FBI Says Jefferson Was Filmed Taking Cash  —  Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-La.), the target of a 14-month public corruption probe, was videotaped accepting $100,000 in $100 bills from a Northern Virginia investor who was wearing an FBI wire, according to a search warrant affidavit released yesterday.

Days of Rage  —  John McCain and Joe Lieberman feel the wrath of the antiwar left.  —  Two events last Friday speak volumes about the direction of modern liberal politics, and it's not an encouraging trend, especially if you're a Democrat who wants to take back the White House.

Prosecution of Journalists Is Possible in NSA Leaks  —  Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales raised the possibility yesterday that New York Times journalists could be prosecuted for publishing classified information based on the outcome of the criminal investigation underway into leaks …

Iraqi Vows 'Maximum Force' to End Attacks  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) — Iraq's new prime minister promised Sunday to use ''maximum force'' if necessary to end the brutal insurgent and sectarian violence wracking the country, while a suicide bomber killed more than a dozen people at a restaurant in downtown Baghdad.

Elections Are Crux Of GOP's Strategy  —  Bush Aides Look to Midterm Vote as Way to Reverse Slide  —  Confronting the worst poll numbers seen in the West Wing since his father went down to defeat, President Bush and his team are focusing on the fall midterm elections as the best chance …

Rove Lawyer Has a Pet Peeve  —  Robert Luskin, Karl Rove's lawyer, says he spent most of the day on May 12 taking his cat to the veterinarian and having a technician fix his computer at home.  —  He was stunned, therefore, when journalists started calling to ask about an online report …

LISTENING IN  —  A few days before the start of the confirmation hearings for General Michael Hayden, who has been nominated by President Bush to be the head of the C.I.A., I spoke to an official of the National Security Agency who recently retired.  The official joined the N.S …

Libby Prosecutor Focuses on CIA Officer's Status  —  Filings Say Ex-Cheney Aide Knew That Plame Was Classified, Giving Him Reason to Lie to Grand Jury  —  The classified status of the identity of former CIA officer Valerie Plame will be a key element in any trial of I. Lewis "Scooter" …

Al Gore's Unlikely Helpers  —  Liberals famously love John McCain, but that's not the weirdest political coupling.  The oil industry and its Republican allies are rooting for Al Gore, albeit unintentionally.  —  Gore stars in a movie that opens this week in New York and Los Angeles.

More than 230 terror suspects free to stay in Britain  —  MORE than 230 foreigners identified by MI5 and Scotland Yard as suspected terrorists have been allowed to stay in Britain as asylum seekers.  —  Home Office records show that nearly a quarter of the 963 people arrested …

Fox, What Fox?  New Press Secretary Changes Channels  —  WASHINGTON — Reporters en route to Arizona on Air Force One last week opted to watch the movie "King Kong" in the press cabin.  Not so Tony Snow, the new White House press secretary and former Fox News commentator …

Loose lips sink ships  —  TRIBUNE-REVIEW  —  When is it OK to sacrifice national security for personal gain or political one-upmanship?  —  For the common-sense-challenged, the answer is: "Never."  —  In the years since Sept. 11, an odd assembly of Capitol Hill-types …