US: Top al-Qaida in Iraq figure captured  —  BAGHDAD - The U.S. command said Wednesday the highest-ranking Iraqi in the leadership of al-Qaida in Iraq has been arrested, adding that information from him indicates the group's foreign-based leadership wields considerable influence over the Iraqi chapter.

Spineless Sages  —  Top GOP Senators Only Talk Against the War  —  Anyone searching for the highest forms of invertebrate life need look no further than the floor of the U.S. Senate last week and this.  These spineless specimens go by various names — Republican moderates …

R. Milhous Giuliani  —  With the same rootless confidence that causes people to ignore hurricane warnings, many social conservatives remain in denial about Rudy Giuliani's chances of winning the Republican nomination.  —  But with three debates and eight months as the Republican front-runner under his belt …

Intelligence Puts Rationale For War on Shakier Ground  —  The White House faced fresh political peril yesterday in the form of a new intelligence assessment that raised sharp questions about the success of its counterterrorism strategy and judgment in making Iraq the focus of that effort.

After GOP Iraq-Withdrawal Filibuster, Reid Sets Aside Defense Authorization Bill  —  In an in-your-face response to Republicans continuing to block a full Senate vote on withdrawing American troops from Iraq, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) just moments ago set aside …

Edwards ad touts him as a tough guy  —  CONCORD, N.H. - Elizabeth Edwards tells voters her husband, Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards, is a tough guy "who can stare the worst in the face and not blink" in an ad set to start airing Wednesday in New Hampshire.

Voters unhappy with Bush; Congress: Reuters poll  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Most U.S. voters think the country is on the wrong track and remain deeply unhappy with President George W. Bush and Congress, but still feel good about their finances and optimistic about the future, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Wednesday.

If We Don't Call Them Names, the Terrorists Win  —  After the terrorist near misses in London and Glasgow, British officials did the expected.  They raised their nation's threat-assessment level.  They weighed the balance between civil liberties and new, tougher security measures.

Fredo Finally Gives U.S. Attorney a Good Evaluation  —  In the Justice Department's Great Hall (the very room where giant, blue drapes covered the underdressed statuary during John Ashcroft's tenure as attorney general), an array of prosecutors, securities regulators and FBI honchos gathered yesterday …

Papers Detail Industry's Role in Cheney's Energy Report  —  At 10 a.m. on April 4, 2001, representatives of 13 environmental groups were brought into the Old Executive Office Building for a long-anticipated meeting.  Since late January, a task force headed by Vice President Cheney …

Greatest Living American Ignored  —  Today in Washington I was in the room as the greatest living American received a medal.  George W. Bush, Nancy Pelosi and others were present.  But will you ever hear this event occurred?  To judge from tonight's major network evening newscasts, perhaps not.

Christian Fantasy Genre Builds Niche Without Hogwarts, Muggles or Spells  —  Could the next Harry Potter be a devout Christian?  —  As the days tick down until Saturday, when a breathless world learns the fate of the teenage wizard, a new breed of fantasy fiction, with Potter-style stories, is emerging.

Imprisoned Cunningham outlines depths of corruption to FBI  —  WASHINGTON - In two days of prison interviews with federal agents this year, disgraced former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham described a level of corruption on his part more extensive than previously known and dealt …

White House Had Drug Officials Appear With GOP Candidates  —  White House officials arranged for top officials at the Office of National Drug Control Policy to help as many as 18 vulnerable Republican congressmen by making appearances and sometimes announcing new federal grants …

Gore's message loses bite  —  Decrease Increase -  —  Submit comment:  —  ONLY one week after Live Earth, Al Gore's green credentials slipped while hosting his daughter's wedding in Beverly Hills.  —  Gore and his guests at the weekend ceremony dined on Chilean sea bass - arguably one of the world's most threatened fish species.