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 …

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.

Clinton Camp Resists Aide's Advice to Skip Iowa  —  Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential campaign has considered — and rejected — a plan to stop competing in Iowa, the traditional kickoff state in the nominating process, and to concentrate instead on later states …

Improvement in Iraq: Trust Joe Klein and his secret sources  —  Q. If you're a Bush administration official and you want to create a prominent headline in Time Magazine proclaiming what great improvement there is in Iraq, what do you do?  —  A. Have someone with a shiny military uniform …

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.

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?"