Clinton Campaign Confirms Planting Town Hall Question, Says It Won't Happen Again  —  SIOUX CITY, Iowa — Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton's campaign admitted Friday that it planted a global warming question in Newton, Iowa, Tuesday during a town hall meeting to discuss clean energy.

Norman Mailer, Outspoken Novelist, Dies at 84  —  Norman Mailer, the combative, controversial and often outspoken novelist who loomed over American letters longer and larger than any writer of his generation, died today at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York.  He was 84.

Rice's Management at Issue  —  Critics Cite Blackwater, Baghdad Embassy and Passports  —  Shortly after Condoleezza Rice took charge of the 57,000-person State Department in 2005, she said she relished the challenge of "line responsibility" in leading a large organization.

Play of the Day: McCain's Mom on Mormons  —  MEREDITH, N.H. (AP) - John McCain's 95-year-old mother, in a swipe at her son's rival Mitt Romney, said Friday that Mormons were to blame for the scandal that rocked the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.  —  During an appearance on MSNBC …

AL-DURA AND THE "PUBLIC SECRET" OF MIDDLE EAST JOURNALISM  —  The evidence emerging from the ongoing Al Dura trial in France indicates that Western journalists are fully aware that some of the footage they use in their reports on the Mideast conflict is staged, charges Richard Landes.

Edwards @ John Mellencamp concert  —  It was 7 p.m. on a Friday night in Des Moines and I was driving to meet friends L, M and S at Wells Fargo Arena where I would see one of my favorite bands, Los Lobos, open for John Mellencamp.  The sound of my phone ringing pierced the interior of my car.

F.C.C. Planning Rules to Open Cable Market  —  The Federal Communications Commission is preparing to impose significant new regulations to open the cable television market to independent programmers and rival video services after determining that cable companies have become too dominant in the industry, senior commission officials said.

Recession?  What Recession?  —  If it looks like a recession and feels like a recession ...  "Quite frankly," said Senator Charles Schumer, peering over his glasses at the Fed chairman, Ben Bernanke, "I think we are at a moment of economic crisis, stemming from four key areas …

A STORY YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED, AS THE REGULAR PRESS DOESN'T COVER GOOD NEWS MUCH.  —  This post will be up top all day.  New stuff will come in below.  —  The BlogWorld Expo has been fun and useful.  And today's big post was going to be about that.  —  But not now.

Ballistic  —  NUCLEAR....John McCain offered up some criticism of Bernie Kerik yesterday for bailing out on his job training the Iraqi police, and the Giuliani campaign naturally went ballistic in response.  Rich Lowry is perturbed: … But this is just the package you get with Rudy.

Is Rahm racist, or merely scared?  —  It's got to be one or the other, because Rahm Emanuel is behind efforts to build Democratic support for the Shuler/Tancredo "enforcement-only" bill currently winding its way through the House.  —  Think about it — our House leadership is strong-arming Democrats …