Senator's Number on 'Madam' Phone List  —  Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) apologized last night after his telephone number appeared in the phone records of the woman dubbed the "D.C. Madam," making him the first member of Congress to become ensnared in the high-profile case.

Michael Moore demands apology from Wolf Blitzer  —  Michael Moore went off on Wolfie and CNN for a hit piece they aired about "Sicko" right before he came on.  He was hot!  He slapped the beard around pretty good...He says he'll post the facts refuting their claims on his website tonight.

Bush Plans To Stress Next Phase In Iraq War  —  GOP Dissent Spurs Change In Message but Not Course  —  President Bush, facing a growing Republican revolt against his Iraq policy, has rejected calls to change course but will launch a campaign emphasizing his intent to draw down U.S. forces next year …

Gonzales Was Told of FBI Violations  —  After Bureau Sent Reports, Attorney General Said He Knew of No Wrongdoing  —  As he sought to renew the USA Patriot Act two years ago, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales assured lawmakers that the FBI had not abused its potent new terrorism-fighting powers.

U.S. Envoy Offers Grim Prediction on Iraq Pullout  —  As the Senate prepares to begin a new debate this week on proposals for a withdrawal from Iraq, the United States ambassador and the Iraqi foreign minister are warning that the departure of American troops could lead to sharply increased violence …

US Iraq chief warns of long war  —  The head of US forces in Iraq, General David Petraeus, has told the BBC that fighting the insurgency is a "long term endeavour" which could take decades.  —  Speaking to the BBC's John Simpson in Baquba, Gen Petraeus said there was evidence …

The assault on the Red Mosque has begun  —  The Lal Masjid in relation to the government buildings.  Click to view.  —  Pakistani security forces launch the assault on the Taliban mosque in Islamabad  —  After a week of negotiations and skirmishes at the Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque …

U.S. Military Losses Hit 4,000 in Iraq, Afghanistan  —  Four thousand U.S. service members have died in U.S. President George W. Bush's ``war on terror'' in Iraq and Afghanistan 5 1/2 years after American forces ousted the Taliban in December 2001.  —  A total of 3,596 have died in Iraq since …

Polls: Cheney Nears Quayle as Least Popular Veep  —  Vice President Dick Cheney's popularity has hit an all-time low, with recent polling by The New York Times and CBS News suggesting that he has replaced Dan Quayle as the most unpopular vice president in recent history.

Official: Iraq Gov't Missed All Targets  —  WASHINGTON (AP) - A progress report on Iraq will conclude that the U.S.-backed government in Baghdad has not met any of its targets for political, economic and other reform, speeding up the Bush administration's reckoning on what to do next, a U.S. official said Monday.

U.S. leg of Live Earth hits key notes  —  EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The American leg of Live Earth: The Concerts for a Climate in Crisis, like the other concerts on all seven continents, proved to be as complex as the issue it is trying to solve.  —  As the anointed launch of a social movement …

Escalation Architect Kagan: 'Whatever You Can Say About The Current Strategy, It Has Not Failed'  —  Today, the American Enterprise Institute, a neoconservative think tank, held a discussion entitled "Assessing the Surge in Iraq," featuring prominent Iraq war proponents like Fred Kagan …

Lawmakers try to save their earmarks  —  Members of both parties go behind the scenes to lobby agencies for projects that were scrapped with the old GOP spending bill.  —  WASHINGTON — After Democrats won control of Congress, they moved to fulfill their pledge to crack down on the controversial practice …