Cheney pushes Bush to act on Iran  —  Ewen MacAskill in Washington and Julian Borger  —  The balance in the internal White House debate over Iran has shifted back in favour of military action before President George Bush leaves office in 18 months, the Guardian has learned.

'Meet the Press' transcript for July 15, 2007  —  Jim Webb, Lindsey Graham, Al Hunt, Mike Murphy, Bob Shrum, Bob Novak  —  MR. TIM RUSSERT: Our issues this Sunday: The president digs in on Iraq.  —  PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH: I don't think Congress ought to be running the war.

Some Democratic Senators Still Not On Board To Restore Habeas Corpus  —  That title alone should send shivers down your spine.  —  Bob Geiger: … Again, I put it to you that it lies with us to pierce through the Beltway bubble.  Please contact these Democrats (especially if you're in their district) …

Breaking Al-Qaeda Code Islamically: New OBL Video Possibly Announcement Of His Death  —  Osama Bin Laden recently emerged in a new video from Al-Qaeda in a 37 second clip, praising martyrdom.  The rest of the forty minutes of the video was some kind of collage/montage of Al-Qaeda activity.

New Populism Is Spurring Democrats on the Economy  —  On Capitol Hill and on the presidential campaign trail, Democrats are increasingly moving toward a full-throated populist critique of the current economy.  —  Clearly influenced by some of their most successful candidates …

Execution Of Ga. Man Near Despite Recantations  —  SAVANNAH, Ga. — A Georgia man is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on Tuesday for killing a police officer in 1989, even though the case against him has withered in recent years as most of the key witnesses at his trial have recanted …

Darryl Sharratt, father of exonerated Haditha Marine Lance Cpl. Justin Sharratt on Pundit Review Radio  —  Darryl, Theresa and Jaclyn Sharratt, photo courtesy of USAToday  —  Investigator Urges Clearing of Marine in Killings at Haditha Home … We really appreciated the opportunity to speak …

'Independent' voted off finance island?  —  Mark Burnett, meet the Federal Election Commission.  —  Burnett, the reality TV pioneer behind "Survivor" and "The Apprentice," is teaming with MySpace on a politically themed reality show with an interesting twist.

Thompson Uses Loophole to Avoid Reporting Fundraising  —  Opponents Claim Ex-Senator In Violation of Campaign Finance Reform Law  —  Former Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., has avoided revealing his fundraising figures by exploiting a legal loophole whereby he says he is simply "testing the waters" …

Man of the Flesh to Man of the Cloth  —  SOME people have their midlife crisis in reverse, like Ronald Boyer, who for most of his professional life has been better known as a star of pornographic films, Rod Fontana.  —  After 30 years of sowing the wildest of oats, Mr. Boyer, 54 …

Pull troops out now and stand up to Bush, inquiry tells Brown  —  British troops should be pulled out of Iraq even though the violence is likely to get worse, a cross-party commission has told Gordon Brown.  —  The commission co-chaired by Lord Ashdown, the former Liberal Democrat leader …

Aid to Pakistan in Tribal Areas Raises Concerns  —  GHALANAI, Pakistan — The United States plans to pour $750 million of aid into Pakistan's tribal areas over the next five years as part of a "hearts and minds" campaign to win over this lawless region from Qaeda and Taliban militants.

Hungering for Thompson  —  The sound of silence tells an interesting tale when it comes to Fred Thompson.  A week after reports emerged suggesting that the former Tennessee senator once lobbied for an abortion rights group, few leaders of the GOP's conservative wing have expressed concern.

CNN's response to Michael Moore  —  In response to a letter Michael Moore wrote about CNN's reporting on his documentary "SiCKO," a CNN spokesperson released the following statement:  —  "It's ironic that someone who has made a career out of holding powerful interests accountable is so sensitive …

During all-white-male Meet the Press panel, Novak claimed "woman or an African-American" Dem nominee would give GOP "hope"  —  During a panel discussion of the 2008 presidential election on the July 15 edition of NBC's Meet the Press, syndicated columnist Robert Novak asserted: "Republicans are very pessimistic about 2008.

Giuliani Has More to Spend Than Romney, Filings Show  —  Rudy Giuliani entered the second half of 2007 with $3 million more in the bank to spend on getting the Republican presidential nomination than former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, according to reports filed today with the U.S. Federal Election Commission.

Keeping Secrets  —  How to balance national security with people's rights to have their day in court  —  A PRESIDENT'S prerogative to protect national security secrets needs to be respected, but it should not unconditionally trump the rights of those harmed by the very programs the president means to shield from public view.