This Is an Ex-Candidate  —  C ustomer: “Look, matey, I know a dead parrot when I see one, and I'm looking at one right now.”  —  Pet-shop owner: “No, no he's not dead, he's — he's resting!  Remarkable bird, the Norwegian blue, isn't it, aye?  Beautiful plumage!”

Analysis: House GOP hits new low, faces bleak Nov.  —  The sky is falling on House Republicans and there is no sign of it letting up.  —  The GOP loss in Mississippi's special election Tuesday is the strongest sign yet that the Republican Party is in shambles.

Go away you horrible human being  —  IT'S NOT CLOSE.  YOU FREAKING LOST THE NOMINATION, WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?  —  Good God.  What is wrong with her?  The Clintons and their campaign staff don't give a damn that they are now hurting our electoral chances in the fall against McCain and against the Republicans in Congress.

Obama Gaffes on Iraq and Afghanistan  —  ABC News' David Wright and Sunlen Miller Report: Sporting a shiny new American flag pin at an appearance in Rush Limbaugh's hometown, Sen. Barack Obama came up with some novel reasons why the U.S. may be struggling in the war in Afghanistan.

Good Timing For Jim Webb  —  How 'bout that?  Sen. Jim Webb's new book will be released on May 15, just as reporters like me start to speculate about his chances of becoming Sen. Barack Obama's vice presidential nominee.  —  “A Time To Fight: Reclaiming a Just And Fair America” …

Rumsfeld On 2006 Election: “The Correction For That...Is An Attack”  —  An ongoing exploration of the documents related to the Pentagon's “message force multipliers” program has unearthed a clip of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld suggesting that America, having voted the Democrats …

HUSSAYN'S STORY  —  The visual-only sim can be a stomach-churner, but a couple of the IqAF Fling-Wing pilots who have come up here from Taji are pretty tough - the only thing that gets to them is my coffee.  —  Hussayn was recovering from a cup of my extra-strength double espresso with a bottle …

NEVER DIE!!  —  Even with Hillary's blow-out win in West Virginia and the amazing Democratic victory in Mississippi, for me tonight's going to be about Terry McAuliffe's tour de force moment when he turned projectile nonsense into something approaching the sublime ...

Some Detainees Are Drugged For Deportation  —  Immigrants Sedated Without Medical Reason  —  The U.S. government has injected hundreds of foreigners it has deported with dangerous psychotropic drugs against their will to keep them sedated during the trip back to their home country …

Antoin ‘Tony’ Rezko's fate now lies with the jury  —  Prosecutors, defense wrap up closing arguments  —  The federal corruption trial that has sent ripples through the administration of Gov. Rod Blagojevich has reached its final stage, and the fate of political insider Antoin “Tony” Rezko is now in the hands of the jury.

At least 14 hurt as Grad rocket hits Ashkelon shopping mall  —  At least 14 people were wounded Wednesday evening, including a baby girl and her mother, when a Grad rocket fired from Gaza hit the Hutzot Shopping Center in Ashkelon.  —  MDA said that the baby was listed in moderate condition …

Italian's Detention Illustrates Dangers Foreign Visitors Face  —  He was a carefree Italian with a recent law degree from a Roman university.  She was “a totally Virginia girl,” as she puts it, raised across the road from George Washington's home.  Their romance, sparked by a 2006 meeting …

Six Minutes With Barack  —  The Democratic Presidential frontrunner talks timber payments, Gordon Smith and of course tattoos.  —  Sen. Barack Obama once remarked on the long odds of a “skinny guy from the South Side with a funny name” finding success in American politics.