NSA Spying Part of Broader Effort  —  Intelligence Chief Says Bush Authorized Secret Activities Under One Order  —  The Bush administration's chief intelligence official said yesterday that President Bush authorized a series of secret surveillance activities under a single executive order in late 2001.

Savage: "You're telling me there's no possibility of a conspiracy by the Democrats" to cause Roberts' seizure?  —  On the July 30 broadcast of his nationally syndicated radio show, Michael Savage reacted to news that Chief Justice John Roberts had suffered a seizure that day by raising the possibility that …

Rather than deny funding for Bush's initiatives, Congress should provide it now . . . * Congress should also give the president the money and support that he requests.  —  In February, O'Hanlon went to the Wall St. Journal Editorial Page to argue that Congressional Democrats were wrong to oppose …

Late Nite FDL: Why the Republicans are Running From YouTube  —  Let's get something straight here.  The reason the Republicans are running from a YouTube debate has nothing to do with embarrassing themselves and everything to do with the horror that is the Republican base (see video above).

U.S. checking possibility of pumping oil from northern Iraq to Haifa, via Jordan  —  The United States has asked Israel to check the possibility of pumping oil from Iraq to the oil refineries in Haifa.  The request came in a telegram last week from a senior Pentagon official to a top Foreign Ministry official in Jerusalem.

This Time, Bill to Raise Yuan Might Pass  —  It has become a Capitol Hill ritual: A few senators, always including the New York Democrat Charles E. Schumer, introduce a bill to punish China if its leaders do not raise the value of the nation's currency.  Photos are taken, news releases are issued, but nothing really happens.

Ethics Questions Plague Other Alaska Senator  —  Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican of Alaska, has been drawn into a swirl of ethics accusations that have already brought F.B.I. scrutiny to the two other members of the state's Congressional delegation and resulted in a raid this week on the home of Senator Ted Stevens.

Cheney admits was wrong about "last throes" in Iraq  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney acknowledged on Tuesday he was wrong in 2005 when he insisted the insurgency in Iraq was in its "last throes."  —  It was Cheney's most direct public admission of how badly …

U.S. Attorney Became Target After Rebuffing Justice Dept.  —  The night before the government secured a guilty plea from the manufacturer of the addictive painkiller OxyContin, a senior Justice Department official called the U.S. attorney handling the case and, at the behest of an executive for the drugmaker …

Britain can't have two best friends  —  Gordon Brown's first Washington visit as Britain's prime minister has prompted tea-leaf reading about the strengths and weaknesses of the US-UK relationship.  Momentarily diverting - and probably unavoidable - as the frenzy of speculation is, the real tests lie ahead.

Lawmakers, aides say Murtha Iraq-withdrawal proposal dead  —  A proposal by Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) for the House to vote on withdrawal from Iraq without a timetable has been nixed, several lawmakers and aides said.  —  The opposition of the Progressive Caucus also apparently doomed …

Edwards's Campaign Tries to Harness Internet  —  Most presidential campaigns mark their progress by how they are doing in the polls and how much money they are raising.  —  John Edwards's campaign has another barometer of success: a 90-day calendar that tracks, in a jumble of red …

Teachers demand ban on sites used by cyber-bullies  —  Websites such as YouTube, MSN and RateMyTeachers.com should be closed down to prevent the bullying of schoolchildren and staff online, teachers demanded yesterday.  —  Victims of cyber-bullying are vulnerable 24 hours a day …

Group to Deliver Bibles With Newspapers  —  NEW YORK Everything from detergent to computer discs is packaged with the Sunday newspaper.  So why not Bibles?  —  A Christian ministry wants to deliver custom-designed New Testaments to newspaper subscribers around the country as part of an effort …

Saudis Plan Upgraded Relations With Iraq  —  Saudi Arabia's foreign minister today said his country was planning to upgrade its diplomatic ties with Iraq but rebuffed calls from the Bush administration to do more to halt Saudis from crossing the border to join the insurgency.