Mrs. McCain, San Diego County Would Like a Word  —  When you're poor, it can be hard to pay the bills.  When you're rich, it's hard to keep track of all the bills that need paying.  It's a lesson Cindy McCain learned the hard way when NEWSWEEK raised questions about an overdue property-tax bill …

PREPARING THE BATTLEFIELD  —  The Bush Administration steps up its secret moves against Iran.  —  L ate last year, Congress agreed to a request from President Bush to fund a major escalation of covert operations against Iran, according to current and former military, intelligence, and congressional sources.

Obama Supporters Take His Middle Name as Their Own  —  Emily Nordling has never met a Muslim, at least not to her knowledge.  But this spring, Ms. Nordling, a 19-year-old student from Fort Thomas, Ky., gave herself a new middle name on Facebook.com, mimicking her boyfriend and shocking her father.

Crisis grows in Iraq over U.S. raid that killed Maliki relative  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq — Senior Iraqi government officials said Saturday that a U.S. Special Forces counterterrorism unit conducted the raid that reportedly killed a relative of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki …

Bill Clinton says Barack Obama must ‘kiss my ass’ for his support  —  By Tim Shipman in Washington and Philip Sherwell in New York  —  Bill Clinton is so bitter about Barack Obama's victory over his wife Hillary that he has told friends the Democratic nominee will have to beg for his wholehearted support.

'It's Over, Lady!'  —  UNITY, N.H.  —  Unity was spared the banality of unanimity.  —  Carmella Lewis, with her Hillary T-shirt and Hillary placard, came all the way from Denver to make sure there would be plenty of ambiguity, duality and ferocity in Unity.

McCain: I 'Don't See How It Matters' That I Don't Know The Price Of Gas  —  McCain: I 'Don't See How It Matters' That I Don't Know The Price Of Gas  —  In a telephone interview with the Orange County Register earlier this week, John McCain acknowledged he was unaware of the price of gas.

Anxious in America  —  Just a few months ago, the consensus view was that Barack Obama would need to choose a hard-core national-security type as his vice presidential running mate to compensate for his lack of foreign policy experience and that John McCain would need a running mate who was young and sprightly to compensate for his age.

LIARS' ROUND-UP  —  ON SECURITY, FACTS MATTER  —  THE facts about your security are being torn to shreds by activist liars.  And they think that you're too stupid to know the difference.  —  Let's lay out the worst current examples of media make-believe and election-year truth-trashing:

Occupation Plan for Iraq Faulted in Army History  —  WASHINGTON — Soon after American forces toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003, Gen. Tommy R. Franks surprised senior Army officers by revamping the Baghdad-based military command.  —  The decision reflected the assumption by General Franks …