(Updated) Paris Hilton Bawls Her Way Out of An L.A. Celebrity Slammer  —  Paris Hilton has finally done it to me.  She has so outraged my sensibilities that here I am blogging on this sack of celebrity excrement instead of analyzing every jot and tittle of the presidential race.

Senate Begins Real Push on Habeas Corpus  —  Today the Senate Judiciary Committee passed an important bill to restore habeas corpus, the sacrosanct Constitutional right to challenge government detention in court, by a vote of eleven to eight.  —  Habeas corpus was revoked …

Romney's Up 17 In An Internal Campaign Poll  —  In an internal poll, ex-MA Gov. Mitt Romney holds a whopping 17 point lead over the rest of the Republican field, further evidence to Romney's senior staff that his organizational prowess and early support in Iowa scared challengers John McCain and Rudy Giuliani away.

Immigration Bill Fails Key Senate Test Vote  —  The proposed overhaul of the nation's immigration laws teetered on the verge of collapse today, after four Republican senators switched their positions to help pass an amendment early this morning that would close the bill's guest worker program after five years.

Kill The Bill 8:21pm Cloture vote revisited - Reid tries, tries again  —  Liveblogging the debate on the Senate floor...  8:40pm Eastern.  The cloture vote is still taking place...I count 24 Nays so far...  Noteworthy votes so far:  —  R - Kyl, Lott vote NAY

Re: Libby, Ctd.  —  I have been trying to stay out of the Libby fray (too many friends on both sides), and I want nowhere near an argument over Derb's comments.  But as someone who has the battle scars attendant to defending Pat Fitzgerald here on our friendly Corner, I feel constrained …

Immigration: Another vote likely  —  From NBC's Ken Strickland  —  Even after it failed this morning, Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid says there will be an identical procedural vote later today on the immigration reform bill.  That vote, which requires 60 for passage …

Is London's future Islamic?  —  It's the capital's fastest growing religion, based on noble traditions and compassionate principles, yet Islam can still be tainted by mistrust and misunderstanding.  Here Time Out argues that an Islamic London would be a better place

Surprise offer defuses U.S.-Russia spat … HEILIGENDAMM, Germany (CNN) — U.S. President George Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed Thursday at the G8 summit in Germany to cooperate on missile-defense systems, apparently cooling tensions between the two leaders.

Scooter Libby's Sentence: While It Was Justifiable, a More Lenient Sentence Could Also Have Been Appropriate Under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines  —  Yesterday, June 6, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton sentenced Scooter Libby to 30 months in jail.  Generally speaking, the reaction …

New Vent: Gorilla warfare against the open borders WSJ  —  The Wall Street Journal editorial board thinks conservatives who oppose the immigration bill are either xenophobes or bigots.  Michelle engages in guerilla gorilla warfare to prove them wrong.  —  Blowback

Judge freezes congressman's assets  —  ALEXANDRIA, Va. - A federal judge Thursday froze the assets of Rep. William Jefferson, the Louisiana Democrat who was indicted this week on charges of soliciting bribes.  —  A forfeiture charge is among the 16 criminal counts Jefferson is facing.

Lieberman 'Really Upset' At Troops Who Didn't 'Speak To Me From Their Heart'  —  During Sen. Joe Lieberman's (I-CT) trip to Iraq two weeks ago, McClatchy published an article highlighting how several soldiers who met with Lieberman had wanted to ask him, "When are we going to get out of here?"

House Passes Embryonic Stem Cell Research Bill  —  For the third time, the House easily passed legislation today that would loosen President Bush's six-year-old restrictions on embryonic stem cell research.  —  The bill, which matches language approved by the Senate in April …

Armey Decoded  —  Dick: Seems to me, reading you this week, that although you've left public office, you're still infected with political blather, Frank Luntz-style.  For example, the word "Ownership."  That tested really well in focus groups, but what does it mean?

Sister Of Slain Soldier: Candidates Didn't Answer Me About When U.S. Will 'Get Out' Of Iraq  —  At Tuesday's Republican presidential debate, one of the most memorable questions came from Erin Flanagan, whose brother died in Iraq last year.  She asked what the candidates would do to end the war in Iraq: