Obama's Break With Ex-Pastor Sets Sharp Shift in Tone  —  WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Senator Barack Obama broke forcefully on Tuesday with his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., in an effort to curtail a drama of race, values, patriotism and betrayal that has enveloped his presidential candidacy at a critical juncture.

McCain offers market-based health plan  —  Proposes tax credits for individuals; critics say poor would be left behind  —  TAMPA, Fla. - Sen. John McCain on Tuesday rejected calls by his Democratic opponents for universal health coverage, instead offering a market-based solution …

Rush Calls Operation Chaos Pause  —  BEGIN TRANSCRIPT  —  RUSH: Ladies and gentlemen, I am calling an operational pause in Operation Chaos.  We have a week to figure out now what's best to do.  If your state still allows voter registration, keep that up, continue to register as a Democrat in upcoming Operation Chaos primaries.

Franken owes $70,000 in back taxes in 17 states  —  DFL U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken, frontrunner in the race to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman, owes $70,000 in back taxes in 17 states, where he earned income going back to 2003.  —  Franken on Tuesday told the Associated Press …

Foreign Law and the First Amendment  —  Late in 1941, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion which, for the first time in our history, starkly distinguished American protection of speech from that of England.  —  Two union members had been convicted of assaulting nonunion truck drivers.

DNC vs. McCain  —  Two Democratic Party TV ads hit McCain on Iraq and the economy.  We supply context and corrections.  —  The Democratic National Committee has produced two TV ads against McCain, hoping to soften him up while the party figures out who its own presidential nominee will be.

Advice for the Lovelorn  —  Dear Barry:  —  I've been married to the same wonderful man — Let's call him “Jeremiah” — for 20 years.  He's a great provider and we live in a beautiful home.  He dotes on me and treats me like a queen; even after twenty years he still brings me little gifts and opens doors for me.

Why'd Obama Join Trinity in the First Place?  —  The question is worth revisiting now that his ex-pastor is threatening his entire campaign.  —  I've heard two basic theories since the Wright tapes first surfaced in March.  The first is cynical: Obama was a black politician in Chicago …

Lurita Doan finally forced out at GSA  —  Lurita Doan, head of the General Services Administration, was forced to offer her resignation tonight, according to an e-mail she sent out this evening.  —  Doan was appointed in late May, 2006, becoming the first woman to serve as GSA Administrator.

Gas tax follies  —  I've been on the road (actually doing a public dialog with Barney Frank on financial reform), so I'm just catching up.  Anyway, John McCain has a really bad idea on gasoline, Hillary Clinton is emulating him (but with a twist that makes her plan pointless rather than evil), and Barack Obama, to his credit, says no.

View From Under The Bus (UPDATED) … Finally, I've finished listening to all of the Moyers interview and the batty NAACP address by Barack Obama's pastor of twenty years, Jeremiah Wright.  And, in addition, I rewatched that display of ego, half-truths—aka falsehoods—and mundane bad manners …

MRS GRIEVANCE  —  Steyn on People  —  Michelle, ma belle: these are words that go together well.  She looks fabulous, like a presidential spouse out of some dream movie - glossy hair, triple strand of pearls, vaguely retro suits that subtly remind you she'd be the most glamorous First Lady since Jackie Kennedy.

Food scientists say stop biofuels to fight world hunger  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Some top international food scientists Tuesday recommended halting the use of food-based biofuels, such as ethanol, saying it would cut corn prices by 20 percent during a world food crisis.