George Bush's latest powers, courtesy of the Democratic Congress  —  CQ reports (sub. req.) that “a final deal has been reached” on FISA and telecom amnesty and “the House is likely to take up the legislation Friday.”  I've now just read a copy of the final “compromise” bill.  It's even worse than expected.

My Mom's White!  And I'm From America!  —  I feel like Barack Obama's new general election ad is a bit unsubtle.  —  The campaign says they're running it on a very aggressive 18 state play that includes Alaska, Georgia, Indiana, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, and Virginia.

U.S. says exercise by Israel seemed directed at Iran  —  WASHINGTON: Israel carried out a major military exercise earlier this month that American officials say appeared to be a rehearsal for a potential bombing attack on Iran's nuclear facilities.  —  Several American officials …

EXCLUSIVE: Hezbollah Poised to Strike?  —  Officials Say “Sleeper Cells” Activated in Canada  —  Intelligence agencies in the United States and Canada are warning of mounting signs that Hezbollah, backed by Iran, is poised to mount a terror attack against “Jewish targets” somewhere outside the Middle East.

Williams Gets the Call for “Meet the Press”  —  Six days after Tim Russert's death, his replacement on “Meet the Press” has been named — at least for this Sunday.  —  Brian Williams, the NBC anchor and Russert's longtime friend, will fill the moderator's chair for the discussion of presidential politics and whatever else pops up.

McCain and Obama tied in Georgia  —  A New InsiderAdvantage / PollPosition survey conducted June 18 of registered likely voters in the November presidential contest shows Sen. John McCain leading Sen. Barack Obama by a single point in Georgia, making the race in Georgia a statistical tie.

WE MADE HIM DO IT!  —  Barack Obama has announced that he will go back on his pledge to accept public financing for the general election, and instead spend whatever he is able to raise.  Obama thus becomes the first major-party candidate to opt out of the Nixon-era public financing system.

Obama apologizes to Muslim women; apology accepted  —  Sen. Barack Obama today called the two Muslim women who were barred from sitting behind him at his Detroit rally to apologize, one of the women and two other sources said.  —  “Sen. Obama called himself and he apologized to each of us …

Don't Miss the Zohan  —  If you've seen the trailer for Adam Sandler's new movie You Don't Mess with the Zohan, it may be tempting to write it off as yet another low-brow comedy aimed at fifteen-year-old boys and best avoided by everyone else.  But wait.  After Hollywood's recent spate …

General who probed Abu Ghraib says Bush officials committed war crimes  —  WASHINGTON — The Army general who led the investigation into prisoner abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison accused the Bush administration Wednesday of committing “war crimes” and called for those responsible to be held to account.

Obama Considering Olympic Games Ads on NBC  —  Is there such a thing as overexposure?  Barack Obama ads are everywhere on the internet.  They'll be coming to tv in 18 states and who knows how many radio stations.  —  Now, Obama is considering taking out ads on NBC for the Olympic Games.

Lifting Ban Wouldn't Be Immediate Fix for Oil  —  Output Could Be Seven Years Away; A Vast Unknown  —  As politicians debate whether to open federal offshore waters to oil and natural-gas drilling, there is agreement on at least one point: It isn't a short-term fix.

Taking On McCain for a Comment on the War  —  The political action committees of the liberal political group MoveOn and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees together paid more than $500,000 to run this advertisement this week in Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin, and on CNN and MSNBC.