Commerce, Treasury funds helped boost GOP campaigns  —  WASHINGTON — Top Commerce and Treasury Departments officials appeared with Republican candidates and doled out millions in federal money in battleground congressional districts and states after receiving White House political briefings detailing GOP election strategy.

Baird sees need for longer U.S. role in Iraq  —  U.S. Rep. Brian Baird said Thursday that his recent trip to Iraq convinced him the military needs more time in the region, and that a hasty pullout would cause chaos that helps Iran and harms U.S. security.  —  "I believe that the decision …

White House spokesman quitting  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — White House press secretary Tony Snow will step down from his position as early as next month, sources inside and outside the Bush administration told CNN on Friday.  —  When contacted by CNN about his possible departure, Snow said, "I'm not making any announcement."

Edwards Calls Coulter 'She-Devil'  —  ABC News' Rick Klein Reports: Former Sen. John Edwards on Friday fired the latest round in his ongoing verbal feud with Ann Coulter, calling her a "she-devil" at a public event before quickly adding that he shouldn't engage in name-calling.

White House to Offer Iraq Plan of Gradual Cuts  —  The White House plans to use a report next month assessing progress in Iraq to outline a plan for gradual troop reductions beginning next year that would fall far short of the drawdown demanded by Congressional opponents of the war, according to administration and military officials.

Giuliani-McCain: That's the Ticket?  —  McCain Tells ABC News He's 'Flattered' by Rival Giuliani  —  Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are rivals for the 2008 Republican nomination, but you wouldn't know it by asking them.  —  In an interview …

Jenna and Henry: Now They're Really, Really Official  —  Back in February 2005, Laura Bush was asked about the guy her daughter Jenna was seeing.  "This is not a serious boyfriend — I hate to have to be the one to say it on television," said the first lady.  "But he's a very nice young man."

Delusions of Honesty  —  Tony Blair's domestic legacy: corruption and the erosion of liberty  —  When Tony Blair announced his resignation after ten years as prime minister of the United Kingdom, his voice choked with emotion and he nearly shed a tear.  He asked his audience to believe …

Half a World Away: Soldiers in Iraq Don't Hear Deliberations Back Home (and Often Don't Care)  —  TIKRIT, Iraq — It never even hits the radar screen.  For the troops on the front lines and the colonels in the rear—and just about everyone in between—the big news in Iraq every day is that they're still alive and healthy.

TV airing for Islam's story of Christ  —  There was no manger, Christ is not the Messiah, and the crucifixion never happened.  A forthcoming ITV documentary will portray Jesus as Muslims see him.  —  With the Koran as a main source and drawing on interviews with scholars and historians …

Thompson: Roe 'bad law and bad medicine'  —  DES MOINES, Iowa (CNN) - Likely Republican White House hopeful Fred Thompson told CNN Friday that he would work to overturn Roe v. Wade if elected president, and would push for a constitutional amendment that protects states from being forced to honor gay marriages performed in other states.

American Dream on a Spike  —  Alan Merrifield doesn't believe in pesticides.  He thinks they're dangerous, ineffective and bad for the environment.  In any case, he doesn't deal with bugs.  He helps people keep common pests like raccoons and birds away from their homes, using only traps, screens and spikes.

DAMNED IF YOU DO...  Is Bill Moyers the most contemptible man in American public life?  He gets my vote.  He has an obsessive hatred of Christian conservatives, as we pointed out here and elsewhere.  (Religious liberals, of course, are another matter altogether, because they agree with Moyers.)

It Shouldn't Have Taken the Deaths of Three Miners to Get the Media to Focus on Mine Safety  —  So last night, suddenly, after the tragic second collapse at the Utah mine, there was a dramatic shift in the TV coverage of the story.  All at once, faux folksy mining boss Bob Murray …

Wal-Mart CEO: Customers out of cash; LA faces run on banks  —  Earlier this week, consumer juggernauts Home Depot and Wal-Mart reported softer than expected earnings.  —  Penned the New York Times, "the sober forecasts reverberated across Wall Street, sending the Dow Jones industrial average …