After Mixed U.S. Messages, a War Erupted in Georgia  —  WASHINGTON — One month ago, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Tbilisi, Georgia, for a high-profile visit that was planned to accomplish two very different goals.  —  During a private dinner on July 9, Ms. Rice's aides say …

SEX, MORE LIES & VIDEOTAPE  —  The ENQUIRER has uncovered bombshell new details about the John Edwards sex scandal after the former presidential candidate finally admitted he'd cheated on his cancer-stricken wife Elizabeth!  —  Edwards' headline-making admission confirmed …

Yes, She Can  —  While Obama was spending three hours watching “The Dark Knight” five time zones away, and going to a fund-raiser featuring “Aloha attire” and Hawaiian pupus, Hillary was busy planning her convention.  —  You can almost hear her mind whirring: She's amazed at how easy it was to snatch Denver away from the Obama saps.

Obama tickets come with a catch  —  Some of those hoping to wrangle a seat for Barack Obama's speech were told this week they have to put in six hours of volunteer work for his campaign by Friday to have a shot at a ticket.  —  And that ruffled at least a few feathers.

Daughter: Rev. Wright NOT publishing book in October  —  A New York magazine cover story last week reignited the debate over Rev. Jeremiah Wright when it stated - without attribution - that the former pastor of Sen. Barack Obama was releasing a new book.  —  But his daughter, Jeri, told me today that the story is absolutely false.

Beijing Is All Dressed Up, But No One Is Going  —  Chinese Olympic organizers acknowledged Tuesday they were struggling to handle an unforeseen and baffling problem inside Summer Games venues and at the showpiece Olympic Park.  —  Not enough people.  —  Two weeks after announcing …

PHELPS' PIG SECRET: HE'S BOY GORGE  —  Swimming sensation Michael Phelps has an Olympic recipe for success - and it involves eating a staggering 12,000 calories a day.  —  “Eat, sleep and swim.  That's all I can do,” Phelps, who won two more gold medals today, told NBC when asked what he needs to win medals.

Eight Strikes and You're Out  —  John McCain recently tried to underscore his seriousness about pushing through a new energy policy, with a strong focus on more drilling for oil, by telling a motorcycle convention that Congress needed to come back from vacation immediately and do something about America's energy crisis.

Book on Obama Hopes to Repeat Anti-Kerry Feat  —  A conservative gadfly who attacked John Kerry's war record has released a book painting Barack Obama as a stealth radical liberal.

FIRST THOUGHTS: THE KEY(NOTE) MASTER  —  From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro  —  *** I am the key(note) master: The Obama campaign has announced that former Virginia Gov. — and current Senate candidate — Mark Warner will deliver the keynote address on the Tuesday of the Democratic convention.

A Virginia-Centric Convention  —  The selection of ex-VA Gov. Mark Warner to deliver the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention comes on the heels of a secret, last-minute effort to convince Warner to submit his name and record for vice presidential vetting.

Poll: Obama leads in Pa., but not by much  —  BUOYED by a widespread disdain for President Bush and concern about the economy, Democrat Barack Obama holds a lead over Republican John McCain in the latest Daily News/Franklin & Marshall Poll.  —  Obama leads McCain by eight points …

Erasing The Race Factor  —  Obama's Best Hope Is To Face the Issue Directly  —  Barack Obama has a problem.  He really, really doesn't want this campaign to be about race.  He wants it to be about change, President Bush, the economy, gas prices, Iraq, Afghanistan — almost anything else.

Churchill-Envy  —  It's possible to have differing views on how to handle Russia, although, depressingly, Obama seems to take the maximalist position of bringing Georgia into NATO.  But what interests me about McCain's position is not so much the content as the tone.  Check out the video above.

Judge says UC can deny religious course credit  —  (08-12) 17:25 PDT SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge says the University of California can deny course credit to applicants from Christian high schools whose textbooks declare the Bible infallible and reject evolution.