Senate Republicans defy Bush over terrorism trials
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Defying President George W. Bush, a group of Senate Republicans on Wednesday said they would press ahead with legislation to try foreign terrorism suspects that the White House said would stifle CIA intelligence-gathering.

Senate GOP Pushes Bush Wiretap Bill
Under pressure from the Bush administration, Senate Republicans endorsed a White House-supported domestic wiretapping bill that would give the controversial surveillance legal status. A GOP panel stopped Democrats’ attempt to amend the bill.
Please help me out here, friends.  Why is unconstitutional wiretapping okay with GOP senators, but not unconstitutional treatment when trying us?

Army adds real soldiers to video game
Move over, G.I. Joe. The Army has found some recruits in its latest effort to enlist soldiers. In a campaign targeting teenagers, the Army announced on Thursday a new version of its “America‘s Army” video game, incorporating digital likenesses of eight actual soldiers who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Novak accuses source of distortion
Columnist Robert D. Novak, who first revealed Valerie Plame’s job with the CIA and touched off a federal investigation, is accusing his primary source of misrepresenting their conversation to make the source’s role in the disclosure seem more casual than it was.

Armitage Added To Plame Lawsuit
Richard Armitage, who admitted that he revealed CIA operative Valerie Plame’s identity to journalists, is now being sued by Plame and her husband as part of civil litigation that already includes the Vice President, Karl Rove and Scooter Libby.

Scandal-rocked House passes ethics bill
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A new Web site will tell Americans which companies win government contracts and grants under an ethics bill passed by the scandal-rocked House of Representatives on Wednesday ahead of November elections.

Congress sets up website to provide data on government spending
The House on Wednesday passed by voice vote and sent to President Bush legislation to create a website that will give people ready access to information on the $300 billion in grants issued to some 30,000 organizations annually, and the roughly 1 million contracts exceeding a $25,000 threshold.
I’ve asked OpenSecrets.org to combine this with their donations database, and give us the ability to see them side by side.

Lamont: U.S. weaker because of Iraq war
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Democrat Ned Lamont said Wednesday the U.S. is weaker because of the war in Iraq backed by rival Sen. Joe Lieberman, and he called for shifting forces to Afghanistan and elsewhere.

Va. Senate race goes negative
Virginia’s U.S. Senate race turned nasty Wednesday as Republican Sen. George Allen launched a character attack on his Democratic opponent’s past views toward women in combat, signaling the start of a two-month barrage of negative campaigning in what has become a close race.

Democrat could be 1st Muslim in Congress
MINNEAPOLIS – A state lawmaker could become the first Muslim elected to Congress after edging out three rivals Tuesday for his district’s Democratic nomination.

Princeton prof hacks e-vote machine
A Princeton University computer science professor added new fuel Wednesday to claims that electronic voting machines used across much of the country are vulnerable to hacking that could alter vote totals or disable machines.

Voting glitches continue to worry election officials
The glitches in this year’s primaries come as nearly one in three counties wrestle with new equipment upgrades mandated by the Help America Vote Act of 2002. The law was intended to fix the type of problems that plagued the 2000 presidential election.

Election glitches ‘could get ugly’
Eight weeks before elections that will decide control of Congress, a rush by state and local governments to prepare new voting machines and train poll workers is raising the possibility of trouble reminiscent of the 2000 presidential election standoff.

NBC/WSJ poll: Dems seem likely to pick up seats
An NBC/WSJ poll finds that more than half of registered voters disapprove of President Bush’s job performance, even more disagree with his handling of Iraq, and a strong plurality prefer a Congress controlled by the Democrats all suggesting that Democrats are still poised to pick up seats in the upcoming midterms.

Ex-Texas Gov. Ann Richards dies
AUSTIN, Texas – Former Gov. Ann Richards, the witty and flamboyant Democrat who went from homemaker to national political celebrity, died Wednesday night after a battle with cancer, a family spokeswoman said. She was 73.
She will be sorely missed.  I hope Molly Ivins writes a column about her.