RNC CALLS WRIGHT AD ‘NOT APPROPRIATE’  —  From NBC/NJ's Carrie Dann  —  Update to NC Gop anti-Obama ad that references the Rev. Jeremiah Wright...  Per the RNC, the national leadership of the Republican Party has been in contact this morning with the North Carolina GOP, urging them to refrain from running the “Extreme” ad.

Petraeus picked to lead Mideast command  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Army Gen. David Petraeus, the four-star general who led troops in Iraq for the past year, will be nominated by President Bush to be the next commander of U.S. Central Command, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday.

The Next McGovern?  —  Obama may still get the nomination, but his loss tonight deals a harsh blow to his electibility arguments.  —  Hillary Clinton won a decisive ten-round decision over Barack Obama in Pennsylvania's Democratic primary, but she didn't score a knockout.  The struggle continues.

Bill: Stop selling Playboy, Penthouse on base  —  Concerned that the military is selling pornography in exchange stores in spite of a ban, one lawmaker has introduced a bill to clean up the matter.  —  “Our troops should not see their honor sullied so that the moguls behind magazines …

Surprise Mississippi Result Shows Unpopularity Of Iraq War In Deep Red States  —  In a major upset that shows just how strong opposition to the Iraq War is in even very red states, the Democratic candidate came out on top in the first round of the special election to succeed Sen. Roger Wicker …

Hagee Says Hurricane Katrina Struck New Orleans Because It Was ‘Planning A Sinful’ ‘Homosexual Rally’  —  On September 18, 2006, Pastor John Hagee — whose endorsement Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said this past Sunday he was “glad to have” — told NPR's Terry Gross that “Hurricane Katrina was …

The Accidental Rebel  —  IT was the year of years, the year of craziness, the year of fire, blood and death.  I had just turned 21, and I was as crazy as everyone else.  —  There were half a million American soldiers in Vietnam, Martin Luther King had just been assassinated …

‘Basic Instinct’ Director Paul Verhoeven: Jesus Was Son of Mary and a Roman Rapist  —  In his upcoming biography of Jesus, “Basic Instinct” director Paul Verhoeven will make the shocking claim that Christ probably was the son of Mary and a Roman soldier who raped her during the Jewish uprising in Galilee …

Breaking News (Updated): Ron Paul surges in Pa.  —  While some people pay attention to the alleged contest between Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama (and she won big), almost unnoticed is the Republican primary.  —  Many people think Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain has won the GOP nomination.

The Big Superdelegate Suck-Up  —  Matthew Yglesias, the leftist blogger, cries to the heavens: “I have to say that I'm getting really tired of this.  All the superdelegates should just say who they're voting for and bring this to the end.”  The New York Times is, I hear, going to call on them to do the same immediately.

Terrorist Fundraisers for Obama  —  Two years ago, Hatem El-Hady was the chairman of the Toledo, Ohio-based Islamic charity, Kindhearts, which was closed by the US government in February 2006 for terrorist fundraising and all its assets frozen.  Today, El-Hady has redirected his fundraising efforts …

The Baghdad Embassy, a W Hotel  —  There's been constant grousing that the gigantic, $750 million U.S. Embassy in Baghdad is way too big and expensive, even though it came in at scarcely more than 20 percent over budget (and nearly a year late).  —  But critics, who acknowledge it's …