Don't Run for the Border  —  America needs comprehensive immigration reform, but not a law enacted in haste.  —  It's understandable that the White House and its Senate negotiating partners want to rush through the compromise immigration bill they agreed to Thursday.

Mitt Romney leads Republicans  —  Mitt Romney has sprinted ahead of presidential competitors John McCain and Rudy Giuliani in a new Iowa Poll of likely Republican caucus participants.  —  The Des Moines Register poll shows Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, is the top choice of 30 percent …

Editorial: Why This Scandal Matters  —  As Monica Goodling, a key player in the United States attorney scandal, prepares to testify before Congress on Wednesday, the administration's strategy is clear.  It has offered up implausible excuses, hidden the most damaging evidence and feigned memory lapses …

Interviews, Going the Way of the Linotype?  —  The humble interview, the linchpin of journalism for centuries, is under assault.  —  It is a transaction that clearly favors the person asking the questions.  A print reporter writes down someone's answers, then picks and chooses how much …

'Meet the Press' transcript for May 20, 2007  —  MR. TIM RUSSERT: Our issues this Sunday: Should the United States set a firm deadline for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq?  Yes, says Democratic presidential candidate Senator Chris Dodd.  No says possible Republican presidential candidate and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

U.S. policy turnabout may enable Israel to enter talks with Syria  —  Washington has given Israel the green light to accept Syrian President Bashar Assad's call for peace talks, in a change of position accompanied by several preconditions.  —  The Bush administration has given Israel permission …

Emphasis Shifts for New Breed of Evangelicals  —  The evangelical Christian movement, which has been pivotal in reshaping the country's political landscape since the 1980s, has shifted in potentially momentous ways in recent years, broadening its agenda and exposing new fissures.

Gay Britons Serve in Military With Little Fuss, as Predicted Discord Does Not Occur  —  The officer, a squadron leader in the Royal Air Force, felt he had no choice.  So he stood up in front of his squad of 30 to 40 people.  —  "I said, 'Right, I've got something to tell you,' " he said.

Online, GOP Is Playing Catch-Up  —  When David All, a former Republican congressional aide, launched a blog recently that he hopes will spur his fellow Republicans to bridge the digital divide, he did his best to sound upbeat.  "Today our Revolution begins," he wrote.  "Tomorrow we fight."

Sawyer's Interview Focuses On Media's Obsessions With Gore, Reaffirms Thesis Of His Book  —  In his new book, The Assault on Reason, which will be released tomorrow, Al Gore explains "why logic and reason and the best evidence available and the scientific discoveries do not have more force …

Pentagon Studies Long-Term Commitment in Iraq  —  · The White House and Pentagon are under increasing pressure from Congress and the public to end U.S. military involvement in Iraq.  But the Pentagon is considering maintaining a core group of forces in Iraq, possibly for decades.

State senator rear-ends Vallejo woman while talking on cell phone  —  A Vallejo woman reportedly suffered minor injuries Friday when her car was rear-ended by an SUV driven by a state senator talking on a cell phone while driving through Solano County.  —  State Sen. Carole Migden …

Iraqi leadership's failures raise pressure on U.S.  —  Congress may push for the premier's ouster in the coming months if no progress is made toward its 'benchmarks.'  —  WASHINGTON — As Iraq's government compiles a record of failure, the Bush administration is under growing pressure …

Chronicle to cut 25% of jobs in newsroom  —  To cut costs and try to adapt to a changing media marketplace, The Chronicle will trim 25 percent of its newsroom staff by the end of the summer.  —  "This is one of the biggest one-time hits we've heard about anywhere in the country," …

Carter says comments were 'careless'  —  The former president backs down from criticism of the White House  —  Former President Jimmy Carter is backing off his remark this weekend that the Bush administration's foreign policy "has been the worst in history," telling TODAY during …

Getting in Deeper...  Another week reveals more lapses in judgment by the Bush team  —  For months, congressional Democrats have tried to force embattled Attorney General Alberto Gonzales out of his job by using what one congressional source called "conventional weapons"-incriminating E-mails …