McCain Exceptionalism  —  Last Tuesday, Republicans lost another Congressional seat in a special election — their third such defeat in two months.  On Wednesday I received an acerbic e-mail message from a disgusted young G.O.P. loyalist: “I just have to say that Republicans are a dumb party that chooses stupid candidates.

Obama Warns GOP “Lay Off My Wife”  —  Obama Loses Argument With Wife Over Getting a Dog  —  Sen. Barack Obama ripped into a Republican ad today that targets comments made by his wife, Michelle, and called the GOP tactic “low class” and “detestable.”  —  The Illinois senator told …

Feud Fuels Bill O'Reilly's Blasts at GE  —  Bill O'Reilly, the Fox News star, is mounting an extraordinary televised assault on the chief executive of General Electric, calling him a “pinhead” and a “despicable human being” who bears responsibility for the deaths of American soldiers in Iraq.

Not A Serious Threat  —  This remarkable bit of footage from Barack Obama's appearance in Oregon last night is now floating around on YouTube.  It might be useful as an undergraduate course exam: how many errors can you spot?  Obama apparently believes that Iran and other rogues states …

Record Obama Crowd, the Size of a City  —  Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) speaks to people at Waterfront Park in Portland, Ore., May 18, 2008.  (Associated Press)  —  By Matthew Mosk  —  PORTLAND, Ore. — Sen. Barack Obama has seen his share of large crowds …

McCain's YouTube Problem Just Became a Nightmare  —  There's no question John McCain is getting a free ride from the mainstream press.  But with the power of YouTube and the blogosphere, we can provide an accurate portrayal of the so-called Maverick.  We can put the brakes on his free ride!

Keeping Secrets: In Presidential Memo, A New Designation for Classifying Information  —  Sometime in the next few years, if a memorandum signed by President Bush this month ever goes into effect, one government official talking to another about information on terrorists will have to begin by saying …

Polls: Clinton Solid in Kentucky; Oregon is Obama's in Tight Race  —  Two States Worlds Apart on Obama Popularity  —  Two states.  Two Democratic Primaries on the same night.  And the differences in the contests are like night and day, according to a Suffolk University poll.

The freedom to say ‘no’  —  Why aren't there more women in science and engineering?  Controversial new research suggests: They just aren't interested.  —  WHEN IT COMES to the huge and persistent gender gap in science and technology jobs, the finger of blame has pointed in many directions …

The GOP at the Trough  —  Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, 38 and having served less than five terms, did not leap over a dozen of his seniors to become the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee by bashing GOP leaders.  But an angry Ryan delivered unscripted remarks on the House floor …

Obama: No victory declaration Tuesday  —  MILWAUKIE, Ore. - Concerned about appearing presumptuous or antagonistic towards Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama will not declare victory in the Democratic nomination fight Tuesday in the event he wins enough pledged delegates to claim a majority.

Signs Fossella May Run Again Unnerve G.O.P.  —  There has been nothing but silence coming from the embattled Staten Island congressman, Vito J. Fossella, regarding his plans to run for re-election this year.  And that uncertainty has caused waves of concern not only among Republicans in New York City, but in Washington as well.

Dancing the Night Away, With a Higher Purpose  —  COLORADO SPRINGS — In their floor-length gowns, up-dos and tiaras, the 70 or so young women swept past two harpists and into a gilt-and-brocade dining room at the lavish Broadmoor Hotel, on the arms of their much older male companions.

Stranded in Suburbia  —  I have seen the future, and it works.  —  O.K., I know that these days you're supposed to see the future in China or India, not in the heart of “old Europe.”  —  But we're living in a world in which oil prices keep setting records, in which the idea …

Obama And Clinton's California Kumbaya  —  For those on the far right hoping for blood in the streets of Denver, Sunday's meeting of the California delegation to the Democatic National Convention was very bad news.  Because of its size, California is sending even more Hillary Clinton delegates …