Rick Warren Plans to Bring up Obama, McCain's Personal Life  —  It's going to get a little personal Saturday night at Saddleback Church in California.  John McCain and Barack Obama will spend an hour each talking to Pastor Rick Warren at his Compassion Forum.

McCain: Georgia conflict is the ‘first serious crisis internationally since the end of the Cold War.’  —  Speaking at the Aspen Institute in Colorado yesterday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said that recent Russian aggression in Georgia is the “first...serious crisis internationally since the end of the Cold War.”

McCain alarms base with abortion comment  —  Top social conservative leaders in key battleground states are urging John McCain not to pick a running mate who supports abortion rights, warning of dire consequences from a Republican base already unenthused about their nominee.

Obama bodysurfs at Sandy Beach  —  U.S. Sen. Barack Obama bodysurfed today at Sandy Beach today, a place he frequented as a teen-ager growing up in Honolulu.  —  The presidential candidate was photographed shaking hands with bodyboarders, catching a few waves and paying homage …

Barack Obama blinks in Hillary face-off  —  Russia rolls over Georgia, Hillary Clinton does the same to Barack Obama.  Now we know who's boss.  —  Obama blinked and stands guilty of appeasing Clinton by agreeing to a roll call vote for her nomination.  That he might not have had much choice …

Lawyers' Ties Hint at Extent of Hiding Edwards's Affair  —  As tabloid reports of a sex scandal threatened former Senator John Edwards's presidential campaign last December on the eve of the Iowa caucuses, two lawyers surfaced with written statements that appeared to exonerate the candidate.

After Russia's invasion of Georgia, what now for the West?  —  At least for now, the smoke seems to be clearing from the Georgian battlefield.  But the extent of the wreckage reaches far beyond that small country.  —  Russia's invasion across an internationally recognised border …

McCain's Focus on Georgia Raises Question of Propriety  —  After Chiding Obama, He Dwells on Crisis as a President Might  —  Standing behind a lectern in Michigan this week, with two trusted senators ready to do his bidding, John McCain seemed to forget for a moment that he was only running for president.

Deal is done  —  * Coalition offers president safe passage, security cover if he resigns * Nawaz ready to show flexibility  —  ISLAMABAD: The coalition government has offered indemnity and security to President Pervez Musharraf if he resigns, sources privy to the developments said on Thursday.

Bush, Decrying ‘Bullying,’ Calls for Russia to Leave Georgia  —  MOSCOW — Condemning as unacceptable what he called Russia's “bullying and intimidation,” President Bush on Friday said Russia must withdraw its troops from all of Georgian territory and said the United States would stand with Georgia in the conflict.

Another flub?  Bush vowed Navy aid to Georgia too soon  —  WASHINGTON — President Bush Wednesday promised that U.S. naval forces would deliver humanitarian aid to war-torn Georgia before his administration had received approval from Turkey, which controls naval access to the Black Sea …

The Lieberman Option  —  A vice-presidential pick is always important, but John McCain confronts a starkly existential choice this year.  —  Is he running as a Republican or chiefly as a bipartisan deal-maker?  Does he have a reasonable shot at victory, or face desperately long odds?

Doc blames Clintons for 9/11 miniseries' DVD holdup  —  ‘Blocking the Path to 9/11,’ produced by John Ziegler and Citizens United, claims that further showing of ABC's controversial project has been quashed.  —  In Hollywood docudramas, when the phrase “miscarriage of justice” is employed …

HEADLINES BY TCS  —  New information has surfaced that alleges Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) turned a $5,000 investment into $129,250 profit with the help of a secret no-interest loan that the Senator had not previously disclosed.  —  Federal prosecutors filed a new motion late yesterday …

John McCain and the POW church riot  —  HARRISBURG, Pa. — They called it the church riot.  —  Sen. John McCain, who is known for his reticence and even discomfort invoking faith on the campaign trail, was once dubbed a “Hell's Angel” for rioting against his captors in Vietnam in order to hold Sunday church services.

McCain's Son Sat on Troubled Bank's Board  —  Silver State Bancorp Is Facing Big Losses, Regulatory Scrutiny  —  Sen. John McCain's son served until last month on the board audit committee of a Nevada bank that is struggling to survive amid mounting losses and regulatory scrutiny.

McCain, RNC report $96 million cash on hand  —  Featured Topics: - John McCain - Barack Obama  —  WASHINGTON - John McCain and the Republican National Committee started August with a hefty $96 million, financially flush and strongly positioned to compete with prolific fundraiser Barack Obama and the Democrats.

Biden, Bayh get VP night slots at convention  —  (CNN) — The two senators widely believed to be at the top of Barack Obama's shortlist for VP have been given prime-time speaking slots at the Democratic convention Wednesday night — the very same night the vice presidential candidate is slated to speak.