TN-SEN: Corker Radio Ad Has Tom-Tom Drums During Mentions Of Ford  —  Okay, so Election Central has just obtained a radio ad which you've got to hear: It actually has what sounds like tom-tom drums playing in the background every time the ad talks about Dem Harold Ford, Jr. The ad …

Press Conference by the President  —  THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all very much.  I'm going to spend a little more time on my opening comments than I usually do, but I'll save plenty of time for questions.  —  Over the past three years I have often addressed the American people to explain developments in Iraq.

New Jersey court recognizes right to same-sex unions  —  TRENTON, New Jersey (AP) — New Jersey's Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that same-sex couples are entitled to the same rights as heterosexual couples.  —  But the court left it to the Legislature to determine whether the state …

Michael J. Fox ads for Democrats spark backlash  —  NEW YORK (AP) — The campaign ad opens with a familiar boyish face, now atop a body that sways uncontrollably.  Michael J. Fox, wearing a shirt and suit jacket, talks directly to the camera.  —  "They say all politics is local …

Federal Rules Back Single-Sex Public Education  —  The Bush administration is giving public school districts broad new latitude to expand the number of single-sex classes, and even schools, in what is widely considered the most significant policy change on the issue since …

Lieberman Often Repeated Key White House Phrase  —  Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut has used the phrase "stay the course" several times in discussing the war in Iraq in recent years, echoing a key phrase of the White House, contrary to an article published Tuesday in The New York Times.

Insult to Injury in Iraq  —  It's been coming for a long time: the idea that fixing Iraq is the Iraqis' problem, not ours — that we've done all we can and now it's up to them.  —  Such arguments have been latent in the Bush administration's Iraq strategy and explicit in Democratic critiques of that strategy for some time.

For Governor in Maryland  —  WHEN HE RAN for governor of Maryland four years ago, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s claim to the job seemed to rest on little more than a sense of entitlement and a telegenic, genial personality.  In fits and starts, though, he has grown in the role to become a generally proficient …

Muslim leader blames women for sex attacks  —  THE nation's most senior Muslim cleric has blamed immodestly dressed women who don't wear Islamic headdress for being preyed on by men and likened them to abandoned "meat" that attracts voracious animals.  —  In a Ramadan sermon …

The Hard Way Out  —  'Victory' Collides With Reality in Iraq  —  Some months ago, former national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski was explaining to a senior Bush administration official his plan for a phased withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq over 12 months, in consultation with the Iraqis.

CNN Terrorist Outreach  —  Much has been written about CNN's decision last week to run portions of a video provided to the news network via a group identified by CNN as "the Islamic Army of Iraq."  —  This video, shot by the insurgent groups as propaganda for the Muslim world …

Venezuelan's Diatribe at U.N. May Have Backfired  —  Venezuela's populist leader, Hugo Chávez, earned giggles and guffaws at the United Nations last month with his mass appeal diatribe ridiculing President Bush as the devil.  Mr. Chávez said he could still smell the telltale scent …

Best of the Web  —  Our item yesterday in which we reaffirmed our support for the liberation of Iraq brought some very interesting reader comments.  This is from an American there who asks not to be named: … Reader Russ Daniel makes an interesting point about the media side of the war:

A Congressional Endorsement  —  The most fundamental rule of democracy is that when elected officials fail repeatedly, voters throw them out of office.  If the polls are anywhere near accurate, most Americans have concluded that the Republican Party — particularly the Republican majority …