Hezbollah leader said to be hiding in Iranian Embassy  —  Intelligence reports indicate the leader of Hezbollah is hiding in a foreign mission in Beirut, possibly the Iranian Embassy, according to U.S. and Israeli officials.  —  Israeli military and intelligence forces are continuing to hunt …

Bush, Blair call for Mideast cease-fire  —  Multinational force proposed for southern Lebanon  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced Friday their support for a U.N. cease-fire resolution to end the Mideast crisis and a multinational force to stabilize southern Lebanon.

John Bolton Embarrasses a Confused Senator Kerry (Video)  —  Ambassador John Bolton totally outclassed Senator John F. Kerry in the Senate hearings on Thursday,  —  Video HERE  —  John Kerry was really no match for UN Ambassador John Bolton: … Ouch!... It's pretty painful to watch.

Utilities Pay Scientist Ally on Warming  —  WASHINGTON, July 27 — Coal-burning utilities are contributing money to one of the few remaining climate scientists openly critical of the broad consensus that fossil fuel emissions are intensifying global warming.

House GOP pressing vote on minimum wage  —  WASHINGTON - House Republican leaders, giving in to political reality, plan a vote to raise the $5.15 minimum wage before leaving Washington this weekend for a five-week recess.  —  "Whether people like it or not, we need to go ahead with it," …

Addington's Defense of Torture Continues to Crumble  —  I've read enough Kagro X posts to know to be skeptical that SCOTUS' Hamdan ruling against BushCo's will cause them to change their behavior.  Instead, I hope the Hamdan ruling will convince the individuals who carry out BushCo's torture …

Army Dismisses Gay Arabic Linguist  —  JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (AP) — A decorated sergeant and Arabic language specialist was dismissed from the U.S. Army under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, though he says he never told his superiors he was gay and his accuser was never identified.

Hizbullah launches Iranian-made missile at Afula  —  After a number of Katyusha barrages hit northern Israel over the course of the morning, an Iranian-made Fajr-5 missile landed near Afula shortly after 3:30 p.m. Friday.  This was the first time a missile of this type has been fired at Israel by Hizbullah.

Allen vs. Webb: Advantage Allen  —  Incumbent Republican Senator George Allen continues to draw support from a majority of Virginia voters in his bid for re-election to the U.S. Senate.  The latest Rasmussen Reports survey of 500 likely voters shows Allen leading Democrat James Webb 50% to 39%.

On MSNBC, Coulter called Gore a "total fag," while Matthews said "we'd love to have her back" … On the July 27 edition of MSNBC's Hardball, host Chris Matthews asked right-wing pundit Ann Coulter, "How do you know that [former President] Bill Clinton is gay?"

New Campaign Manager Faces Challenge  —  Katherine Harris' new campaign manager is an energetic young conservative best known for an anti-gay marriage initiative in Massachusetts and for bringing actor and National Rifle Association President Charlton Heston to speak at his liberal college.