Senate Votes To Expand Warrantless Surveillance  —  White House Applauds; Changes Are Temporary  —  The Senate bowed to White House pressure last night and passed a Republican plan for overhauling the federal government's terrorist surveillance laws, approving changes that would temporarily …

Soldier Censored at Kos Convention  —  An as yet unidentified uniformed soldier attempted to address the panel on the subject of the "Surge".  He was unceremoniously escorted out by panelist Jon Soltz.  —  The soldier's words were either suppressed or inaudible on the convention's own video.

The Turn  —  Defeatists in retreat.  —  Hot July brings cooling showers, / Apricots and gillyflowers, as Sara Coleridge's doggerel has it.  But for the American antiwar movement, this July brought only a cold drizzle, wilted blossoms, and bitter fruit.  —  For the Iraq war's opponents, July began as a month of hope.

Candidates court bloggers, avoid commitment  —  CHICAGO — The second YearlyKos convention is a show of strength for the new blogging establishment: A parade of major Democratic politicians, including the leaders of the House and Senate and almost every presidential candidate …

And Now It's Oberstar's Turn  —  Yesterday, Senator Amy Klobuchar blamed the collapse of the I-35W bridge on a lack of highway funds — even though the 2005 highway bill increased federal funding to Minnesota by 46% over its five-year span.  Apparently realizing that line of argument wouldn't hold …

Police: Oakland Post editor's killer confesses to slaying  —  A 19-year-old handyman at Your Black Muslim Bakery admitted to police Friday night that he ambushed and killed Oakland Post editor Chauncey Bailey, investigators said.  —  Police said Devaughndre Broussard told them he killed Bailey …

OBAMA vs. CLINTON REVISITED....Mark Kleiman thinks there's more to the Hillary-Obama foreign policy contretemps than I'm giving it credit for.  I'm not so sure, but it will take a little bit of in-the-weeds explaining to say why.  Here goes.  —  First, on the question of striking al-Qaeda targets in Pakistan, Mark says:

ISRAEL: THE OUTSIDE STORY  —  Israel is a vibrant country without peer in ways that Americans would appreciate if they were aware of them.  Yet as a result of Israel's depiction in the mainstream media, Israel's image in the United States and elsewhere inverts reality.

Confirmation: GOP Won the Vote  —  Congressional Quarterly seems to have the definitive article on the furor in the House the other night.  They lead with the news of a 'ceasefire,' but later confirm that the vote ought to have been a Republican win.  —  The piece leads with the creation …

Gonzales Now Says Top Aides Got Political Briefings  —  Justice Department officials attended at least a dozen political briefings at the White House since 2001, including some meetings led by Karl Rove, President Bush's chief political adviser, and others that were focused on election trends prior …

AN OPENING  —  Presumably you've heard about "private contractors," the well-paid, well-armed, not always well-disciplined security people who do a lot of the work in Iraq that in earlier wars would have been done by the U.S. Army.  More than one left-wing blogger has caught flak for describing …

Bush surveys bridge, pledges aid  —  MINNEAPOLIS - President Bush pledged Saturday to cut red tape that could delay rebuilding a highway bridge that once arched over the Mississippi River but now lies crumbled in muddy water concealing some victims.  —  Bush, still dogged by his administration's …

In Iraq, a Perilous Alliance With Former Enemies  —  FORWARD OPERATING BASE ISKAN, Iraq — Inside a brightly lit room, the walls adorned with memorials to 23 dead American soldiers, Lt. Col. Robert Balcavage stared at the three Sunni tribal leaders he wanted to recruit.  —  Their fighters had battled U.S. troops.

Thug, Dictator, and Useful Idiot  —  Sean Penn is The Useful Idiot. … (Hat tip: Geepers.)

The Gates, Crashed  —  The best possible evidence for the idea that the revolution is, in some sense, over and the gates have been crashed is probably less the politicians who'll be coming later today to court the netroots than it was yesterday's Time Magazine party at Triad Sushi Lounge.