Wright's Poison  —  I guess I am late to the party, am I not?  I didn't watch Jeremiah Wright's National Press Club performance live this morning, as every other blogger seemed to.  Wright is not on the ticket of any major party, he is not Barack Obama, and I'm not going to be baited …

Democrats Divided Over Gas Tax Break  —  WASHINGTON — As angry truckers encircled the Capitol in a horn-blaring caravan and consumers across the country agonized over $60 fill-ups, the issue of high fuel prices flared on the campaign trail on Monday, sharply dividing the two Democratic candidates.

HOOK, LINE & SINKER  —  It seems the AP has fallen for the McCain campaign's and the RNC's effort to prevent anyone from using McCain's own words against him during the 2008 presidential campaign.  As noted earlier, what the McCain campaign is pushing for here is a standard …

Clinton: $2.3B in earmarks  —  Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) has requested nearly $2.3 billion in federal earmarks for 2009, almost three times the largest amount received by a single senator this year.  —  The Democratic presidential candidate's staggering request comes …

The GOP Generational Time Bomb  —  It's no secret that Republicans have a brand problem; the gap between Dem and GOP party identification is greater today than at any point since the vanguard of the Reagan revolution, when Republicans held a double-digit advantage.

McCain's Health Care Plan: It's About You  —  Here are excerpts from Sen. John McCain's speech in Tampa later today.  He will unveil his national health care policy. … More on this later.

A Victory Against Voter Fraud  —  In ruling on the constitutionality of Indiana's voter ID law - the toughest in the nation - the Supreme Court had to deal with the claim that such laws demanded the strictest of scrutiny by courts, because they could disenfranchise voters.  All nine Justices rejected that argument.

Karl Rove Gives Obama Six Pointers to Recover and Win  —  Karl Rove, writing in Newsweek, says Obama needs to recover from his recent fumbles.  He offers six tips:  — Get a new stump speech, the message in his current one has become old and tired.  — When you're on the defense …

Is an Iranian general the most powerful man in Iraq?  —  BAGHDAD — One of the most powerful men in Iraq isn't an Iraqi government official, a militia leader, a senior cleric or a top U.S. military commander or diplomat,  —  He's an Iranian general, and at times he's more influential than all of them.

Storm brewing for William Gray  —  Hurricane forecaster says his dispute with school focuses on global warming debate  —  By pioneering the science of seasonal hurricane forecasting and teaching 70 graduate students who now populate the National Hurricane Center and other research outposts …

Police looking for meth lab, find fish tank  —  Brooklyn Park police were looking for a meth lab, but they found a fish tank and the chemicals needed to maintain it.  —  And a few hours later, when the city sent a contractor to fix the door the police had smashed open Monday afternoon …