Why Bush Gave Scooter Libby a Pass  —  As is often the case in the Bush White House, it was a decision made swiftly, and with stealth.  For weeks, allies of I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby had aggressively lobbied the president to pardon Dick Cheney's former chief of staff.

Skeptical of Performers' Motives, Public Tunes Out Live Earth Event  —  The Live Earth concert promoted by former Vice President Al Gore received plenty of media coverage and hype, but most Americans tuned out.  Just 22% said they followed news stories about the concert Somewhat or Very Closely.

All Grown Up — and Going to War  —  July is a month I sincerely hoped would never come.  —  At the end of this month, my young son, my only child, deploys with the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit.  His departure had been six months away, three months; now it is a matter of weeks.

Muqtada al Sadr back in Iran  —  Muqtada al-Sadr.  —  Mahdi Army leader leaves Iraq and goes to Iran for second time this year  —  Muqtada al Sadr, the leader of the Shia Mahdi Army and the Sadrist bloc in parliament, has left Iraq and is in Iran, military sources told Reuters.

In White House, Debate Is Rising on Iraq Pullback  —  White House officials fear that the last pillars of political support among Senate Republicans for President Bush's Iraq strategy are collapsing around them, according to several administration officials and outsiders they are consulting.

CIA leak: Now it can be told  —  Sun-Times columnist and famous Washington insider Robert Novak is one of the most controversial political reporters in America.  In the sweeping memoir The Prince of Darkness, the private man opens up for the first time about his life and career.

Son is Gore's Al-batross  —  With Al Gore in the news for battling global warming and Al Gore 3rd in the news for getting toasted, my favorite NYPD detective recalled a story that helps explain how father and son each became a particular kind of loser.  —  The story was told to the detective …

What does Al know that we don't?  —  Why, given the opportunity that's been presented to him on a silver Prius, is this man not going to run for (and win) the presidency of the United States?  If ever there was a clarion call to be answered it is this one: heed the will of the majority of the people …

Edwards to announce poverty tour  —  Can JRE pull off a JFK, or an RFK (asks Politico chief political writer Mike Allen, who is sharing guestblogging duties while Ben is on vacation)?  John Edwards plans to announce Monday that he'll take a break from fund-raising and campaigning …

Three men in jail over bomb at church  —  Three Burleson men who belong to a "radical Christian activist group" were in the Johnson County Jail on Friday night after a church deacon caught two of them attempting to ignite an explosive device on Independence Day at a church under construction in north Burleson, authorities said Friday.

Files show talks on 'vote caging'  —  Discussions with elections chief were prior to '04 election  —  TALLAHASSEE - Internal city memos show the issue of Republican "vote caging" efforts in Jacksonville's African-American neighborhoods was discussed in the weeks before the 2004 election …

Justice Secures His Place as a Critic of Integration  —  When Justice Clarence Thomas provided a pivotal vote last month as the Supreme Court struck down school integration plans in Louisville, Ky., and Seattle, he suggested the concept of integration was inherently demeaning to black children …

The Troubled Texas GOP  —  Will Lone Star Republicans blow it on immigration like the California party did?  —  SAN ANTONIO—In 1994 George W. Bush delivered the coup de grâce for the Republican revolution in Texas by defeating incumbent Gov. Ann Richards.  The GOP then went on to complete its ascendancy in the state.

Who Runs the CIA?  Outsiders for Hire.  —  Red alert: Our national security is being outsourced.  —  The most intriguing secrets of the "war on terror" have nothing to do with al-Qaeda and its fellow travelers.  They're about the mammoth private spying industry that all but runs U.S. intelligence operations today.

Face the Snark?  Face the Fred.  —  The past few few days have been chock full of fascinating info about Fred Thompson.  Thompson is of course the ungainly actor and undeclared GOP presidential aspirant who smells really nice, at least according to Chris Matthews.