IDF: Hamas stops flotilla aid delivered by Israel  —  Jerusalem (CNN) — Israel has attempted to deliver humanitarian aid from an international flotilla to Gaza, but Hamas — which controls the territory — has refused to accept the cargo, the Israel Defense Forces said Wednesday.

RAHM EMANUEL (and Valerie Jarrett) SUBPOENAED BY BLAGOJEVICH: ATTORNEY  —  President Obama's chief of staff Rahm Emanuel was subpoenaed by the defense to testify in Rod Blagojevich's upcoming trial, a Blagojevich attorney told the Chicago Sun-Times.  —  Valerie Jarrett was also subpoenaed, according to the White House.

NBC runs Palin statement day later  —  NBC's “Today” show on Wednesday read a statement from Sarah Palin intended for the previous day's broadcast after the former Alaska governor's complaint that the program ignored her rebuttal to a critical interview.  —  On Tuesday, the show broadcast …

Ex-Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer arrested  —  Jim Greer, former chairman of the Republican Party of Florida who has been under criminal investigation for his financial handling of the organization, was arrested this morning.  —  Florida Department of Law Enforcement agents brought Greer …

Davis loss in Alabama a sign of black establishment's clout  —  His strategy was unconventional, but in the days before the election, it appeared to be working.  Davis held a steady lead over Agriculture Commissioner Ron Sparks in the weeks leading up to the primary, but when the votes came in Tuesday night …

Brewer tells conflicting stories about dad's war effort  —  Gov. Jan Brewer said in a recent interview that her father died fighting Nazis in Germany.  In fact, the death of Wilford Drinkwine came 10 years after World War II had ended.  —  During the war, Drinkwine worked as a civilian supervisor …

A Storyteller Loses the Story Line  —  It's not a good narrative arc: The man who walked on water is now ensnared by a crisis under water.  —  One little hole a mile down on the ocean floor, so deep it seems like hell spewing up its sulfurous smoke, has turned the thrilling saga of “The One” into the gurgling horror of “The Abyss.”

Kirk campaign acknowledges another misrepresentation of military service  —  Mark Kirk's Senate campaign has now acknowledged a second misrepresentation of his service record, admitting to me that his Web site falsely claimed that he was “the only member of Congress to serve in Operation Iraqi Freedom.”

Palin: Oil Spill Proves We Were Right About 'Drill, Baby, Drill  —  The very politician who inspired country songs about drilling for oil is now boasting that her “drill here, drill now” plan for U.S. energy policy would have mitigated or forestalled the oil disaster in the Gulf...if only you redefine what she meant when she said that.

CBS Decides Al and Tipper's Separation is the Fault of....George W. Bush  —  Is there anything a journalist cannot or will not twist to bring the topic back to how life would be so much better if only not for that awful George W. Bush?  On Tuesday's CBS Evening News, with the help …

Specter of Defeat: Slew of Democrats Invited to Obama Speech in PA Decline Due to Prior Committments to Not Ruining Re-Election Bids  —  Democrats up for re-election this year are fully aware of President Obama's campaign record, and nowhere is that more apparent than in Pennsylvania …

Obama's ‘Chicago Way’ plunders the private sector  —  An interesting thing about Barack Obama is that he chose, on two occasions, to live in Chicago — even though he didn't grow up there, had no family ties there, never went to school there.  —  It was a curious choice.

Study Finds Blacks Blocked From Southern Juries  —  In late April in a courthouse in Madison County, Ala., a prosecutor was asked to explain why he had struck 11 of 14 black potential jurors in a capital murder case.  —  The district attorney, Robert Broussard, said one had seemed “arrogant” and “pretty vocal.”

Rep. Tom Cole on oil spill: ‘Acts of God are acts of God.’  —  Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK), an ardent supporter of the oil industry and adherent of the “drill here, drill now” chant, appeared on KTOK radio yesterday to discuss BP's oil disaster in the Gulf.  Like Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX) …

Republicans Move Ahead in Generic Ballot for Congress  —  GOP lead of 49% to 43% is largest in 2010 thus far  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Gallup tracking of 2010 congressional voting preferences shows Republicans moving back ahead of Democrats, 49% to 43%, by two points their largest lead of the campaign to date.

Parker Griffith concedes, Mo Brooks is the GOP nominee for Congress  —  Five months after U.S. Rep. Parker Griffith switched parties, the voters of North Alabama switched congressmen.  —  On Tuesday, Republican challenger and long-time conservative Mo Brooks handily won the three-way GOP primary …

CNN Poll: Americans split on top two Obama initiatives  —  Washington (CNN) - Two of President Barack Obama's top legislative initiatives - health care reform and financial regulation - are getting different reactions from the American public, according to a new national poll.

Effort to contain Gulf oil spill stalls with stuck saw  —  SCHRIEVER, La. — The latest attempt at containing oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico — a plan to saw off a leaking pipe and slide a cap over it — has been stopped because the saw is stuck, a Coast Guard official said Wednesday morning.