Defections to Fred Thompson Pose a Major Threat to McCain  —  John Dowd represented Sen. John McCain in his darkest hour, the "Keating Five" scandal.  He supported McCain the first time he ran for president in 2000 and signed up to be a major fundraiser for him in this year's presidential race.

Leading Conservative Activist Seeks Punitive Damages  —  Judge Robert Bork, one of the fathers of the modern judicial conservative movement whose nomination to the Supreme Court was rejected by the Senate, is seeking $1,000,000 in compensatory damages, plus punitive damages, after he slipped and fell at the Yale Club of New York City.

[TS] Op-Ed Columnist: Lies, Sighs and Politics  —  If early campaign reporting is any guide, the bad media habits that helped install the worst president ever in the White House haven't changed a bit.

Peace Corps Is Edwards Terror Plan  —  Senator Edwards is outlining a new national security strategy that hinges on the creation of a 10,000-person civilian peace corps to stem the tide of terrorism in weak and unstable countries.  —  Mr. Edwards's plan, which he presented in Manhattan yesterday …

Two Years of Humble Pie  —  In Britain, Canada and other civilized places, national elections are often called, run and concluded within six weeks.  In America, election campaigns go on forever.  It used to be one year, now it's two.  No one planned this, but like other evolutionary artifacts …

Turning the Page: The Real Che?  —  He's the ultimate symbol of radical chic but was Che Guevara really a homophobic, racist square who personally ordered the jailing and executions of innocent men, women and children?  —  That's according to Humberto Fontova, the author of …

WILY VLADIMIR  —  PUTIN TO BUSH: So, what's so special about putting the interceptors in Poland?  (Putin and Bush comment here).  —  Putin, I think it's fair to say, rather outmaneuvered Bush on this issue at the G-8 meeting, first by making the case there's nothing particularly magic …

Don't Ask, Don't Translate  —  IMAGINE for a moment an American soldier deep in the Iraqi desert.  His unit is about to head out when he receives a cable detailing an insurgent ambush right in his convoy's path.  With this information, he and his soldiers are now prepared for the danger that lies ahead.

Fallen Soldier  —  Mr. President, do not leave this man behind.  —  Mr. President, some weeks ago, I wrote a letter of appeal, a character reference, to Judge Reggie B. Walton, urging leniency for I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby.  Scooter, I said, has seen the undoing of his world, but he comes before a …

Ars takes a field trip: the Creation Museum  —  A museum like no other  —  Here at Ars Technica we've written about the US creationist movement and its attack on science quite regularly.  From attempts to alter the way science is taught in different states across the US to statements …

Berger Is Disbarred After Archives Case  —  Samuel R.  "Sandy" Berger, a national security adviser to President Bill Clinton, was voluntarily disbarred from the practice of law yesterday by the D.C. Court of Appeals.  —  Berger agreed last month to relinquish his law license to the D.C. Board …

Jefferson pleads innocent to charges  —  ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Rep. William Jefferson, D-New Orleans, entered an innocent plea Friday to federal charges of soliciting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes connected to business deals in Africa.  —  A jury trial was set for Jan. 16.

Construction jobs cloud US productivity  —  A conundrum in construction lies at the heart of a US jobs market puzzle that continues to baffle economists - including officials at the Federal Reserve.  —  After a year of sub-par growth unemployment is a mere 4.5 per cent.

Light shines on authors of earmarks  —  Members of the House Armed Services Committee have requested millions of dollars in federal earmarks for companies that have contributed thousands of dollars to their reelection funds, according to a review of funding requests made publicly available for the first time.

Pace stepping down, new Joint Chiefs chair named  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday he will recommend to President Bush that he nominate Adm. Michael G. Mullen to replace Gen. Peter Pace as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when Pace's term ends in September.