Giuliani's Mistress Used N.Y. Police as Taxi Service  —  Richard Esposito Reports:  —  Well before it was publicly known he was seeing her, then-married New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani provided a police driver and city car for his mistress Judith Nathan, former senior city officials tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com.

Digging out more CNN/YouTube plants: Abortion questioner is declared Edwards supporter (and a slobbering Anderson Cooper fan); Log Cabin Republican questioner is declared Obama supporter; lead toy questioner is a prominent union activist for the Edwards-endorsing United Steelworkers

2008: The Year of the Upset?  —  I see my good friend, the distinguished neo-Jacobin Monsieur Kristol, has broken into his ample wine supply again and insulted the monarchy.  A weekend chained to the cheap seats at an Alabama tractor pull would seem fitting punishment for my rabble loving friend's imprudence …

The Chicago Tribune vs. Time magazine  —  (updated below: Klein's GOP source outs himself  —  As I noted yesterday, The Chicago Tribune reprinted factually false excerpts from Joe Klein's Time column.  But unlike Time — which disgracefully continues to stand behind Klein's falsehoods …

Bin Laden: Europeans should end US help  —  CAIRO, Egypt - Al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden called on the Europeans to stop helping the United States in the war in Afghanistan, according to excerpts of a new audiotape broadcast Thursday on Al-Jazeera television.

Foes Use Obama's Muslim Ties to Fuel Rumors About Him  —  In his speeches and often on the Internet, the part of Sen. Barack Obama's biography that gets the most attention is not his race but his connections to the Muslim world.  —  Since declaring his candidacy for president in February …

Hamas demands UN rescind '47 partition  —  Hamas on Thursday called on the UN to rescind the 1947 decision to partition Palestine into two states, one for Jews and one for Arabs.  —  The group said in a statement, released on the 60th anniversary of the UN vote, that "Palestine is Arab Islamic land …

Why Lott Cashed It In  —  Well-connected Republicans in Mississippi were shocked by more than the unexpected nature of Trent Lott's resignation announcement Monday.  They were stunned that Lott, in good health at age 66 and at the top of his game, was leaving the Senate just one year into his fourth term in order to make more money.

Sudan Sentences Teacher to 15 Days  —  Sudan Sentences Teacher to 15 Days in Prison for Allowing Students to Name Teddy Bear Muhammad  —  British teacher Gillian Gibbons has been convicted of inciting religious hatred for letting her pupils name a teddy bear Muhammad and sentenced to 15 days …

Study: Canadian Beer Drinkers Threaten Planet  —  Scientists have found a new threat to the planet: Canadian beer drinkers.  —  The government-commissioned study says the old, inefficient "beer fridges" that one in three Canadian households use to store their Molson and Labatt's contribute significantly …

Former Rep. Henry Hyde Is Dead at 83  —  Former Representative Henry J. Hyde, who won battles to prohibit federal funding of abortions and to impeach President Clinton but failed to persuade the Senate to convict and remove him from office, died yesterday.  —  He was 83 and died in Chicago …

Leahy: Bush Not Involved in Firings  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — A Senate chairman acknowledged explicitly on Thursday that President Bush was not involved in the firings of U.S. attorneys last winter and therefore ruled illegal the president's executive privilege claims protecting his chief of staff …