In Ex-Aide's Testimony, A Spin Through VP's PR  —  Memo to Tim Russert: Dick Cheney thinks he controls you.  —  This delicious morsel about the "Meet the Press" host and the vice president was part of the extensive dish Cathie Martin served up yesterday when the former Cheney communications director took …

Troops Authorized to Kill Iranian Operatives in Iraq  —  Administration Strategy Stirs Concern Among Some Officials  —  The Bush administration has authorized the U.S. military to kill or capture Iranian operatives inside Iraq as part of an aggressive new strategy to weaken Tehran's influence across …

Groups Head to Capital to Step Up Antiwar Drive  —  Tens of thousands of demonstrators are set to arrive in the capital this weekend for a major antiwar march, staging the first of several protests intended to persuade the new Democratic-controlled Congress to do more than simply speak against President Bush's Iraq policy.

Iraq Leader and Sunni Officials in Clash on Security  —  Iraq's Shiite prime minister and Sunni lawmakers hurled insults at one another during a raucous session of Parliament on Thursday, with the prime minister threatening a Sunni lawmaker with arrest and the Sunni speaker of Parliament threatening to quit.

Secrecy Is at Issue in Suits Opposing Spy Program  —  The Bush administration has employed extraordinary secrecy in defending the National Security Agency's highly classified domestic surveillance program from civil lawsuits.  Plaintiffs and judges' clerks cannot see its secret filings.

DAVOS-U.S. invasion was "idiot decision"-Iraq vice president  —  Source: Reuters  —  The U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 was an "idiot decision" and Iraqi troops now need to secure Baghdad to ensure the country's future, Vice-President Adel Abdul Mahdi said on Thursday.

Jimmy Carter: Too many Jews on Holocaust council  —  Former president also rejected Christian historian because name sounded 'too Jewish'  —  TEL AVIV - Former President Jimmy Carter once complained there were "too many Jews" on the government's Holocaust Memorial Council, Monroe Freedman …

Pelosi Says She Wasn't Consulted On Iraq  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said yesterday that President George W. Bush did not consult her before announcing his new strategy for the war in Iraq — a sign that, despite the cozy rhetoric, the relationship between Washington's two powerhouses has already had its share of friction.

Hagel Ponders White House Run As War Criticism Raises His Profile  —  His Republican colleagues regard him warily.  The White House barely speaks to him.  He is reviled by his party's conservative base.  —  Looks as though Sen. Chuck Hagel is on a roll.  —  Both parties have their Iraq war contrarians.

Rockefeller: Cheney applied 'constant' pressure to stall investigation on flawed Iraq intelligence  —  WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney exerted "constant" pressure on the Republican former chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee to stall an investigation into the Bush administration's use …

Sharpton Goes to Washington to Talk to Party's '08 Hopefuls  —  The Rev. Al Sharpton, a man who says he knows a well-tailored suit from a fake, went to the United States Senate on Thursday to do some comparison shopping, meeting separately with four Democrats who are seeking the 2008 presidential nomination to discuss civil rights.

R.I. School Bans Talking at Lunch  —  WARWICK, R.I. (AP) — Class, from now on there will be no talking at lunch.  —  A Roman Catholic elementary school adopted new lunchroom rules this week requiring students to remain silent while eating.  The move comes after three recent choking incidents in the cafeteria.

Does Anyone Else Detect a Trend?  —  Read through the last couple or three weeks of posts at B5 and Mudville, and one might get the impression that something good is afoot.  Without sounding too optimistic, I'm sure there must be a reason for the progress we are seeing in Iraq, and …

Ginsburg 'lonely' without O'Connor  —  The remaining female justice fears message sent by court composition  —  WASHINGTON — It's been a year since Sandra Day O'Connor retired from the Supreme Court after a quarter-century tenure and left Ruth Bader Ginsburg as the lone woman on the nine-member court.

Pardon Scandal Still Looms for Sen. Clinton's Brother  —  Maddy Sauer Reports:  —  A court-appointed bankruptcy trustee asked a federal judge this week to schedule a new court date in a case against Tony Rodham, the brother of Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., accused of failing to repay $109,000 …