Iranian general played key role in brokering Iraq cease-fire  —  BAGHDAD — Iraqi lawmakers traveled to the Iranian holy city of Qom over the weekend to win the support of the commander of Iran's Qods brigades in persuading Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr to order his followers to stop military operations …

New Backing for Obama As Party Seeks Unity  —  WASHINGTON — Slowly but steadily, a string of Democratic Party figures is taking Barack Obama's side in the presidential nominating race and raising the pressure on Hillary Clinton to give up.  —  Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota is expected …

Report Says HUD Secretary Will Resign  —  WASHINGTON — Housing Secretary Alphonso R. Jackson is expected to resign Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday night.  —  Mr. Jackson has scheduled a news conference for 9:45 a.m., 15 minutes before Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr …

Bush booed loudly while throwing out first pitch in Nationals home opener.  —  President Bush delivered the first pitch tonight at the new Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. to a resounding chorus of boos.  After being announced, Bush was showered by boos as he strode to the mound.

There's nothing funny about prison rape  —  Smirking at sexual attacks on inmates makes us all less safe.  —  'From the studio that brought you ‘Brokeback Mountain,’ " intones the preview for the light comedy “Let's Go To Prison,” “comes a penetrating look at the American penal system.

Steps that can safeguard America's economy  —  Neither US financial institutions nor the economy are likely to suffer from a lack of central bank liquidity provision.  New lending facilities are coming along almost weekly, the safety net has been expanded to include non-bank primary dealers …

Maupin's remains found in Iraq  —  digg us!  del.icio.us!  —  Sgt. Matt Maupin is dead, the parents of the missing Clermont County soldier said today.  —  Maupin's remain were found in Iraq, nearly four years after he was captured by insurgents, his parents said.

Food Stamp Use at Record Pace as Jobs Vanish  —  Driven by a painful mix of layoffs and rising food and fuel prices, the number of Americans receiving food stamps is projected to reach 28 million in the coming year, the highest level since the aid program began in the 1960s.

Superdelegates: A guide to the undecided  —  In a Democratic nominating contest that could ultimately be decided by their votes, divining the intentions of the 794 Democratic superdelegates has become something of a Washington parlor game.  —  By nearly all counts — generally measured …

Clinton Pushes Housing Market Fixes As Campaign Manager Sits on Board of Bankrupt Lender  —  WASHINGTON - Hillary Clinton spends considerable time on the campaign trail bemoaning unscrupulous lenders who have left millions of Americans scrambling to keep their homes but all the while her campaign manager …

The Dilbert Strategy  —  Anyone who has worked in a large organization — or, for that matter, reads the comic strip “Dilbert” — is familiar with the “org chart” strategy.  To hide their lack of any actual ideas about what to do, managers sometimes make a big show of rearranging the boxes and lines that say who reports to whom.

FACTBOX-Zimbabwe's meltdown in figures  —  (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's economy lies in ruins with the world's highest inflation, chronic food shortages and queues for bread as long as those of people voting in the country's crucial election on Saturday.  —  Below are some figures showing …