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 …

It's Official: Beauchamp's Claims Debunked by Army Internal Investigation  —  Col. Steven Boylan, Public Affairs Officer for U.S. Army Commanding General in Iraq David Petraeus, just emailed me the following in response to my request to confirm an earlier report that the U.S. Army's investigation …

MnDOT chose 'most cost efficient' of 3 options  —  A consultant advised adding steel plates.  The agency, worried that drilling would weaken the span, opted for inspections instead.  —  More than a year before the Interstate 35W bridge collapsed, a consulting firm advised the state …

An Artist and His Sub Surrender in Brooklyn  —  At slack tide off Red Hook, Brooklyn, there are usually lots of things floating in the water, most of which you would not want to touch without the help of a good hazmat suit.  But just after sunrise yesterday, something truly strange was bobbing …

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 …

Aborigine wins payout for stolen childhood  —  Man awarded £220,000 after removal from family led to lifelong depression  —  "The best thing is knowing they never forgot me, my mum and dad.  They didn't want to let me go.  There's proof of that."  —  Clutching a mug of tea …

Joe Lieberman, from his indie perch  —  It may have been collateral damage, but the fiery end to Joe Lieberman's political career as an orthodox Democrat ranks among the most dramatic casualties of the Iraq war on the home front.  A year ago this week, Lieberman, the 2000 Democratic vice …

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.

Foot and mouth outbreak sparks emergency  —  Britain faced the prospect of a new foot and mouth epidemic last night after a case of the disease was confirmed for the first time since the disastrous outbreak of 2001.  —  The Government launched emergency measures after cattle at a farm near Guildford, Surrey, tested positive.

PAPER BALLOTS FOR CALIFORNIA!  - SECRETARY OF STATE ANNOUNCES DE-CERTIFICATION/RE-CERTIFICATION PLANS FOR E-VOTING SYSTEMS  —  Blogged by Brad Friedman from Plano, TX, with help from Emily Levy of VelvetRevolution.us and Tom Courbat of SAVE R VOTE...  In a dramatic late-night press conference …

Attorney: Slain Journalist's Article To Implicate Black Muslim Bakery  —  EMERYVILLE, Calif. — The attorney for Oakland Post editor Paul Cobb told NBC11 that slain journalist Chauncey Bailey was working on an article that would have criminally implicated Your Black Muslim Bakery, which was raided by SWAT teams Friday morning.

Dateline Mole Allegedly at DefCon with Hidden Camera — Updated: Mole Caught on Tape  —  DefCon security on Friday warned attendees at the annual hacker conference that Dateline NBC may have sent a mole with a hidden camera to the event to capture hackers admitting to crimes.

Alms for Jihad update Updated  —  I've gotten numerous reports from readers who have attempted to purchase Alms for Jihad from Books a Million and elsewhere, only to have the purchase denied because that title is currently unavailable.  That's because, as Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld and I discussed earlier …