Despite Assurances, McCain Wasn't in a ‘Cone of Silence’  —  ORLANDO, Fla. — Senator John McCain was not in a “cone of silence” on Saturday night while his rival, Senator Barack Obama, was being interviewed at the Saddleback Church in California.  —  Members of the McCain campaign staff …

“Cross in the Dirt” story stolen from Solzhenitsyn (updated X3)  —  I was watching the forum last night and decided that since I hadn't eaten yet, I would try to listen to John McCain speak.  I was doing OK with the “my friends” and the evil chuckle when I heard him talk about his POW story of the cross in the dirt.

Russia Vows Pullout as Troops Dig In  —  Occupied Georgian City Struggles With Aftermath  —  Russia pledged Sunday to begin removing its troops from Georgia on Monday, but the streets of this occupied city reflected a broadening, not a waning, of Russia's military incursion.

Musharraf Announces His Resignation  —  ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Under pressure over impending impeachment charges, President Pervez Musharraf announced he would resign Monday, ending nearly nine years as the head of one of the United States' most important allies in the campaign against terrorism.

Breaking news: Obama campaign changes story, admits he misrepresented Born Alive vote  —  From the New York Sun, dated August 18: … Bearing in mind the Obama campaign now admits he voted as state senator against the very same legislation passed overwhelmingly on the federal level to stop infanticide …

Iranian claims of jet range dismissed  —  Iran's claim of having increased the range of its fighter jets, allowing them to fly as far as Israel and back without refueling, did not signify any new operational abilities, an arms expert said on Sunday.  —  Iranian state TV quoted …

Bob Barr, the Master of a Curious Universe  —  “I still plan someday to do a book on Bob Barr's laws of the universe,” says Bob Barr, the Libertarian candidate for president.  —  The rules of Bob Barr's universe are many and fascinating.  Several have to do with his libertarian principles …

Obama on Clarence Thomas  —  Barack Obama likes to portray himself as a centrist politician who wants to unite the country, but occasionally his postpartisan mask slips.  That was the case at Saturday night's Saddleback Church forum, when Mr. Obama chose to demean Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

U.S. Watched as a Squabble Turned Into a Showdown  —  WASHINGTON — Five months ago, President Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia, long a darling of this city's diplomatic dinner party circuit, came to town to push for America to muscle his tiny country of four million into NATO.