White House Denies Torture Assertion  —  Bush administration officials acknowledged today that the Justice Department issued a secret legal opinion in early 2005 allowing specific interrogation techniques to be used on CIA terrorism suspects, but denied that the tactics violated earlier government decrees against torture.

27% of Republicans Would Vote for Pro-Life Third Party Instead of Giuliani  —  If Rudy Giuliani wins the Republican nomination and a third party campaign is backed by Christian conservative leaders, 27% of Republican voters say they'd vote for the third party option rather than Giuliani.

Judge rejects Craig's bid to withdraw guilty plea  —  (CNN) — A Minnesota judge has denied Sen. Larry Craig's request to withdraw his guilty plea to a disorderly conduct charge stemming from his arrest in a sex sting at an airport men's room.  —  Hennepin County District Judge Charles Porter found Craig …

A liberal's lament: The NRA might be right after all  —  This term, the Supreme Court may finally take up the Voldemort Amendment, the part of the Bill of Rights that shall not be named by liberals.  For more than 200 years, progressives and polite people have avoided acknowledging that following …

Republicans Grow Skeptical On Free Trade  —  WASHINGTON — By a nearly two-to-one margin, Republican voters believe free trade is bad for the U.S. economy, a shift in opinion that mirrors Democratic views and suggests trade deals could face high hurdles under a new president.

Obama, Others Nix Deal on Voter Fraud Guru … Obama earlier called von Spakovsky an "unacceptable nominee."  For a rundown for why Dems would find von Spakovsky so objectionable, see here and here.  —  Rick Hasen has more on where things might go from here over at the Election Law Blog.

The New L-Word: Neocon  —  A few years back, at the height of the jingoistic post-9/11 wave, the dirtiest word in the American political lexicon was "liberal."  Everyone from President Bush to Ann Coulter was using it to denote wimplike, Volvo-driving softies too spineless for dangerous times and too given to speaking French.

COULTER COMES OUT AGAINST WOMEN VOTING.  —  Most of the time I ignore aging would-be pin-up Ann Coulter, but this week she came out with a whopper that could be as much of a gift to the Democratic Party as MoveOn.org's advertisement on Gen. Petraeus was for the G.O.P. More of a gift, even.

Questionable Contracts  —  In April last year, Housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson traveled to Dallas to deliver a speech to a group of minority real estate executives.  The event should have been pretty routine stuff.  But Jackson — and these are his words — shot off his mouth by describing …

This Is Your Elephant on Drugs  —  The new official logo of the 2008 Gop convention.  I'm not kidding.

Iraqi Forces, U.S. Special Forces detain al-Qaeda financier, one other  —  Multi-National Corps - Iraq  —  Public Affairs Office, Camp Victory  —  APO AE 09342  —  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  —  RELEASE No. 20071004-02  —  Iraqi Forces, U.S. Special Forces detain al-Qaeda financier, one other

Iraqis to Pay China $100 Million for Weapons for Police  —  Experts Fear More Will Go to Insurgents  —  Iraq has ordered $100 million worth of light military equipment from China for its police force, contending that the United States was unable to provide the materiel and is too slow …

Modern Heroes  —  Our soldiers like what they do.  They want our respect, not pity.  —  I'm weary of seeing news stories about wounded soldiers and assertions of "support" for the troops mixed with suggestions of the futility of our military efforts in Iraq.  Why aren't there more accounts of what the troops actually do?

The Democratic Economist  —  CHICAGO — In his curriculum vitae, Austan Goolsbee lists as his "other interests" — other than teaching at the University of Chicago — two activities: triathlons and improv comedy.  Evidently he is a masochist with a sense of humor, so he is suited to participate …