 'Reprinted' Because It Calls Out Bush's 'Deception'  —  In his new book The Assault on Reason, Al Gore wrote that Bush's efforts to connect Iraq to 9/11 were an example of the administration's willful "deception" of the public:

Why The Tears?  —  Tomorrow morning at 10:15 AM, Monica Goodling will testify before the House Judiciary Committee.  —  Goodling, remember, was the Justice Department's liaison to the White House and the last of the Department officials involved in the U.S. attorney firings to talk to Congress.

Lieberman, Sticking With Democrats for Now, Warns Them on Iraq  —  Senator Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, says his disagreement with the Democrats over the Iraq war won't prevent him from working with his former party.  For now.  —  ``I hope the moment doesn't come that I feel …

Russia angered by Litvinenko extradition call  —  A major diplomatic row loomed last night after Tony Blair demanded the extradition from Russia of the man accused of murdering the former security service agent Alexander Litvinenko.  —  Andrei Lugovoi was formally accused by British authorities yesterday …

WHO CAUGHT SCOTT?  —  Scott was on the O'Reilly Factor tonight, with guest host Michelle Malkin.  I got home two minutes too late and missed it.  Did some of our readers catch Scott's appearance?  Let us know what you thought.  —  The topic was a bust in Minneapolis a couple of days ago …

Gay flamingos pick up chick  —  LONDON (AFP) - A pair of gay flamingos have adopted an abandoned chick, becoming parents after being together for six years, a British conservation organisation said Monday.  —  Carlos and Fernando had been desperate to start a family, even chasing other flamingos …

Murtha sent earmark letter five weeks after deadline  —  Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) submitted an earmark certification letter for the National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC) May 1, more than five weeks after the Intelligence Committee's deadline and the day before the panel marked up its authorization bill …

GSA chief violated Hatch Act, OSC report finds  —  An Office of Special Counsel report has found that General Services Administration chief Lurita Doan violated the Hatch Act, which bars federal officials from partisan political activity while on the job, sources say.