Democrats link pet causes to troop plan  —  WASHINGTON - Democrats seeking votes for their Iraq-withdrawal plan have stuffed the bill it's in with billions of dollars for farms, flu preparedness, New Orleans levees, home heating and other causes.  —  Some critics say the Democrats are simply …

McCain goes over to the dark side  —  John McCain goes over to the dark side  —  'THIS IS NOT Luke Skywalker here," said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), discussing his friend and Senate colleague John McCain's second run for the presidency. "  This is a totally different campaign.

General Eaton: "Republican Congress worst thing that's happened to US Army and Marine Corps"  —  Friday night on Real Time, Bill Maher interviewed retired Army Major General Paul D. Eaton who was the original Commander in charge of training Iraqi troops.  Maher tries to get a laugh …

F.B.I. Head Admits Mistakes in Use of Security Act  —  Bipartisan outrage erupted on Friday on Capitol Hill as Robert S. Mueller III, the F.B.I. director, conceded that the bureau had improperly used the USA Patriot Act to obtain information about people and businesses.

Meltdown over Fox  —  Network co-sponsors state Democratic debate — oh my!  —  Hard-core liberals can't stand the Fox News Channel.  Passing a television that's tuned to the conservative favorite forces many of them to close their eyes, cover their ears and scream, "La la la la la la la la la!"

Dangerous Ruling  —  IN OVERTURNING the District of Columbia's long-standing ban on handguns yesterday, a federal appeals court turned its back on nearly 70 years of Supreme Court precedent to give a new and dangerous meaning to the Second Amendment.  If allowed to stand …

Privatized Walter Reed Workforce Gets Scrutiny  —  Army Facility Lost Dozens Of Maintenance Workers  —  The scandal over treatment of outpatients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center has focused attention on the Army's decision to privatize the facilities support workforce at the hospital …

AGAIN, MADRID has taken to the streets in protest against Zapatero's anti-terror policies:  —  The rally is organized by the conservative Popular Party, now in opposition, and follow 65 smaller demonstrations across the country's cities yesterday evening.  They're all against Zapatero's decision …

Kopel: Coulter and Campos: Two sides of the same coin  —  One's right, one's left, but both often too shrill  —  They seem like opposites: she's tall, blond and right-wing; he's short, balding and left-wing.  Yet both are extremely intelligent weekly columnists with a gift for turning a clever phrase.

Bush and Chávez Spar at Distance Over Latin Visit  —  SÃO PAULO, Brazil, March 9 — President Bush began the first full day of his weeklong trip to Latin America here on Friday promising job-creating aid but ended up competing for attention with President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela …

Europe agrees to embrace nuclear option in battle to save the planet  —  David Charter and Rory Watson, Brussels  —  The role of nuclear power in Europe received an unexpected boost yesterday as EU leaders hailed a landmark climate change deal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and switch to renewable fuels.

The Saturday Cartoons  —  All cartoons are posted with the artists' express permission to BobGeiger.com.  Please visit the following sites to see more work from these fine cartoonists:  —  Nick Anderson, Houston Chronicle  —  Tony Auth, The Philadelphia Inquirer  —  Justin Bilicki, City Pulse

Reports of Progress In Iraq Challenged  —  Critics Cite Administration's Past Rhetoric  —  President Bush on Tuesday cited "encouraging signs" of military and political progress in Iraq as his new strategy gets underway.  On Wednesday, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice noted that "things are going reasonably well."

The 301 Dalmatians  —  Armed Liberal at Winds of Change is planning to watch the movie 300 and, reading the reviews, was horrified to discover that "Kenneth Turan of the LA Times was the only one who 'got' the historical context of Thermopylae".  Could it be?