Gov. Sanford not heard from since Thursday  —  The whereabouts of Gov. Mark Sanford have been unknown to state officials since Thursday, and some state leaders are questioning who is in charge of the executive office.  —  Neither the governor's office nor the State Law Enforcement Division …

US says hot dog diplomacy still on with Iran  —  WASHINGTON (AFP) — The United States said Monday its invitations were still standing for Iranian diplomats to attend July 4 celebrations at US embassies despite the crackdown on opposition supporters.  —  President Barack Obama's administration …

Why Obama's sudden news conference today?  And what he'll say  —  You don't need to be a basketball-loving president of the United States to know that if you're trying to block opponents' shots in your end, you sure aren't increasing your own totals.  You can't score points on D.

Top Clerical Council in Iran Rejects Plea to Annul Vote  —  CAIRO — Iran's Guardian Council, the senior clerical body charged with certifying the disputed presidential election, has rejected the opposition's demand for the vote to be annulled on grounds of fraud, state television reported on its Web site Tuesday.

Experts Suspect System Failure, Operator Error in Metrorail Crash  —  Experts familiar with Metro's operations focused last night on a failure of the signal system and operator error as likely causes of yesterday's fatal Red Line crash.  —  Metro was designed with a fail-safe computerized signal system …

Iranian protester pleads for U.S., world to intervene  —  An Iranian student protester in Tehran made a passionate plea for help from the world community this morning in a phone call to CNN's “American Morning.”  —  For safety reasons, CNN can only identify the student by his first name, Mohammad.

Iranian clerics seek supreme leader alternative  —  Clashes between protesters and police Saturday left at least 13 people dead (File)  —  Religious leaders are considering an alternative to the supreme leader structure after at least 13 people were killed in the latest unrest to shake Tehran …

Poll: Americans Less Upbeat About Stimulus Bill's Impact  —  Expectations for President Obama's stimulus package have diminished, with barely half of Americans now confident the $787 billion measure will boost the economy, and the rapid rise in optimism that followed the 2008 election has abated …

Obama Invites Gay Rights Advocates to White House  —  As advocates for gays and lesbians intensify their criticism of the White House, President Obama has invited some of their leaders to an East Room reception next Monday to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion …

Iranian leaders will always believe Anglo-Saxons are plotting against them. … - There is nothing at all that any Western country can do to avoid the charge of intervening in Iran's foreign affairs.  The deep belief that everything—especially anything in English—is already and by definition …

Villaraigosa won't run for governor  —  The decision may help possible Democratic candidate Jerry Brown more than Gavin Newsom, experts say.  —  Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's decision Monday to skip the 2010 race for California governor left a two-person contest for the Democratic nomination …

Son's Death Has Iranian Family Asking Why  —  TEHRAN—The family, clad in black, stood at the curb of the road sobbing.  A middle-aged mother slapped her cheeks, letting out piercing wails.  The father, a frail man who worked as a doorman at a clinic in central Tehran, wept quietly with his head bowed.

Conrad Moves Closer To Public Health Care After Negotiations  —  Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) moved sharply toward public health care Monday, saying that he could “absolutely” support major parts of Sen. Chuck Schumer's compromise proposal for a public option after closed-door negotiations.

Rubio's curious Tweet  —  Twitter hasn't always been a politician's best friend — see Republican Rep. Pete Hoekstra's comparison of House Republican floor rebellions to the uprising in Iran or Newt Gingrich calling Sonia Sotomayor a “racist.”  —  Florida Senate candidate Marco Rubio …

What Roger Cohen Saw  —  Andrew writes of Roger Cohen: … On behalf of the “usual suspects,” let me just say this: Roger Cohen in no way “saw this coming.”  In fact, he made a name for himself internationally as one of the leading Western apologists for Khamenei and Ahmadinejad …

What Bill Keller learned from George Bush  —  On Sunday we wrote about the escape of New York Times reporter David Rohde from his captivity with the Taliban.  In its page-one story on Rohde's escape, the Times disclosed that it had kept Rohde's kidnapping and detention by the Taliban a secret for the past seven months.

Dems ignore Obama cuts  —  Congression Democrats are largely ignoring President Obama's $19.8 billion in budget cuts.  —  The president proposed axing dozens of programs that he said were inefficient or ineffective, but members of the House Appropriations Committee are including the money for them.