Getting to Know You  —  The conventional wisdom in this radically unconventional presidential race is that the voters have to get to know Barack Obama better.  That's what this week's overseas trip was about: to showcase the senator as a potential commander in chief and leader of U.S. foreign policy.

MCCAIN HITS HARD  —  Before a military audience in Denver today, John McCain launched his strongest attack yet against Barack Obama.  The attack was devastating because it is true.  Here are some excerpts; McCain began by recalling the beginning of the surge: … That recitation of Obama's conduct is entirely factual.

Democratic Congressional Candidate Alan Grayson on Iraq Reckoning: “We'll Put People in Prison”  —  One of the most exciting candidates I've met this cycle is Alan Grayson, a high profile trial lawyer who has been suing defense contractors for fraud, and is now running for Florida's eighth district in central Florida.

4,000 U.S. Combat Deaths, and Just a Handful of Images  —  BAGHDAD — The case of a freelance photographer in Iraq who was barred from covering the Marines after he posted photos on the Internet of several of them dead has underscored what some journalists say is a growing effort …

Obama veep team floats Republican name  —  Barack Obama's vice presidential search team has floated the name of a member of President Bush's first-term Cabinet, Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman, as Obama's running mate.  —  The search committee, now led by Caroline Kennedy and Eric Holder …

Oil prices and economic fundamentals  —  Oil was selling for $123 a barrel on May 7, and that's where it closed this week.  Sounds like a calm and rational market, except for the fact that just last week it was going for $145.  —  Spot price of West Texas Intermediate in dollars per barrel.

Throughline  —  I'm working on the unfinished Obama/Goldberg post below, but in the meantime, please enjoy this emerging classic of the mass-forwarded email genre.  —  This isn't one of those snarky jokes we're so often accused of making.  It's real, and it's likely coming soon to an inbox near you …

GRATION AND THE LANDSTUHL CONTROVERSY  —  From NBC's Jim Miklaszewski  —  In his official capacity as a sitting US senator, Obama has every right to stay in touch with America's men and women in uniform.  According to Pentagon officials, the problem was that Obama's request to visit Landstuhl included …

The $2.8 Trillion Deficit Gap: Holtz-Eakin Responds  —  John McCain's tax policy has come under fire in the past, particularly for its dependence on huge revenue windfalls to balance the budget.  But now a new study from the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center (a joint venture between Brookings …

Bush critics get an unimpeachable forum  —  WASHINGTON - Call it the un-impeachment hearing.  —  The House Judiciary Committee held a hearing Friday it insisted was not about removing President Bush from office.  But critics of Bush's policies couldn't pass up the chance to charge the president …