Democrats Refocus Message on Iraq After Military Gains  —  Democratic leaders in Congress had planned to use August recess to raise the heat on Republicans to break with President Bush on the Iraq war.  Instead, Democrats have been forced to recalibrate their own message in the face …

Sub-Standard  —  IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE that, not so long ago, neoconservative foreign policy thinking overflowed with ideas and idealism.  The descent has been steep, and nowhere is it more apparent than in the pages of The Weekly Standard—particularly in William Kristol's editorials …

Field Poll shows Californians lean toward dividing electoral votes  —  (08-21) 04:00 PDT Sacramento —  California voters are inclined to support a proposed ballot initiative that would change how the Golden State allocates its electoral votes in presidential campaigns …

France shifts its stance on the conflict in Iraq  —  PARIS: After years of shunning involvement in a war it said was wrong, France now believes it may hold the key to peace in Iraq, proposing itself as an "honest broker" between the Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish factions.

14 U.S. troops die in Iraq copter crash  —  BAGHDAD - A Black Hawk helicopter went down Wednesday in northern Iraq, killing all 14 U.S. soldiers aboard, the military said, the deadliest crash since January 2005.  —  Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, meanwhile, lashed out at American criticism …

White House Manual Details How to Deal With Protesters  —  Not that they're worried or anything.  But the White House evidently leaves little to chance when it comes to protests within eyesight of the president.  As in, it doesn't want any.  —  A White House manual that came …

One in four read no books last year  —  WASHINGTON - There it sits on your night stand, that book you've meant to read for who knows how long but haven't yet cracked open.  Tonight, as you feel its stare from beneath that teetering pile of magazines, know one thing — you are not alone.

Now dirty chopsticks picked up in China scare  —  BEIJING (Reuters) - A Beijing factory recycled used chopsticks and sold up to 100,000 pairs a day without any form of disinfection, a newspaper said on Wednesday, the latest is a string of food and product safety scares.

TERRORIST VIDEO THREATENS DAVID BECKHAM AND JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE  —  Becks and JT are targets of fanatics  —  David Beckham and Justin Timberlake are the targets of an alleged Al-Qaeda murder plot.  —  A chilling internet video, which has been posted on YouTube, brands Becks, 32, and JT, 26, as criminal influences on young Muslims.

Pro-Bush group spends $15M defending war  —  A new group, Freedom's Watch, is launching Wednesday with a $15 million, five-week campaign of TV, radio and Web ads featuring military veterans that is aimed at retaining support in Congress for President Bush's "surge" policy on Iraq.

Federal No-Bid Contracts On Rise  —  Under pressure from the White House and Congress to deliver a long-delayed plan last year, officials at the Department of Homeland Security's counter-narcotics office took a shortcut that has become common at federal agencies: They hired help through a no-bid contract.

So You Think You Can Be President?  —  Our system for choosing presidents doesn't work very well.  Voters are woefully uninformed on the most basic of issues and many end up voting on whim.  I don't think restricting the franchise is a good solution, however.