Getting Lost in the Fog of War  —  ANYONE who has spent the past two days reading through the 92,000 military field reports and other documents made public by the whistle-blower site WikiLeaks may be forgiven for wondering what all the fuss is about.  I'm a researcher who studies Afghanistan …

Tensions increase after revelation of more leaked files  —  Read the full story as the US, Pakistan and Afghanistan trade angry accusations after documents reveal more attempts by coalition to cover up civilian casualties

The Partisan Tools At Journo-List And Trig  —  Remember all those liberals and lefties huffily denouncing this blog's attempts to make sense of Sarah Palin's bizarre stories about the pregnancy and birth of her alleged fifth child?  I was nuts, crazy, vile, disgusting, etc etc to indulge in what Dave Weigel …

Dems fear GOP oversight of Obama administration  —  Senate Judiciary Committee member Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn. (Alex Brandon/AP)  —  Speaking to a group of left-wing activists at the annual Netroots Nation convention in Las Vegas, Democratic Sen. Al Franken painted a bleak picture …

Among House Democrats in Rust Belt, a sense of abandonment over energy bill  —  When Democratic Rep. John Boccieri went home to Ohio early this year to talk with voters in his Canton-based district, he figured he would have to do battle with at least some constituents over his support for health-care reform.

Department of Defense can't account for 96 percent of money administered in Iraq reconstruction fund.  —  Yesterday, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) released its findings on how the money was spent from a special Iraq reconstruction fund set up by the Department of Defense (DOD) between 2003-2007.

The Long Strategy  —  I was a liberal Democrat when I was young.  I used to wear a green Army jacket with political buttons on it — for Hubert Humphrey, Birch Bayh, John F. Kennedy and Franklin Roosevelt.  I even wore that jacket in my high school yearbook photo.  —  It's a magic green jacket.

Lawmakers Question Salaries at Nonprofits  —  State and federal officials are starting to take their knives to the pay of leaders of nonprofit groups they do business with to help share the pain of tighter budgets.  —  A provision in New Jersey's recently passed budget, for example …

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad attacks Octopus Paul  —  Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian leader, says Paul the Octopus, the sea creature that correctly predicted the outcome of World Cup games, is a symbol of all that is wrong with the western world.  —  He claims that the octopus is a symbol of decadence and decay among “his enemies”.

Minnick thinks Rangel should resign from Congress, Simpson won't say  —  Democratic Rep. Walt Minnick thinks embattled New York Congressman Charlie Rangel should resign from the U.S. House, but Idaho's other member of Congress won't say.  Rep. Mike Simpson, who represents the eastern portion of the state …

Paul Ryan Schools Chris Matthews on Tax Hikes, Budgets and Economics 101  —  Chris Matthews on Monday got a much-needed lesson from Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) on how tax hikes impact the budget as well as the economy.  —  “Congressman Ryan, is there any tax role for reducing our $1.4 trillion …

Kerry may need to pay $500k tax on yacht  —  (FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) - There are new details in the controversy over Sen. John Kerry's brand new boat.  —  Kerry may still be on the hook for a half million dollars in excise taxes because he docked his yacht in Massachusetts less than six months after buying it.

BP names Robert Dudley, an American, as chief executive  —  BP announced Tuesday that it lost $17 billion in the second quarter of the year because of the mounting cost of halting and repairing damage from the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  —  The company also said the executive …

Veteran GOP operative brought in to help Angle and other Sen candidates  —  With the GOP's hopes for reclaiming the Senate seeming to hinge increasingly on their success in the west, the NRSC is bringing in a veteran press operative to help Republican Senate candidates in three key races against longtime Democratic incumbents.

Ed Rendell Criticizes Obama for Going on ‘The View,’ Compares it to Jerry Springer  —  Here's one thing Gov. Ed Rendell (D-Pennsylvania) and Pat Buchanan (R-everywhere) agree on: Pres. Obama should not go on ‘The View.’  —  Rendell: I think there's got to be a little bit of dignity to the presidency.

Obama Won't Speak In-Person at Boy Scouts' 100th Anniversary Celebration But Will Appear on ABC TV's ‘The View’  —  (CNSNews.com) - President Barack Obama, the honorary chairman of the Boy Scouts of America, will not speak in-person before the group on Wednesday at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia …

Romanoff goes all in, sells house and loans campaign $325,000  —  Updated: Loan to campaign is $325,000.  —  Andrew Romanoff has officially gone all-in for his U.S. Senate campaign, selling his Washington Park house and loaning the effort $325,000.  —  Romanoff, the former Democratic speaker …

Despite Tough Climate, Public Prefers Obama's Policies  —  Despite a tough year for President Obama, the public believes his administration's policies offer a better chance at improving the economy over the policies of his predecessor, former President George W. Bush.

BP Day 98: Where Did All the Oil Go?  —  As Size of Slick Shrinks, Experts Say Oil is Breaking Up, Staying Below Surface  —  For 86 days, oil spewed into the Gulf of Mexico from BP's damaged well, dumping some 200 million gallons of crude into sensitive ecosystems.

What Will a Republican Majority Do Next?  —  We know Speaker Boehner's opening moves.  But what will the GOP do after those fail?  —  If, as predicted, the Republicans take control of the House, or both houses of Congress, this November, will they: 1. shut down the government? …

Former Body-Armor Executive on Trial for Fraud  —  Several years ago, David H. Brooks, the chief executive and chairman of a body-armor company enriched by United States military contracts, became fixated on the idea of a memory-erasing pill.  —  It was not just fanciful curiosity.

Heroes of Journolist: Dan Froomkin, James Surowiecki, Jeffrey Toobin, Michael Tomasky — and founder Ezra Klein  —  The Daily Caller has highlighted some of Journolist's worst moments — such as when liberal members of the media plotted to kill important stories about the presidential campaign.

Permanently High Unemployment  —  Brad DeLong, commenting on Greg Mankiw, writes: … Quite.  I really don't think people appreciate the huge dangers posed by a weak response to 9 1/2 percent unemployment, and the highest rate of long-term unemployment ever recorded: