Judge Rejects Bush's View on Wiretaps  —  WASHINGTON — A federal judge in California said Wednesday that the wiretapping law established by Congress was the “exclusive” means for the president to eavesdrop on Americans, and he rejected the government's claim that the president's constitutional authority …

Election 2008: Montana Presidential Election  —  Montana: Obama Leads McCain By Five  —  Barack Obama is leading John McCain by five percentage points in Montana.  The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the state shows Obama attracting 48% of the vote while McCain earns 43%.

Officer injured guarding Obama  —  COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado (CNN) — It's been a rough week for the motorcycle unit of the Colorado Springs Police Department.  —  First, two officers were hurt last week when lightning struck between their motorcycles while on a training exercise.

McCain Allies Find Finance-Law Holes  —  Governors' Fund Recruits Big Donors; Bid to Catch Obama  —  Allies of Sen. John McCain have found new loopholes in the campaign-finance law he helped write — and they're using them to reel in huge contributions to help him compete with Sen. Barack Obama.

Can Barack Buy the Presidency?  —  On the money front, how do Sens. Obama and McCain stack up?  No contest, it seems.  Since the campaign began, Mr. Obama has raised a staggering $295-plus million, versus Mr. McCain's almost $122 million.  But that's misleading.  —  Mr. Obama spent a lot to win the nomination.

Progress Cited on U.S.-Iraq Pacts  —  Foreign Minister Says Nations Are Working to Resolve Differences  —  The United States and Iraq are making progress on complex political and security agreements that would allow U.S. troops to operate in the country next year, Iraq's foreign minister said Wednesday.

Employment Situation Summary  —  Technical information:  —  Household data: (202) 691-6378 USDL 08-0928  —  Establishment data: (202) 691-6555 Transmission of material in this release  —  http://www.bls.gov/ces/ is embargoed until 8:30 A.M. (EDT), Media contact: (202) 691-5902 Thursday, July 3, 2008.

Hostage Rescue Is Happy Coincidence for McCain in Colombia  —  Senator John McCain, the presumed Republican presidential nominee, and his wife, Cindy, visited a Colombian Navy drug interdiction boat off Cartagena on Wednesday.  Mr. McCain cited both progress and work to be done in stemming the flow of drugs into the United States.

Google must divulge YouTube log  —  Google must divulge the viewing habits of every user who has ever watched any video on YouTube, a US court has ruled.  —  The ruling comes as part of Google's legal battle with Viacom over allegations of copyright infringement.

A short but sweet gathering  —  Barack Obama's campaign and the Democratic National Committee are toying with a convention scheduling change that has been broached before in theory but never seriously considered: cutting the party's conclave in Denver short by one day to give Obama an extra …

A dose of discipline for McCain's campaign  —  The Sergeant has been promoted.  —  Whenever Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) needed an answer to a political question during long days on buses and planes with reporters during the GOP primary, he would turn to a linebacker of a campaign adviser.

Justice Dept. Admits Error in Not Briefing Court  —  WASHINGTON — In a highly unusual admission of error, the Justice Department acknowledged on Wednesday that government lawyers should have known that Congress had recently made the rape of a child a capital offense in the military …

Deputy Chief of Staff to leave White House  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — White House Deputy Chief of Staff Joe Hagin will be leaving his job this month, according to White House spokesperson Dana Perino.  —  Perino says Hagin's last day will be July 20th.  —  “The President said that he thanks Joe …

Research: Wind power pricier, emits more CO2 than thought  —  'Windfarm output is never zero.  Sometimes it's less'  —  Fresh contenders have entered the UK wind power debate, as a turbines expert funded by the Renewable Energy Foundation publishes an investigation into a hotly-disputed subject …

America's Days Aren't Numbered  —  I have a simple request.  As we celebrate the birth of the American Republic, can we all stop predicting its death?  It's getting depressing.  —  The last time I strolled through the local Barnes & Noble, there were so many books announcing the end of American power …

Manson, Murder and Mercy  —  Justice or mercy?  That is the pressing question in what seems to be a coda in the story of the 1969 Manson family murders.  At issue is the request by Susan Atkins, now 60, for compassionate release from prison on the grounds of terminal illness.

YOUR WORLD IN CHARTS: UNDERINSURED EDITION.  —  One of the tricky questions in health policy is how to delineate between different types of the insured.  We talk a lot about those without any coverage, but a fair portion are hurtling through life with all the protection afforded by a rusted, rattling Kia.

One Nation No More?  —  Civics Needs a Boost, but Our Identity Endures  —  Just in time for Independence Day, a conservative think tank has delivered a controversial report asking whether America's national identity is eroding under the pressure of population diversity and educational slackness.