EX-JUSTICE AIDE ADMITS POLITICS AFFECTED HIRING  —  A former top Justice Department aide testified on Wednesday that she had "crossed the line" in considering the political beliefs of applicants for nonpartisan legal jobs and suggested that earlier testimony by Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales …

The entire government has failed us on Iraq  —  For the president, and the majority leaders and candidates and rank-and-file Congressmen and Senators of either party—there is only blame for this shameful, and bi-partisan, betrayal  —  SPECIAL COMMENT  —  A Special Comment about the Democrats' deal …

News Analysis: On War Funds, Democrats Saw No Option but to Cede Ground to Bush  —  Congressional contortions over the Iraq spending bill could end up with most House Democrats momentarily occupying the position they were so desperate to vacate: the minority.

The Poor Get Richer  —  It's been a rough week for John Edwards, and now comes more bad news for his "two Americas" campaign theme.  A new study by the Congressional Budget Office says the poor have been getting less poor.  On average, CBO found that low-wage households with children …

Clinton Campaign Plays Down Iowa Memo  —  Proposal to Skip Caucuses Called Just One Person's Opinion  —  Aides to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) scrambled late yesterday to control the fallout from a leaked memo advocating that she pull her campaign out of Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucuses, where she is trailing in polls.

Morgue Data Show Increase In Sectarian Killings in Iraq  —  More than three months into a U.S.-Iraqi security offensive designed to curtail sectarian violence in Baghdad and other parts of Iraq, Health Ministry statistics show that such killings are rising again.

QUESTIONS FOR OUR LIBERAL FRIENDS  —  Bruce is a big boy, and certainly doesn't need me to help him out, but let's talk about Iraq for a moment.  Because I have questions for people like Oliver Willis to which I'm curious to hear the answers.  And I'm not asking in a snarky way.  I'm honestly interested.

Amnesty International's Bizarre BDS Poll  —  The people who work at Amnesty International must be so steeped in Bush Derangement Syndrome that they don't even realize how bizarre this "poll" is, on a page of their annual report: Axis of Evil?!  —  After you "vote," you see this:

The collapse of Europe  —  If you happen to be passing though Malibu next month, why not pop into an intriguing-sounding conference at Pepperdine University on "The Collapse of Europe".  One of the early sessions is entitled - "Eurabia: Is Muslim domination of Europe inevitable?"

France's Sarkozy calls to tighten sanctions on Teheran  —  Jpost.com staff and AP, THE JERUSALEM POST  —  French President Nicholas Sarkozy called Wednesday for sanctions on Iran to be tightened if the country does not adhere to the West's demands to cease its nuclear agenda.

In the Democratic Congress, Pork Still Gets Served  —  'Phonemarking' Is Among Ways Around Appropriations Process  —  When the new Democratic majority in the House of Representatives passed one of its first spending bills, funding the Energy Department for the rest of 2007 …