Religious right straw-victors: Romney, Huckabee  —  by Mark Silva, updated with full results  —  Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts and a late-comer to the anti-abortion cause, claimed a narrow victory today in a straw poll of Christian conservative voters assembled in Washington and collecting votes from members online.

"Crooks & Liars" Discovers Best Way to Defend Rep. Pete Stark  —  Lie.  —  Nutrooters Crooks and Liars discovers that if you can't possibly win an argument over the latest disgusting anti-military, anti-Bush remarks by a Democratic politician...  Then just lie about it.

With Democrats Like These ...  Every now and then, we are tempted to double-check that the Democrats actually won control of Congress last year.  It was particularly hard to tell this week.  Democratic leaders were cowed, once again, by propaganda from the White House and failed, once again …

Thompson's fall from grace  —  There was a time over the summer when Fred Thompson looked like he'd enjoy enormous support from the GOP's religious right base.  The Dobson crowd had already ruled out McCain and Giuliani, and skepticism over Romney lingered.

IEDs Seen As Rising Threat in The U.S.  —  As Preparedness Is Criticized, Bush Works on a Plan  —  The Department of Homeland Security and the FBI agree that the homemade explosive devices that have wreaked havoc in Iraq pose a rising threat to the United States.

Ex-Prosecutor Alleges Pentagon Plays Politics  —  Pressure for 'Sexy' Guantanamo Hearings  —  Politically motivated officials at the Pentagon have pushed for convictions of high-profile detainees ahead of the 2008 elections, the former lead prosecutor for terrorism trials at Guantanamo Bay said last night …

Ahmadinejad: 'I Wanted to Visit Ground Zero to Prevent 9/11 from Becoming Another 'False Idol' Like the Holocaust'  —  Iranian thug-in-chief Mahmoud Ahmadinejad explains his reasons for wanting to visit Ground Zero, confirming (as if we needed confirmation) that it was the right decision …

J.K. Rowling Outs Hogwarts Character  —  NEW YORK (AP) - Harry Potter fans, the rumors are true: Albus Dumbledore, master wizard and Headmaster of Hogwarts, is gay.  J.K. Rowling, author of the mega-selling fantasy series that ended last summer, outed the beloved character Friday night …

In Pakistan Quandary, U.S. Reviews Stance  —  The scenes of carnage in Pakistan this week conjured what one senior administration official on Friday called "the nightmare scenario" for President Bush's last 15 months in office: Political meltdown in the one country where Al Qaeda, the Taliban, and nuclear weapons are all in play.

Update: Saturday Morning  —  And now the real (sorry, Ron) main event: Rudy Giuliani.  —  Giuliani took the stage to a warm reception of applause, answering the immediate question of whether the FRC crowd might rudely snub him from moment one.  Not so: definitely a courteous and even enthusiastic welcome.

Re: I have returned  —  Jonah, re your comments on Montreal: lots of great restaurants but what would appear to be an insufficient populace to support them, etc.  Many Americans have made similar observations to me.  —  One reason is a simple cultural difference: If I recall correctly …

A Journalist?  Says Who?  —  I've discussed in this space - though in the light and frothy context of inappropriate photos posted online - how once something is on the Internet, it's in the public domain.  —  The same goes for legal rulings.  —  In a fascinating instance …