No Drop in Iraq Violence Seen Since Troop Buildup  —  Three months into the new U.S. military strategy that has sent tens of thousands of additional troops into Iraq, overall levels of violence in the country have not decreased, as attacks have shifted away from Baghdad and Anbar …

Key security HQ in Gaza City, last Fatah stronghold, falls  —  Hamas fighters overran Fatah-allied Preventive Security headquarters in Gaza City on Thursday, a key target in their battle to control the entire Gaza Strip, witnesses and a security agency official said.

The Summer War has Begun  —  A few days ago Iran's president said the Lebanese and the Palestinians had pressed a "countdown button" to bring an end to Israel.  —  And so they have.  —  Debka reports … Syria made good on its hit list.  Syrian proxies assassinated Anti-Syrian MP Walid Eido on Wednesday.

Reid labels military leader 'incompetent'  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called Marine Gen. Peter Pace, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, "incompetent" during an interview Tuesday with a group of liberal bloggers, a comment that was never reported.

FBI Finds It Frequently Overstepped in Collecting Data  —  An internal FBI audit has found that the bureau potentially violated the law or agency rules more than 1,000 times while collecting data about domestic phone calls, e-mails and financial transactions in recent years …

Research shows Hilton prison time longer than most  —  Paris Hilton will end up serving more time behind bars than the vast majority of inmates sent to Los Angeles County jail for similar offenses, according to a Los Angeles Times analysis of jail records.  —  Whether Hilton received special treatment …

Ex-Justice Dept. lawyer can't recall his role in controversial policies  —  WASHINGTON - Another former Justice Department lawyer went before Congress on Wednesday with few answers for his Democratic interrogators and a spotty memory.  —  Hans von Spakovsky, who's seeking a full six-year term …

The Inside Story On What's Happening With The Senate Immigration Bill  —  Yesterday, a GOP aide, who is one of my sources in the Senate, gave me the rundown on what's happening with the Senate immigration bill (this is the same person who I talked to last week about the bill).

DoD braces for a fight with Pelosi  —  Pentagon officials are bracing for a fight with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) over her desire to allow lawmakers' adult children to tag along on taxpayer-funded travel for free.  —  Pelosi wants them to be able to fill the role of lawmakers' spouses …

Music Video Has a 'Crush on Obama'  —  Risqué YouTube Song Takes Obama Campaign by Surprise  —  An amusing, risqué music video, featuring a nubile young woman breathlessly singing her love for presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., appeared on the Web this week.

Rush Limbaugh in hurricane info tempest  —  S. Florida county may drop radio station as official storm broadcast site  —  FORT LAUDERDALE — If it truly wants to be Broward County's official hurricane radio station, here's what WIOD (610 AM) needs to do:  —  Fire Rush Limbaugh.

Immigration on the (Train) Rails  —  Dreams Across America has hit the rails!  (Sorry Lou Dobbs, it's the train rails and we're headed to DC. )  At 2:30PM today, 46 of us left LA's Union Station after a send off by Cardinal Mahony, LA's most popular morning radio show host "El Cucuy," …

'No Drug Smuggler Left Behind!'  —  President Bush was so buoyed by the warm reception he was given in Albania that he immediately gave all 3 million Albanians American citizenship, provided they learn Spanish.  The offer was withdrawn when Bush found out most Albanians haven't broken any U.S. laws.

A message for the RNC  —  Reader T.K. e-mails: … Here's National Review's message for the White House:  —  "Don't just show us the money, show us the enforcement."