Thompson, as a lobbyist, took abortion rights assignment  —  A spokesman for the presidential hopeful denies he did the work, a claim an ex-colleague calls "bizarre."  —  Former Tennessee Sen. Fred D. Thompson, who is campaigning for president as a "pro-life" Republican …

Ron Paul Tops McCain in Cash on Hand  —  ABC News' George Stephanopoulos Reports: Though often regarded as a longshot candidate for president, Republican Ron Paul tells ABC News that he has an impressive $2.4 million in cash on hand after raising an equal amount during the second quarter …

Appeals Court Rejects Lawsuit on Surveillance  —  A divided federal appeals court today dismissed a case challenging the National Security Agency's program to wiretap without warrants the international communications of some Americans, reversing a trial judge's order that the program be shut down.

Jihadists On Defense  —  On July 4, Zawahiri released a new video tape.  The production values are pretty good, and Zawahiri is intercut with other footage, including television clips.  What is striking about Zawahiri's message, however, is how defensive it is.  And what Zawahiri is defensive about, is events in Iraq.

Poll: Americans Evenly Divided On Impeachment Of Bush, Majority For Targeting Cheney  —  Does the conventional wisdom that impeachment would be politically radioactive still hold true in the post-Libby commutation political world?  A new poll from American Research Group shows a startling result …

David Shuster dismantles Fouad Ajami's comparison of Libby to our fallen soldiers  —  David Shuster filled in for Chris Matthews this evening on "Hardball" where he interviewed neo-con author, Fouad Ajami, and absolutely shredded him over his Wall Street Journal OpEd comparing Scooter Libby to fallen U.S. Soldiers in Iraq.

The Taliban Challenges Jawa, Jawa Responds  —  No joke, the Taliban have posted a message on a well-known Islamic forum addressing me, Rusty Shackleford, indirectly.  In it, they gloat that their website is back online.  I'll just add: for now.  —  Here's a rough translation:

Al Qaeda fanatics working in police (but they don't dare sack them)  —  Up to eight police officers and civilian staff are suspected of links to extremist groups including Al Qaeda.  —  Some are even believed to have attended terror training camps in Pakistan or Afghanistan.

"They don't own the Democratic Party"  —  Joe Biden talks about lefty bloggers, the perils of candor in a YouTube age, Dick Cheney's secret thoughts, and how many troops a Biden administration would keep in Iraq. … Joe Biden speaks during a news conference at the Iowa statehouse in Des Moines, Iowa, on Tuesday, July 3, 2007.

War Costs Soar by a Third; Total Could Top $1.4 Trillion  —  It's not just the troops that are surging.  War costs are up for American operations in Iraq and Afghanistan* — way up, more than a third higher than last year.  In the first half of this fiscal year, the Defense Department's …