Schumer: Dems can win Craig's seat  —  Less than an hour after Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) announced his resignation on Saturday, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Democrats can win his seat next year.  —  Schumer, head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, called the bathroom incident …

"We Are Going To Hit Iran.  Bigtime"  —  I have a friend who is an LSO on a carrier attack group that is planning and staging a strike group deployment into the Gulf of Hormuz.  (LSO: Landing Signal Officer- she directs carrier aircraft while landing) She told me we are going to attack Iran.

Couric Admits Her Rosy Report From Iraq Is Based On 'What The U.S. Military Wants Me To See'  —  CBS News anchor Katie Couric is currently reporting from Iraq.  Today she spoke to Bob Schieffer on CBS's Face the Nation and largely reiterated Gen. Petraeus's talking points on Iraq.

N.Korea agrees to disable nuclear program in 2007  —  GENEVA (Reuters) - North Korea agreed in weekend talks with the United States to fully account for and disable its nuclear programs by the end of this year, negotiators said on Sunday.  —  "We had very good, very substantive talks," …

Blitzer Dismantles Rep. Boustany's Assertions Of Progress In Iraq  —  Appearing on CNN's Late Edition this morning, Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA), who recently returned from Iraq, asserted "some major improvements" are being witnessed in Iraq.  Echoing claims made by Gen. David Petraeus, Boustany said "sectarian deaths are down."

Colo Springs couple says got threatening call from congressman  —  COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — A local couple is complaining that U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn left them two threatening voice mails after they wrote a letter criticizing his fundraising.  —  Jonathan Bartha and Anna Bartha told …

So who's to blame for the fact that General Petraeus' aggressive PR surge is showing signs of success in advance of the September showdown between the White House and Congress over Iraq?  —  Kevin Drum has a provocative post up in which he concludes that the liberal blogosphere and liberal establishment …

Baghdad's New Owners  —  Shiites now dominate the once mixed capital, and there is little chance of reversing the process.  —  It was their last stand.  Kamal and a handful of his neighbors were hunkered down on the roof of a dun-colored house in southwest Baghdad two weeks ago as bullets zinged overhead.

"THE GUY THAT WE GET OUT OF THE HOOD": We've just been through the most analyzed five minutes anybody ever spent in a bathroom.  But there's still one little-noticed part of it that caught my attention.  At one point during the taped exchange between Sen. Larry Craig and Sgt. Dave Karsnia …

Meet The Press: A Pissy Mary Matalin Throws Her Pen When Punked By Shrum  —  (thanks to Scarce for pictures) On this morning's Meet The Press, Senior Cheney apologist and right wing sniper, Mary Matalin, threw a little hissy fit at Bob Shrum on the issue of Iraq and the upcoming presidential election.

Lebanon army takes control of camp after battle  —  NAHR AL-BARED, Lebanon (Reuters) - Lebanese troops on Sunday seized control of a Palestinian refugee camp where they had been battling militants for more than three months, killing at least 31 fleeing fighters, security sources said.

Democrats to Avoid Fla., Mich.  —  Four Early-Primary States Get Candidates to Sign Pledge  —  The Democratic candidates have signed a pledge that would forbid them from campaigning in states such as Michigan and Florida that have sought to move their presidential primaries into January 2008.