Romney hits Dems on gay issue  —  Leading the way on an issue almost certain to be resurrected during the general election, Mitt Romney issued a statement this morning condemning the Democratic candidates for their refusal at last night's debate to rule out teaching about gay issues to second-graders.

Transcript Reveals Impeachable Offenses by Bush Re: Iraq War  —  El Pais published a transcript (reprinted at this link) of the conversation between George W. Bush, Jose Maria Aznar of Spain, and Condoleeza Rice held at Crawford before the Iraq War.  Bush is typically bullheaded, impatient …

Dems could do far more to end Iraq war  —  The vast majority of Democrats in Congress are powerfully clear about what they think about the war in Iraq.  It is the greatest strategic blunder of a generation.  —  It is a lost cause.  Above all, it is immoral — with more men and women dying each …

Documents point to S.C. terror plot  —  Explosives materials in car  —  In a 12-minute video posted on YouTube, an Egyptian man wearing a white shirt, khaki pants and rubber gloves explains in Arabic how to turn a toy boat into a bomb.  —  His name is Ahmed Abdellatif Sherif Mohamed …

HILLARY'S TORTURE  —  Hillary Clinton flip-flopped on torture last night (and slapped Bill upside the head while doing it), saying, "As a matter of policy it cannot be American policy, period."  —  That's quite emphatic, but in October, she had quite a loophole, and she explained it in depth …

Bin Laden may have just escaped U.S. forces  —  August mission in Tora Bora almost snared 'high value target'  —  A little more than a month ago, with the anniversary of Sept. 11 approaching and fears of a new al Qaeda attack rising, some U.S. intelligence and military analysts thought …

U.S. fire scatters crowd after Afghan bomb: witness  —  BATI KOT, Afghanistan (Reuters) - At least one U.S. soldier opened fire to scatter a crowd of civilians and police on Thursday after failed suicide bomb attacks on a U.S. military convoy, the U.S. military and witnesses said.

GALLUP: Trust in Federal Government, On Nearly All Issues, Hits New Low — Even Less Than in Watergate Era  —  NEW YORK A new Gallup poll reveals that, as the organization puts it, Americans now "express less trust in the federal government than at any point in the past decade …

Fined group tied to Hillary  —  Officials of a defunct pro-Democratic group that was hit with a near-record campaign-finance fine last month hold strong ties to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential campaign, documents show.  —  At least four persons who worked for the America Coming Together …

They "Have Our Backs", Or At Least Aren't Stabbing Us There  —  Following the condemnation of the MoveOn ad by the House and Senate the Mighty Kos of the Nutroots compiled a list of those Democrats who "we can trust to have our backs".  All the rest, we are advised, are "a fair-weather friend, at best".

Our Moral Footprint  —  OVER the past few years the questions have been asked ever more forcefully whether global climate changes occur in natural cycles or not, to what degree we humans contribute to them, what threats stem from them and what can be done to prevent them.

Press Briefing by Dana Perino  —  MS. PERINO: Hi, everybody.  Welcome back to the briefing room.  I have a statement by the President on Burma that I will read out for him, and then a statement about the FAA actions, and then I'll go to questions.  —  This is a statement by the President.

A Good Night for the Republican Nominee  —  From CampaignStandard.com: The odds are getting better for the GOP.  —  Editor's note: This piece first appeared at THE WEEKLY STANDARD's new election blog, The Campaign Standard.  —  Last night, for the first time this election cycle, I watched a Democratic presidential debate.

Army is worn too thin, says general  —  Calls force not ready to meet new threats  —  Defense Secretary Robert Gates (left) and Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Peter Pace at a Capitol Hill hearing yesterday.  (MARK WILSON/GETTY IMAGES)  —  WASHINGTON - The Army's top officer …

Hate-Crime Provision Clears Senate  —  The Senate voted today to extend federal hate-crime protection to people victimized because of their sexuality, but it remained doubtful that the measure would ever become law.  —  By voice vote and without dissent, the senators attached the hate-crime provision …