Exclusive: Conservative group offers support for $2M  —  The American Conservative Union asked FedEx for a check for $2 million to $3 million in return for the group's support in a bitter legislative dispute, then the group's chairman flipped and sided with UPS after FedEx refused to pay.

McCONNELL TO OPPOSE SOTOMAYOR NOMINATION  —  from the Office of Senator Mitch McConnell  — Senate Republican Leader will deliver remarks on the Senate floor Monday outlining his opposition to Sotomayor's nomination to the Supreme Court -  —  'If, however, Judge Sotomayor were to become …

Another Alleged Affair Tied to Christian House on Capitol Hill  —  A Capitol Hill townhouse that serves as a dormitory and meeting place for a band of conservative Christian lawmakers has been linked to a third episode of marital infidelity, this time in a Mississippi court filing by a former lawmaker's estranged wife.

Gang Of Six Centrist Senators Demands Delay On Health Care Reform  —  A bipartisan group of centrist and conservative senators sent a letter to the Democratic and Republican leaders on Friday urging delay in consideration of health care reform.  —  The letter, obtained by the Huffington Post …

Obama Needs to ‘Reset’ His Presidency  —  The president we have is very different from the man who campaigned for the office in 2008.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Time out, Mr. President.  —  As we approach the August congressional recess, it's clear that our economic distress is deeper …

Tehran's streets erupt after a key cleric speaks  —  Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani's harsh rebuke of Ahmadinejad supporters is followed by renewed violence, suggesting the discontent over recent election results is as strong as ever.  —  Reporting from Tehran and Beirut …

What, and when, does Obama drink?  —  When President Barack Obama confessed his occasional urge to have a puff of a cigarette, inquiring minds wondered: Does Obama ever savor that smoke with a glass of cognac?  A splash of port?  Or even, perhaps, a good, old-fashioned ale?

Sanford communications director to resign  —  Gov. Mark Sanford's communications director, Joel Sawyer, said today he is leaving for an unspecified private-sector job, effective Aug. 5.  —  Sawyer said his decision to leave his $65,000-a-year job had nothing to do with Sanford's recent six …

The Joy of Sachs  —  The American economy remains in dire straits, with one worker in six unemployed or underemployed.  Yet Goldman Sachs just reported record quarterly profits — and it's preparing to hand out huge bonuses, comparable to what it was paying before the crisis.  What does this contrast tell us?

50% Oppose Government Health Insurance Company  —  Just 35% of U.S. voters now support the creation of a government health insurance company to compete with private health insurers.  —  A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 50% of voters oppose setting …

Gates: I'm looking at ways to ensure gays are not kicked out of military based on personal vendettas.  —  Earlier this month, Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced that he was considering a temporary solution that would allow gays to serve in the military until the “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy is changed by Congress.

Fox guest cites Bruno to argue against health care reform.  —  On Fox News this morning, host Megyn Kelly hosted Dr. Robert Goldberg of the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest to help her scaremonger about Democratic plans to reform America's health care system.

Zell Miller: Rahm should use ‘Gorilla Glue’ to keep Obama in his chair.  —  In 2004, then-Democratic Sen. Zell Miller (GA) threw his support behind President Bush with an angry speech attacking Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) at the Republican National Convention.  Apparently, the passage of time hasn't softened Miller's anger.

Democrats Drop Key Part of Bill to Assist Unions  —  A half-dozen senators friendly to labor have decided to drop a central provision of a bill that would have made it easier to organize workers.  —  The so-called card-check provision — which senators decided to scrap to help secure …

The Friday Line: Ranking Republican Leaders  —  Photos by Mark Wilson/Getty Images, Brendan Hoffman/Bloomberg News and Harry Hamburg/AP Photo  —  The Republican party at present is, in the words of one smart GOP operative, a chorus of voices without a soloist.

A Hollywood Blogger Feared by Executives  —  Right now, there's a good chance a Hollywood executive is leaning into a colleague's office and quietly asking, “Did you see what Nikki just wrote?”  —  That would be Nikki Finke, a well-traveled newspaper reporter who has found her moment as a digital-age Walter Winchell.

Family says closeted gay sailor killed Provost  —  Houston seaman's aunt says source claims suspect feared being outed by her nephew  —  HOUSTON — The aunt of August Provost, a bisexual Navy seaman from Houston found murdered at Camp Pendleton last month, told Dallas Voice this week …

Some E-Books Are More Equal Than Others  —  This morning, hundreds of Amazon Kindle owners awoke to discover that books by a certain famous author had mysteriously disappeared from their e-book readers.  These were books that they had bought and paid for—thought they owned.

Senate votes to expand federal hate crimes law  —  WASHINGTON — People attacked because of their sexual orientation or gender would receive federal protections under a Senate-approved measure that significantly expands the reach of hate crimes law.  —  The Senate bill also would make it easier …

Summers: Google econ, get good news  —  Of all the statistics pouring into the White House every day, top economic adviser Larry Summers highlighted one Friday to make his case that the economic free-fall has ended.  —  The number of people searching for the term “economic depression” on Google is down to normal levels, Summers said.

Health reform foes plan Obama's ‘Waterloo’  —  Conservative leaders will push delay any vote on health care reform until after the August recess to capitalize on what they say is a growing tide of opposition to reform measures, they said on a conference call with “tea party” participants today.

THE PRESIDENT AND THE NAACP.  —  The first black president of the United States addressed the oldest civil rights organization in the country yesterday.  It was one of those moments when one begins to feel the past fading into the future, when the full scope of what happened last November is pulled back into focus.