Building a Coalition, Forgetting to Rule  —  AS a political strategist, Karl Rove offered a brilliant answer to the wrong question.  —  The question he answered so successfully was a political one: How could Republicans win elections after Bill Clinton steered the Democrats to the center?

Gonzales could get say in states' executions  —  Proposed rules would let the attorney general sign off on 'fast tracking' death penalty appeals.  —  WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is putting the final touches on regulations that could give Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales important …

Obama leaves some wanting a little more  —  NASHUA - U.S. Sen. Barack Obama's surging presidential campaign is reaching a critical mass in that voters want to hear more.  —  As a self-described, "hope monger,'' the Illinois Democrat's optimistic call for systemic change on health care …

Elizabeth Edwards Unplugged  —  ABC News' Sunlen Miller Reports: In an interview in August's edition of The Progressive magazine, Elizabeth Edwards, wife of former Senator John Edwards, D-N.C., takes candid shots at the other candidates battling for the Democratic nomination against her husband.

For Top General in Iraq, Role Is a Mixed Blessing  —  BAGHDAD — Gen. David H. Petraeus looked out from a Black Hawk helicopter at the vistas of Baghdad rushing by 150 feet below on a recent summer evening, pointing at bustling markets, amusement parks and soccer fields scattered through neighborhoods …

Hillary Chooses States Rights Over Gay Rights  —  During last week's historic gay debate, Hillary Clinton dredged up the old states rights argument when justifying her opposition to gay marriage.  Apparently she thinks that the second class citizenship of gays and lesbians is a matter for the states to decide.

Our Lives, Controlled From Some Guy's Couch  —  Until I talked to Nick Bostrom, a philosopher at Oxford University, it never occurred to me that our universe might be somebody else's hobby.  I hadn't imagined that the omniscient, omnipotent creator of the heavens and earth could be an advanced version …

Clinton's first-lady records locked up  —  Archivists say the documents at her husband's presidential library won't be released until after the '08 vote.  —  LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton cites her experience as a compelling reason voters should make her president …

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Gotham)  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) - He's a veteran statesman and hard-hitting chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.  But Sen. Patrick Leahy is set to leave the marble halls of Washington for the bright lights of Hollywood — at least briefly.

Lawsuits May Illuminate Methods of Spy Program  —  In 2003, Room 641A of a large telecommunications building in downtown San Francisco was filled with powerful data-mining equipment for a "special job" by the National Security Agency, according to a former AT&T technician.

Source Disclosure Ordered in Anthrax Suit  —  Five reporters must reveal their government sources for stories they wrote about Steven J. Hatfill and investigators' suspicions that the former Army scientist was behind the deadly anthrax attacks of 2001, a federal judge ruled yesterday.

Going After Blue Dogs: A Question for You  —  I've been kicking around the idea with Chris that we should raise the costs of bad decision-making on things like FISA, or when they fold to Republicans on the supplemental or (insert fight here).  —  It's not much to put up some google ads criticizing …

Mattel recalls 9 million toys in U.S.  —  BETHESDA, Maryland (CNN) — Toymaker Mattel is voluntarily recalling 9 million of its toys in the United States including popular characters such as Batman, Barbie, Polly Pockets and a toy from Pixar's "Cars" movie because of hazards to children …