Lawyer says McKinney a victim in scuffle  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — A lawyer for Rep. Cynthia McKinney, the Georgia congresswoman who had an altercation with a Capitol Police officer, says she was "just a victim of being in Congress while black."  —  McKinney awaited word Friday on whether …

Jill Carroll forced to make propaganda video as price of freedom  —  CAIRO - The night before journalist Jill Carroll's release, her captors said they had one final demand as the price of her freedom: She would have to make a video praising her captors and attacking the United States, according to Jim Carroll.

John Dean Blasts Warrantless Eavesdropping  —  WASHINGTON - John W. Dean, Richard Nixon's White House lawyer, told senators Friday that President Bush's domestic spying exceeds the wrongdoing that toppled his former boss.  —  Bush, Dean told the Senate Judiciary Committee, should be censured and possibly impeached.

TUCSON REGION  —  Mexican flag burned at Apache Junction HS  —  EAST VALLEY TRIBUNE  —  Tensions over immigration reform heightened in the Phoenix area's East Valley Thursday when students raised a Mexican flag over Apache Junction High School — and then other students yanked it down and burned it.

Power of prayer flunks an unusual test  —  Large study had Christians pray for heart-surgery patients  —  NEW YORK - In the largest study of its kind, researchers found that having people pray for heart bypass surgery patients had no effect on their recovery.

Ex-DeLay Aide Pleads Guilty  —  Deal Protects Tony C. Rudy From Additional Charges  —  A former top aide to Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) pleaded guilty to conspiracy today and promised to aid a wide-ranging federal investigation into corrupt lobbying practices.

To Bloggers from Borders  —  An Open Letter from Gregory P Josefowicz CEO/Chairman of the Board/President/Director, Borders Books to Charles Johnson, Director, Pajamas Media, CEO Little Green Foosballs, Rock 'N' Roller in the Free World, Stealth Cyclist.  —  Dear Mr. Johnson (or may I call you "Charles"?),

New Poll: Americans Favor a Guest Worker Plan  —  79% say illegal immigrants should have the chance to work here, but most want tougher enforcement too  —  Americans polled by TIME magazine show strong support for a guest-worker program and a process for undocumented workers to become citizens …

Air America Anniversary, Sacramento, New York City, Al Franken, Bill O'Reilly  —  DEBACLE  —  After Two Years, How Else To Describe Air America?  —  As certain as the presence of a dozen Dunkin' Donuts outlets in every New England town, today's second Air America Radio on-air anniversary …

As France Approves Labor Law, Students Block Roads and Rails  —  PARIS, March 30 —France's Constitutional Council ruled this evening that a disputed labor law that has brought more than a million protesters into the streets was valid, setting the stage for further confrontation.

The Two Branches of Government  —  Forget it.  —  Just forget everything.  Forget everything They ever taught you — it's garbage anyway.  —  Yeah, yeah, I know what you learned; I learned it too.  There are three branches of federal government, not two:  — Excutive  — Legislative

Illegal immigrants rally for tuition break  —  TRENTON — More than 100 people rallied yesterday in front of the Statehouse Annex, urging state and federal lawmakers to allow children of undocumented immigrants to attend college at in-state tuition rates.  —  The smaller-than-advertised …

JADED?....As Bob Somerby and Peter Daou and Media Matters have all pointed out, it really is remarkable how little attention the confirmation of David Manning's explosive prewar memo has gotten in the past week.  Here's what the New York Times reported on Monday:

Intelligence Office Has Swollen, House Panel Says  —  A bipartisan vote seeks to curb funds if further growth of the oversight agency can't be justified.  A separate bid to stem NSA funds is killed.  —  WASHINGTON — The House Intelligence Committee voted Thursday to withhold funding …

Money  —  Ah, money.  John Aravosis brings the subject up again.  A few comments on his post, which is well worth reading:  —  1. No one should be surprised that, one-on-one, politicians are really, really nice.  It's their job to be nice.  If you think about it for twenty seconds …

Army bans use of privately bought armor  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Soldiers will no longer be allowed to wear body armor other than the protective gear issued by the military, Army officials said Thursday, the latest twist in a running battle over the equipment the Pentagon gives its troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

White Guys Gone Wilding?  —  The Duke Lacrosse team rape case has really touched a nerve with me, and one of the things that bothers me most is the discrepancies between how White men's crimes and black men's crimes are covered in the popular media.  Since it is no longer politically correct …

Rice admits "thousands" of errors in Iraq  —  BLACKBURN (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accepted on Friday the United States had probably made thousands of errors in Iraq but defended the overall strategy of removing Saddam Hussein.  —  Local Muslims and anti-war activists told Rice …