Obama, Edwards attack; Clinton bombs debate  —  PHILADELPHIA - - We now know something that we did not know before: When Hillary Clinton has a bad night, she really has a bad night.  —  In a debate against six Democratic opponents at Drexel University here Tuesday, Clinton gave the worst performance of her entire campaign.

Shocking Inside DC Scandal Rumor: A Media Ethics Dilemma  —  So I was down in DC this past weekend and happened to run into a well-connected media person, who told me flatly, unequivocally that "everyone knows" The LA Times was sitting on a story, all wrapped up and ready …

Father of slain Marine wins case against funeral protesters  —  Pa. man awarded $2.9 million in compensatory damages  —  Albert Snyder of York, Pa., the father of a Westminster Marine who was killed in Iraq, today won his case in a Baltimore federal court against members of Topeka …

Tim Russert: Stop the Inanity  —  Russert passes for a "tough" interviewer by adopting a confrontational pose rather than asking genuinely challenging questions.  Which is why he's a terrible moderator for our presidential debates.  —  Last month, near the end of the Democratic presidential debate …

Private Note to Bush from Hagel Calls For Direct, Unconditional, Comprehensive Talks with Iran  —  I have just secured a private letter — not yet publicly released — from Senator Chuck Hagel to President Bush and copied to Condoleezza Rice, Robert Gates, and Stephen Hadley.

Say Hello to the Newest Member of the Vast Left Wing Conspiracy  —  I had meant to re-register independent (or as it is known here in West Virginia, "No Party Affiliation") for the past two weeks after I had finally had enough of the bulls**t during the Graeme Frost escapade, but never got around to it …

The Chicks Are Back  —  It's hardly news that Maureen Dowd is a shallow, bitchy Mean Girl more interested in fashion and surfaces than policy.  Her place on the NYTimes opinion page reveals the lie that feminism has accomplished all it needed to and we're done with it: she's taking a place …

Navy Destroyer Battles Pirates  —  Sailors from the Norfolk-based destroyer James E. Williams boarded a North Korean merchant ship that had been hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia, while two other Navy vessels tailed a pirated Japanese ship in the same region.

Soldier flees interrogation by exposing breasts  —  Officer loses concentration after soldier takes her shirt off in front of him  —  An IDF soldier fled an interrogation room by exposing her breasts to a stunned officer.  —  The soldier was interrogated at the Biranit army base …

Col. Boylan's implosion accelerates  —  Col. Boylan now refuses to respond to any of my emails or other inquiries.  He is also refusing to respond to at least one journalist whom I know is working on a comprehensive article on this matter.  But he has been quite busy responding …

Officials: Boy With Matches Started Fire  —  SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (AP) - Officials blamed a wildfire that consumed more than 38,000 acres and destroyed 21 homes last week on a boy playing with matches, and said they would ask a prosecutor to consider the case.

(Updated) Still No Correction from the LATimes  —  Update: And there's none forthcoming...see the email from the L.A. Times below.  —  I wrote earlier in the week about Los Angeles Times media critic Tim Rutten's attempt to weigh in on the Beauchamp story with this piece that was riddled with factual errors.

The Politics Of Pile-On  —  What happens when the "politics of pile-on" replaces the "politics of hope?"  —  Hillary comes out on top.  —  Despite the best efforts of her six fellow candidates to trip her up, Senator Clinton stood strong and made her case on critical issues like Iran, Iraq and Social Security.

Longtime Bush adviser leaving State  —  WASHINGTON - Karen Hughes, who led efforts to improve the U.S. image abroad and was one of President Bush's last remaining advisers from the close circle of Texas aides, will leave the government at the end of the year.