Top Items:
Ann Scott Tyson / Washington Post:
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 …
RELATED:
John F. Burns / New York Times:
Efforts to Avert Sectarian Reprisals After Shrine Attack — Left, a file photo from December 2003 shows the two minarets and the Golden Dome of the al-Askari mosque in Samarra. At right, the mosque after the attack on the minarets on Wednesday. The dome was destroyed in a 2006 attack. More Photos >
Agence France Presse:
Sunni mosques attacked after Shiite shrine bombing
Sunni mosques attacked after Shiite shrine bombing
Discussion:
The Newshoggers
John Bresnahan / The Politico:
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.
RELATED:
David S. Broder / Washington Post:
The Immigration Bill In Harry Reid's Court — It is hard to say who looked worse in the Senate's impasse on immigration legislation — Democrats or Republicans — but the responsibility for reviving that measure clearly rests most heavily on the shoulders of Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Discussion:
TalkLeft
Associated Press:
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.
Discussion:
New York Times, Captain's Quarters, Confederate Yankee, QandO, Blue Crab Boulevard, Jihad Watch and Telegraph
RELATED:
Scott Wilson / Washington Post:
Hamas Seizes Base In Gaza — Hamas gunmen wrested control of a key security base in Gaza City from the rival Fatah movement Thursday morning, further consolidating their hold over large swaths of the Gaza Strip. — Palestinian hospital officials said at least 14 people were killed …
John Solomon / Washington Post:
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 …
Sam Youngman / The Hill:
Obama aide wants Libby pardoned — Sen. Barack Obama's (D-Ill.) top lawyer publicly made the case yesterday for a presidential pardon for convicted White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. — Obama general counsel Robert Bauer did not ask his boss, a presidential candidate …
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times
RELATED:
Washington Post:
Primary Calendar Poses Big Challenges — As they criss-cross the nation at a dizzying pace, Democratic and Republican presidential candidates are locked in a fast-track campaign that has forced frontrunners and the far-behind to rethink the traditional path to nomination seven months before a single vote is cast.
USA Today:
Upper-income black donors back Obama over Clinton — WASHINGTON — Democrat Barack Obama is surpassing rival Hillary Rodham Clinton in campaign contributions from areas with blacks of above-average income, a USA TODAY analysis shows. — The Illinois senator has received more than double …
Roger Friedman / Fox News:
Angelina Jolie's Freedom of Press, On Her Terms — Odds 'n' Ends — Angelina Jolie's Freedom of Press, On Her Terms — Angelina Jolie's true colors came out Wednesday as she promoted a film about freedom of the press and then tried to censor all her interviews.
Ann Coulter / Human Events:
'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.
Los Angeles Times:
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 …