What 'That Regan Woman' Knows  —  NEW Yorkers who remember Rudy Giuliani as the bullying New York mayor, not as the terminally cheerful "America's Mayor" cooing to babies in New Hampshire, have always banked on one certainty: his presidential candidacy was so preposterous it would implode before he got anywhere near the White House.

Shake, Rattle and Roll  —  The debate dominatrix knows how to rattle Obambi.  —  Mistress Hillary started disciplining her fellow senator last winter, after he began exploring a presidential bid.  When he winked at her, took her elbow and tried to say hello on the Senate floor, she did not melt, as many women do.

Someone planting questions for John McCain?  —  HANOVER, N.H. - Could someone be planting questions for Sen. John McCain?  —  On the heels of the Iowa controversy in which a campaign staffer told a college student what to ask Sen. Hillary Clinton, McCain received at least five highly suspicious questions.

Despite a mortal terrorist threat against America, Dem contenders see no evil  —  Whew, that was a close one.  We suffered a big attack and were in mortal danger for a while, but we are safe now.  Thank God, the war on terror is over.  There are no Islamic extremists.  Homeland security is not an issue.

Reagan's Southern Stumble  —  POLITICAL mythologies endure.  One myth that is enjoying a revival in a year when Republican presidential candidates are comparing themselves to Ronald Reagan, their iconic hero, is the notion that Mr. Reagan defeated President Jimmy Carter in 1980 by a coded appeal to white-supremacist voters.

Does Death Penalty Save Lives?  A New Debate  —  For the first time in a generation, the question of whether the death penalty deters murders has captured the attention of scholars in law and economics, setting off an intense new debate about one of the central justifications for capital punishment.

T. Boone Pickens Responds to Letter From U.S. Senator John Kerry  —  The following is a copy of a letter mailed by T. Boone Pickens in response to a letter from U.S. Senator John Kerry regarding the Senator's military record and ads in the 2004 presidential election by the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth.

Trail of transactions  —  The story of Wider's real-estate transactions is told in voluminous court records, deeds, mortgages, appraisals, loan applications and other documents examined by Newsday during the last two months, as well as interviews with people involved in the transactions.

Pakistan's Collapse, Our Problem  —  AS the government of Pakistan totters, we must face a fact: the United States simply could not stand by as a nuclear-armed Pakistan descended into the abyss.  Nor would it be strategically prudent to withdraw our forces from an improving situation in Iraq …

Pakistan Troops Launch Major Assault on Militants  —  ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — The army said Saturday that it has massed 15,000 troops for a major assault on Islamic militants in a scenic northern valley, whose fall has raised concern about Pakistan's ability to withstand rising extremism.

Under Siege, Life in Gaza Just Shrinks  —  IT'S a miserable time to be a Gazan.  —  Hopes were high in 2005, when Israel unilaterally withdrew its troops and 9,000 Jewish settlers, and the international community lined up to help the Palestinians make Gaza a model for their potential state.

Jefferson Accused of Two More Schemes  —  Federal prosecutors on Friday accused Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-La.) of soliciting bribes in two alleged schemes that had not been previously disclosed.  —  The allegations, detailed in a seven-page document filed in U.S. District Court in Alexandria …

The dollar's decline: from symbol of hegemony to shunned currency  —  The decline of the dollar, symbol of US global hegemony for the best part of a century, may have become so entrenched that some experts now fear it is irreversible.  —  After months of huge and sustained turmoil on the money markets …