'Scouting' the Hill on Iraq  —  National security adviser Stephen J. Hadley visited Capitol Hill just before Congress adjourned for the Fourth of July.  Meetings with a half-dozen senior Republican senators were clearly intended to extinguish fires set by Sen. Richard Lugar's unexpected break from President Bush's Iraq policy.

Bush denies Congress access to aides  —  WASHINGTON - President Bush invoked executive privilege Monday to deny requests by Congress for testimony from two former aides about the firings of federal prosecutors.  —  The White House, however, did offer again to make former counsel Harriet Miers …

Sounding the Global-Warming Alarm Without Upsetting the Fans  —  If less is more, then why is biggest better?  —  Al Gore declared Live Earth "the largest global entertainment event in all of history," but this seven-continent, multimedia eco-extravaganza was colored by the very complacency …

Fired McCain Aides May Be Hired by Thompson  —  WASHINGTON — The downsizing of Senator McCain's presidential campaign is coming at an opportune time for Fred Thompson, the former Tennessee senator who is likely to jump into the race officially any day now and seeking to build a campaign staff in the early primary states.

Job Vacancies At DHS Said To Hurt U.S. Preparedness  —  A Fourth of Top Positions Not Filled, Report Says  —  The Bush administration has failed to fill roughly a quarter of the top leadership posts at the Department of Homeland Security, creating a "gaping hole" in the nation's preparedness …

Tunneling Near Iranian Nuclear Site Stirs Worry  —  The sudden flurry of digging seen in recent satellite photos of a mountainside in central Iran might have passed for ordinary road tunneling.  But the site is the back yard of Iran's most ambitious and controversial nuclear facility …

A Blog That Made It Big  —  The Huffington Post, Trending Up and Left  —  NEW YORK — In the high-ceilinged SoHo offices that once housed an art gallery, Rachel Sklar is juggling a slew of stories destined for the virtual pages of the Huffington Post.  —  There's her interview with author Gay Talese …

Hoppy's Commentary For Monday  —  Research shows West Virginia is tilting back toward blue for the 2008 presidential race.  —  A survey of 400 likely voters completed in May by the political consulting firm of Fabrizio, McLaughlin and Associates finds that if the election were held …

Mr. Cheney's Minority Report  —  Princeton, N.J.  —  TWENTY years ago this week, Lt. Col. Oliver North testified for six days before a special joint House and Senate investigating committee.  Permitted by the Democratic majority to appear in his bemedaled Marine uniform …

Edging Away From Inner Circle, Pelosi Asserts Authority  —  In February, only a month after becoming speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi settled weeks of threats from Rep. John D. Dingell, her blustery Energy and Commerce Committee chairman, by putting in writing her assent to one of his big demands …

Alas, Poor Couric  —  But pity her not.  —  F  —  rom outside the sleek glass chamber of the CBS Evening News set, you can see her: alone in a prim black pantsuit and pearls, shuffling a stack of papers at the wide, half-moon desk.  Sitting stiff and still, she looks dwarfed under …

Voters Excited Over '08 Campaign; Tired of It, Too  —  "I'm afraid we are going to get tired of all this hoop-de-la," said Kathy Shaffer, an elementary school teacher from Clear Lake, Iowa.  "It is too much for too long.You get tired of it.  You put mute on the commercials."

Michael Yon discusses Bless The Beasts, and the Children Live From Baqubah  —  Following Someone You Should Know, Bruce McQuain from QandO stayed with us for an extended interview with Michael Yon, who joined us live from Baqubah, Iraq.  Michael is the Ernie Pyle of our generation.