Robert Novak Hospitalized  —  Robert Novak was admitted yesterday to a Boston hospital where he was diagnosed with a brain tumor.  In a written statement given to his publisher, Novak said:  —  “On Sunday, July 27, I was diagnosed with a brain tumor.  I have been admitted to Brigham …

Police: Accused shooter hated liberals, expected to be killed  —  4-page letter outlines frustration, hatred of ‘liberal movement’  —  Please download the latest version of Adobe Flash Player, or enable JavaScript for your browser to view the video player.

Be Afraid.  Please.  —  Life is full of disappointments.  —  Early Friday, I went to the Real Clear Politics Web site, as I do every morning, for my fix of political news and commentary.  I perked up when I saw the third entry on the list of that day's notable articles — “No. 44 Has Spoken.”

Justice Officials Repeatedly Broke Law on Hiring, Report Says  —  Former Justice Department counselor Monica M. Goodling and former chief of staff D. Kyle Sampson routinely broke the law by conducting political litmus tests on candidates for jobs as immigration judges and line prosecutors …

Go take a hike, injured vets tell nervy Cheney  —  WASHINGTON - Vice President Cheney's invitation to address wounded combat veterans next month has been yanked because the group felt his security demands were Draconian and unreasonable.  —  The veep had planned to speak to the Disabled American Veterans …

FIRST THOUGHTS: ANALYZE THIS  —  From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro  —  *** Analyze this: We've now crossed the 100-day mark before Election Day, and the chattering class is going to obsessed with two things this week: 1) over-analyzing the veepstakes and 2) over-analyzing any overseas bounce for Obama.

Double Entendre Kisses Off MoveOn's Youth Moblization Effort  —  MoveOn.Org claims this is the first political ad to air on Comedy Central:  —  “I've been living with it for a while now.”  —  No, not the syph.  —  It's “hope.”  The guy on the right is Rider Strong from “Boy Meets World.”

Bonnie Fuller on Team Obama's Tabloid Strategy  —  Portraying Barack and Michelle as Brangelina Is Working  —  It's official.  The Obamas are just like us.  With their latest PR move — being photographed as a family for this week's People magazine cover story titled “The Obamas At Home” …

Democrats Try to Break Grip of the Senate's Dr. No  —  WASHINGTON — Congress has dealt for decades with catchall bills known as omnibus legislation.  Now, for the first time, comes the Tomnibus.  —  A product of Democratic frustration with the tactics of Senator Tom Coburn …

U.S. Deficit to Reach Record $490 Billion in 2009  —  The U.S. budget deficit will widen to a record of about $490 billion next year, an administration official said, leaving a deep budget hole that will constrain the next president's tax and spending plans.

Gallup Daily: Obama 48%, McCain 40%  —  No further gains for Obama in latest update  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Barack Obama's lead over John McCain has settled back slightly to a 48% to 40% margin among registered voters in Gallup Poll Daily tracking conducted July 25-27.

Funds for Highways Plummet As Drivers Cut Gasoline Use  —  An unprecedented cutback in driving is slashing the funds available to rebuild the nation's aging highway system and expand mass-transit options, underscoring the economic impact of high gasoline prices.

Docking Paychecks for Politics  —  The mighty Service Employees International Union (SEIU) plans to spend some $150 million in this year's election, most of it to get Barack Obama and other Democrats elected.  Where'd they get that much money?  —  That's a question the Departments of Labor …